If you’re among the  “organizationally challenged” you can understand the dilemma this job seeker finds himself:

“I was excited. I had an interview. The first one I’d landed in over a month. I didn’t know how to find the company so I called their switchboard to get directions.  That was smart, right? Except my call somehow went through to the president of the company. He was very patient with me, even when I couldn’t find a pen, and when I did, the ink was dry, and the pencil I grabbed had a broken point, and I ended up finger writing in the dust collection on the window sill. He wanted to know my name. I thought that was a good sign.

Anyhow, on the day of the interview I couldn’t find the directions because some jerk dusted the windowsill. I did the only thing I could; I got in my car and relied on memory, which, if I say so myself, is usually pretty good. 

Well, it was a pretty day, and I got a little distracted but I did pretty well, given the circumstances (my socks didn’t match, which I discovered when I ran out of gas) and managed to find the place and was just a little more than an hour late which most people would agree was really good. I was in the midst of giving myself high fives when the interviewer’s admin told me I had missed my slot and was eliminated from consideration.

I couldn’t believe the nerve of some people. I knocked myself out getting there, with limited information, and if I do say so myself, did an awesome job of finding the place. And this was the thanks I got. So I said a few well chosen words, and left. They can call me if they want me. I’m right, right?”

If this story sounds familiar, you’ve learned from experience that little things can quickly become big things, and without intending, you can take actions that create problems with unintended consequences. Therefore, much of your success, whether on the job or looking for one, establishing relationships or keeping them, comes down to the basics: You have to get organized.

So, for job seekers who can’t remember appointments or double book them, lose phone numbers or transpose them, and spill coffee on the only copy of their outdated resume, your attention please…

First things first: Less is more. Edit. Disorganized people have a maddening habit of overstuffing their resumes. They include information about everything they’ve ever done or considered doing, in excruciating detail. Only the most dedicated reader would make the effort, and would need a program guide and bulldozer to succeed. These over-writers could use help from people who write well and concisely; who communicate in bullet points and know the difference between what looks important and what is. Be prepared, these wordsmiths are going to cut away the fat and the fluff and just leave the bone.

Next: Tighten your responses to interview questions. Disorganized people tend to speak in concentric circles or meandering cow paths. The content may be interesting, but there’s no way of knowing where they’re going, when they’ll get there, or how long it might take to complete the journey. They need to role-play with steely eyed bottom liners who know how to make their verbal points directly, without embellishment, and elaborate only when requested (it seldom is).

Then: Careful record keeping is a benefit, not a curse.  Organizationally-challenged people have an approach-avoidance response to record keeping. They can dedicate time and energy, forgo food and forget sleep, to create elaborate systems capable of capturing all matter of data, and take no actions worthy of entry. Conversely, they can take a variety of actions, and record none of them.They will benefit from on-going partnerships with record keeping pros who live for #2 pencils, rulers, and little boxes; people who delight in making lists, completing tasks, wearing watches, and celebrating the sound of their favorite word: “done”.

Demonstrate, daily, your respect for others by the promises you keep. Arrive on time and prepared for whatever the occasion, for no reason greater than you said that you would.