Everything in its (cyber)place

31 July 2009

The adage may seem tired, but it’s true. To maintain order, you need to:

1. have a place for everything and then
2. put everything in its place.

I do pretty darn well with step 1. But I’ve always had trouble with step 2. That means I usually have to scramble to put stuff away if I’m expecting guests. But the messiness is really on the surface (for the most part), so tidying up doesn’t take too long. (Of course, having a place for everything is difficult if you have more stuff than you can store…that’s when decluttering comes into play.)

Today, I had a flash. I have the same problem with my computer that I have with my house. I have a nasty habit of not putting stuff away in my computer. I stated thinking about it as my beloved MacBook was behaving truly sluggishly, which was stressing me out, because I was trying to get something done.

So I decided to reboot. And I realized that rebooting itself would be a time-consuming venture because I had (and I’m not kidding) 21 applications running. And to make matters (much) worse, I had more than 50 windows open in my main browser, Camino. It’s amazing the poor computer could function at all, I was demanding so much of it.

My problem is that I’m always clicking on links, which open new browser windows. And when I finish reading I don’t close them. And if I open a program, I usually don’t close when I’m finished, just in case I need it again (a silly concern). There’s a pretty easy solution: be mindful of closing windows and programs when I’m through using them. It’s a mind shift. It’s putting everything in its (cyber)place.

What got me thinking was the inability to process my computer seemed to be experiencing and the stress I was experiencing as a result is exactly the same thing that happens when physical clutter takes over. You can’t function. You’re stressed. Life’s not good. (It’s also the same thing that happens when emotional clutter dominates your insides, come to think of it.)

I’m going to work on creating a habit of closing windows and programs on my computer when I’m through with them. This simple step will make me more productive, less stressed and (probably) will be good for my computer as well!

Tagged with: computer, disorder