The executive function you need to be "organized"

Why simplifying may be the key to everything.

There’s an unspoken assumption behind most organizing advice, and I want to bring it to the forefront today.

Here it is: Most organizing advice assumes (and even requires) you have a high level of executive functioning.

If this is a new term for you, executive function is the set of mental processes that help people plan, focus, and exert self-control. I’ve heard it described as the “little boss” inside our heads that tells us what to do in a given moment, prioritizes, and helps us organize our thoughts. Or an air traffic controller that filters out the signal from the noise.¹ I’m not an expert on this, just very interested in it since lots of people in my life—and I’ve discovered, readers of this newsletter—struggle with executive function.

Here’s an example of organizing advice that relies on executive function:

Create an inbox for your household where bills, forms for the kids’ school, and other action items live. Be sure to sort your mail and empty the kids’ backpacks each day and put the relevant items into the inbox. Then once a week sit down and process everything.

It’s sound advice and makes intuitive sense. But without strong executive function, it will be really hard to remember to put all the relevant papers in the correct spot each day, and following through with processing once a week will be challenging.

Relying on your brain for reminders about what to do and when taxes executive function. I don’t explicitly struggle with executive function, but I do know I am more effective if I can offload administrative cognitive processes to leave my mind clear for deeper thinking. That’s why I love systems so much. I detail a bunch of strategies I use in my Declutter Your Brain Series to reduce reliance on executive function:

• Rely less on your working memory

• Create systems to organize your home without having to think

• Detox from social media and the news

• Turn your smart phone into a dumb(er) phone

The struggle to keep it all in your head is real! Photo by David Matos on Unsplash

But what if the little tips aren’t enough to keep your home and life organized?

This article and discussion is focused on those whose executive function struggles with maintaining their homes, despite trying every trick in the book. But really, this is advice can apply to everyone since reducing demands on executive function is helpful for all of us. The crux of my recommendation is this:

less stuff = less to think about = more brain resources available

What if you focus whatever mental resources are available on decluttering and simplifying, full stop? When you have fewer things to deal with, the mental load of daily life goes down, by a lot. You could even make simplifying the ONLY system you implement, and that might be all you need to do.

Let’s look at the home environment. Instead of coming up with the perfect system to organize your wallet and keys so you never lose them again, perhaps you use that energy to see what you can get rid of in your home so your wallet and keys are easier to find, wherever they end up. If there aren’t piles of errant belongings for them to hide under, they’ll be easier to see. If you aren’t immediately distracted when you walk into your house by all the stuff, you might be more likely to put them in the same spot each time. And so on. (If you have a key and wallet system that works for you, then great — apply this idea to something else that isn’t working.)

The mental load of simply having to look at a lot of items is enough to exhaust many of us, much less having to problem-solve where they all should go, and how to stay on top of putting them away. So just having fewer things is a hack that cuts down your workload substantially.

I ran this recommendation by a few people who have hard time with executive function. The ones who felt on top of their homes agreed that decluttering was the key to their success.

One friend added that it helps her to aggressively cut entire categories from her mental life. For instance, she lives without credit cards because it’s just simpler for her to deal with absolute limits of cash and debit cards rather theoretical credit limits. It’s not ideal for her credit score, but it’s absolutely worth the tradeoff to her.

Getting off social media to avoid all the information input and temptation to buy things is another elimination that can help cut huge categories of consideration. I’ve talked recently about kids’ toys as a category I’ve eliminated.

Radical Simplification Ideas

Since we can all benefit from simplifying, let’s share ideas and question some norms.

A few weeks ago, we had an amazing discussion about dramatically simplifying skincare, and I’d love to hear what else readers are eliminating to make their lives simpler.

Prompt: What have you eliminated from your daily life for the sake of simplicity and easier functioning? This can be stuff, mental processes, activities, responsibilities, or anything else that comes to mind.

Related Posts

1. ADHD is closely related to executive function challenges, but because ADHD is still being understood and there are lots of different perspectives on it, I’m just going to focus on executive function itself for this post. It’s a brain process, not a diagnosis, and people have differing levels of facility with it.