Time Management

The Top 5 Things to Organize in Your Home

Published: February 28, 2022

In my decade of experience as a professional organizer, I have found that there are five categories of items or areas that are most in need of organized systems to maintain organization. The cyclical nature of these spaces is what makes it challenging, because items are coming and going, or moving from one area to another, or changing on a regular basis. Let’s look at these 5 categories, and review some tips to maintain organization in these areas.

Mail & Papers

Mail arrives almost daily, and while much of it may be junk, the important papers and packages need to be opened and given a home inside your house. Whether that’s being saved in a paper file folder, scanned, or a a bill to be paid, a coupon to use, or an invitation to respond to, you need to have a regular system to open and check the mail, discard the unimportant, and then take action on the important. Setting up areas of your home to hold incoming mail, store action papers, and then store files that you need to save for reference can help you manage paper overload.

Laundry & Clothing

Sizes and seasons change, we buy new clothes, and don’t always declutter the old clothing. Clothes go through a cycle of clean (and ideally in a drawer or closet), to being worn, to being dirty and then needed to be washed, dried, folded or hung up again on a regular basis. Creating homes for clothes in all of these states is extremely important to maintaining organization. For example, selecting and placing laundry baskets or hampers in an accessible place, and regularly decluttering drawers and closets to give each type of clothing it’s own space, so you can easily put it away and retrieve it when needed, will help you stay better organized.

Dishes

Just like the clothing, dishes, silverware, and cooking supplies have a cycle of being clean (and ideally is a designated cabinet or drawer), used, dirty, and in a sink or dishwasher, then clean and awaiting to be put away. By decluttering and organizing your kitchen so every item has a space, and then setting up routines to load and empty a sink or dishwasher, wash the dishes and put them away, you can keep this area organized.

Groceries & Meals

Food cycles through a home from the fridge, freezer or pantry, then being consumed, and then needing to be restocked by a trip to, or delivery from a grocery store. Setting up organized spaces in your fridge, freezer and pantry, and planning a regular decluttering of spoiled or expired foods, then keeping up with writing a grocery list, and meal planning weekly can help keep the organization of food items under control.

Schedules & Time

Just like physical spaces, calendars and schedules can become cluttered and disorganized. By choosing the right planner, calendar or task management tool for you, whether that be paper or digital, and using it everyday to keep track of your time, you can keep your schedule better organized. You can schedule times for work, commuting, chores and errands, appointments, relaxation and social time on your calendar. Having a way to contain and manage your schedule can prevent you from being late or missing important events, and lead you toward better organization in all areas of your life.

Organizing Tasks to Tackle: 10 Minutes at a Time

Published: January 26, 2022

A common reason some of my new organized clients say that they haven’t gotten organized is because they don’t have the time. While doing a deep declutter and reorganization of an entire home can take a long time, there are some organizing tasks that can be done in short bursts of time, in just 10 minutes or less, to get you rolling and keep up momentum. While staying organized is a daily process, here are some things you can do that might take 10 minutes, depending on how much stuff you have.

Ten Minute Chores

Make the beds.

Gather up trash from a room or an entire house.

Empty the kitchen sink.

Put away the dishes.

Empty the fridge and/or pantry of spoiled and expired food.

Pick up the toys in a playroom.

Gather up dirty laundry and bring it to the laundry room.

Fold and put away one laundry basket full of clothing.

Break down empty cardboard boxes to be recycled.

Ten Minute Decluttering Tasks

Sort through a pile of mail and toss or recycle the junk mail.

Shred some old mail or paperwork.

Start filing away some important mail or paperwork.

Organize the contents of one file folder in a file cabinet.

Empty out the trash and remove clutter from your car.

Declutter your purse or wallet.

Pick one small drawer in a dresser or kitchen and declutter it.

Declutter a small flat surface – for example, your bedside table, a bathroom counter, the top of your home desk, the top of your kitchen table or dining room table.

Start decluttering your email inbox.

Pull a handful of clothing pieces out of your closet that you will no longer wear, and put those in a bag or box for donations. (Move that bag or box to your car once it is full, so you can drop it off when you’re near the charity of your choice).

Ten Minute Errands

Make a weekly meal plan and grocery list.

Pay a few bills.

Gather up items you want to return to stores, and put those in your car.

Ten Minute Time Management Tasks

Update your to-do list for the day or week, use a paper or digital calendar to plan when to get things done.

Schedule an appointment with a doctor, a dentist, etc.

Contact a company about a bill or financial issue.

While ten minutes alone will not be enough to get and stay organized, if you can find small pockets of time to work on these small tasks, you’ll begin to feel better organized! If you’d like further guidance and assistance from a Certified Professional Organizer, On Task Organizing offers virtual organizing sessions over Zoom or in-person organizing sessions in the Raleigh, North Carolina area. Please contact me to learn more about On Task Organizing’s services.

Developing a Sense of Urgency for Home Organizing

Published: December 20, 2021

When you’re working through a to-do list, urgent tasks become top priority, while other items on your list may be put off for a long time. Often, home organization may be one of those tasks that falls by the wayside because it may not be urgent. One motivational tactic to help improve momentum when tackling home organizing projects is to develop a sense of urgency. If you do not have a timeline in mind, it can be hard to feel compelled to keep organizing.

Although home organizing is never a one-time task, because it requires almost daily upkeep to keep a space organized, setting a deadline to tackle your major organizing goals can be incredibly motivating. When I first meet with my home organizing clients, we discuss goals, priorities and timelines before starting the organizing projects.

Here are some tips to help you move forward and set deadlines when working on organizing projects:

Turn “Someday” into a Date on the Calendar

If you’re decluttering and organizing because you’re going to move “someday”. Narrow that someday down. Perhaps you’re moving after your children have left the nest, when you get married, before the birth of a child, etc. You can narrow the date down to a year, month, or season. If you’re moving even sooner, discuss the date that your home will be put on the market with your realtor, and that day becomes your FINAL declutter date). If you want to get organized on the other end, when you move in to a new house, finalize the date that the moving truck will arrive at your new residence, and that is the start of your project. If you have a wedding date or expected arrival date of your child, those are your deadlines.

Invite Others to Your Home

Other than moving or other life transitions, the times that I’ve seen the most motivation and momentum to get organized are when visitors are coming to your home. You’ll want to make friends or family feel comfortable in your home, and create a good impression with an organized and clean space. If you don’t have someone scheduled to visit, inviting them on a specific date will give you your end deadline to help move you forward. Some examples are visitors for Thanksgiving, Christmas, summer vacations, dinner parties, weddings, family reunions, or even a sleepover for your children.

Make a Deadline to be Ready for the Unexpected

Many times, decluttering and organizing is needed because of an unplanned event. For example, when someone suffers an illness or ailment and has to move to a rehabilitation or senior living community. Although these dates can never be certain, you could make a plan to be organized by a certain age…maybe select a certain birthdate or your retirement date as your organizing deadline.

Aim for an Important Date

Make getting organized a gift to yourself for a special occasion. Choose your birthday, an anniversary, New Year’s Day, Valentine’s Day, etc. Set your own deadline, and tell others about it for accountability to help you stick to it!

It is great to want to get organized for peace of mind, and to reduce stress and save time and money in the long run, but making or having a deadline will really keep the ball rolling. If you’re in need of organizing services, tips or accountability from an experienced Certified Professional Organizer (virtually over Zoom nationwide, or in-person in the Raleigh, NC area), feel free to reach out to me for a consultation call to get started on your journey to a more organized life.

Finding a Time & Place to Focus

Published: May 5, 2021

I have been working with some clients virtually on time management and productivity during the pandemic. I’ve found that many people are having trouble finding focus and staying focused due to so many distractions. With both spouses trying to work from home, and some children schooling at home, and the constant news, rules, and updates related to the pandemic being the norm, it is no wonder my clients are having a hard time focusing. Finding both a time and a place to focus can often be a challenge, so here are some tips to help.

Finding time blocks in your schedule, free from distraction to focus, really depends on your the schedules and activities of yourself and those around you. If you do have children in school or daycare, or if you have a family member who can watch them for a set amount of time, block that time out as your focus time. Try to schedule these time blocks at the time of day when you have the most energy, so if you’re an early bird, schedule these times in the morning. Talk with the people you live with about your schedules, the many distractions you’re experiencing, and the ways to create time for each of you to focus.

Finding a place to focus is also very important. Hopefully, by now you have a functional workspace set up at home. Home renovations, such as adding doorways to open floor plans, can help to limit distractions. If you have private spaces outside your house, such as a backyard, deck, or front porch, try working in those areas.

If you’re able to leave your home workplace, you may be better able to focus outside the home without the interruptions from family members. Finding a safe place such as a picnic table or bench in a park, an outdoor dining area, or even sitting in your car, may be a helpful alternative to your home office. If you can find indoor areas that are safely reopened with social distancing, such as co-working spaces, libraries, or coffee shops, you could also try those spaces. You could even book a night or two at a local hotel to have your own private space to get highly focused work done.

If you’d like personalized time management coaching (online or in-person), feel free to reach out to me to schedule a free consultation chat. Having an experienced Certified Professional Organizer there to guide you in time management and provide accountability can greatly improve your productivity and lower overall stress.

The Life Transition After Full Vaccination

Published: April 22, 2021

I often help my clients during life transitions such as moving, downsizing, or preparing for a new baby. Now that COVID-19 vaccines are being widely distributed in the U.S., and some places are starting to open up, the entire country is in a new type of transition. I’m sure “the life transition after full vaccination” will have a catchy name soon, since so many of us are about to experience it. Time management and stress management will be important as we step toward “normal”.

Personally, my family will be fully vaccinated by the end of April. We will be going through this strange transition of coming out of this hibernating time where we’ve avoided people outside our bubble and public events because it was safest for our health and the health of others. This is a transition that none of us have gone through before, and I am interested to see how we’ll all manage it.

To reduce stress in any transition, the first step is to plan. As I pre-plan to re-enter places like restaurants, movie theaters and client homes post-vaccination, I am using my family’s digital calendar to keep track of it all. Although I hated being cut off socially from so many people, I also know that I’m going to need time to adjust.

I am scheduling down-time at home in between the busy times. I feel that returning to constant travel, activities and in-person work will be overwhelming. There are some things I really enjoyed during the pandemic time, such as daily morning walks, which I am keeping on my schedule. As an introvert myself, being around too many people for too long can be draining, so I will carefully schedule my time at group activities.

The pandemic has made me assess what is essential and what is not in my life, as I am sure it has for others. Spending time with my family and friends will always be important. Essential tasks like healthcare and grocery shopping will also be a top priority (as will be making sure I have enough back-stock of things like toilet paper!). Meal planning, and eating at home often will continue, with the occasional restaurant trip.

With so much time spent at home, taking better care of my home and yard has become more of a priority. I plan to spend more time at home than I did before the pandemic, enjoying time on my back deck, or in rooms that my family has decorated, organized, and made great use of during this time.

I will recognize that this a transition time for myself and for others around me. I wonder how long this transition will take and when I’ll feel comfortable and feel like things are “back to normal.” I know this will be a stressful and confusing time for many, but also a joyful time. For those of us who made it through healthy, and are coming out the other side able to socialize and enjoy activities that we’ve been cut off from, this will be an exciting experience. I am looking forward to moving out of the Zoom world and back to real in-person life, and I hope you’ll all recognize that planning and patience are needed as we all adjust.

How to Stay Focused and Avoid Procrastination

Published: April 1, 2020

Why do we procrastinate? Quite honestly, because there’s a task we don’t enjoy doing, we don’t want to do, or it is not a priority at the time. People will find many other ways to fill their time rather than focusing on that dreaded task. The activity you are procrastinating on may be overwhelming, boring, or something you need help doing. All of us procrastinate, even professional organizers, but there are several resources and techniques available to help us stay focused and avoid procrastination.

Here are some ways to stay focused and avoid procrastination:

Use apps and reminders

Technology such as productivity apps, alerts in our email, and alarms and timers on our phones can help us stay on task.

Adjust social media settings

If social media is your preferred time waster/procrastination tool, adjust settings on your mobile device, web browser or inside the individual apps to alert you (or log you off of those social media apps) after you’ve been logged in for a predetermined amount of time.

Write to-do lists

There are many options here, both paper and digitally, such as digital calendars, bullet journals, or simply writing down everything you need to do on a piece of paper.

Prioritize your to-do list

Determine what task you need to do first, what is most important to you. Organize your to-do list based on your own priorities.

Tackle that “procrastinating task” at a time of day when you have the most energy.

If you’re a morning person, do it first thing when you wake up, if you’re a night owl, plan to work on it later in the evening. Work on that task during your high-energy time of day.

Eliminate distractions in your surroundings

Look at your surroundings and determine if there are any distractions or interruptions that frequently take you away from focusing. Do you work best in a coffee shop? Do you need to go to a co-working space, or a library? Do you need to close your office door and hang up a “do-not-disturb” sign? Do you need to turn off your phone ringer, text alerts, email alerts, etc.? Do you need to have someone watch your children? Ask yourself these questions, and do what you can to eliminate distractions.

Ask for accountability

Tell a friend or family member what you are doing, and when you’ll get it done. Then tell them that you will check in with them at a certain day and time to report on what you’ve accomplished. Just knowing that someone is going to hold you accountable can make you finally get things done.

If you would like guidance and assistance with time management from a certified professional organizer, I’d love to help you! I offer time management consultations virtually via FaceTime and Skype, and in person in the Raleigh, North Carolina area. Please contact me for a free phone consultation to learn more or get started.