You can find tip 3 here and tip 4 here
Ahh, is there anything as renewing as turning the page to a new year on the calendar? The end of 2013 was bittersweet for me- it was a hard year but also the last year I had a conversation with my grandparents. It was also a year I experienced God’s faithfulness like none other.
But 2014 is here whether we’re ready or not! I’m so excited about doing a 2-part series this month: one part on this blog on Thursdays, and the counterpart on Untrained Housewife on Tuesdays. I’ll be featuring 10 Simple tips for organizing this year. {You get two tips today to start off on the right foot!}
Parts of my life are organized, some parts are um, very not organized. But the journey of becoming more organized- and seeing how much time it frees up- has actually been pretty fun for me. So some of the tips I’ll be featuring are tried-and-true that I know can work, and others will be new ones I’ll be implementing right alongside you!
Now again, these will be simple steps. I believe that baby steps are best- trying to organize a whole home in one fell swoop is pretty much the recipe for disaster, burnout, and an even messier environment! (believe me!) Each step will also include an action step– something you get to do that day to start getting organized!
So let’s get started, shall we? This first step is so very basic, but I believe it’s fundamental to getting organized.
1.) Get rid of excess junk!
The longer I live, the more I’m becoming a “purger.” Things we don’t need, things that are broken beyond repair, even a few sentimental things (gasp!) are tossed out, or if they’re in good condition, donated. I’m becoming fully convinced that I can’t have a neat, orderly home with too.much.stuff. And if my home is constantly in a state of disarray, so is my mind. Then I get grouchy. Grouchy = not good.
Action step: Get rid of 7 items you don’t need. Put them in a box or bag, put them in the trunk of your car, and take them to a thrift store the next time you drive by one. Don’t leave them in the garage (speaking to myself here!) or they’ll be there this time next year. And if it’s truly trash, toss it. The nice employees at the thrift store don’t want your stained, holey sweats any more than you do!
Now this action step we’ll repeat each and every day of the series. And by the time it’s done, you’ll be rid of at least 63 items in your home taking up not only physical space, but your mind space as well!
As I mentioned, you get two tips today since step #1 goes with the whole series. I believe the second tip is just as vital as the first to getting organized! (If you need more encouragement on this matter, take a look at Ruth Soukup’s “Clutter Free Forever-Vintage Tips for an Organized Home.”)
2.) Make lists!
A no-brainer, right? However, how many times do you get to the grocery store without a list, or start your days’ tasks without any direction? I know it happens all too often for me. I used to tease a friend of mine for having an on-going list for everything, but guess what? She’s WAY ahead of me in the organization game!
There are a few ways you can do this. First of all is by using traditional paper. I truly love this route- I love writing down items with a pen and physically crossing it off. The downside? The lists can get lost/washed in the washer/accidentally thrown away. One way I’ve found to remedy this is by using notebooks for lists instead of individual scraps of paper. I have one for my blog and last year I used a calendar with space for notes at the back, which I used for lists. I kept that calendar with me all the time!
Amazon has lots of cute calendars this year, including this one:
Another way to do lists is on a google doc. The upside? Anytime you have access to your smartphone or a computer , the list is available. However, if you’re ever without one of the two, (does that ever even happen?!?) your list is useless for the time. I use this for lists I don’t need all the time: Christmas card lists, packing lists, etc.
Here is a screenshot of one of my lists- the kids get a new Christmas ornament each year that represents something they enjoy. I wanted a way to keep up with their ornaments each year, and decided to use Google Docs to do it. As long as Google exists, I’ve got my list!
Last of all, you can use apps on your phone to make lists. I use the Cozi app for grocery lists a lot of time. I can organize it just by re-arranging the items in order of where they are in the store. Cozi can be used to sync calendars, but my husband uses a different calendar, so we haven’t done this. We have, however, used it to coordinate grocery lists. That way, if he stops at the store, he can see my list!
I also used an app this year for the first time to make Christmas gift lists. You can make your list and keep an account of how much you spent on each gift. This was really handy! The one I used was called Gift It, but there are several from which to choose.
Action step: Decide if you prefer paper lists or virtual lists, or a combination of the two. Then, make a list of what lists you need to make! This may sound silly but keeping track of all our lists is a major step to getting organized.
Examples are: grocery list, household projects to be completed, blog posts to write, list of things to do today.
One main key: When working on your list for daily tasks, don’t assign too many things to each day. You’ll feel better about getting 3 out of 4 tasks done on your list than only completing 3 out of 25!
So what kind of lists do you already make? Do you enjoy using paper or your phone/computer? Or do you need to start making lists? I’d love your input!
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About Kelli Hays
I SO need to get organized this year. The time we’ve spent in this house (1.5 years) has been filled with too much chaos to actually get to the organizing of everything we have in the house. I did take some steps this fall and got rid of a few pieces of furniture (rocking chair, dresser, cabinet) that weren’t needed. I did go through clothes. But we still have too much stuff. I want to simplify but can’t get past the clutter to do it, nor can I at the moment because of this ankle injury….but hopefully one day soon I can get to it!
A GREAT grocery list app is Grocery IQ. My husband and I sync our list so we can each add to ONE list! It categorizes each item by area of store, too. It’s awesome!!
Tracey, that sounds great! I’ll have to check it out! Thanks for stopping by!
Thanks for the suggestion on the grocery app. We’ll need to try that since we’re often forgetting the list at home.
I’m really bad at purging but now since we’re moving we’ve been getting rid of a lot. I hope to implement a do not keep this crap policy in the future heh. Great tips!