It is winter here in Utah which means we have a lot of snow in our mountains. With the beautiful and fluffy snow comes snowboarding, snowmobilers and ski enthusiasts and (sorry to say) danger. There are times when accidents happen and an outing of snow sports become deadly. One way this happens is when snow is triggered off the mountain and there is an avalanche. People are buried and rescuers spring into action.
Do you feel like you are buried in clutter? Do you have clutter in every room until you are totally overwhelmed? Do you feel like you are being swept along in an avalanche of clutter? All it takes is some time and some easy (truly, it is easy) steps in clearing clutter and to organize "stuff" so you won't feel like you are being buried in your own home.
1. The first step is to look around your home, in drawers, closets, children's rooms, the kitchen and even the front porch. Write down in a note book the places that have clutter. I have always thought organizing clutter was an oxymoron. If it is clutter then why organize it?
2. Make some plans to get rid of the clutter. Be as specific as you can. For example instead of saying, "I am going to get rid of clutter in my bedroom" be more specific. A goal could be; "remove everything from under the bed and put the things where they belong". Or, "get rid of all the shoes I don't wear, don't like or have nothing to wear with them". Making specific goals will help you to be successful in clearing clutter.
3. Once you have made your goals it is time to start clearing clutter. You will need three heavy plastic bags or boxes that you will label with 'trash', 'donate' and 'recycle'. Also get a basket or box to be used as a BE basket. This stands for Belongs Elsewhere. As you are clearing clutter and there are things that need to be taken to other rooms; place them in this basket to be moved after you are finished organizing in this space or room.
4. As you are sorting the clutter ask yourself some questions if you are having difficulty in deciding if you are going to keep it or not. Do you have a use for it? Does it light you up and make you feel good? Do you have a place for it? If you say no to any or all of these questions then it is time to donate it so someone else can use and enjoy it.
5. Don't try clearing clutter all at one time. As a professional organizer this is one of the biggest mistakes I see people make when they start to organize. We all get burnt out if we work at something for too long at any given time. Set your timer for a certain length of time. When it goes off take a break and then come back to what you are doing so you don't get tired of clutter clearing and give it up as a lost cause. (That's happened before hasn't it?) If you only have 15 minutes go ahead and see how much you can do in that length of time. You'll be surprised how much you can accomplish in little bites of time.
6. At the end of your clutter clearing "session" take the bags out of the room and throw the trash away and put the items you're going to donate in your car to be taken to the donation drop off area. If you keep them in your home chances are others will come along and try to talk you out of getting rid of things you are going to donate. Take your BE basket and distribute those items to the rooms where they belong.
Once you have organized one area move on to another. One key to staying ahead of the clutter is to have homes for everything in your home and to put things back where they belong after using them. Make your organizing plan work for you. Keep things you love, that light you up and those things that have a use in your home; that includes having beautiful things around you that you like.
Marilyn Bohn is the owner of Get it Together Organizing, a business dedicated to developing practical organizing solutions that help individuals and business professionals live clutter-free and productive lives. She is the author of “Go Organize! Conquer Clutter in Three Simple Steps” and is an experienced, enthusiastic public speaker, a member of NAPO (National Association of Professional Organizers) and the author of hundreds of articles covering various organizing topics.
Marilyn takes the often stressful subject of organizing and breaks it down into a simple, easy to understand system. Her methods are both eye-opening and encouraging! She has a passion for helping others reach their personal goals and living a better, clutter-free life!
Marilyn offers personal, private consulting to assist in organizing and she invites you to sign up for free organizing tips at her website http://www.marilynbohn.com for easy organizing.