Ways to Get Organized

Ever feel like your whole life feels messy and cluttered? I sure have! Life can get ahead of us and the chaos can make our day to day feel out of control. But there is hope! We just need to buckle down, focus and be selective with our decision making.

There are so many options for literally everything out there now, it can be difficult to narrow down what to choose. By selecting one thing at a time; one task, one product, one cleaning supply to experiment with, one space, one drawer; it can all come together before you know it. Soon you’ll be seeking out “what’s next?” because all the major messes will be taken care of.

Let’s go off of categories and here are some narrowed down ways to get more organized.

Prioritize:

• Time your daily tasks by category (day job, housework) to better understand where your time is going.
• Assign time blocks for different priorities.
• Be specific with tasks and always breakdown goals into smaller deliverables.
• Use Sundays and evenings to set daily goals and long-term goals.
• Identify your “peak energy windows” and do tasks that require more focus.

Tracking:

• Choose one primary task app rather than multiple.
• Set-up auto reminders for tasks you do daily or weekly.
• Use checklists for daily, weekly, and monthly tasks.

Declutter:

• Implement daily 10-minute tidy-ups.
• Use drawer dividers and trays.
• File papers immediately to stop them from piling up, or at least have a weekly plan to do so.
• Get a cable organizer.
• Keep only daily-use items out and store everything else.
• Label containers, trays, drawers and storage.
• Make sure everything has a “home” to be stored.

Routines:

• Have a 5-minute daily planning schedule for todays tasks.
• Have a midday check-in to assess and re-prioritize if needed.
• Batch tasks together whenever possible.
• Automate simple tasks if possible.
• Limit decision fatigue with things like meal plans.
• Prep as much as you can in the evening so you can wake up and just go.

Calendar:

• Use a single-system master calendar so nothing falls through the cracks.
• If you have multiple digital calendars, integrate them together.
• Set multiple reminders for important tasks.
• Colour-code to-dos and events into categories like work, personal, kids, goals, etc.
• Sync up your devices so they all feed into one calendar system.
• Use automated reminders for check-ins.

More:

• Use visual reminders like post-its on your computer, in your planner, or around the house.
• Build 5-minute habits that you can do daily.
• Put all key apps you use on your home screen.
• Create a bookmarks bar for all of your key websites and services you use on your browser.
• Use a system that feels natural to you, don’t set up a complicated digital system if you prefer writing things down.

Guide yourself into organization by simplifying your plans. Create a system that works for you, versus what others may tell you to because it looks pretty or worked so well for someone else, because it may not be what is best for you and could become more clutter in itself. Our own personal systems will require trial and error, and we learn what actually works for us as we go, so don’t feel like you have failed at a particular method, you just needed a different one. Giving up is where we fall short, and we deserve to feel confident in our systems. I, personally, rely on structure, visuals and reminders to maintain my families schedules and our homes organization. Do what works for you, regardless of what is “in” at the moment. Organization provides confidence in our daily lives and within our memories, because we’ve got this and we are the reliable ones!

Melanie xoxox