One area in which I see people getting hung up a lot around organization is stopping themselves before they even get started.
- They don’t feel like they know where to begin.
- They don’t have all the right tools and fancy organizing supplies.
- They don’t want to start if they can’t do it ALL.
Maybe this is you too, you’re finding yourself stuck wanting to overly plan the process, the trap of perfectionism, and the spiral of overwhelm.
If that’s you, read on, because as a professional organizer, I’m here to tell you that you don’t need to have all the answers or the perfect plan in order to get started.
And in many cases, the “perfect” plan will only get you into more trouble because what works for someone else might not always be the solution for you.
You can’t organize what you don’t know you have.
In my mind, all organization begins with decluttering. My approach is always to reduce, reduce, and reduce as much as you can. I always help my clients to look at the areas in which they want to get organized, be it:
- Papers
- Photos
- Home in general
- Business
- Digital files and storage
- Calendar
From there, we determine a starting point - what’s weighing you down the most? Impacting your ability to feel peaceful, productive, and prosperous?
That’s where you’ll want to begin purging and getting rid of excess. I assure you that once you get done decluttering, organizing will be a breeze! You will have more space, you will start to see the plan unfold in front of you, and know where you want things to go.
So often what I see people doing wrong is trying to organize by fitting too much stuff into places it just doesn’t fit.
The calendar is a great example. You want to manage your time and stay organized with your tasks, but there’s just TOO much that you’re trying to juggle. The key to keeping it simple is to simplify. This means you need to remove what doesn’t serve you, doesn’t have a purpose, or is weighing you down.
This principle applies to anything in your life from physical clutter to too many appointments in your daytimer.
So, with that, here’s all the plan you need to get started: organization always starts with reducing.
If you want to dive into paper or digital organization, check out my CHANGES blog where I walk you through my 7-Steps to get your paper and digital files organized so you can be on the way to the Organized Life You Dream Of.
Also, don't hesitate to reach out if you need some guidance on what area you should start in. Just click the contact link at the top of this page and see the number of ways to contact me or even schedule a free call.
