Go Organize: Conquer Clutter in 3 Simple Steps (11 page)

Doesn't it feel great to have an organized kitchen? Isn't it easier to prepare food and to cook without clutter? What a cheery place this is for you and your family to get together and have family time! Your kitchen will be a happy gathering place for everyone. Encourage family members to put things away where they belong after using them. This will be easy because the shelves are labeled.

Now your kitchen is efficient, and it feels like the heart of the home and a well-run nerve center. This is where everyone in the family comes first thing in the morning, and it is the last room they visit at night. Kids are taught how to cook here. They share their day's adventures over meals or while dinner is being prepared. Craft projects and homework are done at the kitchen table. Conversation between the adults while dinner is being prepared or around the dinner table happens in this room. Rate your wattage in this room. You are shooting for a 7 or above.

Do you enjoy going into your master bedroom and snuggling deep down under the covers with a good book or with that special someone? Your bedroom is your personal, private sanctuary.

The master bedroom is the place to create a peaceful, restful space specifically for you in your home. It's the room you walk into at the end of the day, leaving the cares of the world behind you. It is a place where you can relax, connect, and bond with your significant other or just be alone. If it is cluttered, it makes it hard to relax and fall asleep. The clutter is another reminder that there are things that still need to be done. Let's create a sanctuary in the master bedroom — a place of retreat, free from clutter and chaos.

SEARCHLIGHT

Starting from the inside out, look in the closets, dressers, and nightstands. Then, working from left to right (like reading a book), look for things you like about this room and for things you don't like. Write them in your notebook. Can you feel and see what is keeping you from the highest wattage when you are in your bedroom? While you are looking around, take a picture so when you're finished you can look back and see what great improvements you have made. Be sure to take a picture of the inside of your closet — by the time you are finished, you will be amazed at the transformation! The closet is often the messiest and most frustrating place in the bedroom. We toss things in, and we grab things out, telling ourselves some day it will be different. Write your responses to the following questions in your notebook:

 


1. What is it you like about this room? What lights you up?
   

 


2. What don't you like about this room? Does it make you feel agitated and restless? Identify your needs by asking yourself the following questions:
   

    
   

   1. What type of atmosphere do you want in this room?
      

    
   

   2. Do you have a hard time falling asleep, and could this be because of the clutter and chaos?
      

    
   

   3. Is this room neglected?
      

    
   

   4. Is the closet functional?
      

    
   

   5. Can you find things you need on the nightstand?
      

    
   

   6. Is there too much furniture for the amount of space?
      

    
   

   7. Are the dressers organized and are the things that you need and use nice and tidy?
      

    
   

   8. Is the room a dumping ground with all flat surfaces, including the floor, piled with clutter and clothes?
      

    
   

   9. How did it get this way? What are you doing to keep it this way?
      

    
   

   10. Has it become a habit to just throw things in and shut the door because guests don't see this room?
       

    
   

   11. Are there things here that belong in other rooms (laundry, toys, craft projects)?
       

    
   
 


3. You have gone through the closets and nightstands, looked under the bed, behind the door, and in the dressers and rated everything. What is your wattage number now (see page 15)? When you are in this room, are you lit up at a 7 or above? If not, then you have some things to do.
   

Can you relate to Paula, who dreaded taking her Searchlight and looking at her bedroom? She already knew she wasn't happy or lit up when she was in her bedroom, but she was determined to make some changes.

She liked the colors in her room, and she loved her big, soft comfy chair. She did wish she could use the chair for reading instead of a clothes hanger.

The bed was always covered with laundry that needed folding. Her nightstand was piled with old magazines, paper wrappers, and dirty dishes. Her closet was stuffed with clothes she hadn't worn in a year, that she didn't like, or that didn't fit. She had held on to the clothes thinking that “one day” she would fit in them again. (Haven't we all felt that way?) These clothes were discouraging to her, and she felt guilty for not being able to wear them. She decided that when she became the clothes size she wanted to be, she would reward herself and buy some new clothes instead of living in the past and hanging on! The dresser drawers looked like someone had taken an egg beater to the clothes; they were such a jumbled mess. She couldn't wait to light up this room to a 10!

I encourage you not to have a television or computer in your bedroom. These get in the way of creating a peaceful haven as they create a different focus. Catching up on the nightly news or answering just one more e-mail is inviting the outside world into your bedroom instead of using the time to connect by communicating, inviting intimacy and bonding or just having some quiet time by yourself to think or rest. The bedroom is a place to go to unwind and sleep after a long day.

Now that you have answered these questions and written down your answers, you can move on to using the Spotlight to set goals to make some changes.

SPOTLIGHT

By using the Searchlight, you know exactly what needs to be done. With the Spotlight, you are going to get right down to it and set some goals. As you accomplish each one, check it off.

Here are some examples of goals you could set:

 


1. This will be a sanctuary where you can relax and unwind.
   

 


2. Closet chaos will be conquered! The closet will hold only the clothes you actually wear. Shelves will be organized; shoes, scarves, and belts will have a designated area. Wire and plastic hangers will be donated.
   

 


3. Nightstands will be functional both inside and out; no clutter will be allowed on the top.
   

 


4. All clothes will be kept off the floor and folded or hung where they belong.
   

 


5. Everything in this room will have a designated place where it will live.
   

 


6. Bed sheets will be changed regularly.
   

 


7. Pictures will be hung on the walls to give the room a warm, peaceful feeling.
   

 


8. Dresser tops will be free of clutter, including too many figurines or pictures.
   

Write down a target date to complete these goals. This will help you to stay focused and keep on track.

GREEN LIGHT

This is the most exciting part. You are going to see wonderful changes. Refer to your goals, and let's get going. Stay in the Green Light by wearing comfortable clothes. Gather your tool kit (see page 22) and your four containers (see page 35).

Get a drink (water is my favorite as it actually gives your body energy) and a snack. Set your timer for a specific amount of time. I recommend at least one hour. You want to get a lot done in a short period of time, and you can do it if you stick to it. Either take the phone off the hook or, if it rings, let the answering machine pick up and you can listen to the message when you take a break. (Schedule a time later in the day to check messages and return calls.)

When your timer rings, if you are engrossed in what you are doing, reset the timer and keep going! When you take a break, set your timer for five minutes so you will remember to come back and get your room organized.

Start working from the inside out. I bet one of your biggest headaches is your closet. So start there. You will create a big mess and chaos in this room before it is all back together and looking wonderful — but rest assured it will go from chaos to organized.

Places to start:

 


1. closet
   

 


2. dresser
   

 


3. nightstand
   

 


4. under the bed
   

 


5. other furniture (armoires, benches/chests)
   

Closet

Remove everything systematically from the closet. In case you don't finish today, you will want to be able to go to bed tonight, so you don't want to remove what is on the shelves, closet rod and floor all at the same time. Removing everything from the closet will take some time, but just think what surprises and hidden treasures you will find.

There is a reason for taking everything out of your closet. I know this is a big project, and everyone groans about it, so here is the logic behind removing everything:

 


1. You will be able to see exactly what kind of space you have to work with.
   

 


2. You will be astonished and maybe embarrassed by the pile of stuff now sitting on your floor, bed, couch, or the cat. This will give you the itch to organize it neatly and in a way that it is useful for you.
   

Start on the Floor:
Remove everything from the closet floor. (Don't try to be sneaky and just leave that one little box there because you know what is in it.) Start on the floor so you'll have room to move in the closet. If the floor is piled with stuff, you won't be able to get into the closet. This is true for a walk-in closet or for a small closet.

Here are a few suggestions for what to put back on the floor: a clothes hamper (only if you must have one here); pull-out drawers that serve as a dresser if you don't have space in the room, and shoes (either on the floor or on a shoe rack).

Now that you have removed everything from the floor, start putting the shoes back in the closet. Look at each pair and ask yourself: do they still fit; do I like them; do they light me up; do I have clothes to wear them with; are they in need of repair or do they need polishing? If you answered no to any of the first four questions and they are in good condition, either donate them or throw them away. If they need repairing or polishing and you are keeping them, don't put them back in the closet yet. Place them in the BE basket. Get someone in your home to polish them for you. OK, if that doesn't work, you can do it later tonight while watching television. Take the ones that need fixing to your car (when you are unloading the BE basket, not right now).