If you read my blog regularly or know me personally, you know I’m organized. I admit there are a couple of dark corners in my house that need assistance, but for the most part, everything has its place. Keep in mind it’s just me and my husband in the house now. When my kids were teenagers, I worked but I still adhered to my routine.

Many people ask me how I do it. When I think about it, I suppose I have a routine plus a couple of tricks that help me stay on track. I also think it’s in my DNA. A gift from my mom and dad.

 Please keep me company. I’m taking you with me as I show you a “day in the life” of being organized. I’ll throw in some tips along the way. It’ll be fun!

–Before I went to bed last night, I straightened up.  Having an organized day means starting on the right foot the night before. I try to take 5-10 minutes to do this every night. No dishes in the sink or papers left on the counter. When I come downstairs in the morning, everything is tidy.

–I got up this morning and after checking my email, I made my bed.  It takes about 2 minutes and it starts my day off on the right foot. If your bed’s made the whole room looks put together.

–After my shower, I gave it a quick scrub. I clean it about every other day. It saves time in the long run because it always stays fresh. After getting ready for the day, I wipe my sink, toilet, and run the vacuum in our bathroom. It sounds like a lot but, I swear, it only takes 5 minutes to keep it sparkling on a daily basis.

–I tackled my everyday chores. Most of them revolve around our cat. If Theo sleeps on the couch during the night, it gets vacuumed. I dry dust our hardwood floors to pick up the cat hair, clean the litter box, and wipe down the sink and toilet in our half bath. When I worked from home, sometimes I got up about 15 minutes early and did all my chores at once. On other work days, I would complete each task between a phone call or when I took a short break.

–After lunch, I straightened out my pantry cupboard. I try to do one extra chore each day. Maybe tomorrow I’ll wash my bathroom floors or dust the furniture. If you pick just one small area to tackle each day, your whole house is relatively put together. It takes very little time to do one chore. Time it. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.

I have two tips that really help me to stay organized on a daily basis.

  1. Take a minute to complete a task and don’t wait until “later” to do it. That’s when things pile up unnecessarily.  For example, if you bring in your mail, don’t throw it on the counter and think you’ll go through it at another time. Take 1 minute to sort it. Throw away the junk and if need be, file your bills to be paid.
  1. Everything should have a place. Take the extra minute to put things away where they belong. Yesterday I needed to pack a couple of seasonal things away. The easy way out would have been to set them on the steps going down to the basement and put them away in the appropriate storage container at a later time. I took 2 extra minutes to walk downstairs and put them where they belong. If I didn’t, I just prolong the task and have another pile I would have to deal with later. 

Now you know my secrets! They’re not earth-shattering tips but I admit I am disciplined. If you keep up a little each day, you won’t have a lot to clean at one time or piles of things to put away. If you need any suggestions, please reach out! I’d love to get you on track!