An organized home has a tremendous impact on my sense of well-being. When my home is clean and uncluttered with everything is in its place, my perspective is much more positive. With that in mind, I'll present three rudimentary tips for beginners on household organizing.
First, where do I put things that I acquire? And, where do I put my "stuff" when I come home? In my experience, this is where 90% of clutter starts: when I walk in the door. Here's what I do. Keys, briefcase and other carry items all go in the same place every time I come home. This accomplishes two things. One, I never have trouble finding my "valuables". And, two, the small things that contribute to clutter don't "migrate" to different locations in my house. As for mail, I sort it as I get it. Bills go in my "bills to be paid" drawer. Junk mail goes in the trashcan. Other mail I'm not sure about, I open and sort it depending on the action needed. Doing just these small things, maybe household organizing isn't going to be such an insurmountable task.
Second, what constitutes clutter, and what can I afford to be rid of? For me, being single, I'm a big fan of simplicity. I've never really been a pack rat, so I feel it's important to go through a yearly inventory, throwing out that which, realistically, will never be used again. This almost invariably means clothes. Do I need forty pairs of socks? Well, no, not exactly. That ugly shirt I wore back in the '90's? I can probably afford to be rid of that, as well. If I spend an hour doing this, I'll likely be rid of just about all of the extraneous clothing that does nothing but take up space. And, next time I do some household organizing, it'll be that much easier. This same rule also applies to other areas of my house. Any paperwork that creates clutter can be filed or put where it goes. If I've followed my first rule (above), it's unlikely that there will be much paperwork to clean up anyway.
Lastly, I'll discuss other factors that play into household organizing. I've found that, as far as furniture arrangement goes, rarely is my first attempt at it the best. Almost invariably, I'll try a new arrangement of furniture, see that it works much better than the previous one, and be astonished that I didn't think of this earlier. My point is that experimentation is key. Don't be afraid to try different arrangements, different combinations, or to be completely unorthodox. In my particular apartment, the arrangement is such that I'm considering moving the bed out into the front room, freeing up the "bedroom" for use as my office and gaming room. I'm free to do anything I can think of.
Additionally, as far as household organizing goes, new arrangements of furniture frequently illuminate other benefits that weren't previously known to me. Now I've got a light next to my reading table, as well as natural light during the day.
First, where do I put things that I acquire? And, where do I put my "stuff" when I come home? In my experience, this is where 90% of clutter starts: when I walk in the door. Here's what I do. Keys, briefcase and other carry items all go in the same place every time I come home. This accomplishes two things. One, I never have trouble finding my "valuables". And, two, the small things that contribute to clutter don't "migrate" to different locations in my house. As for mail, I sort it as I get it. Bills go in my "bills to be paid" drawer. Junk mail goes in the trashcan. Other mail I'm not sure about, I open and sort it depending on the action needed. Doing just these small things, maybe household organizing isn't going to be such an insurmountable task.
Second, what constitutes clutter, and what can I afford to be rid of? For me, being single, I'm a big fan of simplicity. I've never really been a pack rat, so I feel it's important to go through a yearly inventory, throwing out that which, realistically, will never be used again. This almost invariably means clothes. Do I need forty pairs of socks? Well, no, not exactly. That ugly shirt I wore back in the '90's? I can probably afford to be rid of that, as well. If I spend an hour doing this, I'll likely be rid of just about all of the extraneous clothing that does nothing but take up space. And, next time I do some household organizing, it'll be that much easier. This same rule also applies to other areas of my house. Any paperwork that creates clutter can be filed or put where it goes. If I've followed my first rule (above), it's unlikely that there will be much paperwork to clean up anyway.
Lastly, I'll discuss other factors that play into household organizing. I've found that, as far as furniture arrangement goes, rarely is my first attempt at it the best. Almost invariably, I'll try a new arrangement of furniture, see that it works much better than the previous one, and be astonished that I didn't think of this earlier. My point is that experimentation is key. Don't be afraid to try different arrangements, different combinations, or to be completely unorthodox. In my particular apartment, the arrangement is such that I'm considering moving the bed out into the front room, freeing up the "bedroom" for use as my office and gaming room. I'm free to do anything I can think of.
Additionally, as far as household organizing goes, new arrangements of furniture frequently illuminate other benefits that weren't previously known to me. Now I've got a light next to my reading table, as well as natural light during the day.