Organizing

Small Actions Can Help You Get Organized

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It’s hard to believe this month is almost over. January was “National Get Organized Month”. Have you been organizing your desk, office, or home? If you’re like me it’s takes a lot longer than one month to get organized.

I’ve been working at it for years and it’s an ongoing process. It’s like floating down a river in a raft, sometimes it is calm and sometimes you hit the rapids. When the papers and other clutter enter your home faster than you can put them away then it’s time to take small but quick actions to help you get control.

If the paper piles on your desk or counter have been piling up with bills from the holidays, tax papers, children’s school papers, etc. then you need to take a few minutes and organize them. You’ll feel better and more in control. Check out my article on Divide and Conquer Paper Clutter.

If you still haven’t put away the holiday decorations now would be a good time to do it. Take one room at a time or set a timer each day. Before you know it they will all be put away.

If all the new toys your children got for the holidays are still laying around everywhere it may be time to free up some shelf space for them. Go through their old toys and get rid of the ones they no longer play with.

When you hit the rapids of disorganization then think of what small actions you can take immediately to help you navigate the rough waters. Those small actions will add up.

Janice

https://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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Hidden Roots Of Clutter

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Why do we have clutter? That’s a tough question. Sometimes it’s as simple as setting up a system or routine that makes it easy for us to control the clutter. Sometimes it’s as complicated as deep psychological reasons. Since I am not a psychologist (although I did take about 12 hours of psychology courses in college back in the dark ages) obviously I can only help by suggesting systems, routines or simply looking at clutter from a different perspective.

So what are some of the simple hidden roots of clutter and how do you find them? Well, the best way is to play detective.

  • Do you have a problem with paper clutter and lost bills? It could be because you don’t have a system set up to deal with paper. You need a place to put your bills as soon as your receive them so they are in one place when you sit down to take care of them. No more lost bills.
  • Do clean pots and pans stay in the dish drainer because the cabinets are so full it’s a real hassle to put them away and then take them out again? The root of this clutter is either too many pans, too little cabinet space, or an inefficient and unorganized cabinet. Figure out the root cause then you can find a solution to change it.
  • Is the bathroom counter filled with bottles, brushes, razors, hairdryers, etc. because the underneath cabinet is filled with old stuff? Cleaning out the old and unused items can clear up some space. If you lack storage space maybe some baskets or shelves put on the wall can corral some of the items.
  • Books, DVD’s, toys, and other things are cluttering up the family room. Are there too many items? Too little storage? Inefficient storage? Rarely used items mixed in with daily used items? Again, figure out the root cause then you can find a solution.

Once you figure out the hidden roots of the clutter then you have a direction to help point you towards a solution. Clearing out the old unused items makes it easier to organize what is left. If this is hard for you to do then look inside yourself to see the hidden reason you can’t let go of things. Once you know why then you can start working to change it.

Janice

https://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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Creating New Habits

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Have you moved forward on your New Year’s resolution to declutter and organize your home? It is said that very few people follow through with their resolutions. That’s probably because they don’t have a plan in place or even know where to start.

The first place to start is to recognize and acknowledge the bad habits that got you in this mess to begin with. Clutter and disorganization doesn’t happen overnight and all by itself. It happens over time due to bad habits on your part.

So if the root of the problem is bad habits then the solution would be to have good habits instead. Studies show that the best way to get rid of a bad habit is to substitute a good habit in it’s place.

An example of a bad habit that contributes to the clutter in your home would be bringing in the mail and dumping it on the kitchen counter to “go through it later”. Later may come in a couple of days or longer. By then the pile is toppling over and in the way. Now you feel overwhelmed by the pile and don’t know when you’ll find time to deal with it. In your mind it will take forever so you put it off for a few more days when you may have more time. This bad habit creates a vicious cycle.

Now a good habit to substitute for the bad one would be to deal with the mail on a daily basis. That doesn’t mean you will take care of paying the bills that day or reading the magazine before cooking dinner. What you want to do is set up a plan to organize the mail as soon as you bring it in the house.

You’ll want a file folder or basket on your desk for bills and items that need action taken right away. You’ll want another folder or basket for items that don’t need immediate action and can wait a few days for you to look at. You’ll also want a place to keep the reading material, maybe a basket by your favorite chair.

As soon as the mail comes in take a couple of minutes to separate it into piles according to the categories above. Have a fourth pile for trash that needs shredding. All other junk mail can be recycled or thrown away immediately. Take another minute or two to put the piles into their proper folders or baskets.

Do this 2-5 minute routine everyday and before long you will have substituted a good habit for the bad one. No more piles of mail cluttering up the counter!

Janice

https://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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National Clean Off Your Desk Day

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National “Clean Off You Desk Day” is observed the second Monday of January. If you desk is always a mess then today is a good time to start a new habit to keep you desk clean everyday of the year.

So how do you create this new habit? One babystep at a time!

A good way is to take a timer and set it for 5-10 minutes at the end of the day (if you work there all day) or at the end of your bill paying/paperwork time.

File away the papers you have completed. Put the unfinished papers in a folder with current paperwork tasks. Keep that folder on a shelf, basket, or in a file drawer at your desk. Your goal is to have the desk as cleaned off as possible for the next morning.

A cleared off desk first thing in the morning will help put you in a brighter mood instead of feeling overwhelmed. Because you put the unfinished tasks in a folder you know exactly where to start working. No more digging through piles of paper to find what needs to be done.

Habits take time to develop but with babysteps you can have that cleaned off desk almost everyday.

If your your desk is piled high with papers you’ll want to read the article on “How to Divide and Conquer Paper Clutter” first. It will help you organize those papers so you can put them where they belong.

If your whole office is a mess then consider organizing it in zones.  This is also a way to help keep the desk cleaned off. Having a permanent home for the different papers will make it easier to put them away.

The article, “How To Organize Your Home Office” will show you how to organize with zones.

 

To a lighter load along the way.

Janice

CutClutterWithScissors Facebook Page

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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National Get Organized Month

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January is “National Get Organized Month” according to NAPO (National Association of Professional Organizers). Starting out the new year by getting organized is a great idea. It will set up the rest of the year to be a more productive, fun, and happy year.

The hard part is taking the responsibility to get the whole family into the idea and get their help. Do you feel like you carry the whole weight of running the household?

We all live in the house so can’t everybody help by doing their part? Sometimes all we want is for somebody in the house to offer their help without us begging them for it. Other times we wonder if anybody in the house has a clue how much work we do to keep the house clean. But as usual nobody helps or even has a clue.

If the above paragraph sounds like your home, this is the year to change things. You’ll have to set the example and at some point the rest of the family will follow. You might want to have them read the following story. No one seems to be sure of the exact origin so the author is listed as “Unknown”. Many families will find themselves in this story.

“This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody’s job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn’t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.”

Janice

https://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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