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Alternative Organizing Solutions
by Debbie Williams
You've read all the books, magazines,
and tips on organizing the clutter in your home. But something's missing
in the equation and things are just not going as smoothly as they should.
Guess what? Organizing tips and expert advice are just that, advice and tips.
Professional organizers are real people too, and they realize that the systems
you create for your filing systems or paper clutter will not work perfectly
forever and ever. You have to tweak, tug, and modify them until you make
them your own; and that's just part of the solution.
No man (or woman) is an island, so it makes good sense that your planning
and organizing efforts are not going to work all day every day unless you
have help. Afterall, unless you live and work completely alone, you will
have help in CREATING the clutter, so why not get help in MANAGING it?
Theoretically, you should create a list of chores or procedures for your
home or office, delegate as many of these tasks as possible, and serve as
a supervisor to make sure things get done. But that would be in a perfect
world, and things just don't always go that smoothly around my house - what
about yours?
Here are a few real life strategies for those of you trying to figure out
how to balance it all with your family life. After years studying, researching,
and regrouping, I've found the following unorthodox organizing products to
be invaluable for containing (not conquering) the clutter in my own home:
WOODEN CIGAR BOX
Remote controls multiply; it's a known fact. Even if you use a universal
remote for your audio/video system, you still have all those others that
need to be used occasionally. Consolidate them into a wooden cigar box purchased
inexpensively from a tobacco shop. This will solve the question of "where
did I put the remote" and keep the neat freak in your home happy at the same
time.
TWEEN RACK
I wish I had invented this, but the Shakers beat me to it. Use a pegged coat
rack to hang not-so-dirty clothes (the wooden kind you use for hanging jackets
and hats in your mudroom). Kids, teens, and adult males know all about this
category of laundry, but it takes wives and mothers a little while to catch
on to the system.
* Clothes that aren't stained, don't stand in the corner by themselves, or
walk to the laundry room belong in the tween category. Don't hang them back
up in the closet and don't wash them yet -- they'll be worn again. If your
tween stacks are having baby stacklets of their own, then buy a tween rack
from a dollar store, discount store, or organizing product catalog. It will
save your sanity! Hang one in each bedroom or closet near the stack
creators.
DEAD ZONE
There is a space between refrigerator and cabinet (or wall) that I fondly
refer to as the dead zone. No pet or child can possibly squeeze into it for
hide-and-seek, no vacuum has ever touched it, and very little can be stored
there.... until now.
Store cookie sheets, serving trays, science fair boards, or tagboard portfolios
for the kids' artwork in this newly claimed space. Think tall and thin and
the options for storage are endless. And if you don't want to think or plan
this space of your home, keep it clear for utilitarian use only, stashing
brooms and dustpans there for quick
retrieval.
MIRACLE IRON
This is the lazy man's iron, and is my father's miracle cure for avoiding
wrinkled laundry. If you have not folded, ironed, or put away the last load
(or was it two?) of laundry in your home, don't rewash and redry the already
clean clothes - that's a huge time waster. Save time and energy by tossing
the entire load into the dryer with a damp towel - a low or warm setting
for 10-15 minutes should do the trick, and I highly recommend using a lint-free
dishtowel.
NO MAN'S LAND
If all your attempts at organizing, decluttering, nagging, and bombing have
failed in certain areas of your home or workspace, designate that No Man's
Land. I hereby give you permission to walk away from the smelly, candy
wrapper-infested wasteland that was once your teenager's room - don't clean
it, don't nag about it, and don't sweat it! I firmly believe that each of
us has a unique level of organizing, and as with politics or religion, we
shouldn't feel compelled to impose those standards upon another. Now I'm
not saying that it's ok for you to never clean your home, office, or car
again. What I am saying is that each of us needs to have a space or haven
to call our own, and if your significant other likes having cigar butts on
the garage floor or your daughter insists that she likes having all her
hairstyling paraphernalia in plain sight on her dresser, then it's ok for
you to respect their organizational standards. Afterall, you have the rest
of the house to contend with, and like it or not, there is definitely plenty
of space to organize.
Being organized is an ongoing journey, a process not a product, and I for
one would like to have a pleasant journey free from nagging, cajoling, and
harping.
What's Related
10 Simple Organizing Ideas
Cheap Organizers
10 Steps to a Presentable Home
Shortcuts to Organize Your Life
About the Author
Debbie Williams is a professional organizer, author, speaker and radio host who offers tools
and training to help you put your life in order. Learn more tips like these in her book, Common Sense Organizing (Champion Press Ltd, January 2005)
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