Part of getting organized and being organized long term is figuring out ways to make your life simpler that are sustainable over time. This means finding new methods, new tips, new products and ways of doing thing that are better than the old way. One of the banes of my existence (can I have more than one?) that drives my normally organized self nutty is...
tangled cords. On anything. Whether it's my iPod, my headset mic cord, my headset phone cord or some other electronic gizmo, I have cords for it and they're all tangled. It's crazy-making!
I happened to stumble upon an interesting post from a few months back on the Lifehacker blog about keeping iPod cords wrapped and untangled. If you read the initial post and the responses, you'll find lots of solutions for this pesky problem, from the commercially available SmartWrap and the Ear Pod to the very low-tech empty Altoids tin suggested by Jason and the coin wrapper solution offered by Dan in Ontario. I happened to have an empty quarter roll and tried using it to control my headset mic cord, and I'm happy to say, it's working just fine! (Thanks Dan!)
As for my iPod earbud cord mess, I solved that problem months ago, by ditching the earbuds. They wouldn't fit in my ears and I only listen to the iPod either in the car through the radio or in my office through computer speakers. Anyway, I had no idea there were so many ideas out there about how to wrap cords, or that so many people had such strong opinions on it! For larger (and longer) computer cords and cables, there are also a plethora of options, including you can use to tame them, such as Cable Organizer, Cable Safe, and Cable Turtle.
One thing I did learn from the Lifehacker post is that cords and cables should never be wrapped tightly, but it's typically safe to wrap or coil them loosely, to avoid damaging the integrity of the itty bitty wires inside. So what do you do with all your cords and cables to keep them organized? Got any great ideas? Share them in the comments section!
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