When you see a really organized person, you automatically think, “How uptight are they?” as trial.

Many people confuse the ability to be “really organized” with a condition called obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), which affects about 1 in 50 people.

There is a big difference between “highly organized” people and those with OCD. Those who are highly organized do so because they see an increase in productivity, efficiency and it provides a more aesthetically pleasing place to work or live.

Contrast this with people who legitimately suffer from OCD. They are forced to line things up a certain way, label things, turn knobs a certain number of times, or repeatedly wash their hands.

One acts in a way that makes life easier (the highly organized) while the other’s habits make life increasingly difficult and full of anxiety.

Let’s start with a quick kitchen analogy.

Some people organize their pantry and line up all their canned goods to find what they need quickly and efficiently restock their kitchen. People with OCD force themselves and others to line up labels perfectly or alphabetize cans. And when those actions are not done perfectly, it causes great anxiety and stress. Again, the action is not performed for the sake of efficiency, but because the person literally cannot help but complete these actions perfectly or repetitively, or both.

My sister makes fun of me because I put labels on some things in my kitchen. Specifically, I have containers that have bread flour for the bread maker and regular flour for baking. The flours have different textures and are used for different purposes, but they look exactly the same. To me, it makes sense to put labels on these things so I don’t have to guess. I just take bread flour or regular flour. This is a fast, efficient and error free system that I have developed to help me not to ruin my breads and baked goods.

Now think about your next organization project at work or home. What do you want to achieve?

Do you literally want things to be super neat as a pin, everything in order and alphabetical? Or do you really just want to be able to find things quickly and easily?

Let’s emphasize again that being organized doesn’t have to mean suffering from OCD. Think of being organized as a habit that helps you be more efficient and effective. Compare that to OCD, where habit becomes a requirement that actually slows down a person or a process.