The ABCs Of Organizing A Room

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Organizing a Room: De-cluttering and Organizing Tips
Step A: Set Up Guidelines, Goals
Step B: Purge The Clutter
Step C: Consider What "Organized" Means To You
Step D: Get Into The FLOW Of Organizing

Organizing a Room: Specific Trouble Spots
Bedroom Closets
The Kitchen
Dirty Dishes
Kitchen Coupons

Organizing a Room: Miscellaneous
Visitor Poll
On My Blog
The End
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FREE Tip Kit

This page is a small sampling of what you'll find on my other websites:

Home Organization Online: Your complete guide to an organized home.

Get Organized: A blog about all things organized, including motivation, time management, productivity, and organizing in pop culture.

Clutterbugs: Anything and everything about Clutterbugs professional organizing products and services.

At any of these sites, you can sign up to get your own copy of the FREE Tip Kit, which includes over 50 ways to boost your organizing savvy!

If you are organizing a room, it is best to set guidelines for the project. These guidelines will not only help you define what you want but also help determine project time line and framework.

(1) Set an attainable goal.
Don't say: I will attempt to organize the entire kitchen in 1 day.
Do say: I will spend 1 hour each day for the next 3 days organizing the kitchen cabinets.

You know your limitations better than anyone, and this is not the area in which to bite off more than you can chew.

(2) Set a time limit for your project.
Don't say: I will get to this when I get a chance.
Do say: I will have a completely organized closet by the end of March.

It is more likely that you will prioritize with a looming deadline. If it helps, have a friend or a spouse hold you to your goal.

(3) Break larger projects into smaller projects.
Don't say: I will organize my house completely over the next 2 weeks.
Do say: I want to organize my entire house, but I'll start with the garage. I have 2 weeks to finish it, and then I'll move to the bathroom, kitchen, etc.

I believe Confucius said it best - "When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don't adjust the goals, adjust the action steps."

For more tips on how to focus, prioritize, and accomplish your goal of organizing a room in your house, see Goal Setting Strategy.

You definitely want to clear out the clutter before you start organizing a room. Otherwise you'll be wasting time and energy on organizing items you don't need to worry about at all!

Ask yourself...

(1) Do you wanna keep it?
(a) Should it stay in the room in question?
(b) Should it belong in another room?
(c) Should it be returned to someone?

(2) Do you wanna toss it?
(a) Should it be recycled?
(b) Should it be shredded?
(c) Should it be donated?
(d) Should it be sold?
(e) Should it be trashed?
(f) Does it require a special method of disposal? (ie. batteries, chemicals, large furniture items)

Note: Please see E-waste Recycling for details on how to dispose of electronic items.

Separate the piles accordingly and then be sure to eliminate most, if not all, of the "toss" pile before you begin organizing a room. De-cluttering is normally the biggest, most time-consuming step of all!

If you'd like a worksheet to help you remove clutter from a room or your house, visit Printable To Do Lists and click on "Purging Unwanted Items." Instructions to fill out the worksheet are provided as well.

Your personality - or what I like to call your logic type - is truly the most important aspect to consider when organizing a room.

If you try to organize something that runs contra your system of reasoning, then it will never, ever work!

I have identified four logic types: Geometrical, Positional, Chronological, and Categorical.

Geometrical or "How"
If you have geometrical logic, then you like clean lines, right angles, and symmetry. You would feel most organized if...
- Your papers were stacked in a straight row on your desk.
- All the book spines lined up perfectly with the edge of a bookshelf.

Positional or "Where"
If you have positional logic, then you like things to be where they will prove most useful. You would feel most organized if...
- Your keys were always by the front door so they are nearby when you leave.
- Your clothes hamper was situated in your closet because that is where you always change clothes.

Chronological or "When" or "How Often"
If you have chronological logic, then you relate everything to a point in time. Your life is strictly based on a calendar of events or time of day, month or year. You would feel most organized if...
- Your records were filed according to date.
- Your weekly routine accomplished the same tasks on the same day of each week.

Categorical or "What" or "Who"
If you have categorical logic, then you sort everything into a group. You would feel most organized if...
- Your kitchen cabinets were arranged by type of food.
- Your CDs were displayed by genre.

Most of your habits and patterns should be obvious, and hopefully you relate strongly to one logic type or another.

In some cases, you could be a combination of the 4 logic types. Perhaps you would organize geometrically (pants/ skirts/ shirts) and then categorically by color within each geometric (white pants, brown pants / blue skirts, skirts with flowers/ pastel shirts, neutral shirts).

I hope these logic types don't make organizing seem difficult! That was not my design, nor do I think you should spend a lot of time agonizing over what logic type you may be.

These are just considerations to make you think about what you like and dislike.

We've all seen those rooms that are perfectly symmetrical, perfectly ordered, and perfectly placed. If you are a person who desperately wants to become organized, it may seem like a daunting task. But how often are those flawlessly arranged rooms actually practical?

There is a common misconception about organization - it requires perfection.

If you are organizing a room, it does not have to be impeccably sorted to be considered an organizational success. The most important thing about organization is that you need FLOW.

Let's break it down:

- F is for Function
- L is for Location
- O is for Order
- W is for Work-in-progress

It's incredibly logical when you put it all together!

- Function and location generally go hand-in-hand; you need a functional location or otherwise the whole idea of organization is moot.

- Once you have a spot that provides both functionality and a workable location, then you add order to the equation.

- And finally, it is important to remember that organization is a work-in-progress. Once you establish a system that works for you, then you must put in a little effort into maintenance of the system.

I'm going to give you an example of what I mean, exactly. This example specifically highlights organizing books, but the concepts of FLOW can be applied to organizing anything, including organizing a room.

Organizing Problem: Say hello to Sophie! As you can see, Sophie is quite the bookworm. Her books are scattered all throughout the house; they are in the living room, on the kitchen table, on the bedside table, and in the bathroom. She never can remember what book is where exactly.

Organizing Goal: Organize Sophie's books into a workable library system.

(Note: this does not mean busting out a label maker and creating a personal Dewey Decimal System for categorization. Simply put - we want a manageable system that helps Sophie find a book quickly.)

Function and Location: It is imperative to find a functional location that works for you. If you select a spot that fits your habits, then you are more likely to continue with the organization. On the other hand, if you select a spot that does not fit your daily routine, then you are less likely to put forth the effort to stay organized.

In Sophie's situation, putting all her books in one spot is not going to work because she likes to read in lots of places around her house.

For example, if Sophie places all her books in the study and yet she never goes in there to read, then it becomes a hassle to go to the study each time she wants to pick up a book. The best thing for her to do is to narrow the locations from numerous to about 2-3 spots she constantly uses to curl up and read.

Sophie decides these rooms will be the living room and the bedroom.

Order: Once you select a location, create some rules of order. The rules of order will also be personality-dependent.

Sophie is sure of one thing: she does not want to put her books in order by height and she does not want them alphabetized. That is too much work, in her opinion.

She decides to move her biggest bookcase to her living room, where she does most of her reading, and she divides the books into categories - classics, non-fiction, fiction, etc. Then she takes 10 of her choice reads and places them in the top drawer of her bedside table.

Work-in-progress: Over time, you must put some energy into upkeep of the system of functionality, location, and order that you designed. However, it should take minimal effort after the system is established.

Now that Sophie has a master plan, all she has to do is return books to the book shelf or to the drawer in order to sustain the organization. If she slips up and leaves one book on the kitchen counter and one book on the bathroom floor things might snowball and she might muddle the system she created.

In conclusion...

While you may find that many organizational gurus are perfectionists by nature, that doesn't mean that living an organized life will require you to be exhaustively flawless! With some simple adjustments, you can be well on your way to organizing a room that is practical and fits your personal needs.

I bet if you had a dollar for every time you couldn't find something in your closet, you'd be a millionaire by now.

You're not alone!

According to Newsweek magazine, the average American burns 55 minutes a day - roughly 2 weeks per year - looking for things they know they own but can't find. Like stray socks, your favorite jeans, or your lucky ball cap.

That's why I created Operation Organize.

By reading and applying the principles of Operation Organize, you'll eliminate the frustration and dread of getting dressed each day and save valuable resources like time, energy, and money!

Operation Organize - everything you need to know about effective closet organizing is here...

(1) Remove all items from the kitchen counter, UNLESS you use them on a regular basis.

(2) Organize your refrigerator by food category (ie. top shelf for leftover foods, middle shelf for beverages, side door for condiments and dressings). Also, rotate the oldest food to the front and newest food to the back, to ensure the oldest is used up before it spoils.

(3) Separate your kitchen into distinct quadrants (ie. cooking, preparing, cleaning, storing) and organize utensils accordingly.

(4) Use overhead racks or wall grids to hang pots and pans, providing extra cabinet space.

(5) Food bought in bulk and fine china that is only used a few times per year should be stored elsewhere to free up more space in the cabinets.

(6) Use an old muffin pan to organize smaller kitchen items in a drawer, such as corn-on-the-cob holders, wine stoppers, and chip clips.

(7) Don't clutter up your fridge. If you want to display children's artwork, phone numbers, and photos, then do so on a message board.

(8) Invest in stainless steel or neutral-colored, matching appliances for a more cohesive look.

Are you tired of losing time because your coupons are so disorganized that you can't find the one you need when you need it?

Are you tired of losing money because you find expired coupons that you wished you would have used the last time you went shopping?

The goal with coupons is to be able to file them so that you can find them later and find them quickly. If you don't have an efficient way to organize and utilize your coupons, then there is an organizing tool to help you: The Couponizer!

This page is a small sampling of what you'll find on my other websites:

Home Organization Online: Your complete guide to an organized home.

Get Organized: A blog about all things organized, including motivation, time management, productivity, and organizing in pop culture.

Clutterbugs: Anything and everything about Clutterbugs professional organizing products and services.

At any of these sites, you can sign up to get your own copy of the FREE Tip Kit, which includes over 50 ways to boost your organizing savvy!

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