"Perfectly" Organized

A few weeks ago, I was going to an organizing event with a fellow organizer. I’d printed out directions from MapQuest. My colleague had a GPS, so we used that instead. We were almost to our destination, when the charge on his GPS died. We tried to find the charger. It was not where he normally keeps it. Turns out, his son had taken it to the house to charge his phone. By this time, we were past the road listed on the MapQuest directions. We didn’t have the phone number of our destination, so couldn’t call for help. We resorted to a map, which I couldn’t read, because I don’t have bifocals. (I’m in denial that I’m to that age!) What a comical situation: two professional organizers totally unprepared! Between the map and my MapQuest directions, we eventually found our way. Forty-five minutes later, we made it to our destination!

Had we been “perfectly” organized, this situation wouldn’t have happened. Forget about being perfectly organized! It creates stress and is time consuming. “Livable” organization is the goal, being organized enough to find your belongings when wanted and having time to relax and enjoy those people and activities that are meaningful for you. Aim for livable organization, which creates peace and saves time.

Saver Syndrome

My husband is a saver. He likes to keep belongings from his past. Every once in a while I will gently broach the subject of donating some of his “stuff”. He has probably sixty cassette tapes that we have been storing in our entertainment center. He has not listened to any of them in at least ten years. A few years ago, I asked him about getting rid of them. He said “no.” This weekend, I asked if he’d go through them with me and let go of those he no longer wanted. He was willing. He found several tapes that he didn’t need, because he also had the music on CDs. Then he picked out those he had rarely listened to even when they were new; more to get rid of. Now we were getting somewhere! He started picking out those he really liked and put them in the “keep” box. Slowly he narrowed down those to keep to less than half of the original amount. Yah! Now we have more room to store CDs and Wii games.

Chances are that members of your household have different organizing styles. Respect everyone’s style and together develop guidelines that work for everyone. Organizing For Your Brain Type, by Lanna Nakone, is a great book that explains different organizing styles and how people with different styles can coexist peacefully.

My second point: Make purging a part of your routine. When one new item comes into the home, one item goes out. When the shelf or closet or cabinet is full, look at what can be removed. When you notice items aren’t being used, review what you have. That may motivate you to use the item. If it doesn’t, donate it.

Now my husband knows what music he has on tapes. He may start listening to them. If so, great! If not, we’ll go through the process again in a year or two and he’ll be ready to let go of more.

Quick Tip - Wastebaskets

How many wastebaskets do you have in your home? Homes typically have wastebaskets in bathrooms, kitchens, laundry rooms, and offices. This is one case where more is better. Place wastebaskets in any area where trash is generated.

Consider putting wastebaskets in the following areas:

• Bedrooms
• Craft Space – one near each area where trash is generated
• Garage – one by the workbench, one by gardening supplies, etc
• Living room – use a decorative basket with a lid
• Patio – select a container with a sealed lid or place the wastebasket in a sheltered area

Julie Morgenstern, organizing expert and author, recommends the “kindergarten” model for organizing – place items close to the area where they will be used. The same holds true for wastebaskets. They are more likely to be used when they are conveniently located.