Getting Organized Can Save You Time
- Create a Drop Zone
Having a single place to “drop” your keys, wallet, sunglasses, mask, etc when you get home means these belongings are in the same spot every time you need them. Less running around searching means more time for you. This is a great first step to consider what are the “right things” to be in the “right spot.”
- Step 1: Consider how you enter or leave your house. Find an area you can designate for your essential items.
- Step 2: Prepare the space. Add a hook for keys and a bowl or basket for small items.
The important part is to not let other items accumulate here. A drop zone is for easy view and access to essentials.
- Sort Through Your Clothes
Less clothes = less laundry. Less laundry = more time!
How to sort your clothes:
- Step 1: Pile all your clothes on your bed. I do mean all, from all rooms, and from all drawers
- Step 2: Item by item decide what you want to keep.
- Ask does it make you feel good/beautiful/confident?
- Does it fit?
- Have you worn it in the last year?
- Is it in full working condition?
- Is it comfortable?
- Also consider how many you have of that type of item
Sort into piles
- Keep (if yes to above questions!)
- Unsure/Not ready to part with
- Put these in a bin/bag and put them with your offseason clothes. Accessible but not readily available. These should be donated when you switch seasons within the next year
- Off Season
- Donate
- Trash
Now you will not only have less laundry, when you have only items you know fit you and make you feel good, it is quicker to get dressed each day.
Getting Organized Can Save You Money
- Organize Your Pantry
Pantries easily hide old food or duplicate purchases unless they are organized to provide easy visibility.Two main tips for pantries to quickly improve your awareness of what you have.
- Remove packaging – Picture a box of your favorite granola bars, you reach in to grab one and it is an empty box! On the other hand, you just came back from the store and stocked up on your favorite granola bar, when you go to take the last bar out of the box you had already, you realize you already had a brand new box! Now you have to find a way to store the extra and you spent more money than you needed to.
Remove packaging after every shopping trip and both problems are solved. You then have a clear inventory of the food you have on hand.
2. Use clear bins – This allows you to use any pantry space more efficiently. Bins allow you to pull out all food without knocking other items over. By storing all like items together you can clearly see what products you already have.
4. Organize Your Paperwork
Most direct saving here comes from accessibility to tax forms and support for taxes. The easier you are able to compile everything and know you have all the documentation, the sooner you can file your taxes and get a refund or make your payment.One recommendation is to have a designated spot to drop all incoming paper and sort through it each week. Put a heavy-duty magnet clip on the fridge, one for each person in the household, and clip actionable paper to it, with the soonest due date on top.
Having a good paper management system to track due dates for bills and action items will save you duplicate payments and late charges.
Getting Organized Can Build Your Confidence
- Use these beginnings of an organized mindset to start thinking of all areas of your house.
Having the right things in the right place means day to day life is easier and also makes unexpected events like preparing for a last-minute guest stress free.Sorting and organizing quite literally removes unwanted belongings from your life, leaving more room physically and mentally for what you enjoy most.
____
I am Rachel, a professional organizer and founder of Resolute Organizing. I guide clients through home organization projects, covering everything from kitchens to basements, and from nurseries to paper management. I bring unique insight from my business analyst background, which developed my ability to see both the details and the big picture to help you get organized with purpose and have more time for what you love.
