A walk in the woods can help you focus

Never underestimate the power of nature!

That can be true for hurricanes as well as a simple walk in the woods.

My advice today is simple--take a walk. Even if you can't get out to a park and go on a hike, just take a walk down your street--hopefully it has some green trees and fresh air.

Walking in the natural world uses a different part of our brain than the part we use at work or in school. It lets those parts rest, and when you need to get back to work or school or simply to that cluttered closet, you will truly be "of a different mind" when when you get back.

Have a nice walk!

Hundred acre wood a-ha moment!

I proved one of my own points last week.

While in the midst of a full-on Disneyland-induced ADD moment, I was surprised by a moment of peace, sanity and clarity.

We had taken our young daughter for a two-day visit to the realm of Mickey, princesses, and churro-laced mania. (By the way, the churros are really good.)

It was the morning of day two, and we had already decided that the line for the Nemo submarine ride was too long and we would head straight over to "Critter Country" to see the Winnie the Pooh area and ride. (Good idea–it was the only ride we were able to hop right on.)

Thank goodness we did.

As soon as we got there, I felt a wonderful sensation come over me. I felt calmer, more focused and less frenzied. I took a look around and figured out why.

Critter Country was filled with large green trees (most of them real), lots of wooden structures (most of them not real), and lovely wooden benches to sit on. It was the closest thing to real nature I was going to get in this land of fakery.

The point I proved is this: the natural world can help you focus and calm your mind. It's the basis for my Organize in Harmony offspring: Organized by Nature.

I'll be bringing this aspect to my regular practice more and more in the coming months: using Mother Nature to help us calm our minds and bring focus to what we are doing with our organizing projects. Something about green trees that lets our pre-frontal cortex do a RAM-dump and start with a clean disk.

It can be as easy as sitting in your backyard for 5 minutes or taking a walk in your neighborhood and observing the trees and flowers. Or maybe getting in the car and visiting a city, county or state park and immersing yourself for an hour or two. Or a national park and immersing yourself for a day or two (a week or two?). Or even just a little meditation at your cubicle while listening to a nature sounds CD.

Just don't think you have to go to Critter Country.

(But the churros are really good....)

This Fall and Spring Workshops by Margaret of Organize in Harmony

Workshop Announcements:

September 30, 2006 and March 10 2007 1-5 pm Cotati, CA
"Organized by Nature: How a Walk in the Woods Can Help You Focus"
Learn how adults with ADD or ADD-like symptoms can use Mother Nature to help them focus, be distracted less and refresh and relax a busy mind. Classroom work and a real walk in the woods! Register through the Cotati Recreation Department, www.ci.cotati.ca.us

October 28, 2006 Newark, CA
"Present Yourself Professionally:
How to transform your image without spending a fortune"
This class is geared towards new professional organizers and will be one of the breakout sessions at the NAPO-SFBA regional conference. See www.napo-sfba.org to register for the conference.