8 Great Ways to Get Organized
There are really no right or wrong, or “one size fits all” techniques for getting your home organized. Any system you choose has to suit your life – your personal habits, and how you utilize space. Simple approaches such as being aware of areas that might be considered clutter “hot spots” can be extremely effective, and here are some additional ideas you might find useful:
Make it as simple as possible.
You’re setting yourself up for failure if you create obstacles that work against being organized. An example would be keeping your dirty clothes basket at the back of the closet. While the idea is to keep it out of sight, making access difficult is counter-productive. Instead, keep the basket or bin out in the open and easily accessed – so simple in fact that you could toss clothes into from across the room if necessary. Avoid purchasing any storage containers that have lids, or simply don’t use the lids. Keeping it simple by using open storage solutions for items you use often such as toiletries or kitchen tools make them easier to put away, which leads to being more organized.
Take stock of your situation before purchasing storage containers.
Typically when someone decides to get organized they head out to shop for a variety of containers, baskets, shelves, etc. When you’re ready to begin organizing, don’t do it that way. The first thing you should do is set aside a weekend to take inventory of your belongings, room by room. Are you familiar with the 80/20 rule? It simply states that most of us only use about 20 percent of our possessions. Keep that in mind as you sort through all of the items in your home that you wish to organize and be brutally honest with yourself about what you use and what you don’t. Decide ahead of time that you will be very generous with donations to charities, churches, or civic clubs that accept gently used second-hand items. Once you’ve completed this first and important step, then you can shop for storage solutions.
It probably is broke, so you’re gonna’ need to fix it.
Do your rooms still appear cluttered and messy even after you’ve cleaned? This is a major hint that it’s time to get organized. Although, if you’re reading this article, you may already realize this. Ideally, you should be able to sweep through any room in your home and have it tidy in less than 15 minutes. After you’ve completed the donation process and you’re left with things you wish to keep, pull everything out into the open and begin grouping items together according to their use and store them accordingly in open, square or rectangular containers. Don’t use round containers as they waste space. Once you’ve completed this process, label your containers so that other family members can be aware of the new system.
Conquer clutter before it spills out into the room.
By keeping an eye on your storage containers you can easily judge when it’s time to go through another period of discarding and donating. A great example is the basket you’ve placed beside the couch to organize magazines; once it’s full you know that you’ve got more reading material than you can manage.
Junk drawer? Just say no.
Having even one drawer in your home that’s unorganized can be a slippery slope for those of us who seem to attract clutter. Create smaller systems inside all of the drawers in your home. Use small wire mesh baskets or something similar to separate items into specific spaces.
Target and eliminate “catch-all” spaces.
There are certain areas in every home that just seem to magnetize over time and begin to attract clutter. The table in your entryway, the dining room table, kitchen counter tops, etc. are all prime suspects. To work against this problem make taking a quick stroll through the house just before bed part of your nightly routine, clearing off the days accumulations as you go.
Always stand ready to discard or donate.
Keep a shopping bag in your closet and anytime you try on a particular item of clothing and then change back out of it because you’re not satisfied with the fit or you find it unflattering for some reason, don’t even bother hanging it back up, just place it directly in the shopping bag to be discarded or donated.
If you use it often, keep it available.
The items you use on a daily basis should be kept in plain sight, and always be easy to access. The items you use occasionally should be within a step stools reach, and items you use only once per year or so should be in the attic or otherwise well stored, and out of the way.
If you’re habitually untidy or cluttered and you’ve never done a major organization project, expect it will take some time to get where you want to be. Be diligent and work at it until you’re there. Use these tips and hints and before long you’ll be happily organized!
This is a guest post from Erica Strauss, a freelance writer for Advance Me Inc. who provide business cash advances to small and medium sized businesses.
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