Clutter Bottlenecks
First let’s talk about CLUTTER (dirty word) vs. MESS (a fact of
life).
Mess is the result of living a
normal life. When a client tells me
their house is a mess, I don’t panic at all.
I simply want to congratulate them on being a normal, functioning human
being. It’s that backlog of mess and the
postponed decisions around the initial mess that results in clutter.
We make a mess doing something – anything. Mess if fun and it makes us approachable and
real. NEVER worry about a little
mess.
A part of breaking the clutter trap might be adjusting some habits, but
let’s be real. Habits are nearly
impossible to break. They are the result
of how we've lived our whole lives and are deeply rooted in our
personalities. In my organizational
work, I find it best to observe the clients habits and accommodate them. Adjust the space to help them execute
organizational goals without changing the client’s personality (impossible /
unnecessary).
There are a few fairly common clutter bottlenecks I have come
across. If we can avoid or alleviate
them, we stand a chance in the quest for organization
What are the action steps taken
in this area?
Shred
Recycle
Action Required (Pay, Respond, File, Share)
Shred, trash, recycle should happen in
the first or second “touch” of the item.
For the actionable items, let’s accommodate them with good-quality,
good-looking organizational tools. I
love me a good letter tray. Label each
cubby with the corresponding action.
Family Entryway
We reviewed this topic a bit in my first
MoPa contributor post. This area of the
home is going to be messy. It’s
ok!!! The quest is to periodically tackle
it and get re-organized. Demands on this
area change with seasons and family life changes. As a trigger, set a limit. For example, if all the coat/bag hooks are
full or the floor is so laden with shoes the door can’t be opened, it’s time to
tidy up and perhaps store some items in a different location for a while.
Pantry & Fridge
The day before garbage day clean
out the fridge and wipe down the shelves.
Spoiled items make a quick exit and not clutter up the fridge or stink
up the house.
The day of a big grocery run, tidy up
the fridge as well as the pantry while you make your list. This will make putting away groceries 10x
easier and prevent double purchases saving you money! Items flow FIFO - a restaurateur term – First
In, First Out.
Office Desk
Like the entry way, it’s going to require periodic tidy-up. The point is to recognize when a limit has
been reached (letter trays overflowing, can’t see the desk top, chair is piled
high with randomness). Grab a cuppa,
rock some tunes and tidy up!
If we have those mental limits set then we know when it’s time to get
our organizing on. If we ignore and blow
past those limits, well folks, it’s just going to make the disorganization and
prevalence of clutter sap our energy and annoy us, rob us of valuable time, and
cost us money. Not. Good.
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