Top 20 Organizing Tips – Week #1
This is the first of our Summer Top 20 Organizing Tips. In each of our next 4 newsletters I will share 5 Organizing Tips. In total, we will share 20 tips with you that will help you eliminate your clutter and stay organized.
These tips will help you start your steps toward getting organized because “until something happens, nothing happens”. Talk is cheap and usually doesn’t accomplish a whole lot of anything. To reach your goal of getting organized, requires that you take action. This does not mean that you focus totally on reaching a specific goal. Your regular, daily life should not end because you are taking on a new project. Don’t stop your daily living.
So, let’s get started!
Tip #1 – Concentrate on your physical clutter first. The feeling that you will receive when you de-clutter a specific area that is constantly in your view will provide instant gratification – something that we all relate to. It can be something as simple as keeping the kitchen table clear of paperwork or the kitchen counter organized. Don’t think about the entire room – pick one area of the room and concentrate on just that area.
Tip #2 – Give yourself realistic deadlines. Break the project down into stages and give yourself time to reach each goal.Take a look at your calendar and determine a few things: what other obligations do you have during the next week and how much time can you dedicate to working on your project. Actually schedule time on your own calendar to work on the project. There is a better chance that you will see a project through to completion when you are able to think clearly about what it will take to achieve your goal.
Tip #3 Stop shopping! Stop bringing items into the house or office that will cause more clutter. Don’t buy anything until you can actually spend time working on your project because, it is very likely that you will already have items that you need to complete your project. Another advantage to not shopping is that you will save yourself money! Once you have eliminated items and organized what is left, you can make an educated decision about any items that you may need to complete the project. You will be able to create your own customized and organized space.
Tip #4 – No more garage sales or accepting any hand-me-downs until your space is organized. This goes along with the “no more shopping” tip.
Tip #5- Along the process, take pictures. Take pictures of the project before you begin. This will help you have a true picture of what it looked like before. Then, as you go along, take additional pictures. Seeing everything pulled out of your space and the mess that you have created will definitely help you to realize that you don’t want to do this again. It will give you encouragement to keep the space organized on a daily basis. Take an after picture for your files. Post both of these pictures on the inside of a cabinet or somewhere that you will be able to easily find them. A gentle reminder of what “was” is great motivation.
Take some steps this week to get just one area organized before the next newsletter. I’ll share 5 more tips with you in just 2 weeks.
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