Whether you live in Phoenix, AZ, or Philadelphia, PA, you’ve probably been spending more time at home than ever before amidst the pandemic. Now, you might be noticing just how disorganized your home has become over the past year and are ready to make a change as the new year begins.
Finding the time to nail down a gameplan between laundry, errands, and piles of dishes, however, can be a challenge. Luckily, we’ve gathered expert-approved organizing tips to tackle the clutter in every part of your home so you can keep your home tidy all year-round.
Make a solid plan for your organizing goals
I recommend writing down a “vision” of what you’d like your home to be like by the end of the year. Then, make more solid goals (but no more than 3-5) for each quarter. – Laura Sue Shaw
Discard old keys you have lying around
Do you have a lot of mystery keys that you have no idea what locks they belong to? As you change out locks around your home, discard all their keys and label the new keys to avoid the mystery and consequently, the clutter. – Simple Organized Solutions
Identify your specific pain point
Once you know your pain point, address it in a way that is as close to your family’s natural habits and instincts as possible. If you try to do something too far from your usual routines, it won’t be sustainable, and you’ll be frustrated again with your unorganized space in no time. If you are finding it hard to let go of things, chances are there is a mental block standing in your way. Oftentimes we keep things out of guilt or a sense of obligation. Remember that your home is meant for the things you and your family need, use, and love. Give yourself permission to let go of anything that clutters your space without serving your family. – SOS by Lisa
Change your mindset
With the changes we’ve all gone through in the last year, getting and keeping your home organized and clutter-free in 2021 is more important than ever. Start by changing your mindset. Before you buy anything or bring anything into your home – ask yourself these questions: Do I really need it or do I just want it? Will I really use the item in the next few months? Do I actually have a specific place for the item? If you answered “no” to the above questions then don’t buy it and keep the clutter out of your home. – Organizational Consulting Services
Use broad categories as you’re organizing
When creating categories for zones of items – think broadly. You want to set yourself up for long-term success. A bin just for band-aids? Unless you are crazy accident-prone or wield sharp knives frequently, probably not necessary. But First Aid? That’s more like it. Broad categories provide the framework for solid organization while allowing for the flexibility to adapt and change with time. It’s all about sustainability. – The Orderly Space (Find us on Instagram)
Work with your own routine and habits
Getting organized isn’t about making your home perfect 100% of the time and working against the grain but becoming self-aware and working with your own systems that you already have to make your life more efficient and much easier. For example, sure it’d be ideal to always put my clothes away as soon as I’m done with them, but I know that I have a habit of throwing them on the floor right outside my bathroom. So I placed a tall basket right in that spot and I know when that basket gets full, it’s time to set aside a little time and put those clothes away. Pro tip: play some tunes, grab a buddy, and make folding fun. – The Honey Bee Professional Organizing
Store everyday items in easy to reach places
My best tip when organizing any space is to think about what you use the most. Clutter is anything that doesn’t fit or function in your life. Once you determine your most-loved items, store those items in easy to reach places, like your bedside table, or shelves within your sightline. – B Organized Today
Place a recycling bin and an “outbox” by the front door
Keep a recycling bin or beautiful basket close to your front door for tossing all junk mail into. When we walk through our front door, our first instinct is to put down whatever we are holding. By keeping a bin by our entry, we are promoting the habit of immediately eliminating what’s unnecessary, while keeping things super simple. This alleviates clutter from accumulating, and makes tackling that mail pile at the end of the day or week that much easier. We also have returns, things that need repairing, dry cleaning, etc. Keep these items contained but in view so they get done. Seeing them will serve as motivation and is a visual reminder to drop them off the next time you leave the house. – Urban OrgaNYze
Make your digital calendar your To-Do List
Everything has to happen in real-time to get done so you might as well put tasks directly on a day where you think you’ll have time or you need to start attending to it. You may move it to the next day or week repeatedly but that will only make you more motivated to get it done. If you are overwhelmed by more than your To-Do List connect with a professional organizer virtually to get unstuck affordably. – Finely Sorted Organizing
Connect with your own heart through your beautiful space
The gift of a beautiful space is that it can so easily connect you to your own heart. Tending and organizing your home is like writing love letters to your space every day and who doesn’t adore love letters? Remember that clutter is just a pile of decisions you have not made yet. When you see piles that overwhelm you from that perspective the practice is tapping back into your intuition and trusting you know how to make the right decisions for your life. I challenge you to look at those piles of clutter in this way from now on and act from a place of faith and heart rather than a place of fear and dread. – Organize me, Penelope
Take time every month to tidy up
Organization is ever-changing. Even with systems and structure in place, and even if you have decluttered in the past, the space will need your attention again. Set aside time once a month to tidy the space and get everything back in tip-top shape. – Organize BHAM
Use the “One in, One Out” method
For every item that comes into the house, one item has to leave the house. For instance, every time you buy a piece of clothing, choose another piece to add to your donation bag. Small daily efforts to prune the stuff you’ve accumulated can help keep your whole home under control without requiring a weekend’s worth of effort. – CEO Liz Pearce, Fresh Chalk
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