About 10 years ago I had an organizing business and I helped people organize their homes. I love organizing and I love helping people create more peace in their lives.
During my time as a professional organizer I learned a lot about people and their relationship with their stuff. I also learned how people view organizing. Many people think that you can spend a lot of time organizing one time and it will stay that way forever. Others think it’s all about the containers only and not about the amount of “stuff” they have.
I learned to go over the truths and rules of organizing with them from the beginning and repeat them throughout our time together. Below are those truths. I hope they help you understand how to truly stay organized.
My organizing rules:
- Purge first. Organizing must start with purging. So many people want to organize what they have. However, I can predict that you have many items that you could part with and once you do that it makes organizing what is left much more manageable.
- It’s a process not a project. Organizing is not something you do once and you’ll be organized forever. I wish this was the case, but it’s not. Life happens, new items come into your house, other items lose their value to you and many items wear out and need to be replaced. I re-organize our home every year. I go through each area once every year and clear it out of anything we don’t use anymore or don’t need and then organize the rest based on what we use most often.
- It takes time. The best way to organize is to remove everything from the area you are working on and go through each item and only put back (and organize) what you need to keep.
- Prime real estate matters. When you look at the space in your cabinets and storage – think of it as prime real estate. The most valuable space is the space that is most easily accessible. For instance the shelf that is easiest to get to in your pantry is your pantry’s prime real estate. That should be the spot for your most used items and that is it. Items you only get to once a year should be on the very top or hardest to reach areas.
- Everything needs a home. You’ve heard the saying “Everything in it’s place” and it’s so true. Clutter happens when items don’t have an easily accessible home. This is a must. Especially if you want your kids to keep their rooms clean and organized. It must be easy to put things away. Having some bins without the lids helps make clean up a lot easier. Not everything has to be in a bin with a lid unless you are stacking them – and that is best for items that are not used on a regular basis.
- Giving away something someone gave you is not giving that person away. This one was especially hard for a lot of people. I’m not saying you should throw away heirlooms or sentimental items, but when Aunt Betty gave you a set of dishes or a sweater that you do not like, you do not have to keep them just because she gave them to you. It’s okay to let go of things that you do not like or use. You are not giving away that person or your relationship with them. You are also allowing someone else to enjoy something you weren’t using.
- Have you used it in the last year? If you haven’t used something in a year, it’s probably time to give it away (unless it’s something sentimental or really special to you.) This goes for clothes too. One trick is to turn all of your hangers around at the beginning of the year and once you wear an item turning the hanger the right way. At the end of the year you could donate any item that still has the hanger turned around.
- One in and one out. One way to keep the amount of stuff you own to a manageable amount is to adopt the “one in and one out” rule. When you bring a new item in, one must be donated.
Those are my main rules and truths about organizing. If you focus on these 6 rules it will help your home stay organized!
Keeping an organized home is a great way to create peace in your life. Good luck and if you have any questions about this please feel free to contact me.