simply-org.com Blog

Are you thinking I am nuts? Does this sound like an oxymoron?

Here’s the deal. If you are not a neat and tidy person and this is holding you back from making progress in getting organized, stop and read this.

As I have said before being organized means having the right amount of stuff put away in a manner that you can find it later. (Memorize this and make it your mantra). No one said it has to be neat. Here is an example to make my point clear.

Before there were clean socks all over the bedroom: in three different drawers, under the bed, on the floor of the closet, etc. This is highly disorganized.

After all the socks are in one drawer. Maybe they are just thrown in there, but they are in one place and they fit in that one container (the drawer). This is organized.

The personalization of this for the person who is naturally neat is the socks are all set up in pairs and color coded. The messy person has them all in one drawer, but just dumped in. In both cases the socks are in one place and easier to find than when they were all over the room. Both scenarios work.

Another example is tax receipts and other papers. As long as they are stored all together for one tax year, you are way ahead of the game when it comes time to work on your taxes. The neat person might go to the step of pre-sorting receipts. The messy person is glad to have them all together.

Think of it this way…When you are organized you can find things quickly because they are in a designated place. You can clean up quickly because everything has a designated place. Having like with like and not too much of it is a core point of organizing. Yes, even my desk can be a mess while I am working on projects, but I can clean it up quickly because everything has a place.

I was looking at a Storage magazine last week with its beautiful photos of nearly perfect rooms, drawers and shelves. The “organizing ideas” weren’t terribly brilliant or innovative which is fine. Many of the best ideas are the simplest. But here is what really caught my eye. The photos are so attractive because there is no clutter, no excess. The rooms had the right amount of stuff.

So my tip this week is to focus your goals not so much on “getting organized”, but on CLEARING THE CLUTTER. That is the root of getting organized.

Ask yourself these questions:

* Do you really need so much stuff to live a happy and fulfilling life?
* Do these things really make you happy or do they hold you back?

Prepare yourself to shift your point of view and get ready to clear some clutter.

If this is really difficult (and it can be) consider getting an organizing buddy who can help you see what is going on.

“I want to get Organized” is too broad and unachievable. Here’s what I suggest if you really want to make a change.

I start every new client meeting with two very important steps. We review the current state of things for what is working and what is not, which then leads us to DEFINE THE GOALS. The goals are very clear, measurable, straight forward, and have an end date. We write them down and post them where they can be seen: the refrigerator, bulletin board, computer notes….

Here are some examples to help you plan your own personal goals:

* I want to be able to find the insurance paperwork quickly and without stress by February.
* I want to be able to see my clothes clearly so that I can get dressed more quickly in the morning before my big vacation in March.
* I want to set up my pantry and kitchen this weekend so ingredients and tools are easily available to make nutritious meals for my family.
* I want to clear the dining room table and have a system in place so the clutter (mail) does not come back. We will eat our meals at that table starting next month.
Go ahead and set your own goals.

Service Provider of the Week
Scott Halbrook, Agent, Farmers Insurance

* When is the last time you did a thorough review of your home, life and auto insurance?
* Do you know, like and trust your insurance agent such that you actually look forward to seeing him/her?

I want to introduce you to Scott Halbrook of Farmer’s Insurance. Scott is local to Montclair. He’s your neighbor and friend who wants to do the best for you. If it has been a long time since you had a review or you barely even know your agent, take the pain out of the process and give Scott a call. He will come to your home or office and take good care of you. And you will make a new friend. I constantly recommend Scott to my clients and he is my agent too.

scott@halbrookinsuranceagency.com

510-531-1432

You have made the decision to de-clutter and get control over your things and your space. That is a great start.
But now the practical part comes into play and you are wondering how to actually get started.

1. Stop talking about it: All my clients want to talk, talk, talk. And nothing gets done.
2. Grab the first thing in front of you. The top thing, anything.
3. Make a decision if you need it, love it, want it, use it. Does it stay or go.
4. Don’t worry about where it will go if it is a “keep” item. This is called a rough sort and the decision is ONLY keep or go…not where. That comes later.
5. Have a recycling bag, donate bag and shred bag available.

This Rough Sort is the first step to get you going.
Are you having a really tough time making these initial decisions? Consider getting an organizing buddy. This can be a friend or relative who will be patient and will support you. If an outside third party might be less emotional and a less judgmental situation, consider hiring a Professional Organizer. Was that a shameless plug? Not really. An Organizing Buddy is a great idea, but sometimes it is to hard with someone you know.

So you are ready to clear out a room, clean up and get it organized.  You go into that room to get started and then the energy drops.  What is going on?  In many cases the thought of making decisions on what to keep and what to let go of is just daunting.  Emotions, memories, remorse about a purchase, the “I might need it later” excuse all come up….I am sure all these feelings sound familiar.



For the fun of it…here are my favorite organizing tools.