So many women struggle with keeping up with everything going on in their busy lives. You may be keeping up but, can you say with confidence that you are organized? I’m going to walk you through 17 simple steps to get organized.
I struggle with a lot of things but being organized is what has made me successful at literally anything I wanted to accomplish. Coaching and teaching people how to get organized is one of my favorite things! I’m a nerd, it’s true. But I’m a fun nerd so that counts for something, right? Keep in mind this can apply to all facets of your life.
Save this post for later!
Disclaimer: Affiliate links are used on my website. If you purchase a product or service via my link I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I love, use and believe in. You can read my full disclosure here.
17 Simple Steps: How to Get Organized
Want to get organized at home? These steps will set you up for success! Looking to get organized at work? Yep, the very same tips work there too! The great thing about these strategies for success are that they work for literally any facet of your life!
Getting organized will allow you to meet your goals and do it with confidence! Stick with me. These totally work so save this post for later reference. I promise you will look back several times as you master the process of getting organized.
Have a healthy morning routine
Having a healthy morning routine for success is important to start your day off right. A simple morning routine can make all the difference in how much and how efficient you are throughout the day! This is a great way to get organized and set your day up for complete success.
Having a morning routine means going through a specific series of events and/or processes with intention before you start the rest of your day.
The major benefit of a morning routine is the impact that it has on your efficiency, productivity and outlook as you go through your day.
I wrote a whole post on morning routines and their benefits here! Pop over and check it out. The link will open on another page so you can keep reading this post!
Morning Routine For Success Post
The goal is to have a routine that you do every morning and it’s a commitment you are making to yourself. The difference you will feel after having done this for a while is amazing. Suddenly you will find yourself more energized, more positive and generally having a more refreshed outlook on your day.
Know how to set healthy boundaries
You may be thinking, “What in the world do relationships have to do with getting organized?” The answer is simple really. We all have “that friend” or “that family member” that constantly pulls you away from the things you either planned to do or know you should be doing.
Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not talking about people who annoy you. These are people that consistently bring you down.
I am a HUGE believer of helping those in need. I believe we are called to do just that. You were not called to be broken by others. That is not what you were designed to do.
Set healthy boundaries that allow you to help those close to you but be honest about where you are and surround yourself with people that support you. Keep in mind these people can exist anywhere! I have friends that I haven’t seen in YEARS that do just that.
It is critical to set healthy boundaries to get organized. If you don’t others will take advantage and tear your plans to shreds.
Organized women use lists to plan their day
Lists are the secret sauce to staying organized throughout your day! If you were to ask anyone that knows me I stay on top of all of my responsibilities with lists! If I don’t write something down the likelihood I forget it increases about 90%.
My favorite thing to do is make a to do list for the next day in the evening. You will find you rest better knowing that you have a plan for the day tomorrow. Not only that, you can wake up and get started (right after your morning routine).
Want to get organized? Lists are your secret weapon for kicking procrastination and frustration to the curb once and for all!
Prioritizing is key to being organized
Having a list is great but you have to prioritize what your most important things to accomplish in a day are. One of my favorite things to do is highlight the MOST IMPORTANT tasks I want to accomplish in a day are.
The feeling at the end of the day when you are able to SEE what you accomplished is amazing! Even better, when you are able to actually look at the fact that you completed things that are most important to you is SO POWERFUL.
Did you know that we have a tendency to spend over 80% of our time on things that matter least? It’s true! When you start making lists it becomes apparent very quickly what you spend your time doing.
Do you have kids or a significant other in your life? How much uninterrupted time do you dedicate to them? The same principle applies at work. Where are you spending your time?
Prioritizing your time, effort and attention is an important step to get organized.
Keep important paperwork neat and filed properly
This one is kind of self explanatory but it’s so easy to neglect. We have all been there… I will get to it later, right? Then when you need “it” you can’t find it?
There is nothing more frustrating than not having the important paperwork when you really need it.
If you are running a business there is no room for losing important paperwork. It can cost you a LOT of money and headaches when it comes to tax time!
At home, the same idea applies. I have a friend that was ready to scream because her daughter’s birth certificate was lost. Sure, you can request a new one but that takes time! Let’s just say that about two weeks of turning her house upside down revealed the birth certificate had accidentally ended up in a pile of newspaper clippings she was keeping for a memory book.
Have a system to file your paperwork folks. Save yourself the frustration and get organized before you find yourself in any of these situations.
Never procrastinate
Building off of the last step to get organized, this one is hard for a lot of people. Procrastination leaves you feeling like you didn’t accomplish something over and over until you finally do it!
Let’s try to approach this from a completely different perspective. Usually you avoid doing something for several different reasons. Some of these include; you really dislike doing (fill in the blank), you aren’t confident in your ability to (fill in the blank) or any number of reasons.
Putting that “thing” off is giving it more and more power over you.
One of the best ways to build your confidence is to never allow those things to have that kind of power over your time and mindset. If you want to get organized, stop procrastinating and take control of what you can control. Accept the things that you cannot.
Organized women delegate when possible
This one was REALLY hard for me to embrace for the longest! I am a type A personality through and through. Unfortunately one of the things that goes along with that is the belief that “I can do it”. While that is usually true, it doesn’t mean I should always be the person that does whatever needs to be done.
Think about it. Are there things you are doing that you don’t need to do? Someone else may be better suited for the task. The other possibility is that you might not have time to do what needs to be done.
Something else to consider is that you may be taking away someone else’s joy or sense of accomplishment by “doing it all”. To get organized, share the blessing of feeling the joy of success with others in your life!
Organized women schedule time to clean up their inbox daily
This step to get organized is more of a maintenance situation. Much like the things in your house your inbox can get completely cluttered. One of the simplest things to do when getting organized is to spend a few minutes each day cleaning up your inbox!
Create folders that make sense for your emails. Once you create the folders, maintaining it each day will only take a few minutes and everything you need will be right at your fingertips!
Set reminders and alarms to stay organized
If you are anything like me, getting completely caught up in what you are doing is SUPER easy to do. (Please tell me I’m not alone in this.)
To get organized, set alarms for things that are time sensitive. One of my favorite organization hacks is to set a reminder one day ahead of important tasks that I cannot forget AND one for 30 minutes prior to the task itself.
For things like birthdays, big presentations or big projects, set your alarm or reminder a week out and then the day before AND on the day of the event. This is a game-changer to get organized!
Everything has a home and gets put away
Ok, for the longest I thought this was just me. I am a bit of a neat freak. If something isn’t put away and I can’t find a home for it the likelihood of it staying in my house is pretty slim.
Having spent the majority of my work as a manager, leader or High School administrator there was always an expectation of a warm inviting office. Don’t get me wrong, my office was decorated but minimally. Clutter is a distraction from the things that you are dealing with right now. If you want to get organized, start putting things away right after you use them. Don’t allow anything to distract you from what you need to accomplish. Not only that, it feels GREAT to walk into a space and know that you don’t need to clean up or de-clutter. It is truly liberating.
Organized women finish one task before moving to another
Contrary to popular belief, multi-tasking is not productive at all. You can only do so much at one time. I used to think I was GREAT at multitasking. Then I did some research as part of a college course on the lack of productivity when multitasking. YIKES! Let’s just say it was not good.
I wrote a post that references multi-tasking and it’s complete lack of any real productivity before. Ladies, we have a tendency to think we can do it all! But we can’t.
To get organized, focus on one thing at a time. Give it the time it needs and schedule more time if you need it. Trying to do too much at once will only slow you down!
Goal oriented planning is a game changer
Using a to do list will improve your productivity and is a HUGE step to get organized. What it doesn’t do if used alone is make sure that you’re doing things that are aligned with your goals!
If you have ever looked back on a day, week or month and know you were so busy but you don’t feel any closer to your goals this is what you need to do. Really look at what you did and see how much of it actually related back to your goals.
I wrote extensively about this in Productivity Hacks: Work Smarter Not Harder. We all have goals. What isn’t natural or common is to revisit your goals as life changes. Definitely head over and read all about it HERE!
I’ve included my favorite productivity planner for free here. It makes all the difference when you want to get organized! The best part is, you get to do lists, a daily planner (two different formats), a weekly planner, monthly planner and more! Get yours here!
Have a system for decluttering at the end of each season
Whether you want to get organized at work or get organized at home this makes all the difference in the world. Don’t wait until the end of the year to de-clutter. If you do, it will feel overwhelming and you are more likely to avoid decluttering at all.
Feeling overwhelmed by the idea of getting started? Take one small section at a time. If you are organizing your home, pick a small space to get started. Maybe a cabinet or small closet. When you get one space done it will feel amazing and you will be motivated to do another.
Organizing a work space can be a little harder. There are probably things you have to have that you don’t necessarily want. Put the things you use most where they are accessible and the things you don’t need regularly away and out of sight. File cabinets, closed cabinets and bookcases are perfect for these items.
To get organized at home or at work just consider, “when is the last time I used this” when you pick it up. “Do I have to have it?” These will lead you down the right path.
Organized women recognize the value of self care
Ladies, this is something I am SO passionate about. You see, I learned the hard way that not taking care of yourself leads down a road you do not want to travel. There are no beaches or passports on that trip. Just frustration and complete exhaustion. I have written several posts on self care. I’ve listed them at the bottom of this section.
Often times we associate self care with weight and getting amazing massages at a luxurious spa. Don’t get me wrong, they play a part but a VERY small part of the bigger picture. Focusing on the technical side of the house there are eight main areas of self care. They are physical, psychological, emotional, social, professional, environmental, spiritual, and financial.
If you don’t do anything else on this list, definitely make some time to take care of yourself. How does self care relate to your ability to get organized? It’s easy, really. To be sure you can keep up the amazing things you do every day you have to focus on YOU.
Tips For Living A Fulfilled Life
73 Life-Changing Self Care Ideas Every Woman Should Try
Physical Self Care Routine Ideas For Women
Schedule Time To Show Gratitude
It doesn’t matter what you “do” every day when it comes to showing gratitude. People appreciate being thanked and it feels good to show gratitude to others. The important part of how this helps you get organized is you intentionally build in time to show gratitude.
This can literally be 5 minutes. Have some blank notecards and leave one when someone does something especially kind, helpful or if you know they accomplished something significant.
It is so easy to get caught up in being busy that you never take the time to thank those around you. This is such a simple thing but it makes a difference for you and for the receiver.
Intentionally seek out motivation
One of my FAVORITE things to do every week is the time I have scheduled for motivation. When you go from one task to another all day and repeat that over and over it is easy to lose sight of WHY you are doing everything. You need to be renewed too!
Try scheduling a different method of motivation each time you plan it. If you have a long commute to work, listen to a podcast with the distinct intention of motivating you. Maybe music is your thing (it is definitely mine). Create a playlist that motivates you. If you love watching things and seeing people’s faces, try watching a motivational video. There are quotes, posts, articles, books, you name it.
Organized women know that seeking out motivation doesn’t help them get organized but it definitely keeps them on track to stay organized.
Organized women use failure and mistakes to make positive change happen
If you want to get organized look at the lessons you have already learned. One of the things we do as women is beat ourselves up when we “fail”. This is my favorite quote about failure.
Girl, you are human. You are not Superwoman, even if you do have some of her traits. It is OK and dare I say, expected that you will fail. Remember that your mistakes and lessons learned are just setting you up for success in the future.
How boring would life be if we didn’t have the blessing of seeing the good things we do as a result of lessons learned? Get organized and write down what you have learned so far. Then celebrate those lessons!
Organized women are good listeners
One of the most important things to organize is your mind! Have you ever been having a conversation with someone and you are so passionate about the topic that you just jumped in and started sharing your perspective before they finished? I know I have!
It is hardest when you are passionate about the topic. Make a conscious decision to listen to what is being said. Show that you are listening and HEARING what they are saying with your non-verbal communication. A simple nod of the head or tilt says more than your words would. Briefly recap what you heard and THEN share your thoughts or perspective. ALL TOO OFTEN a response is given that doesn’t pertain to what the sender was looking for a response on in the first place.
Using active listening skills takes some practice but it is so worth it. For good communication and good connections with people, get organized in your mind during a conversation!
17 Simple Steps: How to Get Organized
So, to sum it all up there are a ton of ways to get organized. These seventeen ideas are used by organized women everywhere! Start and end your day feeling accomplished and feeling great about what you accomplished!
Save this post for later!
This post was all about how to get organized at home and how to get organized at work using skills and techniques of organized women that are highly successful!
Leave a Reply