Get Remarkably Organised by Lorraine Murphy

I loved Lorraine Murphy's first book, Remarkability, about her journey to becoming an entrepreneur and building a successful 7-figure business. I've recommended it to countless people and call it my 'business bible' (not that I'm anywhere near that level of success, but a girl can dream, right?). So you can imagine how excited I was when she released her second book, Get Remarkably Organised, in January this year. 

Get Remarkably Organised speaks straight to my nerdy, stationery-loving, type-A soul. An entire book dedicated to planning ahead and getting your sh*t together? Yes, please.

I bookmarked nearly every page, but here are the five messages that resonated with me the most. These key points only skim the surface of Lorraine’s wisdom, so make sure you add this book to your reading list. Then we can compare notes!

1) Stop trying to do All The Things

“We will never, ever get to the bottom of the bulging to-do list that most of us have – either in list format somewhere or buzzing around our brains. To think otherwise is to pursue an impossible dream.”

Despite what the title suggests, this book isn’t about doing All The Things. It’s actually about prioritising the most important things in your life and doing them well. And to give yourself grace to let the less important things go. You will never get every single thing done – but that’s okay.

2) Look for reasons, not excuses

“[When trying for a baby], I told Wade that I would need to downscale our business goals and curb our global ambitions for a few years. I simply couldn’t envision how I could manage to go full tilt, as I was used to doing, with a baby on the way and definitely not once they arrived. Wade told me that we needed to: make them the reason, not the excuse.”

This perspective was a game-changer for me (thanks, Wade!). Blending motherhood and business is hard. I can come up with hundreds of excuses for not working. It’s very easy to focus on the challenges (like sleep deprivation) and not on the opportunities. But when I read those words – make them the reason, not the excuse – everything shifted. I realised that Zoey is one of the reasons why I want to keep striving for more. I want to be the best version of myself for her. She’s given me even more motivation to follow my dreams and live life to the fullest.

3) Always give yourself buffer time

“I am gradually learning to build in a buffer time for everything now, from writing this book to getting out of the house to have coffee with a friend. Just as, pre-baby, I would allow fudge factor between meetings or to make a flight, I’m mentally readjusting all my timings to allow for child-related delays. When I manage to do this successfully and a delay hits, I’m not stressing about running late. And when no delay eventuates, I’m early for the appointment.”

I used to be able to get out of the house in 30 minutes – shower, hair, make-up, breakfast. Now I’m lucky if I can get ready in three hours! I love this tip about including buffer time as a rule, not an exception. I haven’t quite nailed it yet, but I’m working on it.

4) Relax (you’ve earned it!)

“When we’re organised, we have a clear visual of what we want to do, and we have sufficient time and energy to complete our tasks in the time we allocate to them. The net result of this is that when we have time to relax, we can actually relax. When we’re not organised, we feel behind the eight ball and like we’re in a constant state of catch-up. We never seem to get the chance to chill out, as there’s always something that needs to be done.”

There’s a myth about organised people: that they’re frantic, stressed, and highly strung. I love that Lorraine flips this concept on its head. She does this a lot throughout the book – gets you to think twice about common misperceptions. When you’re organised, you can actually enjoy your time off, relaxed in the knowledge that everything is on track. There’s no better feeling!

5) Choose your words wisely

“Observe how much the word ‘busy’ is creeping into not only your vocabulary but also your conversations with others… The word ‘full’ suggests abundance, like our cup runneth over with so much good stuff.”

Get Remarkably Organised is full of practical tips. Like, ‘choose your outfit the night before’ or ‘pre-book all of your hair appointments a year in advance’. But, the real magic of this book is Lorraine’s insight into the psychology of being organised. Lorraine always, always comes back to how being organised makes you feel. And how simple things like choosing your words wisely can help you feel powerful, abundant, and focused. That’s what makes this book truly remarkable. Thank you, Lorraine!

About Jess

Jess O'Connor is a freelance copywriter based in Auckland, New Zealand. She loves helping people find the right words to attract their dream customers. 

She specialises in blogging, ghostwriting, and web copy. She also specialises in reading Hairy MacLary and Slinky Malinki to her 9-month-old daughter.