How to Organize like a Pro!

5 Tips on How to Organize like a Pro

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By Barb Eimer,  Owner of Yikes Organizing

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THE GIFT OF TIME

What do having your house cleaned and getting it organized have in common?

Both give you a natural high but, even better, and certainly more lasting, they give you more of what you really need…time.

I love organizing other people’s homes but HATE cleaning my own and Maid Cleaning Service is the best present I could have given myself.  I think I would pay them even if they did nothing but add the clean “smell!”

That said, here are some tried and true tips from a certified professional organizer who has pretty much seen it all as far as clutter is concerned.  (I say this as I have six grown children, have lived on three continents and have moved more than 20 times in my life.)

5 Tips on How to Organize like a Pro

• Be realistic

Your house didn’t become cluttered in a day and it’s not going to become perfectly organized in a day…unless you hire the television crew from Clean Sweep, and even with them it takes a weekend!  I work with some clients once a week for a year!

• Start with a small project you can finish

If you are new at organizing, you may not want to start with your garage.   Try decluttering a cabinet in your kitchen or clean out your dresser.  These are projects that won’t take all day and will give you some positive reinforcement.  Then work your way up to bigger projects.

• Realize things will get worse before they get better

When I start with a new client this is something we always discuss.  If we just clear off the top of your desk or your bed but don’t deal with the “unseen” clutter in your drawers and cabinets, we really haven’t done the job fully and you will be back to “messy” before you know it.  The only real rule in organizing is that EVERYTHING needs a home.  In order to find the best home, you need to dig down and get to the root of the problem.

• Sometimes more isn’t better; sometimes more is just more

I especially see this with kids’ clothing and toys.  Often more choices just make it harder for kids to choose anything.  I’ve even tested this on my 8-month-old granddaughter.  If you give her one toy, she is happy.  If you spread 25 toys out on the floor around her, she is overwhelmed. If you have a ton of toys and/or clothes, rotate them so you kids feel like they are getting something new periodically.

• Don’t buy storage solutions until the end of the project

Nobody ever wants to hear this but you can’t know what kind of storage you will need until you know how much you are keeping and where it’s going to live.  I tell my clients this is your reward for all the hard work we’ve done.  Plus, many times you have great storage solutions on hand and we can reuse something you have in a different way.

If this seems daunting, I understand.  Give me a call and I’ll give you a free 30-minute, in-home estimate to get your house in order and give you the awesome gift of time!

Barb Eimer, CPO® is the owner of Yikes Organizing.  She started Yikes in 2012 and is currently the Vice President of the Nashville chapter of NAPO (The National Association of Professional Organizers).  You can reach her at 615.604.0527 or at www.yikesorganizing.com. [/mpc_textblock]