Z/Web

A couple weeks ago I bought the book Getting Things Done and I have been hard at work since putting its ideas into practice. A key concept of the book is you must get your entire life in order: you cannot leave “open loops” of things unfinished. So my first task has been a mammoth one: sort and process the hundreds of boxes of stuff I have in my garage and house that I never unpacked from my move to Oregon two years ago. Much of that stuff was in boxes in storage while I was in California and it’s stuff I haven’t gone through in decades. I never had the time (or took the time) to sort through everything in the past and just moved it, and of course that’s been a huge open loop for me, always feeling like “someday” I needed to get around to sorting through things and getting organized. So for the past two weeks I’ve been working. I moved my office (swapped it with the spare bedroom) which is a zillion times better and makes much more sense structurally. The new office is larger and can double as a spare bedroom if needed, which is awesome. It’s also organized from scratch to fit my work needs, with places for all my office supplies, storage, files, and more. Everything is organized and labeled. For instance, I used to have four 11x17 boxes of nothing but cables and cords all jumbled and tangled together. We’re talking A/V cables, computer cords, electric cables, phone wiring, you name it. So I literally wrapped up every single cable with zip ties and filed them each in their own labeled plastic box (over a dozen of them). Now I can actually find an extension cord or USB cable when I need it!

Among other tasks, I have installed new shelving, new ceiling light fixtures, and bought and installed new shelving units in the garage. It’s been a long two weeks. I’ve been physically exhausted and tired — I haven’t done so much manual labor in years. But it’s healthy: I feel my psyche relaxing and being healed from all the stress and chaos I’ve put it through for years being so disorganized and carrying such a huge burden. I’m still not done: a few more boxes in the garage to process, a garage sale to do, and a few rooms in the house that are not quite purged of clutter yet, but I’m getting very close. I am not kidding when I say that I’ve accomplished more in the past two weeks than I have in the past two years. It’s amazing and I feel good. Next I need to use the principles of GTD to establish some organization routines for my daily life and work, create a filing system, and then actually start getting some real work done. It’s been a sacrifice to get here, but I am confident it will pay off. I’ll be more organized and able to concentrate, keep up with my projects, keep all the projects moving, and I’ve no doubt I’ll be inspired and more creative. I’ll also live without guilt and be able to relax and enjoy life instead of my subconscious worrying and nagging me about things left undone.