Sharpen Up

5 ways to be more organised

So you’re not the neatest person that ever lived. Don’t worry, you can learn.

 

They say it takes 30 days to change a habit – if you can be organized consistently for a whole month, you should have your messiness licked. But if you don’t even know where to start, here are some handy pointers to help you tackle the hardest parts of organisation 101:

 

1. File it! 

Papers, documents, mail and pamphlets are by far the biggest culprits when it comes to organisation. After all, you are constantly bombarded with more and more of it: mail, shopping catalogues, your phone notes, printed reports, bills... it just keeps turning up. 

 

You need a filing system. Invest in a filing cabinet for long-term documents you need to hold onto, a desktop filer to place papers you need readily available and an in-tray.

 

The in-tray is where all papers that enter your house make their first stop. It should be cleared at the end of each day to either the filing cabinet, your desktop filing system or the bin. 

 

2. Books

So you’re a bookworm? Got them stacked all over the house? Worried they’re going to topple over and kill the cat one day?

 

To organise your books, start by culling the books you’re not all that enchanted with and give them to your local op-shop. 

 

Then you need to spend some time sorting what’s left. If you need more shelves, go ahead and buy some and then fill them up. You don’t need to follow the Dewey system. You’re going to be pretty safe just collecting them into their genres – keep the cookbooks in the kitchen, the coffee table books in the lounge and the books you’re reading now by your bed.

 

3. Time management

There are only 24 hours in every day. Make them count.

 

First, identify your big time wasters. Surfing blogs? Facebook? Email? Whatever it is, limit your access to that into timed blocks.

 

Start every day with planning, and prioritize your tasks. Be realistic about how much you can fit in. Find out what you can delegate or outsource to help save you extra time. 

 

4. Get the right equipment

No one ever did their job well without having the right equipment handy. Stationery is a godsend for helping you stay organised.

 

You will need any and all of the following: a notebook for keeping notes, so you don’t end up writing on a gajillion scraps of paper and trying to keep track; a desktop or wall calendar to plan out your weeks; a daily to-do list and coloured pens to help you divide your work tasks up. 

 

5. Treat yourself

If you can organise your systems and stick to them, you deserve a reward. Use positive reinforcement to keep you on track while you learn this new skill. Pop a Freddo at the bottom of your in-tray and enjoy it once you’ve cleared your papers, or give yourself 10 guilt-free minutes of Facebook time after you’ve spent a productive hour doing your tax.

 

Being organised takes some time upfront, but once you become accustomed to your new routines, it will free up your mind and your time for more important things.