27 September 2012

There Has Never Been a Better Time to Get Organized

Organization is a four-letter word for many people, right up there with budget and saving. It’s viewed as a restrictive life or an unrealistic approach. Yet when you’re organized it actually provides freedom. Organization can give you more time, money, and peace of mind. The organized life is a simplified life. It allows you to spend more time and energy doing what you love.

There is a perception of an organized life being regimented and controlled, and boringly routine. Not so! Being organized allows you to do the things you need to within a reasonable timeframe, leaving you free to enjoy the rest of your time doing the things you like to do.

What Do You Organize?

There are many areas of your life that can be organized. They include but aren’t limited to your:

* Health goals
* Financial goals
* Daily routine
* Household tasks and goals
* Career goals
* Schedule
* Children’s schedule
* Time
* Hobbies and passions
* Personal documents
* Your space

How Do You Organize?

There are different types of organization for various parts of your life. For example, you’ll organize your wardrobe differently than the way you’ll organize your personal financial documents or the pantry. However, most people, believe it or not, have an organization personality. Take some time to determine how you like to organize things. Do you prefer labels?  I like to use labels and defined areas. To accomplish this I have a labeler (bought during the Officeworks January sale) and use baskets and drawer inserts to keep things sorted and in order. Are you visual, preferring colour codes and photographs? Start thinking about how you like to organize before you create a comprehensive system.

Make a Commitment

Make a list of the areas of your life that you want or need to organize. Prioritize those areas so that the most important area is listed first. Make a commitment now to start checking items off of that list. Create a date that you want to have an area organized by and a plan to achieve it. For example, maybe you have organize your personal documents listed first. Decide when you’re going to have that organization accomplished and what you need to do to make it happen. Then just do it!

Follow Through

Organizing something is only the first step. The next, and most important step, is to follow through on your organization system and to sustain it. For example, if you spend an entire weekend organizing your wardrobe but then you just throw your clothes into the cupboard any which way, you’ve wasted a weekend. Commit to following through on your organization system. Hang things up as soon as you take them off, put clean laundry away as soon as it comes off the line, make sure washing is put in the laundry basket every day. If you are unable to follow through, figure out why. Chances are the organization system you created doesn’t fit your needs or personality, so change it.

Use Organization Tools

One of the best ways to create an organization system is to use handy organization tools. Mind maps and checklists are easy to use and quite effective. You can use mind mapping to brainstorm and plan your organization systems. Checklists can be created to make sure you don’t miss a step. In fact, there are lots of useful organization checklists that you can download on the Cheapskates Club website. Checklists that help you take charge of organizing your finances, managing your time, even cleaning your wardrobe.

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