10
Tips for Getting Your Family Organized in 2018
Article and photographs by MARYJO MONROE
Spring is the most popular time of the year for starting organizing projects, so here are 10 tips to start your family down the path to organization from a professional organizer:
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Have a family meeting to make sure everyone is on board with your resolution to get more organized. Is everyone willing to work toward this goal? If family members can’t agree on what the problem is, they won’t agree on what the solution is.
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Pick a room in your house to work in and start by clearing out the clutter. Plan to organize for no more than four hours each day in order to prevent burn-out. On the day you start decluttering, minimize distractions (phones!) and turn up the music to get the energy pumping. Set aside four boxes (donate, trash, recycle, keep) and start sorting!
10 | NW Kids Magazine
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Can’t decide whether to keep an item? Ask yourself, “do I use it” or “do I love it?” If you can’t answer yes to one of those questions, the item goes. After you finish sorting everything, get those unwanted things out of the house pronto before they end up back in the mix! (See sidebar for my favorite familyfriendly charities to donate to.)
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Find homes for things you want to keep by designating zones in your room. For example, a garage might have a camping zone, sports equipment zone, tool zone, etc. By dividing your room up into zones, it makes it easier to find and put things away.