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Blog: The Simplified Home
 Break the "I'll just put this here for now" clutter habit
Much of the time, clutter around the home is caused by family members being too busy or careless to put things away after using them. Adults may say to themselves as they set purses, keys, shoes, mail or other personal items down "I'll just put this here for now", and pretty soon big piles and clutter results. Kids often leave out their toys, school supplies or other personal items lying around underfoot. One easy way to reduce clutter in your home is to remember to never leave a room empty-handed. You can teach this to kids too by providing them with a basket to throw things in, then carry to their rooms at the end of the day. Encourage your family to be responsible for their belongings by taking the time to put them where they go when they're finished with them and not bring anything else out until they do.
As a professional Organizer, I've trained myself to do this little trick in my own home, but also when I am working in a client's home. If I am taking items to another space to put away, I look around for an item that does not belong and I carry that item back to where I started. For example, I often see clothing and shoes laying around in cluttered homes. It's so easy to just kick off your shoes where you light or peal off a jacket and leave it over a chair. Before long a pile has developed along with a bad habit. But leaving these items there is just delaying the inevitable and the more you succumb to this bad habit, the pile grows and creates a bigger clean up job. Instead, never leave a room empty handed. As you move around your home for various reasons, like going to the kitchen, to the restroom, to your closet to get shoes before leaving the house, pick up a misplaced item and carry it with you and drop it off during your trip. Before leaving that space, pick up another misplaced item and carry it with you and drop it off where it goes. Train yourself and your family to think this way and before you know it, you'll have devoted time to clutter control without even realizing it! It takes minimal effort and it's less work later on for all.
posted on: 10/13/2008 10:00:00 AM by Janet Nusbaum, The Organizing Genie
category: Homes
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The Simplified Home
by Janet Nusbaum, The Organizing Genie
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About Janet:
Janet Nusbaum creates calm out of chaos, and loves bringing serenity and order to overwhelmed households, cluttered offices, frazzled parents, and transitioning seniors and families. Janet, President of Simplified Spaces & The Simplified Home, is an Organizing Consultant, Senior Move Manager, Author and Speaker.
She is the author of "Mom, Can I Help Around the House?" A Simple, Step-by-Step System for Teaching Your Children Life-Long Skills for Pitching-In & Picking-up".
She is a proud member: National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) & National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization (NSGCD)
Visit our blog - www.TheOrganizingGenie.com, and sign-up to receive our special report "SHELF LIFE OF 75 COMMON HOUSEHOLD ITEMS. Use this report to decide what to keep and what to toss ... then TAKE ACTION!!
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