Challenges are a big motivator for people these days, especially at gyms and fitness studios. They usually consist of a month of activities to do (or avoid) and end with a reward for the person who ticks the most boxes during the challenge period. I thought I’d create an organizing challenge –let’s call it the House in Order Winter Challenge. However, the only reward I can offer is that on February 1 you will end up feeling virtuous and organized!
The challenge occurs over the short but interminably chilly, days of the year, December 1 to February 1. Create a chart with the daily, weekly and monthly challenge activities. Here’s the dailies:
Get up a half hour earlier than you normally would clear the decks for the day with one of the following: meditate 5 to 20 minutes or journal one to three pages or read something uplifting be it the Tao Te Ching, John Muir’s nature writings, Mary Oliver poetry or whatever turns you on.
Make your bed.
Feeling good is the foundation for being organized. Commit to one new healthy habit during the challenge. Pick one of the following to focus on: floss to prevent gum disease, drink a big glass of water first thing in the morning, use a dry brush on your skin, walk for 20 minutes, stretch or choose another healthy habit you want to add to your routine.
Put your handbag or wallet and keys in the same place every day.
Clean out the car at the end of each day and put everything in its proper place.
Go to bed a half hour earlier than usual (if you’re a night owl) or a half hour later (if you’re an extreme early bird in bed by 8:30pm).
On a weekly basis, challenge yourself to:
File anything that needs filing.
Get your physical and e-mail in-boxes to zero, meaning process every item. Is it actionable? Is it trash or recycling? Is it something you are waiting for that needs to be checked on? Does it need to be filed? Does it need to be paid? Does it simply need to be read? Does it require a response? Figure it out and process accordingly one item at a time.
Go through at least one file folder and purge though it.
Go through at least one drawer, empty it, vacuum it out, and then purge through the contents and organize as you put things back. Even if you are organized, you will be amazed at how crumbs, dust and weird stuff we forgot we had accumulates quietly in drawers.
Once each month tackle a larger organizing project.
Ideas for December: Purge through and organize your party clothes; purge through and organize your holiday decorations, create your most organized shopping list ever and finish gift shopping early, organize the kitchen pantry to make holiday cooking easier and more fun, noting ingredients you need to buy along the way as you may realize that special flour you require for a recipe expired during the pandemic.
Ideas for January: Purge through and organize your workout clothes as you prepare to get in shape after the holidays; organize your kitchen cupboards as you may have realized during holiday cooking that there are certain items you never, ever use; delete social media for one month and mentally detox (let your friends know you are taking that break); go through all of your online subscriptions and make sure you still like and use the services; try a “no new purchases” month and use only what you already own for one month—this might even include eating through what is already in the freezer and pantry and only buying the necessary fresh produce to supplement the packaged and frozen foods.
Challenge yourself to use the last month of 2024 and the first month of 2025 to up your organizing game. Let me know how you do! You can e-mail me at angela@houseinorder.com