The Secret To Home Organization Success

I strive for home organization, I genuinely do. But, no matter how hard I try to keep my house clutter-free, I keep failing in the attempt. No matter what you do, clutter often creeps back.

I can not, and I am not going to, blame it on my 4 1/2-year-old. I believe that a 12 feet trail of wooden trains wrapped around the dining chairs, is a part of life. And, even though I twitch a bit when I see them, I also smile and walk away and let my son be a child.

I am talking about that grown-ups’ clutter. The one that piles up every single day. The magazines and catalogs I love to pieces and sit on the coffee table for too long. The collection of coffee mugs we have because I am obsessed. I am talking about the pile of DVDs we started buying and collecting 9 years ago.

Let’s be honest: this is the digital era, you can find any movie or TV show with a click and a swipe and it might cost me around $3.99. Not to mention that we rarely find the time to enjoy a movie night at home.

Two weeks ago I organized our kitchen’s junk drawer and – if you take my word for it- it looks even better today. Like no one has opened it at all. But we do. Every single day, probably 5 to 6 times a day.

I will tell you the secret.

If you have been following my posts from the get-go, you might have read my post where I shared my Home Organization Guide. Basically, I created a printable where you can write down all your home organization ideas on paper first before you tackle the big mess. It looks like this:

I believe that, in order to succeed at organizing, you must make up your mind.

If you decide:

• how do you want your space to look and feel,
• what do you want to store in it
• where do you want to t space, and if you’re willing to
• compromise by donating, tossing, recycling and/or selling,

you can definitely succeed and have the organized space of your dreams. I happen to call it Neat House. Sweet Home. 🙂

The Secret to an Organized Space

While browsing Pinterest for some organization inspiration, I stumbled upon a fellow blogger’s pin – with a very catchy phrase- that blew me away: the real reasons you’ve failed at organizing. The reason why it blew me away was that she basically put in 4 words what I also in my own words tried to compile in my home organization printable guide.

The secret to being an organized person, and having an organized home resides in Peter Walsh’s 4 pillars of the organization: Vision, Function, Zones, and Limits.

Going back to the junk drawer example.

1. Vision: I envisioned the family opening the drawer and – in a second being able to find what they’re looking for. Easy access to useful things that we need almost every day. This is how I want it to look.

2. Function: this is a utility drawer and its function is to hold things that we use on a regular basis. Nothing else. No papers, no bills, no receipts. This is what I want to ‘live’ inside of it.

3. Zones: within the same drawer we have zones. A place for everything and everything is in its place. The drawer organizer helped me define the zones even easier. A zone for pens and pencils, a zone for the keys, a zone for the erasers, etc. This is where I want the items to be.

4. Limits: when I cleaned out this drawer, the number of crayons, pens, and notepads was ridiculous. I set a limit and kept what fits within the zones and a reasonable amount to fit our needs. This is what I compromised.

Looking at organizing this way, helps you put things into perspective. And that’s basically what you need in order to succeed at it.

And there you have it! Put these 4 pillars in practice with the help of my free printable and you’re good to go.

Happy organizing,