How to Stay Organized When You’re A Scatterbrain

I’m one of those individuals who don’t care about the several minute details involved in going about our formality packed, tradition-filled lives. The down side to this attitude towards life is that I often remain scatterbrained in my attempts at getting things done. I’m thankful that I’m headstrong enough to actually complete goals at the end of the day, but I’ve realized that there are useful lessons that can be learned when attempting to stay ‘organized’ as a scatterbrain. I’ve shared some of these revaluations below and hope you can relate or find these shared ideas useful. Warning: They come from the mind of a scatterbrain, read objectively.

How to Stay Organized & Get Things Done
(When you are a Scatterbrain)

1. Put up Boundaries with People. Don’t give every co-worker, stranger, or new friend the idea that it is always appropriate to stop what you’re doing in order discuss extremely shallow and pointless topics. There is a need for light discussion, venting, and joking around, but I found that for a scatterbrain like myself, it is easy to get wrapped up with others drama or meaningless speech, because scatterbrains seem open to anything at anytime. Unfortunately, when I allow people to think I’m slightly interested in their fluff conversations, I get wrapped into a pointless, hour-long conversation and as a result, I get less done.
2. Don’t Over Commit Yourself with Too Many Things. Although stacking up your agenda with a million things is socially accepted and expected behavior, don’t buy into this idea as a necessary option for your own life. As a scatterbrain, stop and ask yourself; are those people actually accomplishing things the RIGHT way, or simply spreading themselves thin? I mean, if you are rushing to do three things at once that end in mediocre results vs. one project that is done correctly, which one benefits you and others? Everyone acts like being so busy and having a hectic schedule in life means so much or makes us important. Don’t believe the hype. This is a ridiculous assumption. As if humans were not living before the surge of cell phones, computers, television sets, and other distractions like my stupid blog. But anyways, for a scatterbrain, it is especially dangerous to over book ones self with projects, commitments, or anything at all for that matter. Us scatterbrains like to take on too many things and do have huge goals, usually involving excitement or some form of getting the heart beating. Needless to say, we don’t the will or time to sit still, but we should! We must resist the temptation to do TOO much all at once, because the truth is that regardless of what society tells us, we are only busy because we make ourselves busy. The whole “I am busy” nonsense is a big facade in my opinion. And if you would look back at item#1 here in my posting, I’ll point out that we often spend HOURS talking about complete dribble instead of doing real work and handling responsibilities. So don’t give me the excuse that you are so busy in life, because you know damn well you could get more work done if you stopped wasting time. Wow, my scatterbrain wired mind just came out of no where and I’ve officially gone off on a different topic. You see what I mean?
3. Remember To Eat Real Food: Seems like an easy one, but it is not only about what you eat, but what you don’t eat. When I say “real food”, I mean to eat something that is not complete garbage all the time, because scatterbrains, like myself, often eat whatever happens to be around, simply to feed the machinery attached to our minds and be able to get on with the day. As silly and unfocused as scatterbrains like me come across, we actually have huge goals, distinct aspirations, and have a lot we want to do, besides worrying about silly things like what kind of food we eat. In short, we are usually satisfied with simply feeding our stomachs when it asks for substance. But this can only go on for so long until one feels like the garbage they are eating! Cooking is only a good idea if you remember to turn the gas off when you are finished. And vegetables and fruits give an energy boost, my mom said so.
4. Stay Focused on ONE Goal at a Time: It’s hard to stay focused when you are not focused by nature, but you have to continually talk to yourself or talk to others about the things you want to do and the things you are working on. Getting feedback from reliable sources can be very beneficial as it keeps you grounded and realistic with your efforts or abilities at that stage in life. Also, read about other people who are as scatterbrained as you and see what kinds of things they suggest or how they live their lives. Not with the intention of simply mimicing others, but the main point is to stay focused at all costs and simply do not get sidetracked on other smaller goals, until you complete one. Slow down and do one thing at a time.
5. Write Down the Things that Have Worked. This is another easy one. Simply write down or catalog the few things in your scatterbrained life that have really worked out well for you. This can be as simple as “finishing my web site” or “finishing my Spanish class”. Whatever it is, it will help you recollect what steps you took, or did not take, to get the goal completed. I actually look back on some of the things I have learned, or the projects I took on, and I realized that some of the things I really did well with are things I am passionate about. A No-brainer right? But it is what dirves most of our success and benefit to our society. Now not everything in life can be full of things we want to do, but I get motivated when I look back at the things I have accomplished. I also use those events to help build my next plans that can help me reach more goals.
6. Learn From Your Mistakes. This one is played out from every motivational speech made back in junior high, but I believe that not only do scatterbrains like me not admit their mistakes enough, but we don’t learn from mistakes enough either. If you really want to start getting things done, you must learn from mistakes, no matter how big or small they were. In essence, erase those tapes that you have been re-running for all your life! Especially if they are flat-out NOT WORKING. Always admit when you are wrong and get used to being honest with yourself (and others). I think one of the most valuable lessons I have learned in life is to take advice, criticism, and even harsh judgment, because believe it or not, it all helps eventually. You may not agree with the advice, and it may not even be accurate, but if you want to improve, you will remember these things as they can shape your character, fortitude, and also help you analyze life in a whole new way. If you claim to be free and open minded, start acting like it, scatterbrain!
7. Gain knowledge from Others: Surround yourself with people who are sharp, but not just “smart people”, but motivated people who have a soul and know what matters in life. I also advise you to ignore the belief that the only people you can learn from are those “smarter” than you. First of all, who on earth decided on the fact that anyone is smarter than you are? And at what capacity or on what topic are they competing with you on anyways? Being smarter than someone means absolutely nothing to me, unless we are in a spelling bee or a battle of the wits. It is a load of nonsense. I’ve learned things from individuals who have almost nothing and people who have to have everything. Either way, you need to start thinking on a bigger scale than simply looking for book smart or acclaimed individuals to get life lessons from. Look for those who are doing something unique, ground-breaking, original, and with a heart. These are the people that will really help you in life.