So, you’re ready to organize an area — but what are some things NOT to do while decluttering so you can stay focused, on task, and not taking over forever to achieve it. Here are 4 of my best tips!
Hi, I’m Hilary — I’m the curly head here at Pulling Curls and at The Pregnancy Nurse®. As a busy mom of three and nurse I needed my house to run itself instead of putting a ton of effort into it. I’ve compiled all the ways I’ve worked to make my home more manageable into an Organized Home course — so if you’re looking to make your home more manageable, check it out!
Okay but what NOT to do — let’s start!
Think like your grandma
Our grandmothers kept #everything and it’s easy to think we should keep:
- Every school drawing
- Everything we “might” need later
- Things that have any intrinsic value to us
However, we also have phones that can take pictures of important things (pro tip if you upload them directly to your drive so you know you’ll have them for the long haul).
We also have Amazon to order from if we get a pinch.
Often times, we keep an item that could be replaced for less than $20 that we haven’t used in YEARS — and someone else could get some value out of it.
It is important to think about every item that pays rent to live in your home.
Is it worth $5/month to keep the item? Then throw it away.
For me I just notice when I turn into a mom or grandma as I look at objects — and I shake my head and remind myself I am a modern woman who values people above things. It makes it easier.
BTW, getting on a cleanse has been a GAME changer for me as a working mom:
I stay too long
Sometimes we just take A VERY long time to consider whether to keep or give away an object.
I prefer it one touch method that you pick it up, make a choice and put it in a pile. BUT if one or two items are really giving you pain, put them in their own pile and I think it will be clearer as you finish the project. Just make sure you don’t put TOO many items in that pile, just a few.
Pro tip: Sometimes I have clothes that I can’t decide on. I have a small drawer in my closet where I put these clothes. If I go a little and notice that I haven’t missed them at all (or I’m NOT losing weight like I’d hoped) I’m much more willing to give them away at that point. It won’t stay put, and when that drawer gets too full, I have to pull it out and go through the items. Until then, it’s really not difficult at all.
I love this pro tip above because clothes can be REALLY overwhelming — you love an item but it doesn’t fit right, or whatever. It’s important to have that “space” to decide if it’s really for you. I have a lot of professional advice like this in here.
There are no bins
Sometimes I think I can just have “piles” — instead of designated bins for:
- Garbage
- Give away
- He goes to another room
When I have bins — whatever they are… Amazon boxes, laundry baskets (a personal favorite), or storage bins — it really helps. It helps me see progress instead of just moving things from one pile to another….
i have some collapsible laundry baskets which is one of my favorites to use in these types of situations.
Want some more organizing tips — check out these posts:
Exit the room
A big mistake I see my teenagers make is leaving the room too much.
They find something that goes somewhere else, so they leave it (often checking their phone on the way — but that’s a whole other topic).
This is why I have a “doesn’t belong here” basket. That way, when I’m done, I can leave those other items and not waste time (and potentially allow for a lot more distraction) to go to the other location.
I really try to stay in this room as long as I can. Yes, sometimes you need to grab something, but the longer you stay there, focus on it — the faster you’ll finish!
I am a HUGE fan of his using timers for this (racing myself) — join the neat 10 minute challenge if you think timers could help you:
Get shocked
I know that feeling. You pull everything out of a drawer and suddenly you’d rather burn your house down than do anything with that pile.
I get it too — and I have one of the best-selling organization courses online. It’s REALLY hard to see a bunch of bad choices, putting things off, and just plain JOY to sort out. It can feel overwhelming. Here are three tips for you when you feel this way:
- This feeling is NORMAL — don’t mess with yourself
- I really am going to take less time than you think to fix this problem (especially if you use a timer)
- About to I feel so good to do it and you won’t have to think about it again after that!
Here’s the thing: No one really likes to organizebut We LOVE having easy systems to put things away and make our home easier to manage. So don’t think you just don’t have the “gift” — we’re all just doing it for an end product!
I have a lot of people saying this they feel so alone in organizing their home (even if they have a spouse and children they make the problem worse). That’s why I created this to help you and not feel so alone.
I even cost it so it’s in your budget. Join me for just one month, you can cancel anytime.
And, if you’re not sure if you’ll REALLY find it helpful — join me in the 5 Word Organization Challenge — I think you’ll get a lot of value from this free challenge, too!
