When Organized Is Too Organized

I love good organization. Give me lists, bins, and labels any day. I could spend hours making to-do lists or organizing a closet and it would only feel like minutes. But sometimes I let my love for organization get the best of me.

There is a point where planning can go too far. In this post I recently wrote about how goals are only goals until you do something and the same is true about planning and to-do lists. This is a form of goal-setting, and you cannot forget about the “do” in “to-do.”

It’s not just over-planning that can be a problem, but over-organizing can be too. It’s not enough to work out an intricate system of baskets, bins, shelves, and labels – if the system doesn’t work for you, you are essentially unorganized anyway.  Organization is meant to make your life easier and more livable.  If the systems you have in place add more time to your tasks and make life more difficult, then you need to make a change.

As with almost everything, planning and organizing can cross into that “too much of a good thing” territory, we just need to keep it in check. Also, something that works great for someone else could be absolutely terrible for you; you need to fit things and systems into your lifestyle – not the other way around.

Have you ever over-planned or over-organized you life? What systems work for you? Which ones don’t? I would love to hear!