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Get your life reorganized

By Julie Stobbe / March 19, 2019 /

Reading time – 3 minutes

Remember to donate items to charity and not to put them in the garbage.

Being organized is not about being perfect.

Anyone can learn to be more organized. It is a set of skills that can be taught. Organization creates efficiency and effectiveness, making your life and surroundings perform optimally for you. When you start organizing remember these tips:

Accept your limitations on time, space, energy and money
Be consistent, do a little at a time on an on-going basis
Acknowledge your successes. Success breeds success motivating you to do more.
Take it one day at a time

How do I decide where to start?

I tell my clients:

to start with the space that is bothering them the most.
sometimes you may need to start in an area of your home that you are going to use for storage. Organizing that space first will give you more places to store items that need to be removed from other rooms.

How do I start?

Get some boxes and bags for :

garbage
recycling
things to go to other rooms – put them in a container and take them after you are done working in the space you are organizing. If you leave the room you might never return
things to be returned to other people – put them in a container and return them to the correct owner after your organizing time is over.
don’t buy organizing products – wait until you know what you are storing, where you are storing it, and how much you have to store. Then you can the best container to hold the items.

How do I get the room to look nice?

There are 5 steps to follow:

Step 1 Sort

Sort everything in the room into categories. The categories depend on what is in the room. You might have:

electronics
books
tools
computer items
dishes
food categories
cosmetics
paper supplies

Figure out the categories of things you have in your room and sort the things you can see and then work in the drawers and cupboards

Step 2 Part with items

Part with items you no longer need and donate them to charity

Step 3 Assign a home

Find the best place to store the item, close to where you use them and so you access them easily. Things you don’t use very often can be stored further away and in less accessible places.

Step 4 Containers

Now is the time to get the right container to store the items. Anything can be a container:

boxes
wine boxes cut in half
magazine holders
jars
tins
plastic bins
bags

Step 5 Evaluate

Use your system and then see:

if you have things stored in the best locations
is it easy to get it out and put it away
does everything have a “home”Being organized is not about being perfect. Anyone can learn to be more organized. It is a set of skills that can be taught. Share on X

How do I remember all this?

Easy it spells SPACE

S – sort

P– Part with items

A – Assign a home

C – Containerize

E – Evaluate

If you need some help with your organizing book a 50 minute break through organizing session . Click on the link to book your complimentary appointment, and speak with me to get helpful tips to get you unstuck. Organizing Break Through session

Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home and office. She guides and supports you in managing your time. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.