To ask if it’s possible to become a tidy person

[JaneAustensPen]

I have spent my life struggling to become organised and tidy but I live in a constant whirl of lost tickets, missing items, desk overflowing with paperwork, always looking for keys, phone, bag. It’s stressful, anxiety inducing and expensive and I have tried endlessly to impose systems and strategies but nothing seems to stick. Has anyone successfully managed to change themselves into a tidy organised person when that doesn’t come naturally? (Name changes for this.)

Well on the back of this thread I have cleared two bags of clothes, one box of glasses and been through all my cds and DVD’s getting rid of three bin bags. I really hope this will have a positive impact on life.

I wonder how do people deal with clothes that you wear in the current week? Especially in colder seasons, things like various jumpers,cardigans,jeans that you don't wear next to your skin and rotate several cardis etc during the week?
You wouldn't fold them in drawers with freshly laundered / less frequently worn items, so in my case they go over the back of chairs, on top of chest of drawers in layers etc - nightmare for the look of my bedroom!
Would you hang them in wardrobe - but again it just feels like they may attarct moth as not just washed? or is that a silly notion, and that's what people do?

My second issue is paperwork - I have acheap shreder but I hate shredding, it's so slow and noisy! I also want and need to keep many bills. Some need dealing with but for whatever reason can't be domne quickly, so it all piles up.
I also can't bring myself to throw away things like vouchers that I MIGHT use, postal receipts for things I send via ebay, magazines with advice on health and travel. Ugh!

p.s. also hanging knitwear (esp proper woolen things) is supposed to be bad for the shape of the items.

Just bought the book / will read it but think I will also get someone to help me get over the line - don’t want family or friends as too personal - how do you find these people and how much do they cost? Might be worth even getting them back twice a year for a few hours to keep on top of it? Are there any MK consultants

Right, I'm inspired by this thread and my house is a tip because we've been so busy. Which Kondo book should I get? Is it the life changing magic of tidying one?

CatAndHisKit I have a coat hook rack screwed to the back of my door that I hang in use clothes on. You can get ones that go over the door too and don't need screws.

No it's not. We can learn coping strategies, but it will never be natural for us.
But we are more laid back, more creative and, so they say, better in bed.
So, you know, silver linings

“How to manage your home without losing your mind”by Dana K White - recommenced by a PP. I downloaded this yesterday, have read about half and started putting into action already. She’s funny, and very good at identifying the thought processes that lead to failure for people like me. She’s got some good tips about establishing simple habits that clearly make a big difference and a very simple approach to decluttering which is the reverse of everything I’ve ever tried and I can see it would work. As I’m too overwhelmed and have so much stuff to do full on Kondoing at the moment, Im going to start with this. Interestingly she’s had people clear out her stuff and organise her systems in the past for it all to Disintegrate into chaos again so this is about changing your mindset and embracing some different habits. I feel very optimistic!!

Can I give you a couple of hints? Put a small basket near your front door to drop your keys, bag, purse, gloves etc in to when you come in. Then get another basket, such as a washing basket, and tidy your downstairs area by dropping into it anything which is out of place. When the basket contains all the mess, put it somewhere you can't see it while you have a rest and a coffee and enjoy the tidy room. When you've recovered and finished your coffee, put everything away and then do the same upstairs. If you have children or other adults around, give them a deadline of a few hours to collect their own crap from the basket, after which time you put it in the bin.

When my kids were small we used to play the tidying up game. I'm retired now, but I still sometimes play it alone, as my husband doesn't get the concept of not getting bogged down with other things along the way. These are the rules: Everyone starts together in the living room. You pick up one thing and take it to its correct place and put it away. Then you pick something up from that room and do the same. When you get to a room that is tidy, you do one job in there, ie dust a windowsill or make a bed. I like this game as it makes housework less boring, and believe it or not, the children loved it!

It is possible. It has taken me the best part of 40 yrs, but it is possible!

I do a certain amount of the Marie Kondo method like the folding (really makes a difference).

I also have a place for everything and everything goes back in its place at the end of the day. Most stuff has a box or basket it lives in.
Sorting everything out takes an absolute age, but once you're on top of it it only takes ten mins at the end of the day to keep on top of. Same for my daughter, she has to have a two min tidy up before bed.

One of my best tips is keeping a few spare small baskets around. If something doesn't have a place then it will temporarily live in a basket - for instance I have some stuff to give my mum so instead of it lying around it's neatly in a little basket by the front door. And over the weekend my daughter was doing some craft stuff so before bed on Saturday she put it all in a basket, tidied up the rubbish and then on Sunday she had everything she needed to continue handy in the basket.

Yay! Glad you’re enjoying, OP!

This is great thread for me too. Thank you.

When I first went back to work nearly two years ago I started relying on a calendar as a memory aid. It has definitely helped me remember most things. Color coding also helps.
I use boxes to keep items in. All boxes are clearly labelled. How much does it cost to buy? I might also check her out on Netflix if I have a spare minute. What is the name of her show?

When I went to university i was diagnosed as dyslexic and I worked with an amazing woman who helped me create organisational techniques that worked with my brain. It made so much difference to me.
So for example I NEED a visual calendar, the one in my phone doesn’t work because it’s not all laid out in front of me, I can’t really visualise how close something is unless I can see it.
A Dodo calendar works really well for me.

I'm naturally a disorganised person if I let myself, but some things I have made myself do really help to keep it all tidy - first off keys (always in a little dish in the hall), phone is always on my desk if I'm at home, I have made a huge effort to make sure absolutely everything has a home, preferably out of sight, and keep it there. I try to never leave a room empty handed - it's amazing how such a simple trick has multiple things put away at the end of the day! Paperwork I have managed to get sorted. I use those plastic clear folders that are open on two sides, each topic in a separate one with an address label to write on (eg car insurance, Telephone, School) . I file those in wooden box files from Ikea (each labelled, eg Car, Utilities, Kids etc). Any that are needing action on my desk in a neat pile of them. Anything to be filed goes into a pretty box with a lid that is on the shelves by my desk to be filed once a week. I use a page a day diary that I keep on my desk with to-dos on it, and I tick them if done or put an arrow to show carried to the next day. A washing basket in each bedroom, then as soon as it is out of the dryer I fold it and put it all away (anything that might need ironing I hang up in the laundry to dry on the hanger, so that only bedding and shirts mostly need doing). Also I use the Organised Mum method for referring which rooms to do on which days. That helps loads. Oh, and a nice square laundry basket in the spare room I use to put items for the charity shop in - as soon as I recognise it's no longer useful, in it goes then I do a drop at the shop once full.

Love this thread. Lots of useful tips