It quickly becomes apparent how unorganized your bathroom is when you are looking for a pair of tweezers, while your 5-year old has a one-inch splinter in her foot, screaming in your ear, and has attached her body to yours, making it difficult for you to move effectively. You’re basically Tyrannosaurus Rex fumbling around the house, while going deaf.
When you get to the medicine cabinet you think you are close to helping your child, who has now gone plaid. But no. Where the shitake mushrooms are the tweezers? And why do we have 6 thermometers and I can only get one of them to work? And I just spilled all 120 flossers in the dirty bathroom sink. Glad I remembered to buy those this morning.
My kingdom for a pair or tweezers!
Maybe we all haven’t been T-rex walking around the house to help our little ones, but we’ve all had the experience of not being able to find what we need, when we need it. Frustrating doesn’t begin to describe it.
Then you empty out your medicine cabinet, linen closet and travel bag, making a huge mess all over the floor. But you also finally find the tweezers—only to realize your child has pulled out the splinter themselves and is off playing on the wood deck barefoot again.
Who wants to put that mess back? Or worse, who wants to put it back the same way, so this can repeat itself all over again?
It’s time to organize. And to make it easier and fun check out these 15 tips.
1. Play music or sounds that are energizing and positive
We all know the effect music can have on us and our moods. Tap into that. If you need to be energized, listen to songs you know the words to or from a time when you were carefree, felt good, or were organized. If you are experiencing stress or anxiety maybe it’s time for nature sounds, instrumental music or music that takes you away to your favorite vacation spot. Margaritaville anyone?
Create a playlist that you can come back to anytime you need to organize.
2. Take healthy snack breaks
Eating a healthy snack will help to keep you focused without feeling sluggish. Avoid the donuts, pizza or alcohol and you’ll avoid the crash that follows.
If you need sugar or alcohol (or pizza) use it as an incentive for when you’ve finished.
3. Take meaningful body breaks
What’s important is that you move your body away from organizing and get some fresh air. Or do some stretching, dancing, or meditating. You can also fire up the diffuser and get your favorite scent flowing through the room you’re in.
4. Stay in touch with your mood and energy
Don’t just keep at it, if you’re miserable—stop, assess your feelings, and modify your plan if needed. Try to stay on the path of achieving your goals. If you are gaining energy, keep going—if your energy is draining, maybe it’s time to step away.
5. Set up an accountability partner
Make specific commitments and schedule follow-ups to update your progress. Find an ally who won’t let you off easy and will rejoice in your accomplishments.
6. Invite a friend
Take turns helping each other accomplish the work. Agree to accept encouragement when you’re getting stuck and offer the same in return. Determine ahead of time what you need from them and what your goal is. Ask upfront that your friend keeps you accountable and that they won’t distract you.
7. Turn tasks into sports or play-like activities that you love
Embrace your personality whether you’re competitive, artistic, or inquisitive:
Get sporty throwing clothes into a donation box by “shooting hoops” Imagine you’re completing a 3-D jigsaw puzzle as you fit things into a drawer or cabinet Be creative by organizing books by color for subtle designs or a rainbow effect Get competitive—beat the clock or see who can purge the most Create a guessing game—how long will this take or how many items will I decide to purge?
8. At the end of each organizing session, write down 2-3 things that were positive
Write down:
what was easy the one thing that was hard to get rid of, but you did an area that is now organized and beautiful
Don’t forget that climbing a mountain takes many small steps.
9. Listen to (don’t watch) your favorite comedian while you work
Laughing can be therapeutic and a nice distraction if you’re doing work that doesn’t require lots of thinking and decisions. Stream your favorite stand-up comedian or a good podcast.
10. Plan well for a good day
Get sleep the night before, hydrate and eat a healthy meal before starting. It really does make a difference on your energy, attitude, and stamina. Don’t be tempted to over caffeinate—you want sustained energy without crashing.
11 Forgive yourself for being disorganized
Forgiveness doesn’t mean skipping tasks and staying in chaos. Forgive yourself for being human and allow yourself to try improving without criticism. Congratulate yourself that you’ve taken action to get out of chaos and into an organized and peaceful, happy place. Avoid self-criticism as it can be an excuse for not following through.
12. You can do this
Acknowledge that the ability to organize is a learned skill—it has nothing to do with intelligence or education level. Anyone can learn how to be organized and everyone has a different learning style and preferred methods for staying organized. It’s all about deciding to take action—it’s important to just start.
13. Show off your personality in the end-results
Incorporate creativity in the solutions/systems you choose to stay organized:
if you need to bring energy to your enorinment to keep you motivated, use containers with bold patterns or bright colors if the thought of organizing bores you, find quirky or whimsical storage pieces to store important things if you need to lower your stress-level stick to sleek designs and muted colors. keep sentimental objects center-stage as they are an expression of who you are.
14. Start with a fun task to get things going
Pick one task that is small but gratifying. After this is accomplished dive into a bigger task even if it’s boring or complex—you want to take advantage of the dopamine you built up after completing the first task.
Or start on the things you love or the space you’re creating for them.
15. Express gratitude for what you have
Express gratitude for the good memories and the favorite things you run into during your day, so that you have positive feelings as you let go of things. Expressing gratitude for what you have helps decrease your desires for the things you don’t have.
“Thank you, ugly lamp—that Mom gave me—you’ve lit up my room, and now it’s time for you to light up someone else’s”
Follow these tips and the next time you need to find your tweezers quickly, you’ll know exactly where they are, making you (and your child) happier.
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