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Remotely Curious podcast: Organization

Psychologist, professor, and behavioral economist Kathleen Vohs explains the link between messiness and creativity, and how to reduce decision-making fatigue through strategic scheduling.

Available for free on: Apple Podcast and Spotify, or listen below.

Check out new episodes every other week.

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New on Remotely Curious

Listen to Episode 6: Organization

The rapid shift to remote work made our jobs and our lives… messy. The lines between personal and professional time got blurry, we cobbled together home offices overnight, and figured the rest out on the fly.

In this episode of Remotely Curious, we’ll talk to psychologist, professor, and behavioral economist Kathleen Vohs about about the benefits of a little messiness for creative thinking, the power of where we work, and how to use rituals to maximize energy and brain power.

The pandemic was a time of innovation and creativity in people's everyday lives. Not just big-C creativity. We infused little-C creativity into life in all kinds of ways. Just the notion of a new way to get work done is itself a creative endeavor.

—Psychologist, professor, and behavioral economist Kathleen Vohs

We’ll talk about:

  • The links between messiness and creativity, and between tidiness and focus
  • How to hack your schedule to prevent fatigue
  • The benefits of working in a nontraditional environment
  • Why it’s best to make important decisions in the morning

About Kathleen:

More resources:

Takeaways:

  • Let yourself get a little messy. Remote work has made our lives unorganized, but research shows that a bit of messiness can spark innovation and creativity.  
  • Switch up your workspace based on the kind of task you need to get done. Find a messy space for creative work, and a tidy space for focused detail work. 
  • Reduce and bundle the decisions you make throughout the day. Add ritual and structure where you can, and try to make important decisions in the morning.

Learn more at remotely-curious.com. 

Special guest

Kathleen Vohs

Psychologist and author

An illustrated headshot of Kathleen Vohn.

Kathleen Vohs is the Distinguished McKnight University Professor and Land O'Lakes Chair in Marketing at University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management, a behavioral economist, and author.

An illustrated headshot of Kathleen Vohn.

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