A new year often means a fresh start. Many people create a list of goals that they hope to achieve along with new year’s resolutions. But did you know that 64% of people abandon their resolutions within the first month?
While we might have the very best intentions to stick to our goals and resolutions, life inevitably gets in the way and we often lose sight of our new commitments. One common goal I often see is to get organized!
So why do so many often fail before the first month of the year is even over? Personally, I think it’s because they try to do too much, too soon. Let me explain – getting organized is a big task. It’s not something you can accomplish in one day or even one week, especially if your goal is to get your entire home organized.
The key is to start small and work at it a little at a time. Small tasks that you can complete each week might not feel like a huge success, but over time these small tasks will add up to some major results.
If one of your goals this year is to get organized, this blog is for you. We’ve come up with simple tasks and tips that you can implement throughout the month that will take you less than 10 minutes a day. This way you never feel overwhelmed and by the end of 4 weeks, you will have accomplished SO much! Let’s dive in!
2022 Get Organized Challenge
Note: You can start this challenge at any time. You do not need to wait for a new month or week to begin. The key is just to start!
Week 1 – Closets
Closets might sound overwhelming, but don’t worry we are breaking things down into bite-sized tasks. Here are 7 tasks related to closet organization that you can tackle in a short amount of time. Complete one task per day (7 tasks for each day of the week) or if you are feeling motivated keep on going!
- Remove clothes from your closet that don’t fit or ones that you know you just won’t wear.
- Switch out hangers so they all match
- Color code – group like items together and then sort by color
- Remove any shoes that you no longer wear
- Go through your bags and remove the ones you don’t use
- Add a donation bin inside each closet
- Add a storage option for jewelry
Week 2 – Kitchen and Pantry
The kitchen is one of the best places to get organized because it can help save you so much time and money. For this challenge, you’ll want to start thinking about whether you really use all your kitchen items and get prepared to toss those spices from 2010.
The below tasks will help you to eventually create zones in your kitchen for things like baking, storage containers, drinks, and more. Creating zones not only makes things easier to find, but also gets the whole family on the same page so putting away groceries, packing lunches, or putting away dishes is a breeze.
- Refrigerator – toss any and all expired food and condiments.
- Check spices and remove any that are expired
- Pantry – remove expired food
- Create zones (baking, cooking, food prep/storage, etc.)
- Add bins inside of pantry for easily accessible snacks
- Add a lazy susan inside of your pantry for round bottles and jars
- Organize your silverware with drawer inserts
Week 3 – Kids’ Room
After the holidays, a lot of new toys have found their way into your home. It’s time to edit and set yourself & your kids up for success for the rest of the year!
While checking off the below tasks don’t be afraid to get your children involved. It’s their toys after all and having the kids help you choose toys to donate and gift to other children can be a great experience.
- Take a trash bag, go around your child’s room or play area and fill the bag with 10-15 donation items.
- Sort toys and remove broken ones or ones with missing pieces
- Remove games from boxes and store each one in a clear zipper bag – a HUGE space saver
- Create a toy rotation
- Add labels to bins to make clean up easy for your little ones
- Drop off any toy donations by your local charity
- Organize books and remove ones that no longer get read
Week 4 – Bathroom
Our bathrooms can be one of the most cluttered areas. It’s easy to keep items we don’t really need simply because they are out of sight. Remember, start small and work your way up to larger areas so instead of getting overwhelmed, you become motivated to tackle more.
- Go through makeup and remove anything that is expired
- Create a morning routine drawer of things you use regularly
- Remove any tools (hairdryers, straightening irons, etc) that no longer work or you don’t use
- Add bins below your sink to keep items together and organized
- Fold towels and get rid of ones you never use
- Sort and edit your body lotions. Do you really need all of those Bath and Body Works lotions?
- Remove as much from countertops as possible for a clean and open space
Get and Stay Organized in 2022
Don’t be one of the 64% of people that give up on their goal to get organized this year. If you feel overwhelmed by the idea of organizing, just remember to start small. Tiny, consistent steps can make for some big results.
Also, it’s ok to ask for help. Just because you have a goal to get organized, doesn’t mean you have to be one to make it happen all on your own. Our team of Professional Organizers can help you get organized without you having to lift a finger. Contact us now to book a consultation.
