Tip #1: Stop buying stuff

Ok, maybe not literally, but seriously think about it before you buy it. Ask yourself if you really need it or if you just want it. If you do need it, say for work or for your child’s extracurricular activity, then buy it. But if you’re buying it because it looks interesting, ask yourself what purpose it will serve you, and more importantly, in both cases, where it will go. If you can find or make a place for it, then go ahead and make the purchase.

Tip #2: Purge regularly

Keep a donation bin as a permanent fixture in your home and drop it off monthly or when it gets full. If you are happy with the amount of stuff you or your family currently have, an easy way to be in control of it is to only have that amount of stuff in the house at any given time. If you receive gifts or buy something new, get rid of that same exact number (or more) of items. ONE IN, ONE OUT!

Tip #3: Make it a priority

Managing an organized home takes dedication, and dedication takes practice. Do it daily and it becomes second nature (more about this in Tip #7). Organizing your home isn’t just about taking care of where things go, but about taking care of your environment, which in turn also extends to taking care of your well-being, keeping it in good working order, just like your home.

Tip #4: Family buy in

You got the house organized, but you don’t have to be the only one keeping up with it. Have a family meeting and discuss the importance of keeping an organized home and make sure everyone is on board with it. Coming home from grocery shopping? Have everyone participate in placing the items in the designated bins on the pantry shelves and to place the grocery bags back in their pantry basket. Someone bringing in the mail? Let everyone know how the method works for organizing the mail, whether to sort it out into a specific area for each person or placing it all together somewhere for everyone to come retrieve from it. The more people involved, the more successful your household will be at this task because everyone is doing their part in this family goal.

Tip #5: Give everything a home

Everything must have a home. Everything. From the toothbrushes in the bathroom to the shoes in the closet to the dish towels in the kitchen. When everything has a final destination in the house, there is more order and less clutter. If you don’t have space for it, do you really need it?

Tip #6: Containerize and label

When you have multiples of an item or similar kinds of items, it is much easier to have them in storage bins or divided compartments rather than out in the open where they can become mixed with other things and can become difficult in locating. Labeling helps to know what should be there when objects are removed in the event of use, cleaning, refilling, etc. This is the key to long term maintenance. It will save you and everyone else precious time when having to place items back into their designated place.

Tip #7: Reset

It is likely that your house will become a bit unorganized throughout the day. People are rushing out the door to work or school, others forget to place things back in the bins, or you’re getting interrupted from the task at hand to take care of another situation. It’s ok. Being organized isn’t about being perfectly organized all the time. Just make it a habit at the end of the day to get your house back to baseline. Use a checklist as a reminder of what kind of reset you want to see in your home. Let everyone know about the checklist, and have everyone participate in doing a task or two. That way, by taking just a few minutes every day, you spend the minimum amount of time keeping the house in order, versus waiting until the house becomes more unorganized, turning the task into a time- consuming, stressful, and burdensome chore.

Remember that organizing isn’t a one-time event. At the end of the day take 15 minutes to reset by putting everything back in its place. It should be a cinch to maintain since you have already invested the time, energy, and money upfront by purging and putting systems in place. And these systems, along with daily resets and household involvement, will ensure you can keep an organized house in control.