Snowball Effect

Have you experienced the “snowball effect”? My husband and I just purchased loft beds for two of our children. This means we need to find space to store their old beds. I don’t plan to give them away, because I imagine they’ll both be ready for their standard beds again in three to four years. The beds will fit in a little used closet in the finished basement. Now, where do I store the sleeping bags that had been in that closet? That’s the snowball effect – the movement/storage of one item affects several other items.

You probably notice the snowball effect most often when bringing big items into the home. Be aware of how placement of small items in the home can also take on the snowball effect. For example, say I am putting dishes away. There’s not enough room for all the cups, so I put a few where the bowls usually go. Then I stack some bowls on the plates, because there is not room for them in their normal “home”. Now all the plates won’t fit in the stack with the bowls, so I need to find a spot for them. This can happen in drawers, cabinets, and closets – everywhere items are stored.

To prevent the “snowball effect”, evaluate the cause of the lack of space. Are there too many of an item assigned to the space? Do you need to create more storage space? Can any items be removed from the space? How can the space be used more efficiently? Finally, get into the routine of always returning items to their assigned spots to prevent the snowball effect from taking over.