VANITY TOYS charm bracelet (detail) © briserisvegliWhy is it so hard to keep a place or a room free of clutter? Why do empty surfaces fill up with clutter, instantly? Why do items start to gather at the very places we've just cleaned a moment ago, as if moved by a ghost's hand?

It's about more than just clearing and cleaning.

When we clean places up, we want to believe we're creating free space. However, we're just creating a vacuum. What's the difference?  » Read more

Alim Khan, by Sergey Mikhaylovich Prokudin-GorskyHave a look at the photograph to the right (click to enlarge). It depicts Alim Khan, 31 years old.

I find his colorful vestment really enjoyable. Doesn't the image look like a folkloristic picture taken in a country far far away? Actually, it was. In Bukhara, Uzbekistan.

Besides its originality, the wonderful colors and the solemn atmosphere, there doesn't seem to be anything too special about this photograph.

Until you learn that  » Read more

«Headache» © by Pedro VeraAt the core of David Allen's Getting Things Done (GTD), you'll find the statement that you should get all of your commitments out of your head and into a reliable system because your head is not a reliable system.

There are numerous myths about memory, like one can keep 7 +/- 2 things in the short-term memory; memory uses images; or: linking with bizarre images is best for memory. They're simply not true and may give you an unjustified feeling of security. Why?

Here are 3 reasons why your «mental RAM» isn't a reliable GTD system:

1. Emotions impair your memory
   While connecting information to emotions is a technique for memorizing something that is recommended everywhere, this usage of emotions has its downsides, as described in Wikipedia:
   The mood congruence effect means information becomes the stickier the more it incites a mood similar to that you're currently in; additionally, being in a negative mood fosters remembering mostly negative information, too. Should you try to be positive, then? No - to make things worse, there is a Catch-22: trying to be brave and positive in a sad situation may also impede your memory.  » Read more