Many of us want to be more organised, but the process can feel overwhelming.
It’s hard to get started when you have stacks of papers piled up on your desk, tons of messy drawers, overcrowded cabinets and closets all vying for your attention.
Research has shown that a cluttered living space is associated with impaired focus and productivity, increased stress levels and reduced life satisfaction overall. So how do we tackle these dreaded but important organisational tasks?
Start with small, bite-sized tasks — ones that require no more than 20 minutes of your time — that will help you gain some momentum. Then watch yourself chip away at your organisational goals, bit by bit.
We asked professional organisers to share some of the small but powerful tasks they recommend and advice on how to tackle them. Read on for their suggestions.
1. File-fold shirts and trousers in your dresser drawers
Popularised by Marie Kondo, file-folding is a clothing organisational method in which you place items in a drawer so they’re upright (like files in a filing cabinet) rather than stacked on top of one another.
That way you see all of your inventory, wardrobe stylist and home organiser Iris Miyasaki of By Saki told HuffPost.
“I can’t tell you how many drawers I’ve seen with stacked T-shirts and bottoms, forcing my clients to only use what is on the top of their stack,” she said.
Start by taking everything out of the drawer and then sort by silhouette — e.g., tank tops, T-shirts and long-sleeve shirts, Miyasaki suggested.
“Then fold your pieces so they are tall enough to fit in your drawer standing up like a file folder in a filing cabinet,” she said. (For more on this method, read this explainer from Kondo’s website or watch Miyasaki’s TikTok tutorial.)
Word to the wise: It’s best to keep different silhouettes/categories separated by column, Miysaki said. So tank tops on the left, T-shirts in the middle and long-sleeves on the right, for example.
“If you want to take it a step further, measure the depth of your drawer and get a drawer divider that fits to maintain each column,” she added.
2. Do a spice cabinet refresh
The thought of reorganising your whole kitchen might understandably make your head spin. Instead, start small by focusing on just a spice cabinet refresh.
“Take 15 minutes to go through a shelf in your spice cabinet,” professional organiser Charlotte Upshaw of Chelf told HuffPost.
“Toss anything expired, consolidate duplicates and wipe down the shelf. You’ll be surprised how much of an impact this small task will have.”
3. Create a drop zone
Upshaw suggests setting up a designated “drop zone” in your home — a catch-all spot where you can put stuff that belongs elsewhere but can’t be dealt with immediately.
“Keep a basket or decorative bowl in high-traffic areas to collect out-of-place items,” Upshaw said. “Spend 15 minutes daily putting them back in their place.”
4. Go through your post while standing by the bin
Professional organiser Tatiana Blanco, owner of NEAT Method Miami, recommends sorting through your post over the bin each day.
“This allows you to quickly toss the junk mail and then categorise the remaining mail into two piles: ‘needs action’ and ‘for review,’” she told HuffPost.
Making this a daily habit will prevent large piles from accumulating that lead to mental overwhelm and visual clutter.
“The rest is categorised, making it easy for when you dedicate time to pay bills,” Blanco said.
5. Add labels to a high-touch area in your house
Labelling commonly used parts of your home “creates boundaries for what can and should live in that space,” Miyasaki said. You can use a fancy label maker if you’d like but clear scotch tape with a sharpie gets the job done too, she said.
This “keeps everyone — if kids are old enough to read — accountable for maintaining a drawer, shelf, cubby, etc.,” Miyasaki said.
“For example, if you’d like your water glasses to remain on a separate shelf from your mugs, label their home base on the edge of the shelf.”
6. Do a mini closet clean-out
Miyasaki suggests quickly going through your closet and pulling out any items that:
- You haven’t worn in the past two years
- Give you “the ick”
- Make you feel less-than about your body
And don’t overthink it, she said — just go with your gut.
From there, separate the pieces you’ve pulled out into a donate pile and a “maybe” pile — in other words, items you might not be ready to let go of quite yet. Anything in the donate pile should be dropped off at a local thrift shop, shelter or other organisation ASAP, she said.
As for the maybe pile: hide it away in the back of your closet or somewhere else where it’s out of sight.
“If you don’t look for or recall any of these ’maybes’ in the next month or two, you know what I’m going to say — donate!” Miyasaki said. “Set a reminder in your calendar a month from now to donate these ‘maybes.’”