Embracing an organized life is possible for all who wish to invest a little time and effort in learning the basics. Being organized is not something that some people are better at than others. Instead, it’s a daily practice that begins with the intention to achieve more time and space in your daily routine. Tidying, keeping house, maintaining household systems, and scheduling all take significant amounts of our time each week, and it’s possible to decrease the energy and attention expended on these tasks with a bit of dedication. However, before embarking on the journey towards an organized home and/or schedule, I suggest considering four key questions to guide your path.

Why do I want to be more organized?

Many of us desire to embrace an organize life, but we begin the journey without considering the path itself or our intended goal. We jump right in on a particular project or room and quickly find ourselves exhausted or overwhelmed by the task at hand.

Although, I applaud anyone who is eager to get started and feeling a great wave of motivation to clear out overabundance, I’d caution that taking a few moments to consider your WHY will aid you when the going gets tougher than expected. 

For example, when I was decluttering and downsizing my mother for her move to Michigan, I worked non-stop for two weeks straight. As I sorted through decades worth of possessions and made decisions about each object’s final destination, I repeatedly returned to my why: to represent the scope of her life and personality in as few objects as possible. She deserved for her new home to be comforting, manageable, spacious, safe, warm, and loving – all within 600 square feet.

This monumental task could only have been accomplished by my returning to the reason why I needed her home to be organized.

Perhaps for you, the why is more time for the people you love or less time tidying. Perhaps it’s more freedom to explore your interests and experience the life you want. It could be as straightforward as always knowing what you own and where it goes in your home.

Decluttering and organizing will automatically provide you with more clarity around your personal and material values. It will also lighten your load, or material convoy, as you transition through life’s stages. Clearing out the excess over time keeps others from having to make those decisions for you in later decades. Predetermining your why will give you a greater sense of purpose towards your ultimate goal.

How do I think I will feel when I am organized?

What do you imagine “feeling more organized” will be like? Think into the future to when you’ve achieved being organized. Will your home feel more spacious and relaxed? Will you have more clarity around which tasks matter the most each week?  Will you feel more focused because there will be less visual clutter dragging you down? 

Our feelings drive our actions and determine the results we create in our lives. Therefore, asking yourself how you think you’ll feel when your household systems or weekly schedule run more smoothly will help you gauge your efforts along the way. By thinking through this question towards the beginning of your journey, it will be easier to decide which objects (or commitments) should stay and which should go. You’ll set more clear boundaries around the lifestyle that you want knowing that it’s the feelings of balance and calm that you’re after.

What obstacles do I expect to encounter?

Although we can’t predict every obstacle we may encounter when downsizing and decluttering our lives, we can identify several before we start. First, we need to be realistic about how much time we plan to dedicate to the particular project at hand. Setting a timeline will give you guideposts to measure your efforts and help keep the pace moving steadily.

We often overestimate how much we can achieve in a short window of time. If the amount of available “free time” is an obstacle at the beginning of your journey, give yourself grace by starting small — one decision, one tiny area at a time.

Another possible obstacle is emotional overwhelm. Some of us expect to get sidetracked with emotions while sorting through possessions. Recognizing this in advance will help you determine a strategy for sensitive items. Will you only keep what brings you joy and happiness? Will you select only the best of the best to save and let all the mediocre and upsetting things go?

There’s no compelling reason to hold onto objects that bring you pain or dredge up trauma. Memories of those people and experiences rarely bolster us and move us forward, and there’s no one requiring you to continue to suffer by owning those items.

Decide up front to address these items at your best time of day so that you can be clear about your choices and why you’re continuing to hold onto (or let go) of a particular set of memorabilia.

This will keep your project on track rather spinning you into avoidance or paralysis.

The final obstacle I’ll address is follow through. Before you begin, select the final destination for your decluttered objects. Are you planning to sell or donate most of your items? What will you do with them if they don’t sell or aren’t accepted for donation? Do you know where your local electronics recycling center or hazardous waste facility is located?

Don’t let these questions stump you or keep you from taking action. Instead, answer them before you begin to guarantee your success. Our brains like to find reasons not to complete the tasks we’ve outlined for ourselves and get sidetracked with something more pleasurable. It’s more advantageous to work on smaller projects all the way through completion rather than allowing oneself to get stuck at the follow-through stage.

How will I know when I’m “organized?”

Being organized is not a destination. It’s like an exercise regimen: it requires regular attention and review. We all have a different sense of what “being fit” or “our natural weight” should be, and being organized is similar.

Embracing an organized life is about creating a schedule, a routine, and/or home for your possessions that makes the most sense for you. My expectations (or your mother-in-law’s or your friend’s) are irrelevant. You’re the person who will reap the benefit of your efforts.

So…does it look like more time and less stress? Does it look like the ability to get up and move at the drop of a hat? Does it look like more room in your monthly budget? Perhaps being organized looks like an extra hour a week for you to spend on self care. Or, is it possible that you’ll spend less energy worrying about what needs to be done and more energy living up to your potential?

Whatever it may be, determining one or several goals for yourself before you begin will help you know when you’ve reached “organized enough.”

Whether you have an organizing or downsizing project unexpectedly show up at your doorstep, or you want to achieve a certain feeling in your life, taking an hour to think through these four key questions will save you plenty of headache along the pathway.

I’d love to hear what projects you’re working on👇🏽👇🏽, and or questions you may have!

Do you like to journal?

Here’s the 4 Key Questions to Ask Beforehand worksheet.