5 Tips For Organizing Your Home

Woman folding clothes

Do you ever find that on the days you come home to a clean and organized home, you feel a little lighter? If you do, you’re not alone. Having an organized home can actually help us to also organize our minds! Many people feel they can focus more, their stress is reduced, and their sleep is improved when their home is more organized. But despite the benefits of an organized home, maintaining an organized home is not always so simple.

Countless factors can contribute to whether or not your home is organized, including how much time you spend at home, your mental health, and who lives with you. Regardless of what is going on in your life, the goal is to do your best, be gentle with yourself when you need to, and push yourself when you can.

As we transition into fall and winter and begin to spend more time inside our homes, it may feel like the perfect opportunity to organize your home. If that’s the case, here are 5 tips I wanted to share to help you.

5 Tips For Organizing Your Home

1. GO AS SLOWLY AS YOU NEED TO

When it comes to organization, many folks have an all-or-nothing approach. Either they feel like they organize everything at once, or they feel they have no time and prolong the beginning. In one sense, organizing everything at once may feel easier as it allows you to take stock of everything you have and complete it all at once, however, let’s face it - not everyone has an entire day or weekend available to do so. People are busy, living busy lives with countless activities and projects on the go, so allocating large chunks of time may not be accessible or desirable for countless reasons. In these situations, I highly recommend doing a little when you can.


Lately, I’ve been trying to do a little bit of purging every week. There are many things I have collected over the years that I no longer need. If the thought of organizing your entire closet feels too daunting, just start with one section; if your living room feels like a task too large to undertake, just start with one basket. Do what you can now, and be proud of yourself for doing it.

2. BE AWARE OF WHAT YOU’RE USING AND WHAT YOU AREN’T

Do you ever find yourself holding onto things for the “what if”s and the “maybe one-day”s? I’m specifically talking about things you don’t grab for ever, you don’t have a use for, but you don’t part with just on the off chance you may need them one day. Like your prom dress from the ’80s, or a dress you wore to your friend's wedding in the early 2000s that may or may not fit anymore. Sometimes we find ourselves holding onto things out of fear of letting go or the fear of being without.


What I want you to do is to think of a kitchen junk drawer filled with receipts long passed their return or warranty period, old batteries, and other random junk that has no use, and then someone asks you to grab the specula from the drawer. It’s going to take much longer to see what you want when you need to look past everything that’s blocking your view. While this may feel obvious to some when it comes to old receipts and batteries, it’s not always so obvious when it comes to other areas of our lives. If your closet is filled with pieces that you don’t grab, you’re going to have a more difficult time seeing what you wear. But when we remove what’s no longer working for us, we’re left with the things we do enjoy, which can help us see what we have.

3. EVALUATE WHAT’S IMPORTANT

Now, I’m not one to say you need to remove absolutely everything you own: I obviously keep special sentimental items. I have items from my childhood, my wedding day, when my kids were young, and more - just because you don’t grab something often does to mean it doesn’t have a place in your life. However, with that said, it is worthwhile to go through what’s actually important to you and what isn’t. For example, you may want to keep a couple of pieces from when your kids were babies to potentially pass down one day, but is it necessary to keep every single piece? This is a question that only you can answer, and there’s truly no shame if the answer is yes - or, even if the answer is yes right now. The thing about organization is that it can always be reevaluated at a later date. Something sentimental now may change over time, or how much you want to hold onto may change too. Be kind to yourself and trust yourself. 

4. SHARE WITH OTHERS

When my girls were young, we’d spend some time going through their old clothes to donate to a local shelter. This was a lesson I always wanted to involve them in because I truly believe it’s important to share what no longer serves us with those who need it more. While I understand this is a message many understand, I wanted to specifically bring it up today as the past couple of years have greatly impacted many people. From businesses having to close down due to COVID, to the cost of living increasing and everything in between, many people are feeling the strain of daily life. Sometimes, remembering the impact the things that are sitting around our homes may have on other folks can be a great incentive to organize our homes.


As I mentioned early, I’m currently taking my own home organization slowly, so what I find helpful during this time is to keep a pile or a box on hand to fill with donations. Once full, you’re able to drop it off at your local shelter.

5. ORGANIZATION CAN LEAD TO SAVING MONEY IN THE FUTURE

I know I’ve spoken about this extensively, but when our homes are unorganized and we’re holding onto things we have no use for, it can be hard to take stock of what we have. Believe it or not, however, organizing our homes can actually help us save money in the future. Firstly, it can act almost as doing an inventory of our homes - where pre-organization you may have thought you needed a white shirt, post-organization may reveal you actually have 3 great options. Additionally, once everything has its own place in your home, you may find yourself more selective with what you bring into your home moving forward, which will also save you money. 

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