After Beverly LaZar got divorced and began contemplating a move, she evaluated what she wanted to bring with her. LaZar, 54, had lived in Cedar Crest, New Mexico, for 24 years and realized that his family had “accumulated a lot of things. Much of it was stored in boxes in their garage, they barely looked at it. As you get ready to start the organizing process, it's helpful to have a system that you can use to clean and reorganize.
A very simple and straightforward option is the “four box method”. With four storage boxes or containers, you can streamline your organizing work. Here's how just four boxes can make tackling a messy room a breeze. The process of reviewing forgotten clothes, shoes, and other belongings doesn't just clean your house.
Over the course of a year, when you wear or put an item on, place it back in the opposite direction from the others. You decide if you decide to donate, sell, or throw the items in the trash, but every day the possessions must be out of your house before midnight. This cleaning method encourages you to use all the clothes in your drawers instead of using the same thing over and over again. If most of your work-related documents are digital, spend some time organizing and cleaning them as well.
Cleaning is already quite a chore, but having to clean things that you don't have any emotional attachments (or, worse, that you don't actively like) makes cleaning the house much more stressful. Clutter in the home is an inevitable side effect of a life well lived, but tidying up can be a breath of fresh air for your home and family. With less debt, more financial freedom, and a clean home, you can now focus your energy on the things you enjoy instead of worrying about “keeping up with others.” There's nothing wrong with enjoying your home decor, but having too many ornaments in the living room can make it difficult to use space and also make it difficult to clean. No matter what cleaning tip you choose to start with, whether it's one of these ten or one of many others, the goal is to take the first step in tidying up your life with the emotion behind it.
