Organizing from the Right Side of the Brain: A Creative Approach to Getting Organized [Paperback]

Lee Silber (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 9, 2004

Almost all the organizing books on the market today target the "left-brainer" - people who are generally disciplined, neat, and analytical. But for those who are more creative and spontaneous rather than logical and detail-oriented, help is on the way! In this book, Silber turns traditional organizing advice on its head and offers unique solutions that complement the unorthodox lifestyle of the creative "right-brainer."

For example:
* Discover how right-brainers can be organized in a left-brain world
* Overcome obstacles that stand in the way of being more organized
* Pile, don't file - put paper in its place the right-brained way
* Learn how being a "pack rat" can be a good thing

This creative new approach to getting it together is perfect for those who can't relate to boring traditional organizing techniques!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The right side of the brain is the creative but illogical, nonlinear part of the organ, and it doesn’t cater to systematic tidiness. Is it possible, then, for right-brainers to be organized? Organizing guru Silber (Time Management for the Creative Person; etc.) has some answers. "We (right-brainers) can be just as organized as our left-brain counterparts (even more so), but we prefer to do it in our own unique way—with a little savoir faire," he writes encouragingly. In addition to general principles, like learning to understand "why you put things where you do" as the basis for a personal organizing system, Silber offers concrete advice: put things where it makes sense to put them; create zones for certain activities and organize accordingly. And best of all, he says pile, don’t file your papers: some people do thrive on chaos, he acknowledges, and visually stimulated people can find it helpful to have things in plain view. If you’ve been fighting a lifelong and losing battle to get rid of the clutter, Silber’s sprightly and thorough advice could be the answer.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Lee Silber is the award-winning author of many books, including Time Management for the Creative Person, Self-Promotion for the Creative Person, and Money Management for the Creative Person. He lives in San Diego, CA.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; First Edition edition (September 9, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312318162
• ISBN-13: 978-0312318161
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #170,420 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

59 of 59 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book for those looking for a different perspective, December 13, 2005

By 

Stephen D. Hadley (Houston, TX) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Organizing from the Right Side of the Brain: A Creative Approach to Getting Organized (Paperback)

I'll admit it. I've read practically every title on being more organized and all of them are now sitting on a bookshelf where they'll rest forever without a single idea being implemented. They just didn't make sense to me.

So, of course, I was skeptical when I read a review about this book in one of the many monthly creativity e-newsletters I receive each month. But being the bookhound that I am, I decided to give it a read. And I'm glad I did. Lee Silber has packed this book full of useful tips and tricks for us right-brained folks. He understands that for us, organizing has been about as much as fun as a trip to the dentist. He offers sound advice on piling (no, it's not a dirty word) and filing. He understands our propensity for procrastination and, instead of chiding us for it, offers help to make organizing and staying on top of our responsibilities fun. I'm now in an organizing zone, where I handle each piece of correspondence for my small business in a manner that's natural for me but that gets done. A very liberating feeling indeed to know that I can be myself and still be organized.

If you're a creative-type and want to be more organized in all aspects of your life, this is THE book for you.

59 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exceptional Resource, October 19, 2004

By 

L.L.H. (Bellmawr, NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Organizing from the Right Side of the Brain: A Creative Approach to Getting Organized (Paperback)

I've read a LOT of advice on organizing, but none of it quite fit what *I* needed. Until now! Lee Silber's past books were helpful and great, but this one completes the cycle!

First off, what a relief to know it is ok to PILE THINGS UP. I feel completely freed from the previous linear models of organization that have fretted me for years. Within 24 hours of reading Lee's book I was motivated to start the process of redoing my office (slowly and in stages so as not to get frustrated and quit). I have already made major headway in my filing system and feel about 100 times better about myself and my work. I still have a long way to go, but I know this book will help me get to a place where I can really change my organizational patterns, negative patterns that have held me back in my creative work. I juggle a lot of things...teaching as an adjunct, writing, grad school, projects....and I already know that this system will save me tons of time spent looking for things or trying to upkeep systems of organization that dont really work for ME.

This is a MUST READ for anyone who has trouble with organizing!

38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Organizing Book For Creative Types, December 18, 2005

By 

K. Gentile - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Organizing from the Right Side of the Brain: A Creative Approach to Getting Organized (Paperback)

This is a fantastic book and interesting read. You will not want to put this down. Finally someone who understands the creative mind and does not try to put a square peg into a round hole. Thank you Lee for being such a positive, upbeat, motivational author and writing real suggestions that are easy to implement in our lives! I liked this book so much I bought 3 of his other books: Time Management, Money Management and Self Promotion. This book is well worth reading and I began implementing organizational suggestions from the book into my life and it has made a huge difference! This is a fast read with creative organizational suggestions you can begin utilizing the day you start reading the book. I have read many organizational books and this is the only one I'd recommend highly!