Food for Thought - Organization, is it necessary?

How organized is too organized, and what does it say about a person? A few weeks ago my friend Paul and I had this discussion. Paul and I are both admitted "organization freaks". We like everything to be in it's place and have trouble functioning, at least at work, when it's not. But what does all of this mean? Is this a case of OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) or do we just like order? According to a study by the University of Texas (Link to study), people who need to have everything in order are actually less organized "mentally", then those who go for the messy or less structured approach. The theory is that if your mind is organized, then there is less need to have papers, possessions, etc. Organized around you. This seems to make sense and I am somewhat inclined to believe it, however I personally believe that organization goes beyond mere productivity in ones life. I can think of many instances in my own life where I like things organized, or care less that they're organized, and it has no relation to my mental organization or productivity. For example, my desk at work is immaculate, my bedroom at home is not (until my wife cleans up). Ok, so that might not be the best example since you can argue that the bedroom and the office are two entirely different environments, but the interesting thing is that I can still function at almost the same level of productivity at work, if my desk is in disarray. I have no problem getting my work done whether my desk is messy or not, for me it is just looking at the mess that bothers me. I believe that there is a place for order and a place for chaos in life. At work I like order for many reasons. For one, it just looks good to others (especially the boss) if your desk is neat and organized. I think organization says a lot about a person. It shows that you took the time and effort to make things look nice. It shows that you have pride in yourself and your surroundings. The office is just not the place for a mess IMHO (in my humble opinion). In addition to just looking nice, it makes doing your job easier. I know, people who don't worry about such organization have everything they need in their head, but just think how you would feel not having to remember where every little piece of paper is? Whether you realize it or not, disorganized forces you to remember a large amount of info about your daily life and this can cause unneeded stress. I don't know about you, but if I can reduce the amount of things to worry about on a daily basis, I will! Like I said earlier, there is a time and a place for everything and if you follow this then your life will run smoothly, IMHO. Of course, organization may not be as fun as just leaving things where you please, but like they say "no pain, no gain".

A sub-point Paul and I discussed is whether those in Higher Management, have messier desks then those in lower positions. In the last 5 years I've observed desks of managers from many different companies (not proud of that fact) and about 99% of the time the managers had messy desks. So what's up with managers, that they can't organize their desks? Another friend of mine believes that those in higher management simply have more on their plate, so to speak. Their work load and demands for their time make it difficult to keep organized at every moment. I too believe that this is the case. It makes sense that the more you have going on, the more directions you're being pulled in, the harder it is to devote time to keep your desk, and in some extreme cases your office, neat. I have another theory that may explain what's going on here. I believe that some managers are setting a bad example. If you are a middle manager and you see that your manager is messy, then subconsciously, you may think it's ok to do the same? I'm on the fence about that theory, but the only way to discredit it would be to find an upper manager with messy subordinates. I'm sure it happens, so my money is on the first explanation.