When I first became an organizer, I thought it was only about arranging plasticware and making things neat. What I did not fully appreciate is how much being organized helps heal all aspects of our lives. Lindsay was the first person I helped to get organized. Lindsay was in an unhappy marriage. Her husband was preoccupied. Lindsay had been sleeping on the couch downstairs. She felt alone and shopped to cope with feelings of abandonment. Her house was overwrought with toys and clothes. We filled forty large trash bags with clothes that had taken over her bedroom and closet. She cried in her closet once it was emptied out. At that moment, I realized I was not only there to help Lindsay declutter and redesign her space; I was there to help her reshape her life into prime form. I was there to go into the thick of it with her. I was not there to pick up all the pieces of her life. I was there to pick up all her stuff and help her realize what held meaning for her. I was there to help Lindsay understand what an ideal lifestyle meant to her and to help her dream it up when she didn’t know how. I was there to help her make sense about what to keep or toss out of her life, in a way that made sense, rather than in a traumatic or dramatic way. Now, I am here to help you in the same way, with years more experience and so many ideas about how to get you organized for good.
Epiphanies about clutter manifest regularly as people unpack their junk drawers and empty overfilled cabinets and closets. Whether clutter is mild or perpetual or extreme, people experience self-awareness as they process and go through their clutter and mess. When people see the clutter replaced, in a short period of time, by organization and a clear, newly designed space, it takes the sting out of what could be a sensitive, sticky situation. I’ve discovered that even people who have barricaded themselves in insurmountable mounds of stuff can find insight and the desire and fortitude to get and stay organized for good. All these permanent changes require is taking a considered, deeper look into how you can live a more optimal lifestyle. The exciting thing is that you will learn a new way to make years of clutter disappear, like an abracadabra trick, and without having to get rid of a thing, when that’s not in the cards.
After many years of helping thousands of homes and businesses get decluttered, no matter what state they were in, I have honed this precise, easy-to-use strategy to get and stay organized. Creating a long-lasting permanently organized space is by far the best gift to give yourself. Think of it as engaging in a luxury service, but unlike a spa treatment, it will last forever.
Chapter 1 focuses on visualizing and creating your own personal ideal lifestyle and clearing out any emotional challenges that will get in the way of becoming organized. This chapter helps you understand how you became disorganized in the first place, while recognizing your innermost desires and what you value most in life. You will learn strategies to clear and heal old wounds and how to identify your most sacred truth about life. Chapter 2 discusses how changing your language will influence your productivity and keep you motivated to stay perpetually organized long-term. You will learn how the misuse of the word need, using indecisive language, and not sharing feelings impact every aspect of your personal and professional life. Understanding actual “needs” — such as air, food, water, shelter, sleep, elimination, and sunlight — is a priority for living a balanced and happier lifestyle. Additionally, putting the word will back into your language will change your life. Chapter 3 is the step-by-step Clutter Remedy strategy designed to help you clear your space of clutter, categorize everything you own, and go through everything using my proprietary Clear and Concise Criteria, followed by fine-tuning all your precious belongings and finally setting your space up for success. The Clutter Remedy strategy is designed to turn each and every space into organized and sustainable living and working areas. Learning to live in this unique and settling way is the remedy for clutter. Chapter 4 is centered on organizing room by room and space by space. The step-by-step practices for organizing anything and everything — including your paperwork, garage, kitchen, bathrooms, office, closets, and kids’ stuff — will empower you to want to go further and give your space a better design altogether. The process of attaining an organized space is achieved through a simplified and coordinated organizing process, alongside specific considerations for all areas of the home, workplace, and storage areas.
Chapter 5 focuses on how to stay organized throughout the year, helps you identify storage space options for items used infrequently, and discusses common challenges that prevent long-term organization. The suggestions in this chapter will help you stay organized year-round, with clever anecdotes and ideas for being creative with your space through the seasons, holidays, special occasions, and life transitions. Chapter 6 will help you design your space after you have finished decluttering. This chapter will guide you through interior design options and how to set up your space in a way that will keep you organized for good. Setting up your space with all the stuff you love is easy when you see your space with a whole new perspective and add storage options to create an aesthetically pleasing environment, without spending a lot of money. Finally, chapter 7 discusses the most serious challenges and situations that can get in the way of decluttering and becoming organized, such as overcollecting and accumulating, emotional and/or physical challenges, loss and grief, and mental health challenges (like ADD, OCD, OCPD, depression, and hoarding disorder). In these situations, it’s absolutely possible to declutter, but professional intervention can be helpful.
Ultimately, working on a better you and creating a better space is a great investment that will enhance all aspects of your life: your health, stability, family, work, and much more. You will be less stressed and experience more happiness by becoming more organized, which is a transferable skill you can use in most situations. You will discover bright and sparkly gems of insight, poignant stories and connections, and useful tools to help you meet any physical, emotional, and mental health challenges, with tips on managing health, well-being, seasons, schedules, family interactions, traveling, moving, and more. I wish you a journey through your clutter to your most organized self and space.
ORCHESTRATING YOUR IDEAL, CLUTTER-FREE LIFESTYLE
The process of identifying your core values and an ideal lifestyle — what you truly want to accomplish in life — creates the desire for order, harmony, and a clutter-free residence and work space. The concept of an ideal lifestyle may prove confusing at first because you are so busy putting one foot in front of the other, making decisions throughout the day, and regularly tending to the more mundane aspects of life: work, housekeeping, errands, chauffeuring, cooking, shopping, and everyday tasks. Focusing on your loftiest and forgotten dreams and recognizing your aspirations is the beginning of an emotionally freeing and enlightening journey.
You can experience as much difficulty talking about your innermost secret dreams and desires as you do discussing and revealing your most difficult clutter challenges and the frustrations that go along with staying organized. Having a messy, chaotic, and unpresentable home or workplace can cause deep embarrassment, conflicts, and mixed feelings. When your life goals and desires are not being fulfilled, talking about what you want most out of life can trigger feelings of confusion, regret, and sadness. Becoming open about all that you want is essential to knowing how to live an ideal and clutter-free life.
Some people think they will be able to dig themselves out of their convoluted mess by themselves or with the help of family members. Ironically, fixating on the clutter derails them from focusing on the inner challenges they face: the mess inside of themselves. You are not alone with your clutter challenges. Clutter is an epidemic around the world, and fixing clutter starts by focusing on the inner self.
THE CLUTTER CAMOUFLAGE
Clutter