If you are unorganized by nature, hear me.. so am I! I stopped reading organizational articles and spontaneously buying magazines with articles that promise an organizational solution a long time ago. Usually, in my experience (and please direct me if otherwise!), they are written by organized people! What?
Ok, although my organizational skills get better and better everyday (this is a positive mindset insert), I still struggle with this issue daily.
For me, the common culprits are (in no particular order) are:
1. The constant everyday need to do dishes...seriously...
2. Laundry that goes from the dryer to being dumped on the bed to the floor and then gets stepped on for a week
3. The random sock that is under your coffee table... or in the kitchen...or sitting on your dining room table
4. A bathroom counter filled with non-daily used products, a toothpaste container that is out of control and a sink that could use some green cleaning spray and a turbo application of the paper towel
5. A desk that has anything piled on top from (and this is just my today view of it): bills, jewelry, products to sample or sell, slippers (this is unusual), gum, and a Christmas stocking (which may possibly definitely house my receipts--for tax purposes--for the month of January 2012)
6. Your car. Oh my. I don't get how the car can turn into a locker room, a kitchen, and a bedroom all at once. This week for me, was the most extreme. I won't go into details (but if you want to know call me!).
7. Your purse (or your backpack, or brobag...whatever you carry). It gets so crazy that you have a tough time finding your wallet, your lip gloss, your smartphone, or anything and everything else that you pack in there.
Do we relate yet? If you're shaking your head, yes, keep reading. If you're confused or disgusted, stop reading, you're already organized (no offense--those who are going to keep reading might possibly envy you!)
We can't point out all the above craziness, without some solutions to take action on immediately. Let me be clear. I didn't google and find the above examples. I have lived them (and am definitely not giving you the full story!). If you are working on getting more organized as a naturally unorganized person...keep reading (then apply what makes sense to you)
Step 1: List it!
Walk around your living space and in each room write down everything that needs to be picked up, organized or fixed. And I mean Everything. No matter how miniscule it seems, if it pops in your head, write it down.
Next, do the same with your car. Write down things like, clean out the trunk, wash the floor mats, etc.
If you are self-employed or have an office or work space, do the same thing.
Step 2: Start with your living space!
While you may spend a lot of time in the car, if your living space is a mess, bringing things in from the house is only going to make that mess worse.
Look at your list and tackle the surface items first. For example, clear off your desk, do the dishes, sort your mail, dust your end tables and coffee table, etc.
Next, tackle what's on the floor. Just pick it all up and put it where it goes.
Step 3: The Car!
Option 1: Put trash in a plastic bag and throw away. Put everything else in the car in bags, bring it into your house, and leave it there for a month or two. If you don't remember/haven't needed anything from the bags in the last month or two, throw it away. This is the extreme way to deal with clutter and it's my favorite!
Option 2: If you are more conservative, do the same thing listed above, but then sort through the bags either all at once, or one per day for a couple days and put things where they belong.
Next, vacuum out your car, and clean off the dash and the console. If you must store things in the car (like me), buy cloth bins or a gym bag to house what you need and keep it in place.
Personally, I've become bored with this by now (and I'm guessing if you're like me, you have too!). Start here. This process could take you a day, a week, or a month. Go at your pace. Keep going and master these projects, before moving on the other organizational tasks!
Would love to hear feedback from those who take this and put it into action!
I'm going to give this a try! Thanks for writing the article. I've struggled with being organized ever since I was a child, so it's a challenge to keep things straight, and especially since I'm on the go a lot.
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