Odds are, unless you’re living in an exceptionally small space, you probably have at least one room in your home that’s cluttered. Reclaiming those cluttered spaces can provide you with more room to enjoy your favorite activities and potentially provide you with some income as you sell items you no longer need. The process of reclaiming those spaces, however, can often be quite challenging. Here are three strategies you can use to help make your organizing process easier.

Empty It Out

One of the difficulties in organizing a space is figuring out what to do with all the piles you make as you’re organizing. Having items you’ve already sorted next to items that still need to be sorted can make it difficult to get the space truly organized. That’s why it’s a good idea to empty out the space you’re organizing as a first step in removing the clutter. If it’s a garage, open the garage door to make it easier to move things out. If the garage door isn’t opening, call a garage door company to get some help. There’s no sense in cleaning out a garage if you can’t open the door to let a car in. No matter what size space it is, empty it out so you can start from scratch.

Box It Up

One of the difficulties when trying to decide which items to keep and which to get rid of is the constant “what if” scenarios that play through your head that cause you to end up keeping more than you probably need. One way to see for sure if you truly need the items you think you might need is to box up all the items in a space, then get out the items you need only as you need them. At the end of a pre-determined time, donate what’s left in the boxes without looking at what’s inside.

Find a Place

For the items you do end up keeping, it’s important that each of them have a specific place where they are stored to prevent them from combining together to become clutter again. It may take a while, but it’s important to make the extra effort during this step to ensure that your organization efforts last instead of being wasted. Get creative with the space you have so you can maximize its storage potential, thus providing more room for you to enjoy activities in that space.

Take It Slow

Throughout the organization process, it’s important to take it at your pace. Trying to rush ahead just to get finished will only result in extra work further in the future. Take the time that’s necessary to make wise decisions about the belongings you’re sorting, and you’ll be much more likely to work to maintain the organization you achieve as time goes by.

~Photo Credit: Transport Executive