Modern daily life is challenging, with many factors out of your control. But the atmosphere you maintain in your home and workplace can either add to or diminish the time you spend in a state of tension. Organizing your home or workspace can do wonders for your mental and physical wellbeing and can potentially add minutes or even hours of freedom to your day. However, you may feel too overwhelmed about the idea to even start. How do you begin organizing and decluttering, knowing how time consuming and emotionally demanding it can be? If you fall into that camp, never fear. Taking small amounts of time throughout the day to focus on targeted tasks can help break down big jobs into more manageable ones.

 

When you feel anxious, you may have difficulty concentrating on the tasks that need your attention. Energy levels become zapped, your mind is wired, and your thoughts are spinning with all that needs to be accomplished. It doesn’t help that stress taxes the body and can lead to painful physical symptoms such as headaches, muscle tension, and gastrointestinal issues. Below are some tips that will help you see how organizing and tidying up can lead to substantial health gains, both mentally and physically.

 

Organizing Reduces Stress

It is within our control to organize and clean our spaces. Seeing trash, piles of laundry, stacks of papers, or items that don’t belong subconsciously adds up and tips the scales from tranquil to turmoil. Using baskets and bins to group similar items creates a sense of belonging and order. Reserving set times in your week for cleaning and straightening up will help calm your nerves and keep your stress levels in check. There are plenty of organizational tips and shows online to help guide you. If you find this task too much to handle, ask a friend to help you or hire a professional organizer. Investing in your space is investing in yourself.

 

Decluttering Saves Time 

Everyone has experienced scrambling to get their place in order before guests arrive. Rushing at the last minute raises stress levels and results in you feeling fatigued. And clutter in the home brings clutter to your mind along with it. How did you feel the last time you couldn't find your keys right before you needed to leave the house? So often, we tear our rooms apart frantically searching for a missing item, but this needn’t take place. Create a set spot for items and put them in the same place every time. Doing so not only helps us arrive on time, but we do so both calm and collected. Get into the mindset of a place for everything and everything in its place. Don’t put it down, put it away. On the flip side, how do you feel when your home is clean and organized? A powerful sense of productivity, confidence, and creativity is possible when you live and work in a well-kept space.

 

Gain a Sense of Accomplishment 

Everyone likes to win. Gaining small victories throughout the day helps boost your confidence and propels you into crushing your next task. Plan a break or a simple way to celebrate after accomplishing a big task or three smaller ones. These little victories and celebrations reward your efforts and encourage further productivity. One trick to help jumpstart your day is to make your bed right after you wake up. When you do this, you secure an easy, early victory, which will motivate you to knock out other projects or tasks.

 

Make Some Money

Want extra cash in your pocket? Selling what you no longer need can help bring in extra income for new shoes, a date night, vacation, and home renovations. Ask yourself if it is serving you well and bringing you joy (Marie Kondo has a great book and Netflix show about this). If it does not, turn it into cash by selling it so someone else can find joy in it.

 

Other Tidying Tips

1. If you buy something, get rid of something. It can be a shirt, book, toy, etc. 

 

2. Once everything is cleaned and organized the way you like, carve out a manageable block of time to do a light cleaning every day to keep things looking good. Enlist the help of your family to do a 15-minute pickup before starting the bedtime routine. You will wake up to a tidy home.

 

3. Set aside a day for big, thorough cleanings once a week (or hire a maid if it’s in your budget), preferably before a rest day.

 

4. Invite friends over. Create time to bond with them and enjoy your home. There’s nothing like hosting to get you to clean your house.

 

5. Don’t try to be perfect. Being somewhat organized is better than being totally disorganized. Small 10-15 minute cleaning sessions done 2-3 times a day can make a world of difference. Setting a timer is a great way to make it feel manageable. If you can convince yourself you can handle 10-15 minutes, you may be surprised at how much you can accomplish.