Studies Show That Messy People Are More Creative & Productive

Last Updated on 2021-09-30 , 3:00 pm

Do you find this scene familiar?

There’s always stuff lying around in your room. And you’re always moving something around to make room for something else.

When your parents or friends see the state of your room, they’ll tell you: bro, need to do springcleaning liao.

Either that or your girlfriend is complaining about your messy nature to all her friends.

If you find yourself nodding along to everything I’ve written about above…

Welcome to the club! 

People are always telling us, messy people, that we’re lazy, slobs and disgusting.

But get this: it might not be true. In fact, it might just show that you’re a creative genius who’s willing to break free from societal norms.

And it’s scientifically proven hor. Mai siao siao.

A Study Finds That People Working In A Messy Room Become More Creative

In 2013, a psychological scientist, Kathleen Vohs from the University of Minnesota conducted a study to find out if messy desks affect people’s choices.

And this was what she found.

People who worked in a messy room tend to be more adventurous, creative and more willing to break free from conventional social norms.

People who worked in a tidy room, on the other hand, are less adventurous and tend to be more likely to behave in a socially-acceptable manner.

The study involved a messy room and a tidy room (control).

People from the tidy room donated more to charity (82% vs 47%). Also, more participants from the tidy room chose to eat an apple over a bar of chocolate (67% vs 20%).

On the other hand, when the participants from both rooms were asked to think of new ideas about the ping pong ball, ideas given by participants from the messy room were rated more interesting and creative.

The participants from the tidy room also prefer to stick to known items on a restaurant’s new menu as opposed to the messy room’s participants, who are more interested in trying new stuff.

Messiness Is Actually Great For Productivity

Believe it or not, a messy desk is a great system for productivity in the workplace.

At least according to Eric Abrahamson and David H. Freedman, authors of A Perfect Mess: The Hidden Benefits of Disorder, it is.

They said that with a cluttered work desk, the most important and urgent stuff is thrown at the top or somewhere close by, while the less important and not-as-urgent matters get drowned near the bottom.

So you have no choice but to focus on the more important matters.

That’s if you actually (subconsciously) do that. If your important and urgent stuff gets stuck at the bottom, then GG.

You’re not a hidden genius. You’re just lazy.

Messy People Tend To Be Able To See The Bigger Picture

If you’re a messy person, chances are you’re very adaptable when it comes to different situations in life, and you’re more likely to have the ability to keep the big picture in mind.

Being able to focus on the task at hand without being taken in by your surroundings takes a huge amount of focus.

And it’s usually a sign that you are able to get a decent grasp of the reality surrounding a situation without getting caught up in the details.

Isn’t that what most companies are looking for in higher management?

So there you have it. Messy people might not be as hopeless as people think we are.

We’re actually very creative dudes, okay.

But then again, if your mess includes food like leftover food boxes and everything…

…you’re just disgusting.

After all, too much of something isn’t a good thing, no matter what.

Featured Image: trekandshoot / Shutterstock.com