10 Ways To Be Neat, Tidy, And Organized – Every Day

People always ask me the secret to being organized. They want a formula for making their homes and lives neat and tidy. Sadly, there’s no secret formula to getting organized.

But if I had to choose one thing that makes a huge difference to home and personal organization, it’s this: Getting organized is much easier to achieve via small, daily organizing actions than through grand, life-changing plans. In general, big plans to get organized bring out the perfectionist in you. Which leads you to procrastinate. The more grandiose your vision of a perfectly organized life, the more procrastination will sabotage you. Even if you do go on a massive organizing rampage, the results will be short-lived unless you keep up good decluttering and organizing habits. Before you know it, it’ll be Chaos II: The Nightmare Returns.

Getting organized is much easier to achieve via small, daily organizing actions than through grand, life-changing plans.

So the strategy that’s likely to be the most effective, that will keep your inner perfectionist under control, and that will last, is to decide on some daily organizing tasks that are pretty much non-negotiable. Like brushing your teeth, you just do them. Every day. Here are mine.

10 Ways To Be Neat, Tidy, And Organized – Every Day

1. Make the bed. It sends a powerful message of order and self-care to your subconscious.
2. Put things away after using them. Yes everything. If there’s no place to put something, throw out something you haven’t used in a while to make room.
3. If you notice something broken and know you won’t repair it (be honest – you probably won’t), then discard or donate it immediately.
4. Be alert for anything not used or loved and discard or donate it immediately. Keeping it is costing you time, space, energy, and mental clutter.
5. Wipe down the kitchen sink, counters, and dining table after dinner. You’ll feel organized as you head to bed and when you get up in the morning.
6. Load and run the dishwasher or wash the dishes after dinner. Dirty dishes are demoralizing.
7. Quickly run a cordless vac over the kitchen and living-area floor. It’ll take just a few minutes, but will make a big difference to the way your home looks and feels.
8. Check whether anything needs replacing in your kitchen, bathroom, or office, and add items to your diary, shopping app, or to-do list.
9. Re-fill coffee beans and water in the espresso machine. Do anything tonight that will ease morning stress tomorrow.
10. Put clothes in the hamper or hang them up to air after wearing, and put laundered or aired clothes away. Be kind to your clothes and shoes.

Doing these things costs a little time, but the rewards include being organized, setting a good example for the kids, having more energy and motivation, and feeling great! Well, that’s my non-negotiable, Neat, Tidy, And Organized list. You can start with just one thing, or a few. What’s going on your list?