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Category: Organization

Weekly Declutter

Weekly Declutter

weekly-declutterClutter can creep up when you least expect it, and from sources you never thought it could come from.  To help prevent clutter from creeping in and putting unneeded stress in your life, you can try making a new weekly goal for yourself.  This goal involves finding at least one thing each week to unclutter.  By decluttering at least one thing each week, you will be able to incrementally change your environment for the better.  Each week you can make it a point to be a little more organized and clutter free than the week before.  It doesn’t have to be anything big, just as long as its something.

What to declutter
The various kinds of things you can work towards decluttering are nearly endless.  Your goal of the week might be something simple such as getting rid of something you no longer use.  It can also be a bit more ambitious such as organizing an entire closet.  How ambitious you want to be for any given week is up to you, but keep in mind that this goal should be designed to be sustained for a long time.

If you try to start too big, you might find yourself getting fed up with the weekly goal far too soon for it to have any real long term benefit.  This means that you should be careful to not burn out in a week with a marathon organization day.  So instead of doing the entire closet, you might consider doing just a section of the closet one week, and another section a different week.  That way it is less likely that you are going to get tired of the work.

By continuously working towards decluttering your life, you can find all kinds of benefits.  One such benefit is that you will likely be able to find things easier.  This means that less time is spent looking for things, which gives you more time for other things more enjoyable.

Make a List

Make a List

make-a-listIt often seems like there’s so much to do, but not enough time to do it. Either that, or there is always something you forget to do. Sometimes these things you forget to do can have very bad consequences. For example if you constantly are forgetting to do homework, you might fail a class. Even worse if you forget to put gas in your car, you might be late to work and get fired. However there is a solution. Making lists of things you need to remember is probably the best way to avoid these problems.

There are already things you probably almost always make lists for. If you have a large party you would probably make a list of how many guests are coming so you know how much food to order. However you might not make a list of simpler things such as what you need to bring with you for a small day trip. Although you know there’s been times when you wish you had. Maybe remembering to bring that bottle of sunscreen could’ve saved you a lot of trouble.

Most people are already making lists in their head of things that need to get done. However it is not a very good idea to rely soley on mental lists. Your brain processes so much everyday, that it is impossible to remember everything, even if its important. Yes every list does start out as a mental list, but the important thing is to write it down when you get the chance. You might not carry paper around with you, but I bet you usually have your cell phone. This works just as well, since many new phones now have memo sections to write notes to yourself. I personally find this way of list making to work very well.

I personally am always forgetting to do things, and I find making lists makes my life a whole lot easier. I use lists for just about everything from shopping lists to things I need to remember to bring with me. I even make little memos sometimes about who I need to call on my lunch break. Making lists is good idea for everyone to do because you never know when you might just forget to do the wrong thing.

How to Deal With Clutter

How to Deal With Clutter

how-to-deal-with-clutterClutter is one of those things that only gets worse if you try to ignore it. It creeps into your living space, makes you late for appointments, and causes all kinds of other disruptions in your life. Eventually things get so bad that you are faced with the situation of having to deal with it, only by that time things have gotten so cluttered that you don’t even know where to begin.

 

Where to begin
When clutter gets really bad, it can be hard to decide where to begin your de-cluttering process. Start by laying out a road map of what needs to be done. You can do this by making a to do list of objects or areas that need to be un-cluttered. At first this should just be a short list since the point is to get a general idea of the work that needs to be done. Once you have your list, a good idea might be to rate the items on it in order of priority.

Refine your list
Once you have your basic list, you can then refine it down further if need be. To determine whether or not your list needs to be refined, think of each item in terms of the amount of time you would estimate it to take. If an item has an unreasonable amount of time attached to it, then you can probably narrow it down into several items. For example, instead of just writing something like “Clean the attic”, you could break this item down into several items such as “go through the boxes in the right corner of the attic”, “clear out the collection of broken computer parts all over the attic floor”, and “clean up the green slime on the attic ceiling”. Try not to think of clutter as one big mountain. Instead, think of it in small pieces.

Work Progressively
Going all out and charging at a room screaming “I will de-clutterize you!” while holding a plastic sword in the air probably isn’t going to do much good (Although the enthusiasm is admirable). If your trying to de-clutter a large mess, your best bet is to put more of a slower release on that enthusiasm and start with something you can manage. For example, if you are trying to de-clutter an entire room, start in one small corner. From there you can work your way around the room, little by little. If you’ve made a refined list with various tasks do to in the room, you can prioritize the tasks and determine what you want to do first. That way clutter doesn’t seem so overwhelming, and it becomes easier to manage. Also, you can gain a greater sense of self satisfaction by having multiple mini goals to work towards.

Prevention
When you have something clutter free, the only real thing left to do is practice good clutter prevention. Simply put, this means not putting junk onto something clean. Simple enough idea, but its implementation can be difficult if you do not make a conscious effort of it. Just remember that little things add up quicker than you might realize, and one misplaced item can quickly turns into several.

Clothing Cleanup

Clothing Cleanup

clothingcleanupOut with the old, and in with the newly organized.

Clothing can be one of the biggest sources of clutter and disorganization in a living space. This is partly because articles of clothing are so easy to just leave around, and partly because we just have so much. Hanging on a door knob, on the floor, and even stuck between couch cushions. You name it, clothing can clutter it.  Sometimes a living space can become vastly more livable by just getting rid of excessive amounts of clothes lying around.

There are two major things that can be done to cleanup your wardrobe. The first being to get rid of old clothes, and the second being to improve your current organizational methods of any clothes you find the desire to keep.

Lets start with the first method, getting rid of old and unused clothing. Before you begin on this task, you are going to need some motivation which will make it easier to make some of those potentially hard choices on what to toss and what to keep. Whenever facing a task that you would normally put of, it can be a good idea to start with trying to find reasons to motivate yourself to actually do it.  After all, a big part of why you put something off is probably due to a lack of proper motivation.

To help get yourself motivated, first start by listing out all the benefits you want to enjoy by doing this task.  You could write them down on paper, type them up on a computer, or even just recite them in your head.  However you do it, the point is to find some basic reasons that you would want to go through the work of doing this task.  If your having trouble finding reasons to motivate you, here is a list of benefits to get you started (although you are encouraged to at least try to make up your own!).

Benefit #1: The Stress Remover.
Does having lots of stuff laying around irritate you?  Constantly having to push things from one side of the room to the next, just to find what your looking for can be a real drag.  By reducing your wardrobe, you’ll have less stuff to worry about.  This can easily lead to having much less stuff laying around your place.  By not having to sort through piles of clothing when you need something, you can sometimes save yourself a great deal of frustration.

Benefit #2: The Time Saver.
Say you want to find a specific shirt to wear. A disorganized closet can have you searching for much longer than you really need to be. An organized closet can make finding clothing faster and easier. Even if organization only saves a few seconds a day, eventually it adds up. Every 10 seconds you save through organization is worth over an hour of time per year(365X10 seconds = 3650 seconds = 60.83 minutes), assuming  your delay is on a daily basis.

Benefit #3: The Helper.
When you get rid of unused clothes, you can donate them to those who may really need or appreciate them.  This does not necessarily need to be the poor or homeless (although that is a great choice!).  Your donation target can be a friend, neighbor, co-worker, etc. If you are the type of person who gets the good feeling inside them whenever they help those in need, this can be a perfect motivator. Also, there is a bonus motivator here for those conscious about the environment.  This green motivator works best when giving away stuff to those who could otherwise buy it themselves,  which is a great way to recycle.

Okay, so now that you hopefully have some ideas to get you motivated on this task. Lets talk about where and how you can start.  Actually starting something like this can be the biggest obstacle.  I have outlined for you a basic set of steps which can help in not only starting, but also finishing your cleanup.

Step 1: Decide where to look.

Begin by planning out the various places you will need to sort through.  Some places to start looking for old clothing are in closets, under the bed, under the couch, in the laundry room, and maybe even in the attic. Finding and collecting old clothing can be done all at once, or little by little each day.  Whatever works best for you really. Eventually you will want to end up with a pile of clothes that you label as stuff you don’t need anymore.

Step 2: Stay strong, and remember why.

It can be much easier to actually get together a pile of clothes and say you are going to get rid of them, than it is to actually get rid of them.  This is where staying strong, and remembering why comes in.  Once you have made the conscious decision to get rid of your clothing, keep your motivators in mind when trying to actually commit to your decisions.  Remember the reasons why you are doing what you are doing, what benefits you will hope to enjoy.  Then when you are ready, you can use your motivators to get rid of some stuff.

Step 3:  Find your inner organized self.

Once you have your old stuff packed away, you can consider a structured organizational method for the items you keep. There are hundreds of closet and wardrobe organizers to choose from. The type of organizer to choose mostly depends on what would be most effective for you. You may even already have an organizer that can be made useful again by just getting rid of some of the extra stuff cluttering it up.

Step 4:  Finish the job.

Once you get done with finding an organizational method you are comfortable with, its time to actually finish the job and go through the work of actually carrying out your plans.  Again, this is a good place to remember your motivators.  Also, it can be easy to stop at this point and let boredom and frustration set in.  The key is to just keep your motivators with you, and keep with it.

Computer Cleanup

Computer Cleanup

computer-cleanup

Its easy to let your computer become a complete mess. If you have 5 folders all named New Folder, then it may just be time to sort through some of your files and do some organization. This can make it easier to find files your looking for when you need them, and makes your computer look much more neat and organized.

Here are a few tips for making this process of cleaning up your pc go much easier and be more efficient.

Clear duplicate Files

One of the simplest things you can do to clear up files is to delete duplicate files sitting around. After all, do you really need 10 pictures of your neighbors car which all have different names? Be aware that duplicate files can be very good at hiding. You could have a picture with a name given to it by your digital camera, and also one which you copied and renamed somewhere else.

If your a windows user, and don’t check your my documents folder very often then it may just be a good place to start. You never know what old files may be sitting around in there.

Move rarely used files

If you have an external storage device such as a large flash or hard drive, you can back up many of your unused files onto it. This gets these files off your computer, and out of your way. Re-Writable CDs and DVDs can also be good for this, especially since they are generally much cheaper then some of the alternatives. If your using the CD/DVD method and the data is important than you may want to spend the extra money and invest in high quality media that is rated well for archiving to protect your data. Also, remember to store them in a place that they will not easily get damaged.

Use a bulk re-naming program

This is especially useful for things like music and media files. These programs can be used to rename those hundreds of songs or photos with random auto-generated names into something more meaningful. You are likely to find many variations of these programs that can meet your specific needs by doing a simple internet search.

Create Structure

Its easy to just make a new folder and forget to give it a meaningful name when your just looking for a place to put something. The downside of this is when your looking for it a week later and cant find it because you don’t remember that its in New Folder(10). There is no easy solution I know of to this problem other than going through your folders and giving them meaningful names.

This can also be a good time for folder consolidation also. For example, you can have a Pictures folder and an Vacation sub-folder instead of having two folders in two completely different places.

Things we forget to do

Here are a few of the routine maintenance tasks that are easy to forget, but can really be helpful when we remember to do them.

Check for unused programs

Clean unused icons on your desktop

Run the defragmentation tool

Empty your recycling bin

Clear old emails

Organizing Media

Organizing Media

organizing-mediaCD and DVD cases can easily create excessive clutter by being so easy to just leave laying around.  A solution to this is to invest in one of the many easily available binders that hold just the disk portion, and either donate or recycle the old cases. After all, do you really need an entire shelf of cases just to show off some box art?  Just be certain that you get a binder that will not easily scratch or damage your media.

There are many benefits and drawbacks to storing your media in folders instead of cases.  Here a few.

Benefits

It can nearly eliminate the possibility of random media laying around.

It is dangerous to leave compact disks on tables and counters without protection since they can be easily scratched, so we will be more inclined to put them back in their storage location after use. This leads to things being put away properly more often.

It takes less space.

A binder of disks takes up much less space than many disks in individual cases. Instead of an entire shelf full of cases, media can be consolidated into a binder or two.  This can make things easier to manage and sort through.

Drawbacks

Media can get damaged easier.

If you do end up leaving the disk around, it could get scratched or broken much easier than if it were in a case. You should definitely make sure that you will be willing to put media away after its use before converting to binder storage.

It makes things more of a hassle to put away.

It is easier to just grab a case and stick the disk back into it, then it would be to pull open a folder of 200+ disks and flip through to the place where the specific disk belongs.