Your space, our space, then storage space

Organize what you can control first

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.
Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Today's tip is about the order in which you should
organize your household spaces. Start with any spaces that are

(00:25):
just yours. Then you can address common areas with storage
spaces pretty far down the list. Today's tip, like another
this week, comes from Lisa Woodruff, who is the owner
of the Organized three company. Lisa helps people get their
homes in order, with a particular focus on those who

(00:47):
may have organizational challenges. Anyway, Lisa has many folks coming
to her with the complaint that they need to get organized.
They often point to an overflowing attic or basement or
guest room as an example of their problems. They want
to tackle this ridiculous looking space with the boxes teetering

(01:08):
on top of each other and the Christmas lights wrapped
up somewhere around the old vacuum cleaner. Lisa, however, does
not want to start in your attic. People often think
of storage spaces first when considering tackling an organization project,
she notes in her company's publication The State of Home

(01:30):
Organization in twenty one Century America. But in reality, these
spaces should be tackled. Last, The fact that these spaces
are not accessed frequently suggests that other spaces in the
home should be prioritized. In other words, you deal with

(01:50):
your bathroom counter and your own purse or backpack or briefcase,
or the place where you take off your shoes in
your house every single day. As long as you know
where your birth certificates and car ownership information is, which
we talked about in an earlier episode, then your messy
basement just isn't that pressing of an issue. If stuff

(02:14):
has been in boxes for five years, it can stay
in boxes for a few more months, So it is
best to start elsewhere. Lisa suggests starting with your own
personal spaces. These are spaces that are owned by a
single person. Think your own section of a closet, your

(02:36):
bathroom supplies, your car, your purse or wallet or backpack,
your own bedroom if you don't share one, or at
least your side of the bedroom. If you do, why
start there, well, because you can. Individuals often have a
high degree of autonomy and independence in creating and maintaining

(02:58):
organization systems in these areas. Her report notes these locations
are unlikely to be disturbed by other family members. They
create a home base from which to launch into our day.
These spaces are often a sanctuary to return to after
the chaos of the day, So tackle your space first.

(03:23):
Once that's done and you know where things are that
you need, you can move on to common areas. Now
it's important to have somewhat more limited ambitions. Here. You
can organize, but you need other folks to buy into
your organization. Lisa suggests that any organization systems here be

(03:44):
extremely functional and easy to maintain, and don't expect them
to last forever. The system to corral little kid toys
in your living room won't work once you have teens
who have electronic gear. Finally, you can move on to
storage spaces. Just do your best to group similar items

(04:06):
and don't create too precious of a system. After all,
you won't be the only person going in here and
accessing things, and these spaces will easily become a dumping ground.
There is probably going to be a big other category here,
but done is always better than perfect, And remember when

(04:28):
you get overwhelmed by the attic, you can always go
look at your own cleaned up closet and bathroom counter
and feel better about life because it's better to know
where your shoes are then where that special decorative bull
you put candy in each Halloween happens to be, particularly
if it's June. In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks

(04:53):
for listening, and here's to making the most of our time. Hey, everybody,
I'd love to hear from you. You can send me
your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with
me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod

(05:16):
that's b E the number four, then Breakfast p o D.
You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast
podcast at i heeart media dot com that Before Breakfast
is spelled out with all the letters. Thanks so much,
I look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is

(05:38):
a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from
my heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.