A Pilgrim in the Business World

The Power of an Organized Mind

by Stephen Walter Sterling

Part One:  The First Steps

Details.  Deadlines.  Cell phones.  Lost scraps of paper with “To Do” lists and appointments forgotten.  Black coffee on an empty stomach and jolts of stress to fuel your day. The relentless whirlwind of activity eventually ties your brain into knots.  You struggle to think logically...

            We become so enmeshed in the chaos of our own making that we often open ourselves up to the most violent kinds of stress. No matter what form it takes, we all fall victim to it in the unguarded moment.  Sometimes, without thinking, we allow the anxiety to become so intense that we just have to eat that pile of donuts.  You never know what outlet the stress will demand.  Think about that the next time you shout at a neighbor’s dog.    

The question is, how do we rise above the stress so that our consciousness is not negatively affected by the onslaught of everyday anxiety?  For one thing, we need to attend to the ordering of our minds.

A good place to start is with a conscious, deliberate creation of your outer environment.  Some may like a reasonably quiet place to work or you might

prefer a livelier environment in order to stay productive.  Whatever it is, it is in our best interest to create the kind of atmosphere that is pleasing to our sensibilities. 

From there we begin to discipline ourselves.  Like organizing the space where we will spend our most creative hours.  The time for laxity is over.  For example, I am finally faithful to my appointment book by writing the time of the meeting on the proper calendar line.   No more scraps of paper!  I always enter any appointments in my book, no matter how trivial they might seem at the time. 

We simply have to be prompt and steady within our outer environment. Through practicing these virtues [respect for our schedule and the time of others, as well as steadfastness], we add to the ordering of our mind.  This eventually leads to one of the greatest of all virtues—efficiency, which is at the heart of every successful business.

Secondly, we need to remember this tired old saying because it portrays a vital truth:  “Cleanliness is next to godliness.”  Your environment must be clean and kept fresh.  We must also stay alert to clutter because it can blight the outer environment, which then in turn adds clutter to your thinking.  Remember:  the outer reflects the inner while the inner reflects the outer, all in a subtle cosmic dance.  If you live in outer chaos, you are merely reflecting your chaotic thinking.  Step back, take a breath, and assess the landscape. Does your desk look like the aftermath of a hurricane?