Things to Think About Organizing this New Year

For some of you, you might have thought about all those wonderful things you want to do to better your mind, body and spirit, but what about your atmospheres ie.) livingroom, bedroom, office, etc.?  Here are some thoughts about organizing to help with your home or office space so you can be more productive this new year.

1.  Paper.  From receipts to magazines, every item should have a place that is easy to get to and out of view.  From hanging file folders to bins and binders, utilize what you already have before you buy more things to organize paper items.  Ask yourself, "How often will I need to get to these items?  Will I do anything with them if I should put them away out of view?"  Here's a thought things you know you will need, put them on a shelf or in a cabinet because you know you will be looking in those places for them.  But things you hope to get around to, organize them neatly in plain view and make a point to tend to them everyday.

2.  Food products and storage containers.  Some food items just don't get eaten because they aren't stored in containers or on shelves where people can see them.  Rearrange the fridge and the cabinets.  Do away with storage containers that don't let you see what is in them.  Find some space for the things you know everyone likes, but give away those items that have already proven they will never be used/eaten.  Note: when storing food items at the workplace, consider using storage containers.  This way rodents and insects will not have access to your goodies.

3.  Kitchen gadgets.  They come in handy when you need them, but when you don't, they are nothing more than space collectors.  Items you enjoy using store on a shelf unit or counter space that isn't used much.  Kitchen items that are only used once or twice a year store away in cabinets or plastic bins.

4.  Clothing and accessories.  How many ties, shoes, purses, shirts, jeans, and more do you need?  If you can answer this question then that's half the battle.  Sort items by season, size and color.  You will be surprised to see that some styles, colors, and other clothing items you have are in abundance to the point that you might never wear any of these items again.  When you find, for instance, you have far too many red shirts, size small and typically worn in the spring or summer, you might consider giving some of these items away especially when you know you haven't been a size small since the early 90s.  Consider organizers that make it easy for you to find what you need.  Shelf units, racks, closet hangers, and small plastic organizers can take the hassle out of organizing.  Drawer organizers can help with those items that can be tedious to find.

Once you start with sorting items in closets, cabinets and drawers, you will find it becomes less challenging to do other areas of your home.  Start with a room a week.  Have a trash bag ready, necessary organizers, and cleaning products.  You will find that as you begin moving things, you will find places that are dusty and in need of a good cleaning.  Enlist some help especially when you know you are the kind of person who doesn't like to throw away anything.  However, don't give your help a hard time because they aren't as close to your stuff as you are, remember your goal is to organize and clean your room not defend your stuff. 

As you begin to make progress organizing your home/apartment, you will hear those voices in your head that will tell you how you might need this one day or you will lose the weight so keep it, but the reality is that if you haven't used something or wore it in years, just because it feels like you will, most likely it isn't true.  Feelings lie.  When one is serious about using something and improving his or her life, he or she will not put off anything.  He or she will make the time to get things done.  Don't fight with yourself about keeping something, rather give items away to those who would get more out of them then you would.

The desire to organize is definitely a state of mind and one must be determined to stick to goals until they are accomplished.  Sure, there will be distractions, but one must keep focus.

Here's hoping your organizing and cleaning will be a success this year!  

Nicholl McGuire is the author of Know Your Enemy: The Christian's Critic and When Mothers Cry.

Ideas for Organizing Toys

So it's time to organize some new toys?  Consider how much space, what you might need to open up more space and ask yourself, "Do the children really need that old thing?"  Learn more about organizing toys here. Also, check out the following article, 8 Great Tips to Organize Kids' Rooms

Organize Shoes, Coats As Visitors Arrive

One of the things that can make such a nice looking home have that disorganized feel is when you first walk in and see coats and shoes near a door way piled up.

When guests come over for a visit, be sure that you have a place for all their stuff.  Empty out a closet, a cabinet space, or drawers.  Box your personal items and temporarily set them in another room until your celebrations are over.  Visitors will ask that ever-popular question, "Where can I put this?"  What the "this" is have a place for it from a hat to a bag.

Consider purchasing a coat rack if closet space is limited.  Also, get a shoe rack.  There are other racks for things like umbrellas.  Some shoe racks double into shelf spaces too which would be great to collect your visitors' miscellaneous things.

A throw rug near an entry door is a must-have.  You never know what people might carry on their shoes.  Encourage guests to bring favorite slippers or have a few readily available if you are concerned about dirt all over your freshly shampooed carpeting.  Have shoe covers available just in case you have an unexpected maintenance issue and a worker has to come over to fix something wearing dirty boots.

 

How to Make a Child's Apartment Bedroom Feel More Spacious

So you need to do some organizing so that your son or daughter can get those new toys in his or her room?  Well the following page will help you make some room for more stuff, enjoy!

How to Make a Child's Apartment Bedroom Feel More Spacious

Clean Out Your Email Inbox

Looking for a simple way to get that email inbox done quickly? You can either check mark everything and delete it if you are certain that you don't need any of it. But then you run the risk of deleting something that you really want.  So the first thing you will want to do is create folders based on your important interests.  Things like: personal receipts, business receipts, home business oppts., photographs, etc.  Once you have your folders created, then you will want to start selecting your email and directing them to each folder.  As for junk, spam, etc.  mark them as such.  Also, be sure you unsubscribe from anything that keeps showing up in your email, yet you don't read.  To learn more about online organizing, computer related tasks, etc., visit other links to the right of this page simply by scrolling down to your interest.  Thanks for stopping by!