Home Organizing & Cleaning Tips, Hints

We all get stressed when our home is a mess and we can’t find things that we are looking for. Every year we make a New Years resolution that THIS year things are going to change and we are going to become organized, but it doesn’t happen.

We tend to get over whelmed because we look at the big picture (our entire home) and we get tired before we even start. There are things that we can do to help make this job easier, simple and cost efficient and in the process, keep our hopes alive that eventually our home will be organized.

1. Only take one thing or one room at a time. Don’t look at the whole home, break things down into smaller projects.
2. Have a goal in mind. Do you want to re-do the entire room (painting, carpet cleaning etc.) or just clean out the drawers in the bedroom and organize the closet?
3. Use storage organizers whenever possible. The hint is to wait until you know what sizes that you want or need to purchase. Don’t go out and buy 10 new containers just to find out that they are the wrong size. Use cardboard boxes to store in until you know the sizes that you need then purchase them and then transfer everything and don’t forget to label them.
4. Store all ‘like’ things together. Such as electrical with electrical, scarves and belts in an accessory box (a shoe caddy also works well for this and you can see everything etc.
5. After you have organized everything make sure that you keep it up. Always put things back in their ‘home’ and your organizing will not be for nothing. You will have everything under control.
6. Keep a good attitude. You are doing this to get rid of the clutter and things that no longer fit into your lifestyle so make sure that you keep that in mind as you are sorting things. Give them a new home and another life in someone else’s home.
7. Change your habits. We all have certain habits that we do without thinking such as: throwing our coat on the chair when we walk in the door, taking our shoes off next to the sofa instead of at the door or in the bedroom, leaving the soda glasses on the table when we go to bed instead of putting them in the sink or taking 2 minutes to wash and put away etc. Just these small things can change your life and eliminate excess clutter.
8. For everything new that you purchase something old has got to go. How many times have you bought a new pair of shoes and you have an old pair that are worn out lying in the closet (that you know you will never wear again) and you just leave them instead of throwing them out?
9. Keep a list of what your goals are for your project. It is easy to cross things off of a list when we have completed them and also a great rewarding feeling. You won’t have to worry about forgetting to do something if you have a list to follow. You can also update this as you are organizing if you find that you would like to add or subtract a job.
10. Reward yourself as you are working. Take a break when you feel like it, plan on that nice luxurious hot bubble bath you are going to take when the job is finished, make a date for a golf or fishing outing or do something as simple as going out to dinner. You deserve it; you have just started to organize your life.

Simple strategies such as this can make organizing your home easy, fun and a job you will look forward to doing because you have eliminated all of the stress that is involved.

Jan Hayner is creator of Easy Home Organizing at http://www.organizingyourlifetheeasyway.com filled with tips, hints and ideas on Home Organizing and Household Cleaning solutions for men, women and kids. Get your free pamphlets “50 Things That Take 10 Minutes or Less To Organize” and “Guiltbusters For Working Moms”.