Today is our fifth day to having a more organized month.
Let's do this!
Challenge
Practice this "first place" principle.
Store items at the first place you use them. Don't put something where you have an empty spot - put it where you'll need it. Gift wrap may fit perfectly in the upstairs bedroom closet. But if you prepare presents on the dining room table, a closer storage spot is a much better choice.
Think, Where is the first place I would look for this? when deciding where to file a paper. Relying on this initial instinct means you can find it again later.
Our Writers' Responses
Meredith
Everyone has that one space where they drop their stuff as soon as they get home. Where do you drop your keys? In a bowl? Toss them on the couch with your coat? Toss them in your purse? I have a hook attached to mine and I can clip them to my purse loop as soon as I walk in the door. Even when I'm out with friends, if I am no longer driving, my keys are clipped to that loop. What happens when I toss my keys in my purse or leave them on a table for Mark to find? I will lose them and I will tear apart my living room to find them.
I would suggest getting a bowl (also known as a catch-all bowl) to put on the table you have by the front door (or at least close to the door) or purchase some key hooks to hang by the door. It is a difficult habit to change, but it is completely worth it when you are in a rush. Keys are the #1 thing people lose when they get home...what's the second? Sunglasses. Yep, same issue; same solution. Place your sunglasses with your keys, but be sure they don't scratch the lenses.
Shannon
My husband and I have one thing in common: we lose things. Constantly. Not a day goes by without one of us tearing apart the living room in search of keys, cell phones, or essential items. Which is why the idea of the "first place" principle is so intriguing to me. Usually, I stick things in places where there is space. Or in a special spot for safe keeping (which I promptly forget about). That is why I have made a few changes.
Following the first place principle, keys go on the table by the front door. Every single time. My cell phone stays on my side table instead of on the bed, in the kitchen, or thrown on the floor beside me. It has been hard so far. After all, it takes time to create a habit. Right now? I am doing my best to make a conscious change - and leave behind the chaos of losing those everyday essentials.
Tami
A lot of the stuff in my home is where it should be. I always say that everything has a home where it belongs and that's where it should be. But everything isn't always where it should be. So, I have a rule that if I ever see anything or have to move anything, that's not where it's supposed to be, I take it back to where it belongs and where I can easily find it.
Deanna
Along with doing this, I'm going to be putting up some shelves and making some baskets to help keep me organized!
Denise
Autumn is coming soon. In Canada, this means temperatures and leave will soon fall. We go from spending lots of time outdoors to wanting to be inside with a cup of hot chocolate to 'nest.' I find this a good time to take a weekend and get my home a little more organized. Once a home is in order it is easier to keep it that way by using the "first place" principle. When my children were small
Along with doing this, I'm going to be putting up some shelves and making some baskets to help keep myself organized!, we used to sing the song "Everything in it's a place, a place for everything" as went about tidying it up. Sometimes adults need to sing this too.
Practice this "first place" principle.
Store items at the first place you use them. Don't put something where you have an empty spot - put it where you'll need it. Gift wrap may fit perfectly in the upstairs bedroom closet. But if you prepare presents on the dining room table, a closer storage spot is a much better choice.
Think, Where is the first place I would look for this? when deciding where to file a paper. Relying on this initial instinct means you can find it again later.
Our Writers' Responses
Meredith
Everyone has that one space where they drop their stuff as soon as they get home. Where do you drop your keys? In a bowl? Toss them on the couch with your coat? Toss them in your purse? I have a hook attached to mine and I can clip them to my purse loop as soon as I walk in the door. Even when I'm out with friends, if I am no longer driving, my keys are clipped to that loop. What happens when I toss my keys in my purse or leave them on a table for Mark to find? I will lose them and I will tear apart my living room to find them.I would suggest getting a bowl (also known as a catch-all bowl) to put on the table you have by the front door (or at least close to the door) or purchase some key hooks to hang by the door. It is a difficult habit to change, but it is completely worth it when you are in a rush. Keys are the #1 thing people lose when they get home...what's the second? Sunglasses. Yep, same issue; same solution. Place your sunglasses with your keys, but be sure they don't scratch the lenses.
Shannon
My husband and I have one thing in common: we lose things. Constantly. Not a day goes by without one of us tearing apart the living room in search of keys, cell phones, or essential items. Which is why the idea of the "first place" principle is so intriguing to me. Usually, I stick things in places where there is space. Or in a special spot for safe keeping (which I promptly forget about). That is why I have made a few changes.
Following the first place principle, keys go on the table by the front door. Every single time. My cell phone stays on my side table instead of on the bed, in the kitchen, or thrown on the floor beside me. It has been hard so far. After all, it takes time to create a habit. Right now? I am doing my best to make a conscious change - and leave behind the chaos of losing those everyday essentials.
Tami
A lot of the stuff in my home is where it should be. I always say that everything has a home where it belongs and that's where it should be. But everything isn't always where it should be. So, I have a rule that if I ever see anything or have to move anything, that's not where it's supposed to be, I take it back to where it belongs and where I can easily find it.
Deanna
Along with doing this, I'm going to be putting up some shelves and making some baskets to help keep me organized!
Denise
Autumn is coming soon. In Canada, this means temperatures and leave will soon fall. We go from spending lots of time outdoors to wanting to be inside with a cup of hot chocolate to 'nest.' I find this a good time to take a weekend and get my home a little more organized. Once a home is in order it is easier to keep it that way by using the "first place" principle. When my children were small
Along with doing this, I'm going to be putting up some shelves and making some baskets to help keep myself organized!, we used to sing the song "Everything in it's a place, a place for everything" as went about tidying it up. Sometimes adults need to sing this too.
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