Know Thyself. Lisa Lawmaster Hess

things because their “stuff” is important to them; and

      • have so much stuff that they often run out of places to put everything.

      While the simple solution to a pragmatic, naturally organized person (like Zane’s dad, Evan) would be to just get rid of some of the stuff, this is extremely difficult for an I love stuff person. And forcing the issue, as Evan has on several occasions, only seems to make Zane more determined to hang on to his precious possessions. Each item, it seems, has a story.

      On the other hand, I need to see it kids like Isabelle

      • leave things out so they’ll remember to do them;

      • hate to put things away because they fear that out of sight will mean out of mind; and

      • replace “to-do” lists with “to-get-to” piles.

      What looks like disorganized piles to a Type A organizer is actually a system — sort of — for someone with an I need to see it personal style.

      And Gemma? She’s evidence that these styles don’t just apply to kids. I love to be busy people like Gemma

      • thrive on hectic schedules;

      • struggle to manage their things as well as they manage their time; and

      • become inundated with stuff because they haven’t found or made the time to put things where they belong – if such a place exists.

      But personal styles are only half the equation. Now that we’ve looked at Zane, Isabelle, and Gemma’s personal styles, let’s look a little further to see if we can uncover their organizational styles.

      Gemma decides that she can make quick work of the office, which is less cluttered than the kids’ rooms. Gathering up all her folders and piles from the week, she opens one of her desk drawers, but she can’t fit everything inside. Setting aside the thickest folder, which has her notes from Bible study, she slides everything else into the drawer, then looks around the room for somewhere to put the final folder. A glance at the open closet reveals space on one of the shelves, so she hastily stashes the folder there, closes the door, and surveys the space. One room down. Gemma’s organizational style? I know I put it somewhere.

      Back in Zane’s room, Gemma must admit that the room looks better than it did earlier in the week. Zane had invited a friend over, and desperate to find two specific toys, he’d torn his room apart, dumping the animal hammocks and digging through containers. By the time he’d remembered that Gemma had given him a plastic container to put them in the last time they’d cleaned the room, the floor was littered with animals. When Gemma saw Zane’s room, she laid down the law: no play date until the room was put back together. Not wanting to turn away his friend, Zane quickly stuffed the animals back into their hammocks and shoved everything else into drawers and under his bed. Zane’s organizational style is cram and jam.

      That same evening, Isabelle wanted to finish sketches she’d started several months earlier; she hoped the director might consider them as part of the set for the musical. Isabelle checked the sketches on her bulletin board but found only one of the drawings. She pulled it down and repinned the rest of the sketches back onto the bulletin board before attacking the piles on her desk. Pushing aside a pile of half-read books, Isabelle uncovered her sketchbook, but the drawings she wanted weren’t inside. Frustrated, she took her mother’s advice to retrace her steps. Picking up her book bag from the middle of the floor where she’d dropped it earlier in the day, Isabelle pulled out folders, notebooks, journals, and books. When she found the sketches tucked into a folder with her rehearsal schedule, she remembered that she’d taken them with her to rehearsal. Leaving her open backpack on the floor with its contents scattered beside it, Isabelle sat down at her desk to work on her sketches. Isabelle’s organizational style is drop and run.

      Despite their struggles, Zane, Isabelle, and Gemma are more organized than they seem. They simply need to learn to use their default actions (dropping and running, for example) as clues, and transform them into organizational concepts they can use consistently. As with the personal styles, the first step is to identify the style that’s at work and look at the traits that go with it.

      I know I put it somewhere people like Gemma

      • may look organized, but struggle to find what they need when they need it;

      • are likely to have a wide variety of unrelated things stashed together;

      • organize by putting things in the place that is most convenient at the moment, rather than in a logical place; and

      • lack a system and/or fail to establish consistent homes for their belongings.

      Cram and jam kids like Zane

      • cram things into any available open space, and jam things into spaces that are already overcrowded;

      • lack an understanding of the concept of “full”;

      • rarely have an organizational system, unless it’s for things that are extremely important to them; and

      • may look organized — until you open up the closets and look inside the drawers.

      Drop and run kids like Isabelle

      • put things down instead of away;

      • are unlikely to utilize systems that require multiple steps;

      • can often find things where they last used them; and

      • often need to retrace their steps to locate misplaced items.

      Do any of the descriptions sound familiar? Take a look at the chart below and decide where you think you fit, choosing one description from the top row and one from the bottom row. Then, take the quiz on the next page to see if you can narrow things down.

       Personal and Organizational Styles Quiz

      Mark each item below as true or false.

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1. You participate in so many activities that you have something to do nearly every night.	T	F
2. The only way you remember to bring things with you when you leave the house is to leave them out where you’re likely to trip over them.	T	F
3. At least one closet, dresser, or other space in your home has a number of items you no longer really need but can’t seem to get rid of.	T	F
4. Your house looks neat, yet you struggle to find what you need when you need it.	T	F
5. No matter how neat your papers are when you put them away, they always seem to end up wrinkled and/or torn.	T	F
6. One look at your workspace, bed, counter, or floor reveals evidence of everything you’ve done in the last few days.	T	F
7. Though you’ve tried, you rarely manage to put papers in the rings of three-ring binders or the pockets of pocket folders.	T	F