Being an organized person has its perks. The things that I go on doing naturally and as a matter of habit might look like a lot of effort for someone else. Once I realized that I felt I needed to list down some basic things that we can seamlessly make a part of our routine. Now I wanted to talk about so many things but decided to list down a few that had the most impact on my life.
I have heard this saying so many times: “you need to do something regularly for 21 days to make it a habit and a part of your routine. So, let me list down the top 3 habits that can help you stay organized.
Habit 1:
Fix it immediately if u see it amiss.
In India if we are living in a joint family or if we have house helps and cooks who are working around the house, things get placed a little here and there. Also, if we are in a hurry, we just put things randomly instead of putting them properly in their space.
Now I like my things the way I have arranged and so whenever I open a wardrobe or kitchen drawer and see something amiss, I just straighten it up. It hardly takes two minutes to do it and arrange back things. If I open my kids’ wardrobe and see that shirt is not kept in its place or a dress is hung the wrong way, I immediately set it straight. When you think about it, it might not look like a big deal but adapting this as a simple habit can make a lot of difference. A lot of us keep procrastinating and the end result is the place getting messier.
Organizing is a continuous process and so we need to keep at it on an everyday basis
Habit 2:
Finish before you start a new project
Now it might feel like this is easy, this is natural and of course, I do it. But if you monitor closely, you will realize there are so many things that we leave unfinished – Like wiping the counter immediately after cooking or putting away the laundry after folding them. We finish step 1 of the process but don’t finish it completely. If you decide on cleaning one particular space on one day, make sure you finish it 100% and not leave it at 80%. Trust me that 20% will never happen and makes a lot of difference. On the other hand, if we finish 100% of the task, we will have one less thing to worry about in our heads. We keep on thinking it will only take 15 minutes, I will do it later. But that later never happens. So, finish what you start.
Habit 3:
Try to make it a family affair
So, you keep organizing, but everyone in the family just keeps messing it up. Make tidying a family affair. Like I set aside 15 minutes every evening before dinner to return things back to their place/ room and tidy up the entire space. As a family of four, we work together on most days to do this and it gets done so fast. Another thing is everyone gets in the habit of keeping the house tidy. It’s a family activity that ensures the work gets done in no time and everyone feels responsible for maintaining and organizing the house.
The kids definitely like to do things if you do it with them instead of being told what to do. There are days when I am busy with some extra work and still the rest of the members know what to do and where things go. They also know that everything in the house has a place so it’s easier for them to look for things when needed instead of searching or asking others.
Adopt these simple habits as a part of your routine and see the difference it creates in your lives.
