This article is part of Finding the Words, a newsletter that delivers practical insights on the day’s issues.

We’ve entered the second week of this new year, and it seems everyone has clutter—or more accurately, the removal of clutter—on their mind. From magazine covers at the grocery store checkout to the national newscast, people are talking about clutter and how to lose it, as evidenced by just a few of today’s headlines:

• 10 Ways to Get Organized!

• How to Take Control of Your Clutter!

• 6 Ways to Organize Your Life in the New Year.

As I read these headlines, I’m not thinking about my catch-all kitchen drawer or that dreadfully overstuffed hallway closet—though I probably should be. Instead, I’m thinking about our minds.

While not new to 2023, the information flow to our eyes, ears, and inboxes is on overdrive. As we do our best to understand the news of the day or to capture notes from one meeting to the next, one thing is clear: there is a lot of information being tossed around and it’s easy to lose sight of what’s said.

If you know the feeling, I’ll share a little organizing tip and trick of my own with you:

At the end of each workday, I take a few quiet minutes to think about all that I’ve just digested. I reflect on meetings I attended, conversations I had, actions I assigned others, and actions I assigned myself. As I do, I take my mess of notes from the day, and move all follow up actions onto a clean sheet of paper for the following day. My practice helps me decompress, and helps me prepare me for the day ahead. It’s my way of decluttering from the day.

A friend of mine likes to say “when we have the space, we’ll find ways to fill it.” And it’s so true. Over time as we collect or inherit things, we fill the spaces we have. We find ways to fill our closets just as we find ways to fill our days. It’s easy to fill up the precious time we have and then ask ourselves, “where did all that time and space go?”

It’s easy to get lost in the clutter.

As communicators, we need our minds clear to make sure the messages we’re trying to communicate aren’t getting lost. To combat this, try organizing the information in front of you just like you might organize your clothes. Lay everything out, see what you have, and then put some of it back, and maybe in better order.

• You might find that the information you’re holding onto can be let go, to make space for new and fresh ideas to emerge.

• Maybe you’ll see that the problem you’re stewing on needs a fresh perspective or different approach.

• Or maybe that complicated message can be made easier by simply asking, “what am I really trying to say, and what does my audience really need to hear?”

Bottom line: It’s hard to know what’s right in front of us when we’re surrounded by clutter. Figure out what you really need AND what you really need to say. Figure out what information you have AND what information you’re missing. And I promise, just like those home organizers do, that the feeling of clutter may soon subside.

This post is part of the Finding The Words column, a series published every Wednesday that delivers a dose of communication insights direct to your inbox. If you like what you read, we hope you’ll subscribe to ensure you receive this each week.