Clutter is as a result of having more coming in than going out. It applies to many things.

Summary

When more comes in than we can handle, then we end up with a surplus: clutter

Details

Having too many commitments is a form of clutter
Having more emails than we can handle
Having more physical stuff that keeps increasing all the time results in clutter
We can resolve this by reducing what we bring in, increasing our efficiency, or increasing what we put out.

Quotes

Commitments: The worst sort of clutter is having too many commitments. This may surprise you since most people don’t think of their commitments as being ‘clutter’. But they share many of the same characteristics as physical clutter. Having too many commitments is draining and gets in the way of what really matters. Indeed having too many commitments usually manifests itself in physical clutter and backlogs.

By and large the solution is the same for all three forms of clutter. It’s a simple solution, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s an easy one. But if you’ve been waging an unceasing losing battle against clutter it’s probably easier than you think it is, provided that you approach it right.

The cause of all forms of clutter is the same. The amount of work you are processing is less than the amount of work coming in.

There are three ways of changing this for the better, and they are best used in conjunction with each other:

Increase the time available.

Increase your efficiency.

Reduce the amount of work.

Reflections

This feels like a fundamental principle. Control how much comes into your life, and how much leaves. be sure they are in balance.
Dont agree to things you cannot deliver

References

Secrets of Productive People - 50 Techniques To Get Things Done - Mark Forster

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