Getting Organized

I bet the new year brought on the quest to get organized and I applaud any efforts to so. This is a subject I enjoy talking about and sharing ideas. I have always been pretty organized around the house and workplace. A former boss once said to only handle a piece of paper once. The notion was to do something with that piece of paper and be done with it. Sometimes we can keep shuffling the same thing around, but never make it a completed task.

Here are some organizing tips that will help get you on track:

1. Open your mail daily. This will help to not let the mail pile up and become overwhelming. Even if you browse through the mail and see that it's all junk, open it anyway and throw it away. Of course, don't forget to shred any credit card offers that you receive.
2. Paying Bills. This is a no-brainer especially when most people are paying their bills online. But, if you are still writing out bills, schedule a day to work on them. Mark the day on your calendar and set aside the time to pay your bills. I find that scheduling a task makes it easier to stick to it.
3. Mid-Week Chores. Plan to do some chores that you normally save for the weekend during the middle of the week. This will cut down having to spend your entire weekend doing household chores and free up fun time to spend with family and friends.
4. Color-Coded Closet. A simple way to organize your closet is to arrange clothes of the same color in the one place. This eases having to look around the closet for those navy slacks that might be mixed in with the browns. Try organizing suits, sweaters, blouses, t-shirts by color the same way. How easy will it be when getting dressed in the morning for work or day out to just scan the closet and pull from one color-coded section to another.

I feel a sense of accomplishment when I set out to work on a task and complete it. I am confident you will find that same sense as you work towards a more organized life. Get started and good luck!