Organizing Tips
Six Summer Organizing Tips:
- For those of you with children, use the end of the school year as the time you go thru the school materials that accumulated since September to determine what needs to stay and what can be discarded. Store what you are keeping in your child’s backpack from the year past. By High School graduation all you will need to handle is 13 well organized backpacks all labeled by grade.
- Packing for camp or vacation provides a good opportunity to weed out clothing that no longer fits or is torn or stained. Pass the “good stuff” to a favorite charity or friend.
- One summer party is all it takes to provide incentive for a home clean-up, inside and outdoors as well. Give yourself enough time so you don’t feel pressured and maybe even enjoy the project.
- Make sure summer sports items are accessible and easy to maintain in a clutter free fashion. Use well labeled bins, barrels and baskets.
- Keep a pick up and go bag packed with sunscreen, a hat or visor, a towel and reading material so that you are ready at any time you want to pick up and go.
- Build time into your schedule for fun, for yourself and those you love.
5 Tips for 2010:
- If your previous filing system failed you, now is the perfect time for a fresh start. If you keep it simple, you may keep it up.
- If your filing system worked, now its time to purge.
- Mark a large envelope TAXES 2009 and place the 2009 tax documents you receive in the mail into it.
- Adopt the rule that for each new item that comes into your home you will let go of an item you already have.
- Arrange a swap party with friends. Have each person bring 10 items to swap. Take turns choosing what you NEED, and donate the rest.
More Tips:
- Since personal organizing can be very emotionally charged — allow yourself to take baby steps.
- Begin organizing and decluttering one space or pile at a time.
- Set a reasonable/short time limit for each organizing session (Do NOT try organizing all at once - this will lead to instant anxiety overload!)
- Divide your possessions (paper, files, clothes, dishes, etc) into the following categories: - Keep - Donate - Trash - Undecided.
- Organizing your mail at its POINT OF ENTRY is best. Toss or shred unwanted mail before it becomes a pile on your kitchen table.
- Stick with your reasonably timed personal organizing sessions (3-4 times/week).
- Reward yourself weekly for your personal organizing efforts.
- Don't be too hard on yourself. Organizing is not easy and Rome wasn't built in a day!
- Pick a system (Do your organizing by color, type, season) for your clothes closet and stick to it.
- Consult an expert in personal organizing to kick-start your organizing campaign.