We all have them and no matter how hard we try to be "paperless" there is no way of eradicating paper completely from our lives. Since they are here to stay, what do we do with them? We sort them…we sort them honestly and diligently.
So you want to get organized – the first thing to do is to run to your nearest Container Store (which is more than two hours away) and purchase everything you see. With all of those containers who could help but be organized, right? Wrong. Being "organized" means different things to different people but one thing remains clearly the same: you can't buy it. You can't buy time if you run out at the end of the day, you can't buy a missing passport on the way to the airport. Fancy bins and baskets are great but planning and preparation is the key. As someone who teaches people how to be more organized for a living, I find that time is the most elusive of all things sought. We are given 24 hours each day, no more-no less. If you lose time and are unable to look back on your day and feel a sense of accomplishment for something…anything, consider keeping a time journal. Very similar to a food journal, a time journal can very accurately indicate where your time has gone.
Is there ever a day when you get no mail in your mailbox? I am talking about the one mounted to your home or on a post at the curb – not the one on top of your desk. Mail can be an extraordinary thing; cards from loved ones, pieces bearing good news, packages, even checks. Mail can also be a tremendous source of stress; invoices, items bearing bad news, jury summons, or correspondence from the IRS! Then there is the junk – mail clutter that prevents us from focusing on what is important by diverting our consumer attention. If you struggle with your mail process, just as I have suggested in previous articles, remove the trash…that means to rid your space of the unsolicited and unwanted pieces from those wanting your vote or money without taking the time to know you. Goodbye! If there is truly something of interest in the "junk" pile, allow it to live in your space no more than 24-hours. All of the remaining mail should be removed from the outer envelope. Discard a return envelope if you intend to reply online and definitely throw away (read: recycle) any advertising and promotional materials snuck into the piece. Before the days of paying online, I would return all of these marketing pieces to the company with my payment. These things are like uninvited guests and telemarketers.
Do you wish your clutter were invisible? It may be more invisible than you think – especially to you. When we live with items and see them day-in-and-day-out, they tend to dissolve into the background of our lives. Want to see your clutter with new eyes? Take a photo and post it on a social media site. Your clutter in all its glory will quickly appear. If you would like to see your clutter without revealing yourself to the entire internet, try sitting in a different spot or in a rolling chair. Sit and observe your environment from places other than the normal place. Stand on a chair in the middle of the room or even lie on the floor and look up. Now that you have found your clutter it is time to do something with it. How long has it been hiding? Is it covered in dust? If it has been years since you have laid eyes upon your newly found treasure, put it straight into the donation box. (If you don't have one, make one right away.) If you think you will use it – notice I didn't say "might use it" – clean it off and move to its proper home.
There is so much more to being organized than simply buying a collection of plastic containers for all of your treasures and junk. Sure, "things" are the biggest physical obstacle yet getting organized starts inside. In my work as a professional organizer I see many different people in equally as many different places emotionally regarding their belonging. The first step is to make the commitment to become more organized. This commitment is more than a weekend project, it is a lifelong decision – very similar to adopting a healthier way of eating. If we "organize" the garage because our spouse wrote it on our To-do List then it unlikely to stay that way. Our heart is not in it. Yet if we become overwhelmed by stacks of papers or end up with pests due to clutter, we are far more motivated to do it completely. Living an organized life – just as living a healthy life, can increase the quality of your life exponentially. You save a substantial amount of money by eliminating storage units, finding what you need instead of replacing what you are unable to find, and the cost of heating and cooling the clutter are to name a few. You will feel more relaxed and therefore enjoy more quality time with your friends and loved ones. It has also been said that living an organized life can decrease the effects of some diseases like fibromyalgia.
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