Appendix

B

10-Step Organizing Plan

The fastest way to get organized is to focus on your own challenges, strengths, and goals. Use this quick step-by-step organizing plan to create a custom path to your organized life:

1.  To get off to a good start, tackle one nagging organizational issue that affects you on a daily basis. This early success will motivate you to make more positive changes along the way.

2.  Review the core four components of an organized life discussed in Chapter 1. Which component represents your biggest challenge? Rank the remaining three components in order from weakest to strongest, and then tackle your personalized plan in that order.

3.  Review Chapter 2 and note your level of clutter tolerance; decide whether you’re a filer, a piler, or a denier; and take note of your time-management preferences. These personal parameters will guide your goals as you address disorganization.

4.  Set up a control center—a life-management center for planning, time management, and paper handling. Stock your control central with the tools and supplies you’ll need.

5.  Begin working on the core component that represents your biggest challenge. If it’s clutter, schedule regular STOP clutter sessions and plan a whole-house clear-a-thon. If routines are your weakest point, spend the next three weeks adopting one new, helpful routine. For disorganized spaces, create one new activity center in a household problem area. If better time management is your top priority, tackle your calendar and to-do lists first.

6.  At the three-week point, stop and review your progress. Have your new habits taken hold? If so, move on to the next core component on your list, building on your success. If you need more time to reinforce new routines, commit another three-week period to consolidate your success.

7.  Sustain the forward momentum by creating maintenance routines as you reach each goal; they’ll help you avoid backsliding while your attention is elsewhere.

8.  When you’ve made substantial strides toward solving your biggest challenge, stop to review your progress.

9.  If a special challenge pops up and you get sidetracked, get back on the organized track quickly by jump-starting your control center, making a renewed assault on clutter, and holding a debriefing session to remind yourself what went wrong.

10.  Enjoy your organized life!