7 Simple Steps to Organization

Some simple ideas to establish order from chaos.

Guest post provided by Denise. See below for more information on this author.

Getting organized, both in your home and in your life, can be very difficult.

It requires a fair amount of change and work, and it can take a lot of time to accomplish.

If you are ready to clear your rooms, get things done and change your life for the better, then these seven easy steps will help you get organized.

You will be able to remove distractions and finish tasks with ease after these changes.

1. Focus on your Needs

Why do you need to be more organized? If this is just a fleeting desire, then you will never be permanently organized. You might finish all of these steps, but you need that desire to stay organized after changing.

Are you doing this to make your home or office easier to manage? Are you doing this so you can spend more time with your spouse or child? You need a reason for change, and focusing on it will make all of these changes much easier.

2. Remove All Obstacles

You should remove everything in your room, house or office that gets in your way. If you have something that wastes your time or gets in the way, then you should remove it. Most people have items that act as obstacles, but they don’t see them as that until they remove everything from the room.

The most effective way to do this step is to just remove everything from the room. You can then go through the items somewhere else.

3. Keep the Necessary Items

You should only keep the necessary items after going through everything. Purging unneeded items will ensure that you are no longer distracted or unorganized, and this will help you better the room, house or office.

Most people who do this find that at least 20 percent of their items are not necessary, and that they actually get in the way of being organized.

4. Make Lists

A big part of being organized is knowing what you need to do throughout the day. If you don’t know what needs to be done, then you will never have an organized schedule. Making a schedule also programs your brain to find the best way to complete those tasks in an organized fashion.

You can write the tasks on a piece of paper, a computer document or a whiteboard. It doesn’t matter how you make a list. The most important thing is just making that list.

5. Stick to your Schedule

You can’t just make a schedule. You also need to stick to it. Discipline is the only way to permanently achieve organization. Those without discipline and dedication will often stop making lists or setting schedules within a few days or weeks.

It commonly takes the human brain about 10 days to acclimate to a new schedule, and these 10 days will be the hardest. Just remain disciplined, and soon everything will become second nature.

6. Make a Logical Order

The human brain likes when things make sense. It makes sense to clean the car and then vacuum the interior. It doesn’t make sense to clean the car, thaw chicken for dinner, fix a faucet and then vacuum the car’s interior.

Put all of your tasks in a logical order. This will make it easier to stay disciplined, and it will also make all of your tasks much more organized. Doing things out of order takes more time and energy, and you will want to stop working.

7. Be Willing to Change

You need to be willing to change in order to become organized, but the changes don’t stop when you get used to making a schedule and following through with tasks. You need to keep changing to ensure that you are really getting everything done in the best way.

For example, you might find that your schedules are no longer working. You need to change them around in order to remain organized. Change when needed, and you should remain organized.

Conclusion

Becoming an organized person can be difficult, but you can do it if you remain disciplined. Just keep thinking about your reason to become organized in the first place, and this will make it much easier to follow through with these seven steps.

About the Author:
Denise writes on a variety of topics for NetQin including organization, fundamentals, schooling, and how to.