A lot of people misunderstand what it means to be organized, so I thought that I would write about what it means to me.

WHAT DOES BEING ORGANIZED MEAN?
Never straighten-up again!

Many people misconstrue what being organized means … in fact, most people think of it as part of the “straightening up” process.

From our perspective, being organized means much more than just making things appear to be organized once in a while. It means having a system in place so that you never need to “straighten up.”

A well-thought-out system means that every piece of paper and every item on your desk, in your drawers, and in all of your living and working spaces has an assigned home. If you apply your organizing system to your everyday routine, then you will find that you never need to straighten up again!

Here are some ideas to help you get a system started:

1. Determine your general organizing needs, and establish a filing system that takes into account your daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual tasks. (e.g. bills, taxes, etc.)

2. Open and manage your mail every day. Either file or trash everything that comes in. This also applies to your e-mail inbox!

3. Have an assigned spot for everything, and return everything to its spot as soon as you are finished using it.

4. Don’t ignore your habits in the organizing process – manage them. For example, if you always drop your keys somewhere near the front door when you walk in (and then can’t find them the next time you need them), put a hook in the wall immediately inside your door and hang your keys there every time you walk in.

Establishing an organizing system either at home or at work will save you hours of frustration and make your life more enjoyable.