Alphabetising the recycling

I was introduced to the term alphabetising the recycling on one of Merlin Mann's podcasts, and I've been thinking about it ever since. It's such a perfect way of describing those activities that seem, on the face of it, useful and productive, but as you dig in you realise that they are just busy-work. (Note: alphabetising, rather than sorting recycling.)

In themselves, these alphabetising activities are rarely a massive problem. However, unchallenged, they can snowball. They can become the core of something huge that might then cause problems. Pushing the analogy further, you may cancel appointments or miss deadlines so you've got time to alphabetise. It can be a procrastination activity. I've certainly caught myself sorting emails to avoid working on something big and daunting.

I’ve found the questions “am I alphabetising the recycling?” and “is this X an example of alphabetising the recycling?” useful additions to my mental checklist when looking at my own activities alone.

All that said, sometimes alphabetising activities can be fun. Acknowledged (that's the crucial bit), they can help to add ritual or structure to life.