Many of us felt like we lost control back in March when the Pandemic was declared and we self-quarantined. This may have led to finding control where we could. Some of us started feverishly cleaning and organizing our homes. We set up our home offices for working from home and set up our kitchen tables/makeshift desks for our kids to study from home. Now that summer is almost over, have you lost that “organizing feeling?”
Why did that happen? Well, after making office/classroom adjustments to our home, summer began, and kids abandoned their makeshift desks and we planned our staycations and headed outdoors, as best as we could.
Now that the school year is around the corner, with most kids spending at least some of the week distance learning, and as adults who have been working from home prepare to spend at least a few more months telecommuting, August is a good time to get your house in order. This can empower you and your family to take control of your immediate surroundings; ideally, it will increase productivity, lower stress levels, and save money.
BE MORE PRODUCTIVE
The new school year during the Pandemic will be stressful for us all. But it is our children who need the most to feel control over their lives. Let’s empower them and give them control by including them in setting up their “virtual classrooms” and their rooms so they can feel productive, comfortable and involved. No matter their age, kids want to have input on their rooms and belongings. Give them choices for what they want to keep and give away. Some children will want to help their community and donate items, while others may want to store some items, perhaps in a “Time-Capsule” box to capture their special memories.
Similarly, this will be our opportunity to declutter our home office space, such as dedicating a spot for work notes and papers, organizing office supplies, and possibly even trying to tidy up and put stuff away each night. As remote workers we are having difficulty “turning off work.” Having a system to file our papers and shutting d
LOWER STRESS LEVELS
Completing an organizing project gives you a sense of accomplishment. Both activities are empowering. Having less “stuff” has its advantages, such as, less to keep track of, clean, and organize. Organizing your closet will not only give you a sense of peacefulness when you open your closet doors to see everything in its place but will save you time choosing an outfit each morning and not buy duplicates.
SAVE MONEY
Shopping smarter means not buying more of what you already have. This happens with cloths, office supplies, kitchen gadgets, books, toys, and tools. If everything has a place and you know where to find an item, determining what you really need—as opposed to what you want will help you with your shopping habits. As everyone is dealing with the fallout from a changing economy amid the pandemic, one thing we can control is how we spend our money.
Those of us with the flexibility to work from home do not need the same “work wardrobe” — and kids may not need the same school wardrobe. If you’ve organized your family’s closets and cleaned them out before school starts, remember that you probably do not need to fill them right back up again. You can save money and reduce clutter by thinking about what you and your family really need for remote work and school, and only purchasing those things.
Some of us may think that having an organized home is not a priority now. However, those feelings of fear, loss, dread, nostalgia, isolation and lack of normalcy can be replaced with hope, clarity, accomplishment, belonging, cooperation and control, if we organize our spaces, our lives and fall in love with our homes all over again.
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