assign homesSeveral years ago I wrote a post called, ‘Creating Peace at Home Through Organizing’.  Click on the link to read the full article.  The article explains why decluttering and organizing the spaces in your home is so important to achieve peace in your life.

In that post I used the acronym PEACE to describe the five steps in the organizing process.  The acronym was created to depict the result of organized spaces – peace. This post is the third in the series to provide more details for each step in the organizing process. You can read the first two steps by clicking on the links below.

You’ve already determined that you want to get organized.  My recommendation is to avoid the overwhelm of the size of the project by starting small.  Choose a drawer, a cabinet, or maybe a smaller closet to ease into the overall project.

Step 1 – Put like items together

Step 2 – Eliminate Excess

Step 3 – Assign Homes

Now that you have eliminated excess in step 2 of the organizing process, you probably feel better.  It’s a liberating feeling when you purge or eliminate excess items from your home.  You feel lighter and can breathe!

When you eliminate excess, you have fewer items to organize.  The next step is to assign homes to every item that makes sense to you.  As I mentioned in step 1, everyone is different and what makes sense to one person, may not make sense to another.

When you assign homes to items, the benefits are many, as shown in the list below.

  • You know where each item lives and can go right to its home which saves time.
  • You know where to return each item when you’re done using it so you can find it the next time you need it.
  • You know how many of each item you own so you don’t buy more than you need, which keeps your belongings proportionate to your living space.
  • You avoid clutter which causes stagnant energy and consequently stress.

When you assign a home to each item, think about where you will use it. Typically, we store items in areas where we will use them.  When you think about this concept, it makes sense.  For example, when you brush your teeth, you want your toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, etc., to be near the bathroom sink where you brush your teeth.

Place each item in each category in its new home; in a room or space.  You have now completed step 3! You are well on your way to enjoy organized spaces, but we aren’t done yet.

You are now ready to move onto the next step, Containment. Stay tuned for the next post!