Organizing Tips

Getting Started:

Start with the Big Picture. Do macro-sorting before doing micro-sorting. It's important to not get bogged down in details at the beginning. Start with broad, general classifications, and sort everything into those categories. You can always go back later, create sub-categories, and further sort as necessary.

Follow Through:

Once you make a decision to get rid of something, make sure you remove that item from the premises as soon as possible. Make this a priority! Deliver unwanted items to a charity and take bags of paper to recycling as soon as you can. This will free up the physical and emotional space taken up by these objects. Furthermore, if the object stays around for too long, especially if it is not labeled (see "Label Everything," above), it is likely that you'll end up going through it again in the future.

Emotional Issues:

As you organize, you will be going through many of your possessions, and it is possible that you will have some emotional response to some of the items. This is normal. You may encounter photographs of deceased loved ones, photographs of ex-lovers, reminders of painful or joyful times in your past. You may feel sadness, fear, anger, joy, shame, or other emotions. The combined emotional effect of many different items can sometimes be overwhelming.

Dealing with emotional issues:

We recommend following the saying "Feel the fear but do it anyway." If you have a strong emotional response to an item, you may not be ready to let it go. In you're uncertain, put it in the "TO BE DECIDED" box, and continue organizing.

Label Everything:

Put a clearly legible label on everything, even temporary sorting bins. You may spent hours sorting something, and, if the job is too large to finish in one day, come back to it days or months in the future. If things are not labeled, you will have no idea what you have already sorted and what you have not. People spent considerable time re-examining stuff that has already been processed. If you are working with someone else, it is doubly important to label, so that your partner can quickly and clearly understand how things are to be sorted. In our work as professional organizers, we are always careful to put detailed labels on everything so that other can use those labels to locate things.

Work with Someone:

Whether you work with a professional organizer or a friend, having two (or more) people will help you to accomplish at least 3 times what you could alone. Making plans with someone else will establish a definite starting time to protect against procrastination and force you to make whatever plans are necessary to make effective use of that time. Many of our clients tell us that scheduling a session got them to be more motivated and excited about making a change in their lives.

Stay Focused:

Undoubtedly many distractions will arise as you start going through your stuff. If you allow yourself to act on every distraction, you will not get any more organized. Create a category for "To Be Decided," place anything that needs attention into that category and continue organizing. Later, after you have made progress organizing, you can come back to the TBD's and quickly dispatch them one after the other.