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Clutter in a house is like a force of nature; it tends to take over unless measures are taken to reduce its impact. All too often it is a battle many of us end up fighting daily. We fight it in kitchens, living rooms, bedrooms and bathrooms. It adds frustration to our lives, stress to our relationships and wastes time on a regular basis. It would be fair to say that most of us have
spent more time than we'd like to admit sorting through paper, hunting for wallets or searching couches for keys. The good news is that the answer to all the chaos and frustration can be found by a little planning and some good organization.
There are generally two types of clutter that collects in a home. The first type is made up of things that have a place they should be, but aren't. This "misplaced" clutter consists of things like toys, dishes, video tapes, books, jackets, shoes, etc. These are usually fairly large items, but can also be things like pencils and pens, ribbons, scissors or other things that should be in a specific place but are not put back. The plan of attack for these types of things is simple. Each thing should have a specific place, a "home" that it needs to return to. The "homes" should also be practical. For example, video tapes should have a shelf near the t.v, and toys can be kept in a toybox in the play area. Some things may need several homes: pencil holders should be placed in the kitchen, at the main telephones and throughout the house where needed. Wicker baskets are great "homes" for things. They can hold pencils in a recreation room or study, hair accessories in the bedroom, or combs and brushes in the bathroom. They
are also decorative, look good in almost any home decor, and keep things very close to where they will be used. The more convienient it is to put something away, the less likely it is to end up as clutter.
Teaching children (or other family members) to put things away is not always easy, but can be accomplished by consistent modelling and insistence. Often organizational skills can also be taught in stages. If you have decided to organize your home, and your twelve year old daughter consistently dumps her bookbag, jacket and school papers all over the living room after school, remind her to put it all in her room. Or put it there for her. Then she will have to organize her room to find things when she wants them, since all the clutter will be in there instead of the livingroom. At this point, parents usually have a fit - their children's rooms will be a perpetual mess! For a while, this will likely be true. Getting rid of clutter and learning new habits doesn't happen over night. Usually it takes a bit of transition time, during which it will be essential to have some "clutter zones." The important thing is to start somewhere. Establishing "non-clutter zones" and "homes" for everyday items is the first step. If you make a serious commitment to organization in family areas, then individuals can use the same principles in organizing their own spaces.
So, assuming we succeed in taming "misplaced clutter," that still leaves "incoming clutter." Incoming clutter includes everything that is not an everyday item in the house. Flyers, newspapers, bulletins, school newsletters, letters and bills are good examples. Though not all
incoming clutter is paper-based, probably over half of it is. The first way to deal with it is to stop the incoming flood. A "no flyers" sign will help a lot. Then, arm yourself with two indispensible tools - a garbage can and a paper recycling box. Preferably near one another, and near the mailbox. Once read or dealt with, anything of simple paper origin can go in the paper recycling box, and any other incoming clutter can usually hit the garbage can. A
lot of incoming clutter hangs around the house simply because it was not dealt with when it arrived. One piece of invaluable advice is to make it a rule to never pick up a piece of paper twice. As much as possible, paper should only end up in your hands once. Often we read things and then put them away to do later. Later, of course, the entire thing must be sorted out of a pile of other junk, and reread. If things are dealt with immediately (or, in the case of bills, put away immediately) then they don't become clutter.
Another thing that adds to disorganization and clutter in the home is that many people hang onto paper clutter (and other kinds of clutter as well) because they think they may need it down the road. Most clutter, as long as it has been dealt with, or has served its purpose, can be thrown out. However, if you like to err on the cautious side, a paper recycling box is a must. It isn't as final as a garbage can - you can still retrieve things a few weeks later if need be - but it still allows you to get rid of most incoming paper clutter. You can throw out the flyers that continually arrive at your door, but if your student needs a current affairs article out of the newspaper, they can go and dig it out. Most communities have recycling centers where you can easily take your paper to when the box is full. A large box can easily hold several months worth of paper.
Having dealt with misplaced clutter and incoming clutter, there is still routine cleaning. While some of this need to be done as it occurs, like daily dishes and wiping the table, etc, much of it can be delegated. This, though, often becomes a chore. One fun way around this is to do a weekly "Quick-Clean." All the family members can have a delegated job, like dusting or bathrooms (depending on age) and then set the oven timer for 10 minutes. Put on some upbeat music, and have everybody do their own job. They can race to be the first done, or get a reward when they're done. Ten minutes of hard work at any particular job will usually be enough.
Ideas like paper-recycling boxes, "quick-cleans" and wicker baskets are simple and inexpensive, and can do a great deal towards organizing a household. However, having a home free of clutter is a step-by-step process, and consistent principles of organization are the key. Things like establishing clutter-free zones and personal responsiblity for individual space, returning misplaced clutter and dealing with incoming clutter are essential for living in a calm, chaos-free home. However, taking action is the first step. Plan it, do it, and stick with it. Home, after all, should be a sanctuary.
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