Making It Stick: Principles of Organizing Part 7

Just joining us for the Principles of Organizing blog series? Catch up here!

• Intro

• Part 1: The Vision

• Part 2: The Edit

• Part 3: Find Home

• Part 4: Like With Like

• Part 5: Easy Access

I’ve talked a lot over the past couple of weeks about different concepts to keep in mind as you’re getting organized, but I haven’t give you a single specific instruction about what to put where. That may be frustrating - I know it’s frustrating to some of my clients, who say “just tell me what to do!” But there’s a really good reason for this.

Getting organized is a project, but living organized is a long term thing. In order to truly live organized, you not only have to set up a system, but be able to maintain that system for the long haul.

Remember your vision for the organized home you dream of. There is no way you’re going to be able to attain and maintain that vision if doing so feels like a lot of work. All the principles of organizing I’ve talked about before will help you create a system that will help you achieve your vision. But none of them will work without keeping in mind the one concept that ties them all together:

Any organizing system will only work as well as you use it.

I store my nail polishes in a clear jar because I’m willing to dig around in there and then put everything back when I’m finished. For someone who needs nail polish to be grab and go, this won’t work!

An organizing system isn’t like a prized piece of furniture or set of fancy china that you can store out of sight and protect. It’s a living thing that you use every day. And if you can’t - or won’t - use it, you might as well not even have it in the first place!

This is why there are no one size fits all answers in organizing. There are helpful concepts that can guide you, but there is no one specific instruction that will work for everyone.

So as you work through organizing your space, remember to ask yourself: is this a system I will actively use? Is this something I can maintain? Does this feel easy and quick to me? If the answer to any of those questions is no, try something else. Because organizing should not be the hardest part of your day - it should be a quick reset that makes the rest of your day easier!

There are always trade offs in organizing. You may desire a certain kind of aesthetic but be unable or unwilling to do the work that it would take to keep your space looking that way. I get a lot of requests for clear surfaces from people who are “out of sight, out of mind” types - and so we have to come to a compromise for surfaces that feel calm and organized, but aren’t technically totally clear of objects. And that is totally ok - because you are getting organized for yourself and yourself alone, and only you can create the compromise that’s right for you.

You might be surprised by the many different variations on organizing systems I’ve created for clients. Every single one is guided by my basic organizing principles, but every single one is just a little bit different in ways that work for each client’s personality, lifestyle, and taste.

If you ever have any questions, please reach out - either in the comments, or to me directly. And if you’re searching for more detail, including specific instructions for families and troubleshooting tips for common organizing struggles, check out my e-book The LMW Edits Method.

Thanks for nerding out on organizing concepts with me!

LMW