organizing tips Archives

May 07

7 Psychological Benefits of an Organized Home

By Sherry Borsheim Blog, Quick Organizing Tips, Simple Living 2 Comments

Untidy environments increase stress for most people. Do you declutter your mind while you declutter your home? Science says yes.

We all know the feeling after accomplishing that thing we’ve been putting off, and oftentimes that thing is tidying up. But where does that feeling come from, and how can we get more of it?

Is this you?

People who have a hard time to declutter your home often struggle with:

Time management and project motivation
Feeling overwhelmed easily, which can lead to procrastination
Perfectionism and finishing tasks
Holding attention and being distracted frequently
Saying “no” to others

Orderly environments are linked to more healthy choices.

Our surroundings shape our thinking. If you’re constantly looking at all the things you’re putting off, it’s going to reflect poorly on your mental health. It's more enticing to prepare healthy meals in an orderly kitchen with an easily accessible pantry, and most people sleep better in a tidy room with a made bed.

Pro Tip: Split your fridge, freezer, and pantry into sections that make sense to you, and put items back after use every time.

Improve focus.

Disarray makes it harder to find what you need and makes you more prone to frustration. It may also distract you while doing another task. Declutter your home by sorting through visual clutter can help your focus and attention span.

Pro Tip: Start with your most frequently used spaces. Clear off your kitchen and bathroom counters. Find a place for each item.

Alleviate depression and anxiety.

The only thing a messy home can add to your life is more burden to your mind. Clutter will make you feel worse and scatterbrained, and it is more challenging to want to clear up the space when you see piles accumulating. You may not feel like doing it, but any small steps you can take will improve your overall mood.

Pro Tip: Ask for support while organizing. Having someone around can make the task less dull and more fun.

Reduce dust and allergies.

You may think that your home is clean despite being disorganized. But you would be surprised at how much dust, pet debris, and mold can build up when hidden. It's important to regularly declutter your home, otherwise, it's harder to clean around piles of belongings.

Pro Tip: Give yourself 20 minutes a day to tidy up any piles laying around the house.

Enhance self-esteem.

Cluttered spaces erode your confidence because it causes you to feel less in control of your life. Feeling proud and at ease in your home gives you an automatic confidence boost. A living environment that looks more respectable can be extremely empowering.

Pro Tip: Find inspirational pictures and try to imitate them in your home.

Better relationships.

It’s a drain on your energy and for others in the home to keep clutter lying around. When a household can delegate organizational tasks to everyone, it creates a sense of teamwork and strengthens bonds. Plus, it gets everybody motivated when you can declutter your home together.

Pro Tip: Consider a “Homeless Things” basket for any items you find scattered around the house. Set a ritual once a week where each person checks the container to remove the items that belong to them.

Free up time and energy.

When you’re chasing mess after mess it’s impossible to mentally relax. There’s a reason insomnia is linked to disorganization and the accumulation of too many things. Having fewer things means making fewer choices throughout the day.

Pro Tip: Keeping a schedule for tidying up; maintaining a system is easier than creating a new one each time. Try to donate or sell items that you no longer need.

Decluttering can actually be quite therapeutic; play some relaxing music, visualize your desired “after” of the space, sort in a system that works for you, and simply enjoy the zen that comes with a tidied home.

Which room will YOU start in? Comment below!

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10 Day Decluttering Challenge

Don’t know where to start decluttering?

(and some freebies, too!)

Mar 16

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10 Day Decluttering Challenge

By Sherry Borsheim Blog, Home Organizing, Inspiration 2 Comments

10_day_decluttering_challenge

When times are changing, it’s a sign to re-evaluate what’s really important to us. You might be sitting in your comfy chair right now or sitting up in bed working from home and in the corner of your eye you can see those piles of stuff you’ve been meaning to deal with but never had the time until now.

We’ve spent years accumulating stuff that we don’t use, don’t need, and frankly, it’s just cluttering up space collecting dust. Stuff can weigh heavy on us and leave us with feelings of guilt, shame, and unhappiness and that’s the last thing you want to feel at this time.

I believe a home is an oasis to wake up in and come home to at the end of the day. A home is a place that is warm and inviting to have family and friends over. And if you work from home, you’re free to be creative and your space is inspiring to work in.

So for the next 10 days, let me help you transform your home with this mini decluttering challenge.

When you’re done this decluttering challenge, you’ll feel lighter, happier, and inspired!

Here’s three organizing steps to follow for fast, lasting results:

Step #1 – Start small with one drawer, one shelf, one cupboard or one area in ONE room at a time. No zig-zag organizing from one room to another otherwise you won’t see fast results and you’ll create a bigger mess.

Step #2 – Set a timer for 30-45 minutes and make quick and fast decisions on what to keep and what’s no longer of use to you. Touch each item on the shelf/drawer and decide if it’s staying or gotta go. Have a recycling bin, trash bag, and donation box within arms reach for items that you don’t want, don’t use anymore, are broken, doesn’t bring you joy, or is expired.

Step #3 – Group like things together into themes. You’ll see how much you have in each category and how much space you’ll need to contain it when you put it back.

After each 30-45 minute organizing sessions, take 10 minutes to deal with the recycling, trash, and donations items. You’ll be amazed at how much stuff you can get rid of!! Repeat the above three steps until you’re finished in the area you want decluttered.

If you get stuck or need a little extra help visit my Facebook or Instagram pages. For personalized solutions for your decluttering and organizing projects, I’m offering 50% off Virtual Organizing services till March 31, 2020. Check out details and bookings at simplyproductive.com/services

Day 1 Challenge – Declutter Your Kitchen Pantry

Start with one shelf, one cupboard, or one drawer. Take out anything that is expired, doesn’t belong, or you don’t want. Next, group like items together like breakfast foods, condiments, baking supplies, canned goods, spices, snacks, soups, drinks, and so on. Once you see how much you have in a category, you can designate a space that makes sense. If you have young kids, designate a breakfast zone, lunches zone, and snack zone that they can reach. When possible, label the area inside the shelf, drawer or cupboard and make sure to let family members know where things are so that they can put them back. The label becomes the organizing system for putting things back where they belong.

Day 2 Challenge – Declutter Your Closet

Start with the piles on the floor, then a shelf or hanging section. My best strategy for organizing anything is to organize your closet top to bottom, left to right (or reverse this if you can’t get to your top shelf yet) Pull the clothes out of your closet and onto the bed, if possible. If not, then make decisions by touching each item in your closet and sort into categories. Suggest categories are, laundry, mending, dry cleaning, donate, try on, and keep. Once you decided what you want to keep, put clothing back into your closet based on what you wear most during the week. If you work, your work clothes get prime real estate and easy access. Designate a place in your closet for each category of clothes. Category ideas are: work clothes, weekend clothes, party dresses, workout, comfy cozy clothes to lounge in, and so on. Getting dressed in the morning will be a lot less stressful!

Day 3 Challenge – Organize Your Passwords

Do you constantly reset your passwords or let your browser remember your login details? Hopefully you’re not using the same password over and over again 😉 Lastpass is a secure password manager that will remember all your passwords, travel point cards, vital information and login details so you don’t have to. It works on any platform. Install the app on all your devices. Next, start entering in three to five login details to test it out for a week. Inside the app you can add tags so it’s easier to find login details. You’ll be able to generate unique secure passwords on the fly. Lastpass is the one app I can’t live without.

Day 4 Challenge – Declutter Your Desk

Day 5 Challenge – Organize Your Bathroom

Day 6 Challenge – Spring Clean Your Garage

Day 7 Challenge – Organize Your Jewellery and Shoes

Day 8 Challenge – Clean Out Your Inbox

Day 9 Challenge – Organize Your Wallet

Day 10 Challenge – Celebrate All Your Organizing Success!

Oct 21

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Organizing Your Closet Twice a Year Can Help Your Favorite Charity!

By Sherry Borsheim Blog, Closet Organizing, Home Organizing, Inspiration, Quick Organizing Tips, Resources No Comments

Closet organization is best done in the fall and spring time. When the weather is changing you naturally want to switch over your clothes plus it’s the best time to purge and reorganize your closets. You’ll stress less each morning when your closet is beautifully organized and key items are at your fingertips!

Before you begin switching over your clothes, take a few minutes to decide on what you are going to do with items that no longer fit, you haven’t worn in the past year, clothes kids have outgrown or you have too much of and it’s time to pare down. If you’re downsizing find out how much closet space you’ll have in your new home. Whatever your situation, here’s some closet organization tips to consider.

Pick Your Charity or Non-Profit

Before you switch out your clothes for the warmer or colder season, research one to three places you will donate clothes and other items to. For women’s business clothes donate to Dress for Success. For baby, maternity and children’s clothes look for women’s shelters in your area or churches. And there are many other charities in your area that will pick up your items for you. If you’re going to consign clothes you need to be thinking 6-12 months in advance to get an appointment in a lot of cities. So plan ahead. Then get a box and/or bags and label it with the name of the charity.

Schedule Time to Drop-off at Charities and Non-Profits

Next, schedule time in your calendar to drop off the clothing to the charities or non-profits you want to support. This accomplishes two things –you set a completion date for organizing your closet(s) and getting the charity items out of your home.

Non-profits Always Have a Wish List!

Call organizations you want to support and ask them what kind of items they are looking for. I always ask them for their “wish list” and keep that on hand for when I come across items they need. You can do the same and share that list with your friends. Sheway House is a Vancouver Women’s shelter and some items on their wish list are crockpots, tea kettles, hot plates, baby toys, strollers, maternity clothes and baby clothes size 0-3 years. And often times, non-profits have their wish lists already posted on their website. You’d be amazed how many times during the year you’ll come across an item that you know your favorite charity really needs.

Brighten Someone’s Day!

Dropping off good quality clothes and items brings a big smile on the volunteers face! Oh the happy feel good stories I could share with you. Like the time I was parking and saw a young lady looking in a dumpster for house items and I happened to have six large pages of clothes. I asked what she was looking for and she was setting up her very first apartment. I mentioned that I had some new containers that I wanted to give her several bags of clothes. She thought she had won the lottery and they were all in her size. As I shared the story with my client, we were both in tears of joy.

What to Let Go Of

Most people have a number of items in their closet that have not been worn for a long time. For the most part, these items are just taking up valuable space. Anything that no longer fits should be placed on consignment or donated to charity. Additionally, any items that have not been worn for a year or longer should simply be given away.

Go through every piece of clothing in all your closets and ask yourself “Do I love this?”, “Does it fit?”, “Does it look great on me?”, “When was the last time I actually wore this?”

Letting go is so freeing. And you’ll be able to see what’s in your closet and spend less time getting ready each morning. Plus, less stuff means, less work maintaining all your stuff!