As the clocks spring forward, it’s a perfect time to move forward on planning your spring cleaning projects. One task that finds its way onto many spring cleaning “to-do” lists is organizing a space in the home. Before tackling any big organizing project, it’s important to take these important steps first!
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Plan ahead. Before beginning any organizing project, take a mental inventory of the items that are occupying the space you want to organize. Then think about the intended use of the space. Do the objects that are currently being stored in this area belong there? For example, a kitchen pantry’s intended use is to store food and kitchen items, not, say, motorcycle parts (don’t laugh—I’ve seen it before!). If, after you’ve performed your mental inventory, you find that many of the items belong somewhere else then...
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Make room for items that will be relocated. Let’s say you did, in fact, find motorcycle parts in your pantry. Before you begin organizing the panty, you need to first find a space in your garage to store the motorcycle parts.
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Consider the timing of the project. Another thing you may have discovered when taking your mental inventory is that you have several things that need to be “forwarded.” Forwarding is a word many professional organizers use when referring to things that will either be sold, thrown away, recycled, given away, or donated. Plan your project as close to garbage/recycling, donation or any other pick-ups days as possible.
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Gather necessary supplies. Your mental inventory should help you determine what supplies you’ll need on hand; for example, trash bags, boxes for forwarding items, organizing bins, labels (or a label maker) and cleaning supplies.
Although it is tempting to dive right into your organizing task, taking the above steps first will save time, frustration and inconvenience in the long run!
Beth Upshaw is a local professional organizer who specializes in home and student organization.
Organized Results, LLC | 770.686.2991 | beth@organizedresults.com | OrganizedResults.com
