Metacognition [Get Organized]: My Desk.

First off: this blog assignment was a life saver. I've been telling myself to clean my previously cluttered desk for weeks already but have never really gotten around to doing it. And it was about time. To put things simply, it had gotten to the point where I refused to do my homework on my desk because there was no clean space. Sure, cleaning and organizing my desk was no easy [or fun] task, but the results were well worth it.

The first time I read this assignment, I knew exactly what I would have to do. And I'd be lying if I told you that I was excited about it. I was dreading it, actually. Yeah, I needed to do it...but over break? Why?! I couldn't understand. But it was an assignment so I got myself, well, forced myself to start working immediately. I told myself that I could do a little each day if it got too boring or if something came up, but to at least start my work so I got somewhere. Once I stood face to face with the mess, I became discouraged. "This is going to take hours!" I remember thinking. There were so many books, papers, cd's, and items sprawled around my desk, I didn't know where to begin. Once I had returned to a clear mind, I decided to start easy. Instead of focusing on every little detail, I would separate things into two piles: what I would keep, and what I would need to throw away.

This process was quick and in no time, my desk was clear and almost half of the things that were previously on my desk were in the garbage. The rest, what I needed, was in a pile, but a manageable pile none the less, on the floor. I instantly felt lighter and happier. The worst part of something I had been dreading for weeks turned out to be not so bad after all. And in only 10 minutes, I had made such an impact.

Next, I decided to tackle the little things. I looked at what I had collected. To my surprise, I saw some things in the pile that had oddly gone missing for weeks and I had been searching for for the longest time! Missing flash drives, an ID card, even some money, suddenly back in my possession! The excitement of finding these things and the look of such an improved space made me very optimistic and determined to finish my task at hand. Besides, I had planned on working for a maximum on 45 minutes on this today and I was confident that I would be able to finish it all in that time or less!

The next part of my cleaning and organization process was to put all the things I wanted to keep in a sensible fashion that would help keep things organized and clean for a long period of time. I didn't want to just take all the things that had been on my desk and re-position them back on there. Sure, I had thrown out some stuff...but maybe some of the things I was keeping didn't have to be on my desk. I wanted to keep the clutter to a minimum so I could easily fit my laptop, books, and daily homework on my desk when needed. By the end of my organization process, almost 3/4 of my stuff was put in a more appropriate place and the rest, the essentials, were nicely organized on my desk.

Once I had completely finished, I felt great. Such an awful task turned out to be kind of fun...and I had gotten some "lost" items back and of course, peace of mind. I was also surprised at how little I actually had that needed to stay on my desk: 80% of the things that were on there when I started should not have been there. It was funny how when I looked at all the things, I had no idea how I could organize all of that, when in reality, most of it had been misplaced junk. After cleaning and organizing my desk, my mind is clear and ready to take on other, more important tasks. I never realized how much stress and anxiety such a small process could inflict on someone. Even though I didn't really think about it directly, every time I passed my desk at home, it would make me feel more stressed...and I definitely did not need that to worry about during the week with all the homework, tests, and projects to deal with. Now I know that I can't leave unenjoyable things to simmer in my mind, because it only makes it worse by adding more and more stress and worry the more you put it off. I realized that I must get things over with right when I come face to face with them so that I have to peace in my mind that I don't have to deal with it later. And besides, the unenjoyable things usually turn out to be better than you think, just like this organizing exercise. My success with this project definitely leaves me excited and optimistic for the projects I'll be faced with in the future.