Optimize your productivity with this science-based hack

It seems some people always need to have a neat and tidy workspace. A place for everything and everything in its place, right? Then, other folks thrive working under piles of papers and books. That’s the image of the stereotypical professor for sure.

I seem to bounce back and forth between the extremes. Maybe that’s the norm for most people, I’m not sure, but lately I have definitely tipped the scales towards messy. I have a corner in our laundry room with a desk. It used to have a sewing machine on it, until my nine year old moved it to her desk. In her defense, mine was so messy she couldn’t even sew on it, so it’s better in her space anyway. I really couldn’t focus here, or even find a spot for my little laptop! So, this past weekend, I set out to organize my space. As I’m focusing more seriously on my business, I desperately need a dedicated workspace. 

This is what my desk space has looked like for months, and I needed to make a change or I just wasn’t going to be able to be productive in the ways I needed right now.

As I was moving piles of accumulated stuff, I began to wonder if there was anything psychological going on. Were some folks wired to prefer mess and others clean? Are there benefits to one work style versus another? Turns out there is is!

Researchers from the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Business found benefits to both habits. In a study published in Psychological Science, researchers conducted three separate experiments and each showed that people behave differently depending on the state of their surroundings. A more orderly environment seemed to activate a mind-set of following convention whereas a disorderly environment promoted unconventional thinking and acting.

A messy space promotes creative thinking and unconventional new ideas.

An organized space helps your mind focus on order and expectations.

Amazing! No wonder I felt the urge to organize my little office space. My to-do list this week is definitely geared heavily towards linear, task-oriented items associated with setting up a small business. They are not creative tasks, but rather things like automating the newsletter mailing list and formatting the website. I needed order in my space to get these things accomplished. 

All clean and orderly! I’m sitting behind that desk as I write this post. I’m not saying it won’t get messy again, because it most certainly will, but I’ll use that chaos to my advantage when I need to spark a little creativity!