Think back for a minute to the last time you finished organizing an area of your home. Can you picture it in your mind? Can you remember how great it looked? Even more, can you remember how great it felt? If you’re like me, and many of the students who take my online workshops, when you finished your organizing project you were probably so thrilled with the results that you just might have found yourself making excuses to walk by and take a peek inside one more time. (You’ve done that before, right?) There really is nothing quite the feeling of a freshly organized space of any size.
So the next online class that I’m working is called The Secrets of Staying Organized. Because, really, once you’ve worked hard to travel to what I like to call “destination organization” you want to extend your stay for as long as possible, right? But sometimes, try as we might, the clutter starts to pile up again. And that can be so frustrating!
As I put together my class, I’d love your input. Please share your thoughts in the comments on any (or all!) of these questions…and I’ll do my best to work solutions to your staying organized challenges into my class and maybe even some upcoming blog posts and quick tips. Here’s what I’d love to know…
- What are your biggest challenges when it comes to staying organized? Specific examples are welcome.
- What do you find most frustrating about staying organized?
- Which areas of your home are hardest to maintain?
- Do you find it harder to get organized or stay organized? Do you have a feel as to why?
- If you could ask me any question about staying organized, what would it be?
Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts, questions, challenges, and frustrations! I appreciate it and look forward to hearing (and answering!) your questions. Thanks!
“What are your biggest challenges when it comes to staying organized?” Being perfectionist. The most challenging part for me is to realise that I don’t have to be perfect, the house doesn’t have to be perfectly clean all the time. I thought about that last week when I was cleaning windows: I didn’t have enough time to clean all of them but it was enough to clean half of them. But then this little perfectionist inside wasn’t happy because perfectly would be if I could clean all of them. After all, I was so overwhelmed that I didn’t clean at all 🙁 The same thing is with organizing. I’m working on it believing that “30min of maintenance” every day maybe won’t make it “perfect” but it’s always better than nothing 🙂
OK I posted on facebook, but here are some more responses:
What are your biggest challenges when it comes to staying organized? What to do when life gets off track. I do pretty well on the day to day when things are routine but then throw in a vacation or a particularly busy month with many commitments and when I can’t follow my routine BOOM disorganization.
What do you find most frustrating about staying organized? consistency.
Which areas of your home are hardest to maintain? PAPER. My home office when I don’t make time for it. Or my craft space when I don’t clean up afterwards
Do you find it harder to get organized or stay organized? Do you have a feel as to why? I find it harder to stay organized because I am sometimes not sure what the new habit is I need to create in order to maintain my system.
If you could ask me any question about staying organized, what would it be? What’s the quickest way to get caught up again after a vacation?
I have a chair here this is where I do my paper work since the kids have my office area for X-box, I file the papers in the holder beside me but, I forget what is in it.
I am starting a note book for just the kids scheduals and activities. I have cousity of three g-grand kids and the school & other activities or never ending. This is so flustarating to keep this area orangized.
WHAT DO YOU FIND MOST FRUSTRATING ABOUT STAYING ORGANIZED?
Not getting frustrated when something doesn’t work… and then trying to come up with different solutions. After so many attempts you run out of ideas and it’s easy to say “forget it.”
WHAT ARE YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGES WHEN IT COMES TO STAYING ORGANIZED? / WHICH AREAS OF YOUR HOME ARE HARDEST TO MAINTAIN?
My kitchen/pantry space is the hardest for me because of limited space. I rent from my sister and we share the kitchen. We don’t share food, but we do share the use of dishes, but there are a few things she doesn’t have that I use fairly regularly, so I keep some of my own stuff available. Her kitchen is highly organized and she’s kinda OCD about it, so I have to keep my stuff in own space. And it is extremely limited. Basically I have one cupboard to keep all my non-refrigerated food and dishes/utensils in.
I try to pare down/simplify as much as possible, but the space still becomes an issue.
DO YOU FIND IT HARDER TO GET ORGANIZED OR TO STAY ORGANIZED?
My house used to be one giant mess, so for me GETTING organized was harder, because there was so much to do and I had to start from scratch. Staying organized is easier because I only usually only need to do one area at a time and because I already have things put in place, it gives me a framework with which to work in. Also I find that it’s like a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it is. The longer I work at being organized, the easier it becomes. Not to mention, the results make it self-reinforcing.
I love the sound of this new class, Aby! My biggest challenge in staying organised is the kitchen counters. Everything that comes into the house seems to come into the kitchen. I have tackled the kitchen counters and cleared all the backlog of papers off there, but it is really hard to keep it that way! I sort all the mail as it comes in, but then it goes into a pile, and when life gets busy the pile just grows. I’m trying hard to go through it at least once a week (if not daily) to try and keep on top of it. The problem is I need a visual reminder to do things, e.g birthday cards to write go in the pile. Help! The second challenge is kids toys, they just seem to multiply!
Which areas of your home are hardest to maintain?
The rooms that are not used often (Guest Room, Dining Room, Craft Room, Husband’s Office) or that I don’t have a special use for (room off the Dining Room) and so don’t get used.
These are the rooms where we put things when company’s coming or for storage. We say things like “Just go put it in the _______ for now. We’ll deal with it later.” But we don’t, until we need to use the room and then it’s a mad scramble to move things aside to make a pathway to the bed, for example. 🙂
I’ve made some progress in the FUNdamentals workshop by giving names and uses to particular rooms. The Dining Room, for example, is used for family dining, about six times a year. The ONLY things I want in this room are things pertaining to family (pictures, my mother’s dishes, etc.) and eating (a nearby counter will house cookbooks and a place for planning meals).
What are your biggest challenges when it comes to staying organized? Specific examples are welcome.
I am physically disabled. I use a walker or wheelchair to get around, and I cannot lift anything heavy. So sometimes I just have to make a list and wait for a day when I have help. It’s not too bad; it just gives me more planning time. 🙂
Once larger things (furniture) are in place, then I’ll feel much more independent in organizing the small stuff (papers, books, kknick-knacks) and will be able to maintain it.
What are your biggest challenges when it comes to staying organized?
Motivating my family to keep things put away and to quit following me around making messes! lol
What do you find most frustrating about staying organized?
Cleaning up/organizing one room, moving to the next and having someone come behind me to mess up/disorganize where I’ve just been.
Which areas of your home are hardest to maintain?
Livingroom and kids’ bedrooms.
Do you find it harder to get organized or stay organized? Do you have a feel as to why?
When I have a block of time, I love organizing. When trying to keep it up, I’ve got the forces of a 10 year old and a 6 year old working aginst me.
If you could ask me any question about staying organized, what would it be?
How do you do it with kids?!?!?!
What are your biggest challenges when it comes to staying organized?
Making the Time to pick up everyday – put the back that I took out etc. I get a room done in a flash like 2 days and then i tend to sit back to rest and look at my effort but I don’t maintain it and then we start over…this is my life.
What do you find most frustrating about staying organized? the perceived amount of time it takes which in reality isnt alot as i have timed my work but can’t get over the perceived amount of time
Which areas of your home are hardest to maintain? foyer (mud room) and kitchen counters – pantry and our bedroom – kids are ok
Do you find it harder to get organized or stay organized? STAY organized Do you have a feel as to why?
If you could ask me any question about staying organized, what would it be? Here is my question to you …do you ever come to customers home and work side by side on a project – if yes, please email me the cost and plan etc. 🙂
Keep up the good work – you rock!
I love the sound of you class and can’t wait!
Thanks, Jules. I sent you an email earlier today. 🙂
I am an older college student and find it nearly impossible to keep class homework and deadlines organized! I welcome ideas from other students that have found success. I have volunteer and church activities as well as class homework and must do better with organization. A good student is only as good as their productivity. Help!
Hi just discovered ur blog it’s great.
I am a shover! I shove things where things aren’t visible. Kitchen cabinets, closets dresser drawers and under sinks. it’s bad. I’ll clean it out and 2 weeks later catastrophe!!! I’ve found a system that has helped me with my sons toys each category has its own box and because it’s designated I’ve maintained it for a month now. My record.
Organization is taught to you and if not u might inherit bad habits. How do you get over inherited messiness?
WHAT DO YOU FIND MOST FRUSTRATING ABOUT STAYING ORGANIZED?
No matter my good intentions (or maybe it’s my lack of follow-thru), I can’t seem to “keep it going”…coupled with my perfectionist tendencies that SOME is better than PEFECT
WHAT ARE YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGES WHEN IT COMES TO STAYING ORGANIZED? / WHICH AREAS OF YOUR HOME ARE HARDEST TO MAINTAIN?
My kitchen counters are a catch-all for everything incoming (although I am really good about opening the mail next to the trash), but since I am a “piler”, that’s where everything lands … and don’t touch my piles! 🙂
DO YOU FIND IT HARDER TO GET ORGANIZED OR TO STAY ORGANIZED?
I love to organize – it’s like getting a do-over – the problem is finding a system I can live with & maintain!
IF I COULD ASK ONE QUESTION….
Will you adopt me?
Thanks for your thoughts…and your question cracked me up. 🙂
The hardest part for me to staying organized is being
too busy for upkeep!! When I get home I am too tired
or it’s too late (already bedtime) that I just pile it for later
which becomes too “later” and then viola, it’s a mess again.
YES, I need some help. Is this just me or do others have this
same struggle?
Hi, Donna,
You’re definitely not alone. 🙂 Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
~ Aby
My biggest challenge is my kids coming along and undoing the organization. This is especially true in the kitchen and dining table areas. They want to do a craft and there are many paper and clutter in no time. They are 6, so it’s a struggle to teach them to clean up after themselves. Also, they want to save all of the little works of art and paper that they create. It hurts their feelings when I dispose of things. Looking forward to your suggestions 🙂
I don’t really have a suggestion, just a thought about how much I would love this topic. I love to organize but CANNOT, I repeat, CANNOT stay that way. I cannot stay organized to the point that I am beginning to believe I get unorganized on purpose just so I’ll have something to organize which is ridiculous when I consider the amount of stuff I am responsible for. There will always be something new to organize. Just dying to know how to keep something organized…
My biggest challenge is any flat surface including the floor. I just put things down, and I walk away until I have to look for it again!! Anything that will help me organize my mail and other items that come into my house without a place to live. My coffee table was covered with 3 feet of paper and stuff until last night when I cleaned off half of it.
The hardest thing for me is that if it’s difficult to keep together, or can’t be done quickly or easily, I’m not likely to remain consistent. I’m a full-time student and I also work from home, and I have an active 4 year old daughter that is incessantly curious about everything mommy does. So I have to be able to get things done simply and efficiently or my organizational attempts go right out the window. If I make it too complicated to organize my business receipts in my purse, for example, I end up stuffing them in anywhere and then things get messy and it’s all downhill from there. I hate not having control over my stuff! And I hate the amount of brainpower and effort I have to exert to keep track of all the stuff and go digging for things when I need it. What do I keep and what can I throw away? I want to touch it ONCE and be done with it.
My biggest challenge is ENERGY. I am a single mom, full-time employee, homeowner, and volunteer. My job is terribly stressful right now, and I come home mentally and emotionally exhausted; I *want* to do something constructive, but it just seems too much. I’m not the parent or the role model I want to be right now.
Most frustrating aspect: Keeping up the momentum needed to actually establish a habit.
Hardest to maintain: 1) Paper. I simplified my system a few years ago, but recently, and in desperation, moved my filing box into a kitchen cupboard — paper seems to stop in the kitchen, so why not give it a home! 2) Laundry! I hate to fold, and I don’t have a “happy place” to do it, so it’s often heaped into baskets or all over the top of the washer.
Harder to stay organized: It’s hard for me to get from “new routine” to actual habit.
My question: How can I rejevenate my spirits when I get home from work, so that I don’t just “power down” for the evening?
I hated folding laundry when my kids were little, so I would wash their clothes (and mine) every day, and they would wear it (straight from the clean laundry basket). With 2 kids and 2 adults, we had at least 4 tops, 4 bottoms, 4 pairs of underwear and 8 socks each day — enough to justify a load even without the occasional kitchen towels etc. so it was enough to justify a load of laundry. When it came to sheets, we would do those on a weekend– strip all the beds, wash all the sheets, dry them and put them right back on.
I don’t do that anymore, but when my kids were little it was a lifesaver. Once you get into the habit it is easy.
Thanks so much everyone for your comments so far! Keep them coming. 🙂 ~ Aby
The hardest thing for me about staying organized is where to put projects in progress. Whether it’s a card I’m writing or a paper I want to make a decision on or a sewing project that’s all spread out, I don’t want to put them away because I think I’ll forget to do it or lose my place.
I also struggle with having a million little thing that get put on the counter or the kitchen table “just for now” and then when I start to clean up I feel like I have to make several trips to different rooms to put them away. I’m trying to find a basket or tote for those so I can sweep them all in there and then put them away all at once. See, I know a possible solution and just haven’t done it yet. 🙂 Maybe I should ask myself these questions every once in a while to help myself think through issues and find solutions (instead of thinking “I’m too tired to catch up” without assessing what the underlying problem is).
One thing that helps me stay organized is remembering that excited feeling I had when I first organized a space. It makes me more motivated to take a few minutes to clean it up and regain part of that feeling.
I also appreciate your suggestion to do one thing that has been hanging out on your to-do list for too long. Naming it as “the thing I can do right now and then get it off my list” somehow sounds more motivating than “the thing I keep procrastinating on”. Focus on the completion, not the delay!
My biggest challenge: staying motivated for the long-term maintenance.
I tend to get bored with that and things fall in dissaray.
Quickly.
Most frustrating about staying organized: my time and energy run out before
I am done maintaining organization so I let it go.
I also have trouble remembering the system. It is like
I need a simple organizational chart for each part of
My life so I do not have to ask, “Now what do I do?”
I could just look at the steps and go.
Hardest to maintain: paper, Creative Nook and Master
Bedroom. The mail builds up, half- finished projects crowd
My nook counter. I tend to do a lot of different projects
At the same time. The Master Bedroom bc by the end of
the day, I am tired and so I drop clothes on the floor, throw mail in a chair, put clean laundry on the bed, etc.
It is hard for me to get organized and to stay organized but I do think the
Maintenance part is harder. My ADHD and mundane tasks do not seem to play well together.
My question: how do you keep things organized day after day, hour after hour, when life is happening all around you at breakneck speed.
After vacation, it takes me weeks to unpack my bags and do laundry. I do go through the mail. And then I sit in a state of “overwhelmness” for a few days. Or a week. No help for you there.:)