What do people usually place on their office desks? Yes, you won’t see anything there - notepads, markers, folders, pens, souvenir toys, calendars, photographs, flower pots. Some things are necessary for us to work, while others, on the contrary, help us to distract ourselves. If you're wondering how you can tell a person's character, just look at them. workplace! Psychologists have already conducted a number of studies, and we can study the results and use them for our own purposes.
What does a chronic mess on the table mean?
If a person claims that the chaos on his desk is creative, that he is the kind of person who can work fruitfully in such conditions, that he can quickly find his way around and easily find any thing - don’t believe a single word he says! A constant mess on the desktop, supplemented by a bunch of crumpled papers, dirty cups, candy wrappers and other rubbish reveals a person who does not know how to set priorities and highlight the main directions in his activities. He tries to grab onto everything at once, but, as a rule, he doesn’t bring anything to the end. Such a person does not know how to spend his time rationally, he is drowning under the weight of problems, worries, and also does not feel constant stress from your profession.
Creating the appearance of order
The order varies. You can take all the things and put them in their places, distribute the papers into folders, throw away everything unnecessary, etc., or you can only create the appearance of order. How do some people do it? They simply shove (there’s no other way to say it!) all the papers, notepads and other things into drawers, put everything else in one huge pile on the table (it turns out to be such a “neat” stack of documents), hide dirty cups, and that’s it - “ full order"! How can you recognize a person’s character if you have just such a semblance of order in front of you? Very simple. You are dealing with a person who has a catastrophic lack of professionalism. Such people are only able to pretend that they are working and trying, but in reality everything is being done just as superficially as in the case of cleaning.
The dream of finding harmony
There are people who clean up their desktop almost every day, or even several times a day, but they still don’t like something. They are unhappy with how the flower pot looks right side table, move it to the left. Then they step aside and look at the “rearrangement,” but again something is wrong. And this is repeated constantly with all objects. Do you want to determine the character of such a person? Please! Before you is a confused man who once lost inner peace, harmony. He is trying to return it all, to find it again, but so far to no avail.
Determining a professional
Sharp pencils, arranged according to paper format and color, the absence of personal items on the table - all this betrays a true professional in his field, pedantic and self-confident, but very reserved.
What do the photos on your desktop say?
We continue to consider the question of how to find out a person’s character by the state of his desktop. Everyone understands that photographs of loved ones are good, no one is against it. They allow you to unwind and relax during working day, recall pleasant moments. However a large number of Such pictures (especially if they depict older family members) indicate that the person is not in his place, he is not interested in what he is doing, he is subconsciously looking for the protection and support of his relatives.
Do you look with horror at the rubble on your desktop? Relax. We've put together five reasons to celebrate chaos.
Modern psychologists have long reconsidered their views on chaos. New trend It sounds like this: if you throw your clothes around, are late for business meetings, and the devil is breaking your leg at your work desk, then... in some ways you can even give a head start to pedants and neat friends. So, a mess or work chaos...
... leads to wealth
Rule of order:“If you don’t use something for more than six months, you don’t need it. Throw it away without regrets!”
Chaos refutation. Today psychologists are not so categorical. For example, teachers at Columbia University Business School, which has graduated hundreds of brilliant businessmen, assure: “Your home should definitely have a place for a thousand little things that you rarely use or don’t use at all. Not only will this save you time and energy, but it may also make a profit one day. Fans of order often part with their childhood collections of stamps and match labels without regret, and then bite their elbows when they see how these simple collections grow in price over the years.”
... teaches responsibility
Rule of order:“Anyone on whose desk things are scattered in disarray cannot be a responsible employee, since he is an unnecessary person.”
Chaos refutation.“...And what’s better than someone who spends a lot of time putting together all the information received, file by file, in alphabetical order and trembles at the sight of the slightest speck of dust? - psychologists ask. And they add: “Extremes are unacceptable in any form.”
Conclusion: The most responsible employees are not neat people at all, but moderately disorganized people. They are often more flexible, creatively active and effective than those for whom everything is sorted into shelves.
... saves time
Rule of order:“Neat people always know where everything is, so they don’t waste time searching.”
Chaos refutation. Recently, Columbia University management professor Eric Abrahamson presented a paradoxical conclusion to the public: people who maintain an immaculate workplace spend money on searching the required document or things on average 35% more time than their slob counterparts. Why? The fact is that “slobs” have their own logic. As a rule, those who have a mess on their desk subconsciously arrange documents into three piles: “urgent”, “less urgent”, “can wait”. As a result, the necessary papers fall into their hands.
... makes Fortune smile
Rule of order:“Be sure to create a work schedule. A clear schedule will not allow you to derail a project or miss an important business meeting.”
Chaos refutation. According to statistics, 70% of business and romantic acquaintances are made by chance. Alas, chance does not fit well into a rigid life schedule. The forced ordering of life deprives it of unpredictability. And if so, then pedants lose a lot of opportunities every day. Phenomenon by name Lucky case comes to them much less often than to their flighty friends.
... makes you happy
Rule of order:“A mess on the desktop (in the house, in the car) signals a mess in the soul. Accuracy allows you to control your life, which means you can be in harmony with yourself.”
Chaos refutation. From a psychological point of view, the most harmonious people are small children. They are open to everything new, they joyfully explore the world, they make discoveries day after day, they are happy... And at the same time they create a real mess around themselves.
The fact is that children, like all creators, have little attachment to the small material details of everyday life. Creators discover and invent. And behind them come those who develop and classify these discoveries. Of course, you can’t do without classification either. But allowing yourself a little chaos is a way to return to a happy and carefree childhood.
If a messy desk means a messy mind, then what does that mean? empty table? Albert Einstein
Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein and Mark Twain. What do these people have in common, besides genius?
Clutter on your desktop!
They never went with the flow of the mainstream; rather, they created it themselves. They did everything their own way. But how can you work when there is a pile of papers and a pile of other things on the table?
Let's find out from this article.
Clutter and creativity
Some time ago we told you about the research of scientists Princeton University, which have proven that clutter reduces concentration and, as a result, productivity.
Researchers at the University of Minnesota also became interested in the influence of the environment on performance. The results of their scientific research are as follows: a cluttered desktop contributes to creative thinking, helps you think outside the box, while perfect order, really, puts your thoughts in order (forgive the tautology), helps you concentrate.
A series of experiments allowed scientists to draw such conclusions. In one of them, some of the subjects were seated at tidied tables:
And the other part is at tables littered with all sorts of rubbish.
The other part is in disarray Both were asked to fill out questionnaires. It turned out that people who wrote at a clean desk tended to be more charitable, healthy eating and in general a “correct” life.
Cleanliness obliges people to behave accordingly. Kathleen Vohs, Research Director
In another experiment, subjects were asked to come up with creative uses for a ping pong ball. People who were creative in clutter came up with more ideas.
Clutter around stimulates creativity. And it has great importance for the development of culture and art.
From childhood we are taught: put away your toys after yourself, don’t throw things around, make your bed. But, if you believe the findings of scientists, by teaching children to be clean, parents thereby “dull” their creative spirit.
However, the habit of clutter can make you an outcast in society. They are greeted by their clothes, so when colleagues see trash on your desk, they think: “What a slob, I’m sure he treats his work the same way!”
However, people who are truly in love with their work are capable of causing destruction without noticing sidelong glances.
Alexander Fleming and other greats got dirty
Sir Alexander Fleming is a British bacteriologist who discovered lysozyme and isolated the world's first antibiotic, penicillin.
Colleagues often laughed at Fleming: a scientist, but in the laboratory the devil would break his leg.
Fleming kept the cultures of microorganisms he isolated for two to three weeks and, before destroying them, carefully studied them to check if anything unexpected had happened by chance. interesting phenomenon. Further history showed that if he had been as careful as me, he most likely would not have discovered anything new.
This is an excerpt from the memoirs of one of the scientist’s laboratory employees. Surprisingly, it was chaos that helped Fleming make two important discoveries.
In 1922, Sir Fleming caught a cold. Suffering from a runny nose, he brought nasal mucus into a Petri dish. In the part of the cup where it hit, the colonies of bacteria died. Fleming began to investigate this phenomenon.
It turned out that tears, saliva, and particles of living tissue have the same effect on a solution with many bacteria. So Fleming discovered lysozyme, an antibacterial enzyme produced by the human body.
The isolation of penicillin was also helped by chance and... chaos in the laboratory. In 1928, a colleague looked into the scientist’s office. Fleming was just sorting through moldy Petri dishes with old cultures.
“As soon as you open a cup of culture, you are in for trouble: something is bound to fall out of the air...” Fleming complained to a colleague. And then he suddenly fell silent and thought...
In one of the moldy Petri dishes, all the bacteria died. This marked the beginning of Fleming's research on mold, which culminated in the discovery of penicillin.
About another great scientist for whom disorder was part of creative environment, Lifehacker already. We are talking about the “mad scientist from Bletchley Park” Alan Turing.
It is also known that chaos reigned in the workplaces of the English expressionist artist Francis Bacon and American writer Mark Twain.
Here are some modern examples:
- Mark Zuckerberg - programmer, founder and CEO social network Facebook.
- Tony Hsieh - entrepreneur CEO online store of clothing, shoes and accessories Zappos.com.
- Max Levchin is a web developer and programmer, one of the creators of PayPal.
- Dennis Crowley is the founder of Foursquare.
What's going on on your desktop? ;)
A “dump” in a room brings chaos to your life, makes you lose control over your life in general, reducing its quality. What else happens to you when you “forgot” to clean your room? And why is the house always a mess? Judge for yourself.
#1 Decreased concentration
Chaos in the world of things does not allow our brain to fully process incoming information. This is why a person is constantly distracted by small things and cannot concentrate.
No. 2 Increased nervous tension
Clutter leads to an accumulation of stress. Regularly witnessing chaos in our body increases the level of cortisol.
Research has shown that this can be done simply by looking at a mountain of unwashed clothes or textbooks piled up in one pile. But as soon as you leave the room, the level of this hormone immediately decreases.
#3 Eternal procrastination
The more clutter it gets, the less you want to clean it up. This exacerbates the state of procrastination.
How? Don't you know what this concept means yet? Yes, this is the good old procrastination! That same state when, when wanting to do something, even the slightest hitch arises, and all the passion immediately disappears.
And then we decide to postpone everything “tomorrow”. The result: Clutter makes us slower to make decisions and less organized.
#4 Lack of money
We waste time due to clutter in the workplace. And time is money. Think for yourself: how much time do you waste trying to find the right notebook, notes, textbook in this huge pile?
The disadvantages of disorder are obvious: if not Lost time, you could study, earn, or build long-term relationships, as well as make useful professional connections.
By the way! For our readers there is now a 10% discount on
No. 5 Deterioration of health
What's wrong with a messy home if you're happy with everything? And because in a huge accumulation of things, dust mites appear and accumulate.
These creatures cause even healthy person allergic reactions, which can even cause the development of asthma. So, as you can see, clutter directly affects your health.
#6 Problems with excess weight
It doesn't matter what the reasons for the clutter in the house are. Be prepared to have weight problems. And we're not talking about reducing it.
Scientists American associations Health authorities conducted a lot of experiments, during which a direct relationship between weight and order in the room was revealed.
Moreover, chaos at home provokes stress, which accumulates in the body. And this, in turn, leads not only to weight gain, but also to the development of bad habits.
Psychologists explain: the desire to eat more is a kind of the same disorder. It is unhealthy snacks and indiscriminate eating that speak eloquently about the chaos in the head.
#7 Lack of ability to live in the present moment
If you are familiar with the concept of "feng shui", then you know it basic principle: clutter creates and accumulates negative energy, which provokes the appearance of negative emotions.
And vice versa: than more order indoors, the more positive and harmonious your life becomes. Practitioners claim that main goal cleaning is a return to calm, natural state souls and bodies.
Are you ready to clean up the mess on your desk and make your life more successful and happier? And if you cope with this challenging task you are not overwhelmed by an incredibly heavy workload, then experienced specialists will be happy to provide
“If a cluttered desk means a cluttered mind, then what does an empty desk mean?” - Albert Einstein.
It is well known that Einstein worked at a very cluttered desk, which never bothered him. However, both colleagues at work and family members often reproach us for the fact that the desktop is a mess, in which, in their opinion, nothing can be found.
Who is right - adherents of cleanliness and neatness or creative people who strive to “keep everything at hand” in one pile? A new study has found that order and disorder in the workplace have different psychological effects.
Caitlin Vos and her colleagues at the University of Minnesota conducted several experiments aimed at assessing the impact of workplace conditions on psychological characteristics office workers. In the first phase, participants were asked to complete several questionnaires while in an office environment. One group of subjects took tests in a clean office, the other in a room overcrowded with all kinds of office supplies and papers.
After completing the questionnaires, participants were given the opportunity to participate in charity event, and also eat an apple or candy. The results showed that after being in a clean room, subjects donated more money and more often took an apple for themselves (more healthy food) compared to those who sat in disordered conditions.
Thus, if you want to stimulate your subordinates good behavior and compliance with the rules, the office must be kept clean and tidy. But what to do if employees are primarily required to demonstrate creativity?
The second experiment, which also took place in conditions of order or disorder in the room, required the participants to use the most creative approach. They were given standard task- figure out how to do it more action with a ping pong ball. This time, it was the creative chaos that stimulated the participants to come up with more uses for this item.
In the last, third experiment, participants were asked to imagine that they were choosing a drink in a store that would promote health, improve appearance or enriched with vitamins. In random order, each of these alternatives was reinforced with the information that it was a “classic taste” or a “new taste”. So, the results predictably showed that in a tidy room, participants were more likely to choose a “classic” drink, while in a messy room, they were more likely to choose a “new” drink.
The authors of the article argue that the results obtained can be successfully applied in organizational psychology: for example, at different stages of the project, its participants may be required to different abilities. At the very beginning it happens brainstorm and generating ideas, while more routine work begins a little later, and it is better to do it in conditions of cleanliness and order, when nothing distracts from the process.
Literature:
- Kathleen D. Vohs, Joseph P. Redden, Ryan Rahinel. Psychological Science 0956797613480186, first published on August 1, 2013 doi: 10.1177/0956797613480186