Sunday, October 4^th is the official beginning of ”Getting Organized Week”, which is the first full week of every October. Did you know that? I really didn’t until just recently (it’s amazing what you can find doing Google searches!) Anyway, I’ve been doing some cleaning out and reorganizing of cabinets and closets here and there, so the thought of a week entirely devoted to getting organized sounds like a great idea. See, I start plenty of projects and organize certain things, but keeping the momentum up to finish everything just doesn’t ever seem to happen. I need a game plan and a schedule with a deadline – a project plan.

It occurred to me that really, anything we want to do or achieve in life, just about, requires organization. Whether you want to retire comfortably, clean your closet or find a new job, just to name a few, you need to be organized. Things don’t typically land in your lap or fall into place so you have to make an effort. So, let’s get started!

The first thing I recommend is figuring out what the end goal is – sounds easy right? It isn’t hard, but it also isn’t something always at face value. Using myself as an example, my kitchen drawers and cabinets are a mess. A few make perfect sense – the ones I’m into all of the time, but the outliers look like I opened the door or drawer and just hurled stuff in there. It’s an embarrassment when I have company over and they get a glimpse of the chaos when I have to reach for something in front of them. Also happening, is I can’t find things when I want to. I think I’m out of something so I go buy it, only to promptly find it when I get home from the store. It’s frustrating! To make matters worse, I’m on the short side and my cabinets go to the ceiling, so a lot of the space I can’t readily see or reach. I either don’t know or have forgotten what’s there, hence even more duplicate shopping. I have a ladder, but no room for it in a handy place and I’m too lazy to go to the garage and get it 5 times a day. One more thing is that other people, who shall remain nameless, don’t put things back where I keep them. I’m stressed out by the entire situation!!!

So, stress or namely the absence or reduction of stress is the ultimate end goal or reward.  What is the subgoal? Getting organized.  Then there are the residual goals. If I can get organized, I will feel better and I will be able to find things and not spend money unnecessarily and not get annoyed with “he who shall remain nameless”, and I won’t be embarrassed by how things look. All equates to less stress.

So now that we’ve settled on the goal, we need to get organized. Yep, we’re going to get organized so we can get organized. Stay with me! The next step is to fashion a project plan so we can get this goal accomplished. This plan will have a projected end date to it, aka when I want to be finished with it, and I will break this big project into smaller projects and schedule those smaller projects on my calendar (maybe one area per day, or just one drawer if I’m really busy, etc.). I’ll spend some time researching if need be, to find specific solutions to problems I know need fixed (ladder issue) and/or purchase any supplies I need for the project prior to the onset. Next, I’ll determine if I need further motivation. Yes, sometimes you need an extra boost to start something that even with a plan, seems difficult. Create an incentive or reward for yourself for your hard work if you need to – this is your project so you get to make all of the rules. Maybe I have a plan for the money I’ll save by not duplicating household purchases. Something I’d like to have for the house or something just for me (since it seems to be my problem). You can reward yourself along the way or at the end of the project. Either works, just do what best suits your motivational needs.

Almost ready to start, but there is one more thing to consider. Stuff happens. Realize that your project plan is a motivational guide to keep you on track to get you to that end goal. Things happen that you can’t plan for, so you have to be ready to adjust the dates of the project accordingly. The important thing is not to quit! If I get swamped with work or break a finger (knock on wood) during this space in time, I need to ok with pushing back some dates or slowing the pace and just keep moving forward.

Organizing a plan to get what you want is key to your success. Setting a goal that is meaningful for you and being flexible enough with yourself to shift the plan if you need to, is also critical to completing your project and reaching your goals. You may get halfway through a project and realize that it isn’t exactly what you want or as important to you as you once thought. That’s ok too. 

In fact, the process of getting organized can be therapeutic in and of itself. When I sit down to go over my calendar for the week for example, for that brief moment in time, I feel organized and like I have a handle on things. If I don’t like what I see, I look for what I can eliminate, consolidate or push back. I set my priorities and manage my time (or plan to) so I know what I’m doing and when. Even though life happens and can throw the whole thing into a swirl of madness, I have this moment of calm and organization where I am confident I can handle things and change my weekly project plan on the fly if I need to. 

The best feeling is when your plans actually come into fruition. You’ve identified a goal, planned your project, met your deadlines and crossed the finish line. What a sense of accomplishment you get. Your organizational work has led you to this better place. You’re proud of yourself and that’s the best because typically, we’re harder on ourselves than anyone else ever would be.

Think about how you might participate in Getting Organized week. Think about the biggest thing that’s been bothering you – a good place to start. You may need more than a week of course to reach your goal, but it’s a jumping off point. I do this kind of work with my clients and believe me, getting focus, getting organized and getting started really is the hardest part and you don’t have to do it alone! 

Happy Getting Organized Week!!

J