Looking for a quick win that will help you feel more organized TODAY?
Many of my clients find an increase in motivation when they take just a small simple action that gets their organization started. What works to get you motivated is different for everyone, but if you’re one of those people who find that the simple act of tying up your running shoes gets you closer to the door, this blog is for you!
Pro-Tip: I recommend printing out this blog and using it as a checklist to go through your home and spaces with. And of course, recycle the printed copy when you are done.
12 Things You Can Toss to Feel More Organized TODAY
- The magazines stacked up on your coffee table. If you haven’t read that National Geographic article from 2018 yet, chances are you aren’t going to. You can safely toss these in the recycling bin!
- Extra water bottles and “swag” from conferences and expos. That free stress ball from your insurance company is probably causing more stress than it’s relieving. And you don’t need ten water bottles sitting in your cupboards unless you somehow use them all every day! Also, check to make sure the water bottles you have are functional and don’t leak. Any you decide to get rid of can be recycled or donated.
- That tangled mess of cords. If you still own it, I’m willing to be that your VHS player from 1989 probably isn’t being used that much anymore. It’s also more than likely that the cord that goes to it isn’t getting much airtime either. Many of us have a plethora of cords that charge old cell phones, out-of-date devices, and broken electronics. Here’s your permission to purge any cords that go to devices that are broken, lost, or obsolete. Many Best Buy stores will take these back for recycling.
- Expired or stale food. Check your freezer, pantry, and refrigerator for freezer burnt, stale, out-of-date foods. Check the expiration dates and best if used by dates so you can toss anything that is taking up real estate past its shelf life. You can also include condiment packages like ketchup, mustard, mayo, and soy sauce that you haven’t touched in a year or more. Reminder: do not donate old, stale, or expired items to food banks, just throw them away. Anything that’s still good, but you won’t cook and use, you can donate.
- Old cosmetics, hair products, and nail polish. Free samples, a tube of lipstick that’s a year past its prime, and mascara that’s empty but you keep it around anyway, you can safely toss all of it. Check your nail polish bottles and throw away any that aren’t salvageable. Old and expired makeup can be a breeding ground for bacteria, so make sure to go through yours and get rid of anything that might cause you harm or make you sick. You can also toss that lotion that irritates your skin and the face cream that smells like a bottle of perfume.
- Damaged clothing items you don’t plan on repairing. This extends to everything from shoes, belts, zippers, and items that are ripped, stained, or unwearable. Unless you’re going to remedy the problem with these pieces, throw these items away, and don’t look back! Better yet if you have a fabric recycling box nearby they will take them. If you have clothing that doesn’t fit and you don’t plan to bring it to a tailor or get it altered so it does, donate it, consign it, or hand it down to someone who will get some use out of it.
- Old credit cards and used gift cards. Be honest, how many empty gift cards are sitting in your wallet right now? Or punch cards to places you went once while on vacation and will never visit again? You can safely toss (and in some cases shred) old credit cards, outdated and used gift cards, and punch cards that you’ll never fill.
- Arts and crafts materials that are dried up. Markers, pens, paint, glue, a glitter creation that got stuck between two pieces of construction paper and cannot be pried apart… you can dispose of all this. Make sure to check that you’re properly disposing of anything toxic or harmful like paint and glue.
- Grocery bags. Chances are, you have oodles of grocery store bags sitting in a closet somewhere. You use some of them for your bathroom and office trash can, but you don’t need bags of bags sitting around, cluttering up your space. Pare back your shopping bags, and if you don’t have them already, consider investing in reusable shopping bags so you can avoid accumulating more plastic.
- Books. I’m not talking about just any books here! I’m talking about the books you own but will never read, or that just cause you stress to still be hanging onto: fad diet books, how to get organized books, cookbooks you never use, etc. I’ve even heard an entrepreneur who went out of business decide to get rid of all the books she had about marketing, social media, and revenue, as it was causing her stress to keep them on hand and be reminded of her, failed business. You can pass along or donate books you’ve read and loved or want to get rid of altogether. Some libraries will take them to use at book sales.
- Expired medicines and supplements. The medicine cabinet can be a dangerous place if it’s full of expired medications or remedies. It can also be a source of clutter if you’ve just accumulated an array of supplements and powders you’re never going to consume and the sleepytime herb that never ended up doing the trick for you. Make sure to discard expired medicine safely.
- Games with missing pieces or that your kids have outgrown. Take a quick pass-through in your game closet and pull out games that are missing pieces (that you don’t intend to replace), or that Hungry Hippo game your kids played five years ago and won’t ever play again. You can throw away or recycle parts of games that aren’t complete and donate the rest!
I’m willing to be that you’ll feel so much better having gone through this list of twelve things. It will probably even inspire you to toss even more while you’re at it, so if that’s you… don’t let me stop you!
Happy organizing! Here’s to your peace, productivity, and prosperity.
Looking for more support?
I invite you to book your FREE call with me where we’ll have a non-sales chat where you can share your challenges and I’ll offer strategies to jumpstart YOUR organizing journey.
Also, learn more about my Sensibly Organized Membership where you can get your decluttering and organizing questions answered and the option for group coaching, strategy and accountability.
