The role of decluttering and organizing a home traditionally fell on the shoulders of the wife because she stayed at home longer while the husband eked out a living. At present, however, these roles have become blurred, for many contemporary moms are now working. Therefore, the task of organizing and decluttering the house becomes every family member’s business.

Home Management Isn’t Easy!

Organizing and cleaning the house may look easy, but it isn’t — especially if you have kids who, like juggernauts, waylay everything in their path. In the late morning, after your kids have gone to school, your house is often left in chaos, and then you start cleaning and restore order in your house. But when the kids arrive from school, things go back to chaos.

But it’s not this seesawing between chaos and order that makes organizing and decluttering difficult. It is the new things that accumulate inside your house that readily add to the ever-increasing clutter within your home. With stacks of these new things piling up inside your home, organizing and decluttering become doubly difficult. If, however, you still find your home overwhelmed with clutter — even after organizing and re-arranging your home — it may be time to rethink your decluttering strategy. Here are some simple tips that you can take heed of to effectively declutter your home:

  1. Plan your every action! Don’t rush, don’t be impulsive when buying. Think of what you need and not what you want. Do not start a project before thoroughly thinking about it, and don’t buy organizing products without sizing up what you need to organize.
  2. Try to put everything in its proper place. A shoe rack is useless if shoes are just left anywhere. Make sure that everybody inside your home knows that there is a proper place for everything.
  3. Dispose of your unwanted items. Donate whatever things (clothing, shoes or toys) that you don’t need to charity. Sell your old, unused appliances or clothing at a yard or garage sale. Stop keeping things you don’t need or use just because they have sentimental value.
  4. Rent a self storage unit for things you want to do away with but can’t live without! This may be an expensive and ridiculous proposition. But if you don’t want your house extended for your own storage, then self-storage may be a viable option.
  5. Create your own system of organizing things. Label your desk organizers for their use. Designate a hole for bills, mail, newspapers, magazines, etc., and then educate your kids about it. Take them over and educate them about tidiness at home. Do a habit-forming policy for everyone in your home.
  6. Do not “own” every available household chore or task. Designate!  
  7. Stop buying things for their looks or price, for they would only add to the heap of clutter.
  8. Try to reclaim every unused space in your home for storage purposes. The space under your bed, for example, is a perfect place for keeping unused mattresses, comforters and pillows. Make use of every available space inside the cabinet. Install hooks inside the cabinet doors for hanging neckties, belts, and other accessories.

Keeping a home organized is definitely not just the task of moms. It is every family member’s task and should be a collaborative effort among family members. This idea should be ingrained in the minds of your kids, for a house can only be called a home if there is a collaborative effort to make it a home.