The Cost of Disorganization

There are a number of costs to being disorganized.

First, the financial cost. Try this simple equation for starters. Estimate how much time on average you waste in a day looking for things you can’t find, being interrupted, doing work just to look busy, etc. Experts say the average is 90 minutes a day.

Multiply that by your wage per hour, then by how many days a week you work and then by the number of weeks in a year that you work. That is how much it is costing you to be disorganized.

For example - let’s say being disorganized costs you an hour a day. At a minimum of $15/hr x 5 days/week x 50 weeks/year, that is costing you $3750 per year.

If you’re a professional making $50, $75 or $100/hour, being disorganized could be costing you $12,500, $18,750 or $25,000 per year.

When you start looking at those numbers, getting organized suddenly seems to make a lot more sense.

Then there is the emotional and mental cost. How much energy do you waste on feeling discouraged, frustrated or angry when you can’t find the things you need? When bills don’t get paid on time and you have to pay overdue fees? When you lose sales or worse because your time isn’t managed well?

What about the physical cost of always being stressed and tired? Not being able to think clearly? Getting sick?

Is it worth the time and effort – or paying someone to help you if you need that – to get yourself organized? Only you can determine how much any of the above are costing you in lost income, time, health and happiness.