What is Your Style of Organization?

What is your style of organization? Do you see yourself in any of the following descriptions?

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Styles of Managing Space

  • Everything out – You work best when everything is out in front of you. To you, it feels like a waste of time to put things away in drawers and closets when you are going to use it again soon.
  • Nothing Out – You hate to see clutter so you put things away. A clear space makes you feel as though you are in control.
  • Right Angler – You confuse neatness with organization. You believe that you are getting organized when you pile things into perfect stacks.
  • Pack Rat – You save things because you might need them someday. Is it really that you don’t know what to do with it?
  • Slob – You are chronically disorganized but don’t really think it’s important to make a change.

Styles of Managing Time

  • Hopper – You work on several tasks at the same time. But you jump from one to another without ever completing any of them.
  • Perfectionist Plus – You get very involved in doing everything right, to the point of in-completion  You are seldom satisfied with your results.
  • Allergic to Detail – You are great at formulating plans. Often start projects, but don’t follow through to the end.
  • Fence Sitter – You have trouble making decisions, so tend to leave things to chance. You often worry about whether you made the right decision.
  • Cliff Hanger – You thrive on the excitement of waiting until the last minute. You sometimes need outside pressure to complete a task.
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Janet Schiesl

Janet Schiesl

Janet has been organizing since 2005. She is a Certified Professional Organizer and the owner of Basic Organization.

She loves using her background as a space planner to challenge her clients to look at their space differently. She leads the team in large projects and works one-on-one with clients to help the process move quickly and comfortably. Call her crazy, but she loves to work with paper, to purge what is not needed and to create filing systems that work for each individual client.

Janet is a Past Board Member of the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals and a Past President of the Washington DC Chapter of NAPO were she has been named Organizer of the Year and Volunteer of the Year.

Janet Schiesl

Janet Schiesl

Janet has been organizing since 2005. She is a Certified Professional Organizer and the owner of Basic Organization.

She loves using her background as a space planner to challenge her clients to look at their space differently. She leads the team in large projects and works one-on-one with clients to help the process move quickly and comfortably. Call her crazy, but she loves to work with paper, to purge what is not needed and to create filing systems that work for each individual client.

Janet is a Past Board Member of the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals and a Past President of the Washington DC Chapter of NAPO were she has been named Organizer of the Year and Volunteer of the Year.

18 Comments

  1. Diane Quintana on May 2, 2022 at 8:37 am

    Love these lists, Janet! I can see many of my clients in several of your descriptions. Lists like this are great because they make you stop and think – where do I fit? Maybe you do a little of this and a little of that. I know I do from time to time.

    • Janet Schiesl on May 2, 2022 at 7:54 pm

      I think people can be a mix, but it’s good to identify what type you may be.

  2. Jonda Beattie on May 2, 2022 at 9:43 am

    Great lists! I would like to add one to styles of managing time – Good enough!
    While I saw many of my clients in the time management section, I did not see myself. I work on one project at a time and then stop when it is “Good enough” for now.

    • Janet Schiesl on May 2, 2022 at 7:55 pm

      I love that Jonda. I never thought about how you describe your style.

  3. Sabrina Quairoli on May 2, 2022 at 10:57 am

    I love these style titles! Thanks for sharing. I see many of my clients, myself, and my family in these style types. =)

  4. Seana Turner on May 2, 2022 at 11:32 am

    I think I am an “everything in” person, with a few key/strategic items out. Love that “right angler,” though. I see that a lot.

    In terms of time management, I’m not sure I fit any of these perfectly. I sort of think of myself as a “pre-crastinator.” If a task needs to be completed, I can’t relax until I’ve taken care of it LOL!

    • Janet Schiesl on May 2, 2022 at 7:57 pm

      Sounds like you are type A for time management.
      I am also an everything in person too.

  5. Linda Samuels on May 2, 2022 at 12:43 pm

    These are interesting terms and definitions. I’m guessing that people tend to be a combination of categories and not necessarily one type. I was taken aback reading the term “Slob,” and especially how it was defined. Someone who is chronically disorganized is deeply challenged by the organizing piece in their life. However, there are many ways that manifests and reasons why it’s happening. Also, many who are challenged by disorganization DO want to make a change, but need help to discover alternate ways to organize in a way that works for how they think.

    • Janet Schiesl on May 2, 2022 at 8:01 pm

      I often have clients that describe themselves as slobs. I know that is a derogatory term. Some are chronically disorganized, but some are not. It’s just how they define themselves. I try to meet them where they are.

  6. Susan Weber on May 2, 2022 at 5:27 pm

    Janet, this list of definitions of space and time management styles is clear and concise. Many of my clients fall into these categories…and I love the style types you came up with.

    • Janet Schiesl on May 2, 2022 at 8:02 pm

      Thanks Susan. I heard all of these descriptions from clients themselves.

  7. Lisa Gessert on May 3, 2022 at 7:47 am

    Janet this is terrific I am a big fan of personality assessments and doing things that match it!

  8. Janet Barclay on May 3, 2022 at 11:27 am

    I’m somewhere between “everything out” and “nothing out.” I don’t like having things on my desk that I’m not currently working on, but have been known to leave things out so I don’t forget to deal with them. For example, I currently have a check on my desk which I need to take to the bank and deposit. It’s too small to make a special trip worthwhile, but I don’t want to forget to take it the next time I’m going that way.

    • Janet Schiesl on May 3, 2022 at 12:37 pm

      Hi Janet. I have some kind-of inboxes on my wall, next to my desk. They are labeled for the days of the week. (I used to be a paper person.) When I have something, like your check, I decide what day I will do the task and put it into that day’s inbox. That way it’s off my desk. I also don’t like anything on my desk that could distract me. Right now I have my laptop, another monitor, a keyboard and my phone. All the technology I need.

  9. Julie Bestry on May 4, 2022 at 3:19 am

    Oh, I recognize all of these in myself and my clients! I’m a combination when it comes to physical things. I want my work resources (like books or clippings to prep for writing, my calendar for responding to Zoom requests, etc., all within reach while I’m working. But when I’ve crossed the time boundary from work day to personal time, I want everything put away, or at least I’m a right angler, with all of my category-specific notepads (client notes, marketing, financials) and files neatly stacked where they’ll be accessible but not untidy.

    For time, I’m much more unified. I am close to a Perfectionist Plus. “Good enough” is hard for me. I plan my time carefully, and when I’m working, I’m very focused (and frustrated my interruptions).

    • Janet Schiesl on May 4, 2022 at 7:17 am

      It’s interesting how everyone is identifying themselves in the comments. I guess we all want to know what we are.
      I think most people are a mix of types.

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