We had the amazing opportunity to hold an organizing workshop at Cal Tech this past Friday. While we love educating the public with organizing how-to's and basics we always are amazed at what we learn from the crowd. One gentleman in particular asked a great question. He wondered, "How come, when we go to our friends' houses, it's always so pristine and organized. Don't they have the same issues we have?" Our first response was, "Well--you never know what's hidden behind closed doors or who owns a set of keys to a storage shed..."
4 Tips To Make Organizing Decisions Easier
But after further thought--we went on to tell this particular audience member that families who have their belongings in order are really good at making decisions. We've said it before and we'll say it again, clutter is a delayed decision. The more you get into the habit of making daily decisions on what comes into your life and to your space, the more organized your life will be. We've come up with 4 tips to help you make the decision process easier.
- Track your habits. If you're going out to any sort of event where you know they might be handing out goodie bags, pamphlets, or postcards--just say no. Because we're such a consumerist society, we'll take the free stuff (even when we don't need it). So if you already know ahead of time that you like taking the free stuff, remind yourself before you walk out of the door to just say no!
- Make less paper come in the apartment. Mail is one of the biggest clutter offenders. Because we receive mail almost daily, it's hard to keep up with all of it. First, you need to get off the junk mailing lists. This is a great post that gives you the resources to get off the junk mail lists. Also, it's about creating good habits. Opening the mail daily (even if you don't act on it immediately) is a great way to declutter. Recycling goes immediately in the recycle bin and the paper that needs to be shredded is taken care of at once. If you have a landing strip set up to handle incoming mail, your new habits should be much easier to form.
- Don't give up just because your new system didn't work out. The reality is, organizing takes time. You didn't become disorganized overnight and chances are, you won't become organized over night. If you start out knowing that eventually, your life will become more streamlined then you're less likely to give up during the process. We always tell our clients, it's going to get messy before it gets better (how can it not, we're literally pulling everything out).
- Maintenance is key. Just because you finally get your life organized doesn't mean your life will always stay organized. In order for your previous organizing systems to work, you have to maintain them. Paper will always come in the door and we will always buy more things--you just have to have the rules and guidelines in place to prevent overflow.
Related Organizing Posts
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- Organizing: Stack-and-Pile Home Offices From Vitra
[Image from Gregory Han via House Tour: Seonna's Hillside Modern]
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I seriously think it is a matter, very often, of sentimentality... I had a friend keep me company (read: hold my hand) while I did a major purge this weekend. He was quite amazed at what I was reluctant to part with based on purely sentimental reasons.
view patrick (the other one)'s profile
once you start just don't stop. it's a lot easier to constantly clean up tiny messes compared to waiting and cleaning up large messes.
BTW, where can i find a coffee table like that, but white?!
view Matt. M's profile
Your Target pop-up ads are blocking the text and not going away. They also have no place to click to shut them.
view feathers's profile
Patrick (the other one),
So that's your secret! Yes, I definitely think hand holding could help, just be careful with the letter opener ; ).
view jimkk's profile
My clutter increases logarithmically when the house cleaners come or guests stop by - I quickly shove things into drawers, closets, or nonsensical piles just to give the illusion of tidiness. The problem compounds each time until I can't stand it anymore. Then I do a massive clean-up and swing violently to the opposite end of the spectrum where pencils have to be lined up perfectly with the stapler, the label maker hums furiously, and I buy out Container Store in an attempt to purchase a more organized version of myself.
And then the house cleaners come...
view LilyC's profile
I don't think mail is all that much of an issue. Catalogues can be recycled, magazines the same, and what else is left?
The freebies at events is a good point, but I think bigger than that is just all the flotsam and jetsam of daily life. People who have hobbies or interests beyond sitting in front of a box tend to accumulate things. Paring down is good, but figuring out what you really use and what you think or hope you might use is key.
Organize for the life you have, not the life you want to have or think you should have. If you're not crafty, ditch the mass of sweaters because you're not going to felt them and turn them into cute stuffed beasts or blankets.
Same with old junk jewelery or beads or postcards or whatever.
Many of us aren't as creative as we think we are. I used to delude myself that I was going to refinish, repair, paint, modify etc. all sorts of "treasures" when in fact, I never did.
view Palmetto's profile
I'm interested in learning more about the workshop... Was this a campus event? Is it part of a series? Or is there an organization that does education on organizing? Professional development?
view arroyo's profile
going through and getting rid of things you don't love or use is a great but to keep things from constantly getting 'cluttered' again, you need to give your things a proper home with-in the home. a place to put it once you're done using it.
as you pull everything out of your cabinets and closets to purge, sort the keepers into like categories (travel, household- like bulbs, vacuum bags, ext cords, cleaning, hobby, sports). once everything is together you can see how much space you may need to store - and if there's a need to purge more. then you can think about where to put things while keeping the category all together so when you need it again later, you know where to find it, and more importantly when you're done with it, it can go back where it belongs.
view lcatt's profile
oh, and arroyo, you can look at the napo.net website. they list events for the public and professional organizers.
view lcatt's profile