So, you want to get your stuff organized in 2019 but you have no idea where to start? I feel you. I’m the kind of person who has a tendency to look at a mess, start panicking, and then ignore it so that I can just stop panicking. It takes every iota of strength I have to just put my stuff away sometimes.
That being said, it really is a worthy resolution. Having a home or workspace (or in my case, both) that’s tidy, efficient, and streamlined saves time and emotional output. Once you have your spaces organized, it’s easier to find the things you need, it’s easier to put things back where they belong, and it’s easier to relax and enjoy your life, knowing that there isn’t a pile of junk six feet to your left that you really should be taking care of. Life moves freely and faster when you don’t have messes to jump over.
With that in mind, here are some organization resources that have been helpful to me not only in giving me systems by which to organize my stuff but also in changing my perspective about the organization:
Source: My Karma Stream
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Unfuck Your Habitat: This is a very, very good ongoing organization system. UFYH has a simple 20 minutes of organizing to 10 minutes of rest process for big projects, and challenges you to just go ahead and do the little things that will keep your home and your life cleaner and more organized. They also have emotional support resources because really, for some people, cleaning and staying organized is genuinely emotionally traumatic. It’s a great community and there’s an UFYH app, as well.
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The Minimalists: I read Minimalism: Living A Meaningful Life two years ago on an airplane and it convinced me to get rid of almost all of my stuff. I’m not a good minimalist — I buy things that I technically don’t “need” all the time, and I value having a large-ish and well-furnished apartment — but it certainly was instructive to read inasmuch as it encouraged me to continuously evaluate what’s really important to me, how I can place the things that are important to me as a top priority in my life, and what distractions and lifestyle obstacles I need to remove in order to prioritize them. Purging felt great, and I’ve been increasingly focused on my values and goals as I’ve continued that process of evaluation.
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Lifehacker: Lifehacker is just an awesome blog — I’m linking to the “organization” tag because they have such great organization articles, but it’s the kind of blog that will help you to continuously improve your life, work, and relationships if you read it regularly and try to put into practice some of the ideas they talk about.
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r/OrganizationPorn: The Organization Porn subreddit is where I found all the pictures in the gallery at the top of the page. Despite the fact that I have a hard time staying organized, there is almost nothing in the entire world that is more satisfying to me than ordered spaces. If you’re a little bit neurotic, Organization Porn will serve as inspiration for your organizational endeavors.
Of course, organizing your home is just one part of the process of organizing your life, being more productive, and giving yourself the kind of space and time you need to be able to life effectively and happily. In addition to the above resources, check out these productivity techniques to see if any of them feel like a good fit for your lifestyle:
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Kaizen: A Japanese system designed for corporations to improve productivity by continuously measuring and evaluating productivity, and streamlining repeatedly.
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Getting Things Done: A system designed by productivity expert David Allen that encourages you to write down everything — chores, ideas, tasks — and then break them down into actionable steps.
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The Pomodoro Technique: A technique for large tasks (like a cleaning marathon!) in which you work for 25 minutes at a time, followed by five minute breaks, and longer breaks after every four “pomodoros.”
Happy organizing, and here’s to an orderly 2019!
Original by Rebecca Vipond Brink
