February 24, 2009
If you are a new subscriber, welcome! You are not alone if your find it difficult to stay organized. This month’s issue focuses on that very issue, maintaining organization. Maintaining is a struggle for many because it requires changing habits and routines that you, and maybe your family, have had for years. The good news is, once you get into the habit of maintaining, you won’t need to organize your home again. After you’ve started to organize your home, one small area at a time, you must also begin to maintain those areas. This is a crucial part of the organizing process because if newly organized areas revert back to their original state, you’ll probably become frustrated. Protect the time and money you may have invested in organizing your home with these 7 tips.
7 Ways to Stay Organized for Life
1. Keep it Simple
If you create simple, logical homes and systems during the organization process it will be easier to maintain the organization. For example, use an alphabetical system for files and keep things where you use them.
2. Avoid Clutter Creep
Do you find yourself using the first available flat spot as a home for items? Don’t do it! Disorganization will creep back into your life before you can say, “Where did I put that?” Returning items to the homes created in the organizing process, is the best way to avoid clutter creep.3. Less is More
I’m a firm believer of this. Subtract stuff from your home on a regular basis. If you add without subtracting you will outgrow your space. Set boundaries, limits, and live by the “one in one out” rule. You will find it’s much easier to maintain when you have less stuff to take care of.4. De-Clutter your Mailbox
Are you overwhelmed by mail? You can actually reduce the amount of junk mail you receive. This website www.dmachoice.org allows you to remove your name from mailing lists in a matter of minutes. Your mail will take less time to process and you’ll keep more trees in the forest.5. Shop Out of Necessity, Not for Recreation
Stick to a list to avoid impulse purchases that lead to too much stuff. Every item you buy requires care and a home. A question I ask myself before buying something significant is, “Where will I put it?” This helps me stop and think before I make a purchase.6. Clear the Decks!
Make a habit of tidying up the house before the end of the day to prevent clutter from taking over. Enlist the entire family. Wash dishes, put away clothing, pick up clutter from the common areas, and tidy the entryway. When you wake in the morning, your day will be off to an organized start.
7. Let’s Celebrate
There’s nothing like hosting a party to keep the organization in check. Entertain often if that’s what really motivates you to keep an organized and tidy house. When your home has organizational systems in place it’s easy to get ready for a celebration. It takes several weeks for a new habit to become second nature so don’t be too hard on yourself. Make a small change this week; choose one of the above tips to focus on.
If you have maintenance tips that work for you and you want to share them, send me an email and I may include your tips in a future issue.
I’m working on establishing a brand new habit of regularly exercising with 5 lb. weights, to improve my upper body strength and maintain muscle mass. I’ve heard that once you hit your 40’s (I’m 44) you start to lose muscle mass. Cleo is making it more difficult to follow through with my routine because she likes my weights, as you can see in the photo. If we have an organizing session together in the near future, ask me if I’m sticking to my exercise routine.
Shredding Resource
Do you have several boxes of papers to shred and don’t have the time to shred it yourself? Banks and credit unions sometimes hold free shredding events in the spring. Watch for notices in their newsletters or the local paper. I’ll keep my readers informed if I hear about any shredding events
There is also a local shredding company that will shred your papers.
Shred It
1-877-60-shred
21 Marsh Ct.
Near Hwy. 51 and Beltline
Cost: $5.00 for each box of papers (a regular banker size box).
If you prefer onsite shredding at your home or office, they will do so. There is a $50.00 minimum, or 10 boxes of paper for onsite shredding. Cost for additional boxes: $5.00 each.
Shred It even shreds VHS tapes, CD’s and DVD’s. Cost: $15 a box. Please call Shred It with questions and to confirm prices.
Upcoming Simply Organized Class
Eliminate paper clutter in ten simple steps, and rediscover your counter tops, desk, and important papers.
Wednesday, April 29, 1:30-3:00
Fitchburg Community Center 5520 Lacy Road
Cost: $19.00
Call or email Jill with questions or to register.
608.575.7467
jill@simplyorganizedwithjill.com
Refer and Relax
Simply Organized is offering complimentary 30 minute massages at Siren Fitness (www.sirenfitness.com) when your referral results in a successful new organizing client for Jill.
Simply,
Jill
“Simplicity is the Ultimate Sophistication" Leonardo da Vinci