With Leo Babauta & zenhabits.net/
WHAT would it take to get your life decluttered and
organized?
That might be a tall order for many of us, but the truth is,
we could do it in bursts and spurts, using a handful of easy-to-follow rules.
The other day I wrote about the idea of setting rules instead of goals …
today I want to share a few ideas for rules to help you get decluttered and
organized.
 |
| Time for a spot of declutting? |
I know in my life, going from being overwhelmed with clutter
to minimalism was a slow but rewarding journey.
And now I feel happy every time I look around and see the
lovely space around me.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, I’m here to testify that it’s
not impossible, and it just takes some small steps that add up over time.
Here are the rules I suggest – though I don’t suggest
adopting them all, and especially not all at once. Try a few out, see how they
work for you, then try a few others.
1. Get yourself
organized at the start and end of a day. As you start your work day, write
down your three Most Important Tasks (MITs).
Write down a handful of other things you’d like to do today
as well. Clear your desk, get things in order.
At the end of each day, tidy things up, check off your list,
maybe even get things ready for tomorrow.
2. When you get up
from your desk, put one thing away. Whenever you get up for a glass of
water, to go to the bathroom, to take a break … pick up something off your desk
and put it away.
If your desk is clear, look for something nearby.
3. When you’re done
eating, wash your bowl. This is self-explanatory. Mindfully wash your
dishes instead of leaving them in the sink. If there are other dishes in the
sink, wash a few of them too.
4. Wipe down the sink
when you use it. Whenever you wash your hands or brush your teeth in the
bathroom, wipe down the sink so it’s clean. Do the same in the kitchen sink.
Clear away a few things around the sink too if you can.
5. When you walk through
a room, find one thing to put away. If you’re going from your bedroom to
the living room, find one thing during that trip to put away.
You don’t have to get stuck in putting everything away, just
one thing.
6. When you take off
a piece of clothing, put it away. When you shower or change clothes,
instead of leaving them on the floor or on a piece of furniture, put the
clothes away or in a hamper.
Look for a few other clothes to put away too if there are
more lying around.
7. Keep flat surfaces
clear. Your tables, counters, desks, floors … keep them clear. If there’s a
ton of clutter there now, see the rule below about decluttering on Saturdays.
But if it’s doable, just start clearing whatever is on the
floor (except furniture and the like). When you walk by the kitchen counter,
look for things other than oft-used appliances to put away.
8. At the end of the
work day, file stuff. If you still use papers, file them at the end of the
day. If you are all digital, clear your computer desktop and put files where
they belong.
9. Deal with an email
instead of putting it off. When you open an email, give it the space to
deal with it immediately. Read it, reply, take action, or archive it.
Or put it on your to-do list for later if it’s a big task.
Don’t just constantly open emails without handling them.
10. Work to only
having 3 emails in your inbox. Slowly clear away the hundreds or thousands
of emails in your inbox.
Archive or delete them, put a handful in a to-do folder,
file others into informational folders, unsubscribe from newsletters.
11. Put non-essential
items you want to buy on a 30-day list. Create a 30-day list, and whenever
you want to buy something that’s not absolutely essential (other than
groceries, cleaning supplies, toiletries), put it on the list with the date you
added it.
Then don’t allow yourself to buy anything until it’s been on
the list for 30 days. At the end of the 30 days, see if you still want it
before buying.
12. Put your clothes
in a different closet or box, and only take out what you need. Move all
your clothes to a closet in an unused room if you have one, or put them in a
box or two.
Only remove the clothes you really need to wear. After a
month of doing this, you’ll see what clothes you can consider donating.
13. Declutter on
Saturdays. Every Saturday morning, spend an hour or two (or half a day)
decluttering one area.
14. One in, two out.
When you bring something new in your life (buy something online, get a gift),
get rid of two other similar things. For example, if you buy a pair of shoes,
donate two other pairs.
In this way, you’ll 1) think more about each thing you buy,
and 2) slowly have fewer and fewer possessions.
Eventually you’ll want to switch to a “one in, one out” rule
when you think your possessions are at a good level.
15. Limit how many
things you have. Consider limiting yourself to 30 pieces of clothing, or 30
books, or something like that.
Get rid of everything else, don’t allow yourself to go
beyond the limit. The individual limit you set is up to you, whatever feels
slightly uncomfortable is good.
16. At the end of
each month, clear out computer clutter. Self-explanatory. Back things up!
17. Every three
months, purge. Also self-explanatory. Spend a weekend purging all your
unneeded belongings.
Of course, these are just suggested rules … you should
modify them to suit your life.
How to Implement the Rules
Now, those are a lot of rules, but I don’t think you should
implement them all at once. In fact, I suggest trying one per week. Really focus
all week on making that rule happen.
If it goes well, keep it. If not, toss it out. The next
week, try another.
Set a reminder on a certain day each week (let’s say Monday)
to review how your rule went, and to pick a new rule to try out.
Have a physical, paper note somewhere visible so you’ll
remember to do the rule throughout the week.
One at a time, you’ll find the rules that work for you. And
one step at a time, your life will slowly become less cluttered, more
organized.
And you’ll be set up to make great things happen in the rest
of your life.
Articles source: http://tiny.cc/hleh8x
