The concept of getting “more” organized is often thought of as a long-term “someday” project that we’ll get to when we have a free weekend (which never happens) or when our spouse is ready to help us (also unlikely to happen soon) or when we finally take a week off of work (yeah, like you’re going to organize on your vacation!)
When, in reality, getting “more” organized could be something you do RIGHT NOW… in the next 20 minutes… and then immediately enjoy the benefits!
Don’t believe me?
Keep reading!
If you’ve put off decluttering and organizing a bit too long, I hope I can encourage you to give it another try.
If these 6 immediate benefits don’t inspire you, I’m not sure what will!
1. You’ll save space.
Chances are you’ve probably wished for “more space” — no matter how large your home is. Maybe an extra closet, an extra bedroom, another stall on the garage, a useable basement, a larger pantry, etc.
I might not be able to magically add more square footage to your home, but getting more organized will help you add more usable space!
Here are a few quick space-saving ideas to get you thinking:
- Toss food storage containers without matching lids (that should free up some space!)
- Give yourself (or your kids) a “hanger limit” for your closet and get rid of the rest. Enjoy the extra breathing room.
- Remove all expired items from your pantry, fridge, and freezer.
- Fold clothing neatly in drawers and enjoy so much extra space versus just shoving it in.
- Purge doubles and triples of things if one will suffice.
Start training yourself to notice when spaces look and feel crowded and then use a few organizing tips to free up some extra space.
2. You’ll save time.
These days, it’s rare that I hear anyone complain about having “too much time” — the opposite is usually the lament I hear.
If you currently find yourself in the “short on time” camp, I think you’ll be amazed how much time you can actually save by getting more organized.
For example, you could speed up your weekly cleaning routine or implement a laundry system to save time on these necessary tasks.
Make a simple meal plan for the week and enjoy the huge time savings of wondering “what’s for dinner” every night and making several extra trips to the store for items you forgot.
Declutter a heavily-used area in your home and enjoy being able to quickly find everything you need without searching through piles of stuff.
Then, enjoy your extra time doing whatever you’d like to do!
3. You’ll save money.
With prices rising on pretty much everything these days, finances are definitely a hot topic for many households.
Interestingly enough, getting more organized will often SAVE you a whole bunch of money without costing anything in return.
For example, think of how many times you’ve purchased something again because you can’t find the one you already have. Or what about times when you’ve waited until the last minute and rush out to buy something instead of making something or shopping the sales (this can apply to dinner, birthday treats, clothing for special occasions, gifts, etc.)
You might also consider selling some of your cast-offs on Facebook Marketplace as a small extra income (and then enjoy the extra space — see #1 above!)
4. You’ll save energy.
Cleaning and caring for a more organized space requires significantly less energy than cleaning and caring for a cluttered, messy space. It’s also less overwhelming to get started when your spaces are more organized, so you’re less likely to waste energy motivating yourself (or procrastinating and then constantly feeling that weight).
Practically speaking, less clothing means less laundry to wash. Fewer decorations mean less to dust and clean around. Fewer books and toys mean less to pick up at the end of the day. Fewer papers mean less to file.
All of this is great, but one of my favorite energy-saving benefits of living a more organized life is the mental energy I save each day wondering where things are, what I should make for dinner, if I should throw another load of laundry in, if I remembered to RSVP for the event at school, etc.
I’m not perfect by any means, but keeping my home and life more organized affords me more physical and mental energy each day — definitely a bonus for my entire family.
5. You’ll save stress.
I hate that feeling when I’m running late, rushing the kids, frantically searching for something I can’t find, or apologizing for forgetting something really important… don’t you!?
I don’t enjoy living in a cluttered home or with a chaotic schedule.
Thankfully, I’ve learned first-hand that getting more organized alleviates many of these negative feelings and results in a much less stressful home and life.
With more space, time, energy, and money to enjoy the things, people, hobbies, and places you love, it’s only natural that your stress levels will be way down.
6. You’ll save your sanity.
With 6 active people in our home, it doesn’t take long for things to get chaotic and cluttered… which is not a great combo for this mom!
Anything I can do to help the kids get involved in the organizational process does wonders for my sanity and the overall health and happiness of our home.
- Creating a designated spot for all the toys and books means that my kids can help put them away.
- Keeping the main living areas of the house relatively picked up throughout the day means I’m not constantly tripping over toys.
- Getting our house “back to normal” every night (a.k.a. hushing the house) after the kids go to bed means we all wake up to a neat and tidy home every day.
It’s amazing how just a few minutes spent tidying up and getting more organized gives me an entirely new perspective on the day and a renewed energy to tackle whatever else comes my way!
Have I convinced you yet?
Throughout this post, I’ve intentionally used the phrase “get more organized” to highlight the fact that perfection has no place in this process.
Just keep aiming for progress… no matter how slowly you move! Pick one small area of your home or life and work on it for 15 or 20 minutes TODAY.
Get more organized and enjoy some of these immediate benefits in your own home, family, and life!
Kate says
I want a carrom board table!
Andrea says
haha — the table was really easy to make. We just purchased hair pin legs on Amazon and used the Carrom board we already had in the house! We LOVE this little table!
Rhonda says
We don’t entertain guests often…but because our home is kept organized and fairly clean, I love never feeling the panic of “oh no, my house isn’t clean – I can’t have anyone stop over!” It’s nice not to exhaust ourselves for a 1/2 day or day of cleaning before guests. Granted, we are fortunate in that we hire someone monthly to vacuum, mop floors, dust, and clean three bathrooms…but that’s only once a month and we still regularly do some of those jobs in between the cleaning person visits. It’s just nice knowing that it gets done thoroughly on a regular basis, and also because of that, we have to keep it fairly “picked up” – otherwise we are doing tons of cleaning before the cleaning person comes!
Andrea says
Yes, Rhonda — I can relate. Our house isn’t perfectly clean all the time, but the main areas are never more than a few minutes from being “very picked up and presentable” so we don’t have that panicky feeling either.
Lori McEvoy says
Love your posts!
Andrea says
Thanks so much, Lori!
Margaret says
Even though I’m at a completely different life stage (retired in September 2020) I find that my hyper-organization and routines are the gift that really do keep giving.
Bulk cooking and portioning mean I can have a hot, nutritious, vegetarian, low-carb dinner in five minutes Every Day.
Sorting my laundry as I go means it’s always up to date, with minimal effort
20 minutes of cleaning and tidying every morning keeps the dog hair at bay. And I don’t lose things.
I have tons of time for reading, knitting, dog-walking and dog training, and visiting with friends.
And reducing decision fatigue is a real thing. I have so much more bandwidth for the activities I enjoy.
Andrea says
Hi Margaret! Thanks so much for sharing how living a more organized life benefits you in a different stage — I love hearing that my tips and ideas will work for more than just moms of young children!
JJ says
Your tip to take everything out and find a spot or get rid of it has helped me throughout the years!!! I just went through all of my kitchen cabinets(with some used for other things besides kitchen stuff). It is the best feeling to purge and have a spot for things!!! Birthdays and Christmas overwhelm me with all the new stuff the kids get. Do you have a method for preparing for gifts so that you don’t feel swallowed by a toy store?
Andrea says
oh good — glad it’s helping you. Every bit progress makes a difference!
As for birthday and Christmas gifts (I’m actually talking about this next week!) we try to do mini purges right before the new gifts come, and then we often get rid of a few more things after the new gifts arrives and we realize we still need more space!
I was just talking about this with Dave over the weekend and we thought one idea might be to request monetary gifts from Grandparents as the kids get older (so they can put some in the bank and pick out something they want with the rest). We also probably won’t do “birthday parties” for our kids once they are school-aged, so they won’t get gifts from aunt, uncles, cousins, etc.
This will be Nora’s first year without a party (she doesn’t know it yet) so we’ll see how it goes!
Sue says
This is a great idea with the grandparents. We did this for years, so when our kids got of the age to purchase their own car, they have the $$ to do so. They would still get a “toy gift” but the amount of $$ that was spent every year on toys was insane, and my okay size house was just tooo cluttered with toys.
Andrea says
I have a feeling many homes are cluttered with way too many toys! I’m ready to go through all our closets and bins and purge more before Simon’s birthday later this week! There’s always more coming in with 4 young kids!
Kathy says
Transition Nora to a few friends memory party like bowling or painting party and have people donate pet supplies. It still gives her time with friends with a purpose and no gifts to find room for.
Andrea says
this is a great idea Kathy!
Angela says
In the photo of Nora’s bedroom, I’m noticing that the closet looks a lot like one in our daughter’s room. Do you still have that closet or did you remove it in the remodel? If you still have it, I’m wondering how you use the space on the sides. Ours isn’t deep enough to hang clothes with hangers on a regular hanging rod, so it’s a very non-functional closet.
Andrea says
yes, we still have that closet, although we just put toys it in now that it’s no longer in a bedroom.
Here’s a more detailed look at that closet: https://andreadekker.com/noras-new-closet/
However, it’s probably worth noting that our closet is plenty deep enough to hang clothing. we will eventually put 2 rods in there once we have 2 kids sharing that room again.
Janene says
Your blog is a highlight of my morning! I love your easy going common sense approach and always feel you would be an encouraging friend.. I feel like I know you and we would be long fast friends! Thanks for being you.. I found your blog years ago and it is now the only one I really read..
Andrea says
Thanks so much Janene!
Paulette says
Ditto, Janene!
Lynda says
Yay! Love this…. Have to admit that I too find sheer joy in organizing and decluttering things!
Sue says
I am all for this.. and I really need to do it.. but honestly looking at the pics of your shelves and stuff I love the look but the first thing I think of is “how does she dust all that ” lol
sue
SoCalMom says
Ahhhhh!!! We are cut from the same cloth. I’m a believer!! But, I’m married to a bonafide “Messy” who refuses to organize or declutter or even put away his stuff. That garage picture is what dreams are made of. He really wants a garage like that, but absolutely refuses to put in the effort required to create or maintain a clean, organized place where he can find all his stuff. It’s impossible for me to understand.
Jen says
YES!! I have such a hard time understanding why this doesn’t make sense to people. Friends ask me all the time “HOW do you stay so organized?” My response is that it’s a way of life/lifestyle. One doesn’t “get organized” in a weekend. One learns how beneficial being organized is (see all your excellent points above!) and one realizes that it’s worth putting REGULAR time and effort into!
Off my soapbox now….. 🙂
Bree says
Hi Andrea! Thanks so much for posting this I really needed to hear and see your ideas!
I’ve been pondering the areas of my house on what to do!
Love your site I read it daily to find ideas! Really enjoy the peek into our week!
Meal planning has been a great help to me and I’ve started it. Your a beautiful mom and wife!
Your kiddos are adorable! Keep up the great work!
Hugs and sprinkles of sweet blessings to you!
Bree
Andrea says
Thanks Bree 🙂
Melissa @ teammadefamily.com says
Organizing can also be a great family activity. This weekend, we were having difficulties with two of our children getting along with one another. We have an “art closet” in our home, full of arts & crafts supplies, games, and random junk. The closet was quite out of control, clutter-wise, so I put those two kiddos to work cleaning it up. Not only did we end up with a clean closet, but our kids were able to work together cooperatively. It was a win for everyone.
Andrea says
yes!! I’m actually talking about this later in the week!
Eileen says
I’m not in the same life stage as you (my kids are college aged) but just recently I cleaned/reorganized my closet. It’s a semi-large walk in closet, so lots of rooms and shelves for “stuff”. That’s great until there’s just lots of stuff. I finally took everything out, culled the clothes (and anything else). Then organized the stuff into categories. I took all the like items and stored them in bins that I’ve labeled. For example, I’ve gotten more involved in hiking and backpacking in the last few years, and there were lots of things (first aid kit, dry bags, headlamps, jetboil stove, etc) that are really only used when I hike/backpack.
Last October I made my first real backpacking trip and after a lot of time deciding and organizing what I would take, I laid it all out on my kitchen floor and took a photo and then labeled it with photo editing software. That became my visual packing list for future trips. I’ve done 2 additional hiking trips since then and it was so much easier to locate and pack (and so quick to unpack and store, equally important). All of my small items are in this labeled canvas bin and my larger items (tent, sleeping pad and bag) are stored in a small laundry basket on the floor. My packs (various sizes and uses) hang on the wall on small hooks.
I went on a trip this weekend and was able to pack quickly the night before and then unpack everything right back into their correct locations last night.
Andrea says
Thanks for sharing Eileen!
While I don’t plan on doing any backpacking trips any time soon — I fully agree with everything you mentioned here. Getting (and staying) somewhat organized saves so much time when packing and unpacking. Dave and I (and the kids) just went on a mini vacation last week, and while it took some time for me to get everything packed, unpacking literally took minutes because everything has a place and I could quickly return all our things to their places when we got home.
Tracey says
Thank you, Andrea! JUST what I needed to hear today!!