What Are the Benefits of Being Better Organized?

The average person wastes $3,000 a year on disorganization. That's a lot of pocket change! Getting better organized can save you time, money and stress.

Read on for more of the benefits of being better organized -- and the hidden costs of putting up with unnecessary clutter and chaos.

Organizing Is Economical

Disorganization costs you money. Some professionals estimate that the cost of disorganization may be as much as 20% of your household budget. Others have estimated the costs to be as much as $3,000 a year.

Where do these costs come from? Think of the times you've had to buy something you knew you had, but just couldn't find. Or how many times have you brought something home and found one or two already in the cupboard? What about the food we throw out because we overlooked it in our refrigerators?

Sometimes, disorganization forces us into crisis mode leading to last-minute shopping at premium prices.

Other costs from disorganization come from late fees, finance charges and rush handling fees on misplaced bills. And if "time is money," the time spent unnecessarily hunting for the things we own is money down the drain.

Getting Better Organized Saves Time

I really believe that people today have less free time. Most of us are juggling multiple responsibilities at home, at work, and in the community. Organization has become an essential skill for keeping our heads above water.

Here are just some of the ways that being better organized can save you time:

1. An organized home or office enables you to find things in 30 seconds or less. That's a huge improvement over the time it takes to dig through piles of stuff in search of something.
2. Getting better organized enables you to get control of your schedule. You'll be on top of what you have to do. You'll get more done. And you'll get it done more quickly.
3. A more organized schedule will help you find more free time to spend enjoying the company of family and friends.
4. Organizing your time will also prevent procrastination. If you've got personal or professional goals, you'll realize them more quickly by being organized.
5. A clutter-free, organized home is easier to clean. You won't have to move around clutter, and putting things away will be a snap.
   
   

An Organized Life is Less Stressful

For most people, this is probably a familiar experience: you're rushing out the door to get somewhere on time and can't find something you need. Maybe it's an invitation you have to get in the mail, or your to-do list, or an important office document.

The longer you look, the more the stress builds. And the more stressed you are, the less attentive you'll be to your environment -- making the search that much harder.

Or perhaps you've been on the phone with your credit card company or the doctor's office and can't put your finger on that recent bill -- the reason you called them in the first place.

Modern life is stressful enough without letting disorganization add to it. Be nice to yourself by resolving to get better organized at home and at work.

Organizing Improves Business Productivity

According to Smead, maker of a variety of filing and organizing products, 80% of the cost of a filing system is in the time it takes to file and retrieve documents.

Let's say one employee spends an extra five minutes each hour looking for documents in an inefficient filing system. Over the course of a day, that's 40 minutes. In a week, that filing system has wasted over 3 hours of that employee's time. Multiply that by 50 work weeks and your business has lost over 18 days of productive work -- and from just one employee.

If you can't find an item in 30 seconds, it's in the wrong place.