Too much clutter in your home? Feeling like a borderline hoarder? Don’t worry, dear, we’re here to help! Some of the easiest ways to get organized in your home or workspace are the most creative and fun. Follow these steps to start your new wave of organization.
Step 1:
Make a plan for yourself! To start, identify items you need to keep vs. items you want to keep. You want to keep things that are from childhood, important documents, items that have a happy memory attached or something that is essential.
- Baby Albums (yours, your child’s or significant other) and pictures
- Journals/paper and something to write with to jot down grocery lists or thoughts
- Clothes that you wear on a regular basis (all others should go)
- Items you use regularly or reference regularly (car maintenance paperwork, for example)
- Items that bring you happiness or serve a practical purpose
- Any important documents like your birth documents (birth certificate, social security, etc.) or life changing event documents (marriage licenses, etc.)
Step 2:
Invest in shelving or decorative storage boxes. Let’s be honest, you will need somewhere to put your pictures that bring smiles to your face or warm you up inside. Extra shelving also provides a space to hold your books or, if you have a home office, you can put all your important documents in the same area. Cluttered closet from all of your shoes? No problem. Make or buy some shelves to hold those items. This will, in turn, free up your floor space to put more!! For the boxes, you may need somewhere to put extra throw blankets, clothes that won’t fit in your closet or extra toys if you have little ones.
Step 3:
Find interesting ways to keep you motivated. Similar to going to the gym, play some music to get you flowing. Invite friends over to help you (sometimes having a third party to help you sort can be effective). Recognize when you’ve completed each task to help you feel more accomplished in what you are doing. Challenge yourself and set a specific amount of time to have the work completed. For example, start a timer and have your organizing/cleaning done by the end of that time. This will keep you focused on the task at hand and help you step up to what needs to be done. Before you know it, you’ll have laundry folded and put away in 30 minutes!
Step 4:
Always remember to keep similar things together and not lose sight of what your objective is! Let your inner Monica Geller explore your messes and alleviate your disorganized stresses. As long as you stay strong and stay motivated, getting organized will be a breeze.
Step 5:
Keep trash bags available, too, because as you sort through necessary vs unnecessary items you will want to toss things no longer needed. This could include paid off bills, old/used book activities, etc. To stress it more, you want to make sure you are only keeping things of physical or emotional value to you.
When your space is clear, your mind will be clear, too! Use these tips to get organized and off to a fresh start.
