6 Tips to staying organized

A lot of people who know me on a personal level ask me for advice on how to get more organized because it’s something that comes natural to me so I figured I’d share that advice with all of you!

1) Make lists.

Ohhhh, lists. Lists are the equivalent of the Bible to me. They are by far the most important organizing tool that one can utilize, in my opinion. I have ongoing lists all the time so I don’t forget anything. I have a daily to-do list, a weekly to-do list (where I put things that I don’t specifically have time set aside for yet), a grocery list, a blog post list, a list of shooting locations I want to check out. You get the point. I have a list for everything. And I have these lists organized within my planner and also on my notepad in my phone. It’s proven that our brains release serotonin every time we cross an item off of our list so I recommend lists to anyone who will listen. 😂 I just started Shaun on making lists last week and he’s already been more organized.

2) Use time batching to schedule your weekly tasks.

So I actually just researched this and started implementing the time batching system into my life because I’m typically all over the place. Having multiple jobs, tasks to do around the house, and wanting personal time for myself I felt like I was drowning. I thought I had a decent system in place but I knew it needed improving so I went to the drawing board. It turns out that this is proven to be the best way to keep you on track. If you’ve ever meal prepped on Sunday to prepare for the week ahead you’ll know how productive this method can be. (Only this works for every aspect of your life, not just meal prep.) It’s proven that our brains take on average 23 minute and 15 seconds to refocus on a task once we’ve redirected our attention or have been interrupted. When you think about how much time of your day can be wasted just by trying to get focused again it’s pretty shocking. If your emails are a huge part of your day you should set aside a specific time to respond to all emails. Therefore you’re not going back and forth all day checking it. If you need to go to the grocery store and UPS and the mall, block out time on one day to do all of these things together, and so on and so forth. Utilize your time in the best way possible so your desk isn’t constantly cluttered from working on too many tasks at once.

3) Keep a planner.

This is a huge one for me. I know a lot of people like to use the calendar on their phones and that’s great too, but I’m a pen and paper person! As long as you have some sort of system that’s all that matters. Make sure every appointment, every meeting, every baby shower, etc. goes on that calendar. Any event you have to set aside time for should go on there. I even put it in my planner to fill out my planner for the following week, but I’m another level of OCD. 😂If you’re a visual person like I am but you’re new at having a planner or you haven’t had the best of luck with them try buying some pretty pens or some fun stickers to make it enticing!

4) Make sure everything has a home.

You know all that clutter on the kitchen counter in the corner? What is that stuff even? Time to go through it. Add this as a task on your to do list for the week/month and go through it all. Everything should have a proper home. If you have a spot for bills, paperwork, soccer schedules, put it away in its respective home. If you have a constant pile of shoes by the door buy a shoe organizer to make it look more clean and give your shoes a home. The more clutter you have around the house the more anxiety you’ll tend to feel, and the less organized you’ll be.

5) Purge items that you no longer need/want.

Shaun and I do this once every 3 months. We will go through our closets and get rid of anything we haven’t worn in awhile or something that we’ve been hoarding. We have a constant “Goodwill” basket so if I’m cleaning out a drawer and I see stuff that we no longer need/use I will just throw it in the basket for our next trip to Goodwill. You know those jeans you’ve been holding onto because you just have a feeling you’ll fit into them one day but you haven’t worn them in two years? Time to part ways! You wouldn’t believe how much space small items will take up. Don’t touch an item when you’re going through your stuff. Holding an item sometimes can spark a false emotional attachment. Look at an item from a distance and ask yourself if it sparks joy. If it doesn’t spark joy, it’s not important, or it’s not gaining equity it’s gotta go!

6) Tidy up every day.

This is a huge one for me. Like if I could pick my #1 thing it would be this. Make your bed every day when you wake up. Never go to bed with dishes in the sink. Fluff the couch pillows. Put the laundry away. Don’t let trash pile up. Sometimes I get so busy during the day I can’t always put something away right after I’m done with it so I use my evenings to tidy everything up. Even if I’m super exhausted I will literally get out of bed to finish the dishes and wipe the countertops down. That way, when I wake up in the morning I have a fresh start, a clean slate. Spending 15 minutes a day doing this can save you hours of cleaning on the weekends. If you don’t let your house get messy it’s easier to clean when you have to actually clean. And it’s easier to stay on track and organized!

I hope these tips help you in some way or another. I’d love to hear from you if you’ve tried any of these out and they worked for you! Comment your favorite ways to stay organized so I can add them to my routine, too.