I am no Martha Stewart and I confess that I keep far more information in my head than I probably should—mostly because I do not want to take the time to write it down or get it into some sort of document format. Overall, however, I have learned that when it comes to my home business (and other areas of my life) the more organized I can get things, the more truly liberated I feel.
My years of work in nonprofit organizations and all of the work I have done planning meetings, conferences and events I have learned the value of organization. Timelines, schedules, checklists, and appropriate filing systems are all key to good organization. It does not have to be over the top and it does not have to be so fine tuned that there is never a paper out of place, but having good basic structure to your home business will save you so much time and it will actually free you up to deal with all those emergencies and things that pop up unpredicted.
I think there is a difference between rigidity and planning. Good organization, in fact, allows for more flexibility and less rigidity I think. If we know we have good foundations in place and that we have a solid, basic structure for our business—a way to keep track of information, track bookkeeping, maintain tasks, etc.—then we can free ourselves up to be more creative and liberated. We do not have to cling to every piece of paper and every detail for fear of losing it if we have an organizational system for managing these things. In fact, consider how much time you might spend worrying over something and trying to reinvent the wheel, when a good organizational system can make it just another small routine?