When I meet new people I often get the question, “Is your home really organized and clean?”. I tell people yes it is organized for me, for what makes me happy. Clean it is not always spotless, but it is liveable, but cleaning is not organizing. They do go hand in hand but they are not the same. If you were to come to my place to borrow something, chances are I could put my figure on it in a few seconds, 99% of the time.
Organizing for me is not having things folded in drawers so they look pretty when I open them, it is having things folded and put away in the same drawer all the time. It is not about having my spices in alphabetical order, it is about having them all lined up in a drawer, like with like. For example, dip mixes together, broth mixes together, hot spices together, basic herbs and spices together, etc. My kitchen counter sometimes has a few things on it that do not belong, but that only lasts a few days, not weeks. Now all that being said this does not mean that the other ways are wrong, they are just not my style. We all function differently.
Surprisingly enough when I tell people organizing has a lot to do whether you are right brain or left brain dominate they so, “Really?”. Meaning are you more creative or more linear thinking. I am more linear/logical thinking. I do not like to see my organization. Meaning I do not like clear bins, open shelving etc, I like mine labelled and behind close doors.
Home Organizing is like trying a new lifestyle diet. It takes time, it takes dedication and it takes maintenance. You can not go from a house full of clutter to a perfectly organized home overnight. It takes time, dedication and training of new habits. Just like running a marathon, you do not run 40km the first time, you start one km at a time.
Keep things simple. Do not look at the complete home. Look at one room, one cupboard, one drawer at a time. Take 30 minutes a day and start.
