I know some of you are probably wondering why I’m saying that you need to stop organizing. I mean I do have a series dedicated to the subject after all. Today’s post is not for everyone, but it will resonate with many of you. I hear family members and friends complain constantly about the need to get organized. Yes, being organized can be great and one way to keep the household running smoothly. However, what I found that is that too many people are focusing their efforts on getting organized only to find out shortly after that their system failed.
So today I’m going to discuss the number one reason you need to stop organizing right now and what you should focus on instead.
Why you need to stop organizing right now!
You are shuffling things around
When you decide to organize a space, you probably invest money in bins or tubs to house your stuff. This is the last thing you should be doing. Why? Because you wind up shuffling things around. Yes, your home will look better afterwards, but it will only be a matter of time before the stuff you own outgrows the bins.
The other day I decided to tackle my crazy pile of paperwork. I’m not sure how I let it get so out of hand, but I’m a bit of a freak about keeping paperwork since I never know if there’s something we’ll need for our tax returns. My initial thought was to go out and purchase a small filing cabinet. In fact, I went to Target and put one in my cart with intentions to haul it home. But then it hit me; I haven’t even purged my papers! Do I really need this filing cabinet? Good thing I didn’t buy it because I wound up throwing out 90% of the papers I sorted through. Now I use this small bin to hold current paperwork (bills, coupons etc.) and my large filing bin for other paperwork.
You are masking a bigger problem
I find it interesting that families used to live in homes much smaller than what we live in today, yet the average family was a lot larger back then. I have a family member that constantly complains about needing a bigger home. Yet, they admit that they have a problem with hanging on to things. This is not uncommon today and it’s a bigger issue than we like to admit. We buy things because we “need” it, bring it home, and add it to our collection of things that are nearly identical. Then we complain because we don’t have time to enjoy life because we’re busy sorting, cleaning and shuffling our stuff.
What you need to focus on is the root of the problem-clutter. You can organize every room in your home, but if you continue to buy stuff you don’t need, you’ll never solve anything. This was hard for me to understand a few years ago. I kept things “just in case” I needed them. I had a basement that was not being used so it was easy to store things there. When we decided to move I realized that I had a huge problem. I was hanging on to things that I hadn’t even touched in years. Thankfully, I was able to sell some for a small profit and give away the other things.
Now I try to keep our current home as simple as possible. When I’m buying something, I think long and hard before it goes in my cart. My kids think I’m being cheap, but it’s not necessarily a money issue (although cost also plays a part). I simply don’t want to buy something just because it’s a better version of what I already own or because everyone has one. If it makes the cut, I typically get rid of something else to make room for the new item.
As you can see below, our living room is fairly simple. That’s the motto for the rest of the home. You’ll find that when you tackle clutter on a regular basis you won’t have to worry so much about organizing. Focus on one room and dedicate at the least 15 minutes of your day to de-cluttering the space. Do this ruthlessly until the room is complete. You’ll feel amazing afterwards which will motivate to go on to the next room in your home.
If you need more tips on how to de-clutter check out this post which includes a free printable to help you in the process.
How do you feel about organizing the home prior to de-cluttering? I would love to hear your thoughts and tips!
If you want a quick cure to move – three times – in one year! We have had some unique circumstances that caused our family to sell our home and move twice. We are gearing up for a third (and final, at least for a few years!) move in just a few weeks. When we moved the first time, we gave away a LOT of stuff – things we had been keeping “just in case” for way too long! This is when we got rid of most of the bigger stuff -furniture mostly. Before the second move, we all went through our wardrobe – we had so many things we never wore and gave those away! Now, prior to the third move, I’m going through all the papers we have kept forever and just don’t need to! No, I don’t really recommend this way of decluttering, but it is effective! You really don’t know how much stuff you have until you have to pick it all up and move it from place to place! Thank you for a very insightful post!
oops! That should read “a quick cure to clutter – move…”
Yep… that post resonated so much my ears are still ringing.
Clutter gets into your head space as well as your living space making it really, really difficult to get organised and stay that way. I’m living proof!
I run a business from home and stock seems to find its way all over the house. Not sure how it happens but it does and it attracts non-business related clutter in the process – it’s like clutter loves company!
I have made a promise to myself to get the clutter under control and I’ve been picking a zone every week. Any more than that and I think I’d find it overwhelming. Meanwhile, nothing else is allowed to come into the house until I’m done.
🙂
This is so perfect. I definitely am the pro shuffling things from one place to another – it’s really all about letting go of things. Way too much stuff!
Warm Regards,
Alexandra
http://www.littlewildheart.com
This is exactly what I’m doing! I’ve tried to “organize” my things before, without wanting to get rid of anything…only to realize that I just had too. much. stuff.
For example, I had about 8 cookbooks. But you can’t get rid of cookbooks, right? Well, you can, if you don’t use them! I’ve got it down to three (and then one of my own collected Pinterest recipes) and now they can all actually stay in the kitchen!
It sucks to have to say goodbye to things, whether it was a gift, or something you bought for yourself (its easy to remember monetary values, whether out out of your pocket or someone else’s), but it really is the only way. Less stuff, less clutter, less frustration, less work!
Yes!! You’re spot on. Less stuff=less work. I find that now I can clean the house in a lot less time since I have less to deal with. Less stuff=more time with family. 🙂
We moved into our new home about 6 months ago and I’m still going through boxes and stacks of stuff in the garage and putting it in the discard pile. If I didn’t need it for 2 years in storage, why do I want it now? I agree that decluttering is so much more important than just organizing the junk we already have.
Oh I feel for you Sharon, moving is so not fun. That was exactly my thought, if I haven’t touched in that long it clearly wasn’t that important or useful to me. Doesn’t it feel good to get rid of the excess? I think I’m seriously addicted to purging! 🙂