| Kick the Clutter Habit |
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You just know you left your car keys somewhere on the kitchen counter. Or maybe in your coat pocket. Or on the living room table..
By the time you finally locate the ever-elusive keys (hidden beneath a pile of mail on the dining room table), you're already half an hour late for an important meeting.
Sound familiar? If so, you're not alone – household clutter is one of the biggest time-killers. According to Newsweek, most people blow 55 minutes a day looking for possessions they've misplaced. |
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Run-of-the-mill messiness can lead to problems, says St. Louis-based professional organiser, Janine Adams: "Clutter can lead to late payment of bills, missed or late appointments and even strain on relationships"
So how can you keep clutter from making a mess of your life? Here are a few tips for keeping things under control.
Ditch everything you don't use, and make space for the essentials. Sounds simple... but Canada's Calgary Herald reported that most people only wear 20 percent of their wardrobes on a regular basis – so if you've got a whole wardrobe full of clothes that haven't seen daylight since 1990, then take them to a local Op Shop. The same goes for all other unused goods that are taking up valuable storage space around the house – be ruthless: If you haven't touched something in six months or more, it's time to say goodbye.
Once you've cleaned house, "designate places in the storage areas for the things you do use and love. Then put them away," says Adams. "If you work on reducing clutter just 15 minutes a day, you'll be amazed at how quickly the clutter goes away."
Sort the mail. Since post "comes in relentlessly, six days a week, you have to handle it six days a week," says Adams. To keep your house from becoming a sea of envelopes and advertising material, she recommends recycling junk mail as soon as it arrives, and creating a "mail processing center" for the rest, with separate files for the various types of mail that come in, such as "bills to pay" and "action" items. "The key is to use this box every day, be aware of its contents, which should be circulating, and don't let things languish," says Adams.
Stay on top of newspaper and magazine subscriptions. When you first subscribed to the Listener, you had lofty visions of reading it cover to cover every week – but now the stacks of unread issues have flooded your coffee table. You know what you need to do: "Use 'em or lose 'em," says Adams. "If you haven't read a periodical before the next one arrives, try to skim it then recycle it. If you don't have time to skim it, go ahead and recycle it. If you find you don't have time to read your periodicals, consider unsubscribing from them."Plenty of magazines offer full archives online – when you feel like you're missing out, just check your favorite magazines' websites for some clutter-free reading.
Seek help. Still need a little more assistance when it comes to streamlining your life? Adams recommends checking out two great books on organisational strategies: It's All Too Much, by Peter Walsh, and It's Hard to Make a Difference When You Can't Find Your Keys, by Marilyn Paul, Ph.D. And if you still find yourself flailing, you can always hire a professional organiser!
After all, that 55 minutes a day is valuable time – and just imagine where you could be right now if you could only find your keys.
Original story by Kathryn Hawkins
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