It’s not uncommon for clients to ask us to work our organizing magic in several rooms in their home—in one day. Our magic doesn’t come from jumping from one stepping-stone to the next, across the house. It comes from building steps and climbing up to the next level.
Last week a woman was giving me a tour of all the organizing challenges in her home and when we came to a closet upstairs, I asked her, “can I see what’s in here?” She said “Oh, I don’t want to show you that. It’s a DISASTER!” After explaining to her that I was in the disaster business, she let me have a look.
One of the questions I get asked most frequently, before starting an organizing project is “What should I buy?” I have a very simple answer: nothing. This is especially true for the big projects we tend to get this time of year, like garages, basements, attics. The reason comes down to this very simple organizing rule: "quantity dictates systems."
The other day a friend asked, when is it OK NOT to be organized. I was stumped by the question, but I've been giving the matter a lot of thought, ever since.
I have a confession to make. I had let my email inbox accumulate to over 5,000 emails. That can be really bad news for one's computer’s performance. What's my excuse for all this digital clutter? Digital clutter is simply less compelling to me because it does not crowd my physical space. I don't see it. Not much of an excuse, but I know I'm not alone.
You may hate the way the clutter accumulates in your home or office, but it’s possible you may be making some simple structural choices that cause it. A truly effective organizing system is built on movement. Some choices prevent movement and allow clutter to take up residence.
“People shouldn’t feel bad if they’re having trouble getting organized. Today we have so many new sources of clutter and it’s harder to stay organized than ever before."
I am actually making a case against baskets. I realize that for many with visions of a home beautifully organized into pretty little matching baskets that this is organizing heresy, but hear me out. More often than not, baskets are clutter traps. Items go in, but they don’t come out. We have a false sense of control because an ugly collection of items have been contained in a beautiful vessel. But
MY JOB CHART, Founder & CEO, Gregg Murset, CFP® answers some questions about myjobchart.com.
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