10 Simple Steps to a More Organized Household

1. Divide big jobs into smaller jobs. Make a list of all the places in your house that you would like to see become more organized. Now you may seem overwhelmed by some of the jobs so break those jobs down into smaller jobs. Now each task is more manageable. Take each job one at a time and before you know it you'll be done.

2. Store items in clear plastic boxes and bags. This one just hit me one day when I was looking for something and having to un-stack all my boxes and open each one to find the item I was looking for. I thought what a waste of my time and energy, now I use clear boxes and bags everywhere I store things.

3. Make a list of what's in the boxes or on the shelves in your basement and attic. This again is a time saver and the way a truly organized person goes about things.

4. Before you buy anything know where the item is going to go in your home. This is a really great habit to get into. It makes you stop and think before you buy and may even save you the hassle of taking the item back or worst storing it in your basement or attic.

5. Think item in, item out. If your home is already cluttered or filled to capacity then when you make a purchase you've really got to get rid of something. Even if your home is comfortable this is a good practice to get into to prevent clutter from building up.

6. Prevent junk mail pile up. Paper clutter is one of the biggest problems people face today. We get bombarded with junk mail and other paper daily. The solution is to have a plan. So here it is, its really quite simple. A trashcan! Go through you mail daily and throw away any unwanted mail as you open it. Then have a to do files or folders. You're to do files or folders may have heading such as to do, to mail, to fax, to pay, to sign, to return, to call, to redeem.

7. Store out of season clothing in empty suitcases either under your bed or on the shelf in your closet. If you use bed risers you can use the space under your bed more efficiently. Clear plastic under the bed containers, especially on wheels work well for this task.

8. Avoid hunting through your closet each day hang like items together. This means hang all your shirts together, pants together, skirts together and so on. It makes your closet look more organized and it's easier to pick out an outfit quickly. I also recommend using hanging weekly organizers in each child's bedroom closet this way their clothes are laid out a week in advance and you're not scrambling in the morning to find them an outfit.

9. Group like things together. For you it may be keeping all your sewing stuff together or your scrap-booking stuff together or your tools together in one place. But last night when I was organizing my basement (yes, I am also working on becoming more organized) I decided to break it down into categories, my went like this: outdoor gear, Christmas decorations, arts and crafts, laundry, exercise equipment, keepsakes, I will probably find that I will need one or two more but I will add them as I see the need. You can even break it down further by making groups inside your groups. Christmas is a good example. Once you have all your Christmas stuff together divide it into smaller groups such as ornaments, Christmas lights and outdoor decorations.

10. Don't hang on to things because you might use them. So many times we hang onto things because we might use them but the items actually sit around collect dust and take up valuable space. Unless you just have a huge home with plenty of closet space the rule is if you haven't worn it or used it in over a year you should probably get rid of it. I can't tell you how many times I knew I had something but couldn't find it because I had so much clutter. So it wasn't worth keeping, I wore myself out looking for it and then ended up buying it again. That's what clutter does to us, drains us of our energy.

Tina Seay is the webmaster and author of a great home resource website http://LearnSomethingToday.com where you can get more tips and advice on organizing. She is also the webmaster of http://ForTheCatLover.com and http://YourWeddingStory.net

In The News:

Skygazers will be treated to the “super snow moon,” on Feb. 19, the largest supermoon of 2019.

In November 2016, astronomers watched a young star some 1,500 light-years away from Earth belch out an explosion of plasma and radiation that was roughly 10 billion times more powerful than any flare ever seen leaving Earth's sun. This sudden stellar eruption may be the most luminous known flare ever released by a young star — and it could help scientists better understand the still-murky process of star formation.

An audacious attempt to find explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance has been called off after the expedition team lost an undersea drone beneath Antarctic ice.

“Our wish is to fly this year,” NASA official Thomas Zurbuchen said at the surprise announcement of a new Moon mission overnight. “We want to incentive speed … We want to start taking shots on goal.”

Bones recently found in a Siberian cave have given researchers a new glimpse into the timeline of an extinct human species. The species – known as Denisovans – at one time lived alongside Neanderthals in the same cave, the evidence showed.

NASA's Opportunity Rover has died on Mars.

A rare 12th-century triple toilet seat will be going on display at a London museum later this year.

Ex-baseball player Jose Canseco has officially joined the group that believes "the truth is out there" and is on the hunt for UFOs and Bigfoot.

MILAN (AP) — Archaeologists have discovered a fresco in an ancient Pompeii residence that portrays the mythological hunter Narcissus, who fell in love with his own reflection.

It’s a river unlike any in Australia — and a fortnight ago it barely existed.

10 Simple Steps to a More Organized Household

Get Organized - Organization Get Organized - Organization