Living Peace - Is Organizing Worth the Time?

Perhaps you are wondering if making the investment to organize your life is worth the time and resources it will take, but consider for a minute what your disorganization is costing you.

Here are some statistics collected by Julie Morgenstern in Organizing from the Inside Out:

	Americans waste nine million hours per day searching for misplaced items, according to the American Demographics Society.
	The Wall Street Journal reported that the average U.S. executive wastes six weeks per year searching for missing information in messy desks and files. (That translates to just one hour per day!)
	Cleaning professionals say that getting rid of excess clutter would eliminate 40 percent of the housework in an average home (National Soap and Detergent Association).
	“Crisis” purchases related to disorganization could cost as much as 15 to 20 percent of your annual budget—buying duplicates of misplaced or broken items, last-minute shopping at premium prices, and unnecessary interest, rush, and finance charges on late payments.
	Realtors regard “first impression” improvements such as decluttering closets to be one of the smartest ways to speed the sale of a home and fetch a better price, according to the New York State Association of Realtors.

Excerpted from Morgenstern, Julie. Organizing from the Inside Out. New York: Henry Holt, 1998.