Weekly Quick Tips

The Secret for Staying Organized

Have you ever wondered, ” I’d really love to get more organized, but is it truly possible to stay organized?” If you’ve ever finished an organizing project only to see your efforts unravel in a matter of days (or even minutes!), it can be extremely disheartening the next time you get the urge to create order. But here’s some really good news-it is possible to stay organized. The secret is to build staying organized into your regular routine.
Here’s how:

First, recognize that getting organized is the first step in the process of stayingorganized. The “getting organized” phase is when you set up systems for all the stuff in your life-your paperwork, office supplies, clothes, food, dishes-you name it! Often people think this is the end of the organizing journey, but in many ways, it’s just the beginning. What comes next is creating the habits to use your new organizing systems as they were intended to be used. It is during this second phase that you really reap the rewards of living an organized life.

The real secret to staying organized, then, is to carve out time in your routine to use your organizing systems, and to do the tasks they are designed to help you do. A bill-paying system only works if you carve out time to pay your bills, just as a paperwork system will only keep your papers organized if you make time to tackle your paperwork and file your papers.

When you build staying organized into your daily and weekly routine, it can become as habitual as brushing your teeth. Start by setting up your systems and identifying the habits necessary to stay organized. Then, build those habits into your weekly routine. For example, you could decide to pay bills on Fridays and create the habit of doing paperwork and filing stray papers every single day.

If you do a little bit every day, it will take less time and be less of a chore than you think. With new habits in place, staying organized will simply become your new way of life.Copyright © 2013 Organizing Lives ® All rights are reserved and no part of this article may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means unless expressly stated otherwise, or except with the written permission of Organizing Lives®. Enquires should be directed to: info@orgliv.mybusinesshub.ca