Saturday, April 14, 2018

How Do You Know If You're Ready to Get Organized?


Hello Friends,

This week I've been exploring the topic of readiness; as in how do we know when we are ready to get organized?

First, assess your situation.




Use this checklist to understand if you are experiencing any of these common problems that can be solved by getting organized.

___  Perpetually losing things and being unable to find them.  

___  Spending money unnecessarily to repurchase items you already own but have forgotten about.

___  The clutter in the home feels overwhelming and there isn't a clear place to start.

___  Things have piled up in the corners and edges of rooms and hallways.  In some cases, they have overtaken the floor and it is a hazard to navigate.  In fact, you've tripped and maybe even fallen  
        on occasion trying to get at what you need.

___  There is at least one room in your home that is filled with items that are no longer used.  You'd like to use this room for another purpose, but the thought of moving all that stuff out is daunting.

___  When you sit down to rest, instead of feeling peace, your surroundings have you feeling anxious.

___  You can't remember the last time you were able to park in the garage as there is no room for your car.

___  Closets and cupboards are stuffed to the brim with no room for anything more so rarely do you put things away.  Instead, they are sitting out on the flat surfaces of your home on countertops, tables, shelves - wherever they fit.

___  You own lots of clothes but find yourself wearing the same outfits week after week.

___  As you survey your home, there are many bookcases, shelving units, plastic storage with drawers, yet there doesn't seem to be enough room for everything.

___ When you clean your home, there is a lot of dust.  Perhaps you can't remember the last time you really cleaned as there are too many items in the way.  This includes underneath your bed and the floor in your closets.

___  You have pets and have either discovered or have suspicions that there have been accidents in rooms and closets but you haven't been diligent about cleaning up after them.  People have commented that your home smells (or you are afraid they will notice.)

___ There is no clear system for dealing with expired food both in the refrigerator and in the pantry.   Maybe you've even experienced illness from food poisoning.

___ Your bedroom isn't how you would like it to be and lately, you've been experiencing sleep issues.  

___ Entertaining used to be your thing, as you enjoy having friends and family over, but you haven't as you're embarrassed by the state of your home.  More likely is that you have people over, but you are fearful they will open a door and see your clutter.

Well, how did you do on the checklist?  




If you checked even just one, your HOME is ready to be organized, even if you're not.  

So how do YOU get ready?

It's no secret that people either operate from a place of fear or desire.




By fear I mean we are motivated by the feeling of being afraid that something bad will happen in the future if we don't take action now to change things. This fear can be paralyzing and keep us from moving forward.  Fear can be overwhelming!




However, change can happen when we listen to the little voice inside that us that knows we can do better and have better for ourselves.  We want something more.  Desire is that little thrill of hope that we feel inside at the thought of making an exciting improvement to our situation.  This hope is the catalyst for us to stop listening to the fear and move forward following our desire.




We are ready to get organized when we recognize and acknowledge the fear but move forward anyway.

We say, "Hello Fear, welcome back my old companion.  I am listening to you, but I'm not sure that what you are telling me is actually true.  Let's find out by experimenting a little.  I'm going to take a step forward in decluttering my house and see what happens next."

That step could be:

 __Clearing off a flat surface be it a countertop, table, or shelf.

__Emptying out one box and sorting through the contents.

__Taking out everything from under the bed and resolving to find a different place to store it (or throwing it/donating it/selling it).

__Throwing out all the expired food in the pantry &/or refrigerator.

__Sorting out the pile of photos into decades.

__Grabbing a garbage bag and throwing out 9 items - Go!



When you're done with this first step, check back in with yourself.  How did it go?  How do you feel?  Do you feel ready to do more or do you need to stop?  Did fear or desire win out?

Remember, your home is ready to be organized and cared for.  Are YOU ready?

What fear is holding you back?

What is one small step you can take today?

Do you need assistance?  

Contact me for a no-obligation phone chat.  
Send a text to:  (715) 410-9532












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