Organizing Clutter Room By Room
The best way for organizing clutter is using the "Boxes and a List" technique. In fact, it is all you need to organize your home, one room at a time!
What is clutter?
Clutter is anything unfinished, unused, unresolved, tolerated or disorganized. This includes anything physically, mentally and emotionally.
So, before you begin review the daily affirmations for organizing clutter to set the mood and focus for a more successful experience.
Ready, Get Set, Go...
1. Gather easy to store boxes-plastic bins or cardboard. You may also want to use paper bags, if they are handy. They will become your organizing clutter tools for rooms to come!
2. Assign each box a mission and label them so you can clearly see what role each box has.
ROUTE IT box will collect items that do not belong in the room. This box will keep you from getting distracted in other rooms.
The ROUTE IT box can be broken down even further into boxes for each family member or rooms of the house items may belong. See what works best for you!
GIVE IT box will collect treasures that are no longer wanted or needed, but in good condition. This box can be donated to your favorite organization.
The GIVE IT box can also be broken into other boxes for places you want to give the items. Maybe it is to a specific person, church, Girl Scouts, etc. This keeps you from having to sort them again and remember what goes where.
STORE IT box will collect items you are unsure of. Place a scheduled toss/donate date. If the box is not accessed by the date, you have just proven the items inside are not needed or missed. Deliver it unopened to the organization of your choice.
TOSS IT box will include trash, items that are in poor repair, or you have no idea what it is.
3. Choose the room to begin the organizing clutter process and set your timer for a predetermined time of 20 to 60 minutes. Allow for an additional 5 to 10 minutes for final clean up. Starting on the right side of the room, place items in the corresponding box. If time is up before the room is finished, remember where you stopped.
4. THE LIST will collect to-dos or reminders. While organizing clutter, you may remember tasks you haven't completed and be tempted to act on them. The list will give you permission to forget it for now. Stay focused on your room.
5. Once the timer goes off, take the clean up time to empty the ROUTE IT box, throw out the items in the TOSS IT box, store the STORE IT box, schedule a time to donate the GIVE IT box and to schedule the to-do's on your list.
