The Bare Minimum You Can Do to Stay Organized   Busy people have a hard time carving out time to stay organized. After a long day at work or taking care of the family, many people are too tired to spend the evening putting things away. What small steps can you take to help you stay more organized? Keep a calendar - paper or electronic. Write down appointments and daily or weekly to-dos. This keeps your brain from being cluttered. I am a huge fan of lists. Keep an on-going grocery list and plan your meals at least for 2 days at a time. This keeps you from eating out so much and making daily trips to the store. Sign on for a month of make it your self dinners from a place like Dream Dinners- this will save you mounds of time and energy  (no shopping, chopping or clean up) Clean the kitchen sink and counters, pick up general household clutter, take out the trash, and open the mail at least every other day. Go through your clothes at least once a year and toss out or give away the things you haven¹t worn in 18 months. Weed out toys every year. Throw away broken toys and give away those your kids don¹t use anymore. Empty the trash from your car when you fill up the tank. Clean out purses, bags and luggage before storing them away. Use a bowl or jar to hold change from your pockets. Then donate that change to a favorite charity Go through junk drawers and the refrigerator twice a year. Toss out items you no longer use. Put photos into albums or boxes at least once a year - while you still remember the who, what, when, where information
Top 11 Things You Can Use to Get Organized   1. A family Calendar that everyone can see and add to. 2. A label maker 3. Active Files: files that sit out on your table, desk, or counter to hold action items such as TO DO TO PAY TO GO TO FILE PHONE LISTS COUPONS/GIFT CERTIFICATES/TICKETS 4. White board or chalkboard for leaving messages for one another 5. Laundry baskets in every bedroom and bathroom 6. Garbage cans in every room 7. A shredder 8. A Gift wrap storage center. Keep it in a drawer, on a shelf or hanging. It doesn’t matter. Just keep it all together and easy to maintain. Include scissors and tape 9. Greeting card & stationary center. It can be a box or a drawer. This will end the problem of buying cards and losing track of them before it’s time to use them. 10. Small plastic bins. They keep lots of small things organized together and they stack to maximize space 11. Gallon size Ziploc bags- A great way to keep things organized and from being lost like puzzle pieces, game pieces, small toys etc.	Alternative gifts for the person who has everything, and a little bit more. 1. Tickets to a show, game, concert, etc. This is a great way to give a gift and enjoy time with the recipient as well if you go with them to the event. 2. Edibles - coffee of the month, fruit of the month, chocolate of the month, even meat and/or cheese of the month. Or bake something yummy! 3. Magazine subscriptions. Magazines like Real Simple and Oprah¹s magazine feature articles on organizing and life balance regularly. 4. Memberships - to museums, health clubs, the zoo, aquarium etc. 5. Pampering gifts - lotions and oils, a gift certificate to a spa, a gift certificate for a massage, manicure or pedicure. 6. Lessons & classes - Golf, computer, art, tennis, yoga, dancing, guitar. You name it, there¹s a class for it. 7. Hire a freelance songwriter to write a song for your loved one, or a singing telegram 8. Write a poem or a song, or hire someone to write one for you. 9. Flowers, balloons, wreaths, plants and other decorations that last for a while, but aren't meant to be kept forever. 10. Give the gift of organization. Give a gift certificate from deKlutter 11. Cook a favorite meal with all the trimmings or hire a caterer to prepare and serve you and your guest.
Do you pack every space until it's full? Do you like to own a lot of stuff, and yet feel overwhelmed by it all? Do you like to make purchases for the fun of the hunt and not because you really need things? Shopping can easily get out of control. It can break the bank as well as fill your life with so much stuff you don't know what is really important. There are two areas of cluttering habits that usually keep people from getting organized. The first is acquiring objects. The second is not de-acquiring. Here are 10 Ways to Break the Cluttering Habit: 1. Pay only with cash. Money is harder to part with when it is real and not in the form of credit or check. 2. Shop only when you need something. Shopping is not a hobby or a sport. It is to get things we need. It’s not a bargain if you don’t need it! 3. Avoid garage sales, estate sales, auction websites, Target, and shopping at sales. They lead to impulse shopping. Remember, one person’s clutter is another person’s clutter. 4. Before making a purchase ask yourself these questions: 5. Do I really need it? Is it a necessity? 6. What is the worst thing that would happen if I didn't buy it? 7. Am I shopping to make myself feel better? 8. Am I shopping because I’m bored? 9. Is this the best way to spend my money? 10. Do I have a place to put this?   Don't order from catalogs or TV shows. It costs money and time to return these items, which discourages you from sending things back that aren’t right for you. In fact, if you don’t read catalogs and advertisements, you will find you are more content with what you have. People really have everything they NEED. Society makes us think we need more, new, better, variety, change. Be in charge of what you buy. Take pictures instead of buying souvenirs. They take up less space. Toss 10 trinkets daily. If scraps of paper and small cluttery things are the enemy then the trashcan is your best Ally! Be a giver! Keep a donation box in a closet or guest room at all times. Add to it regularly. Use the one-in-one-out rule.  If you bring something home, send away something similar. Live your life like you may have to move next month. Only keep the things you really love, need, and use on a regular basis.