Do you feel like you’re outgrowing your Chicago home? The actual square footage of your house may not be the issue – you may just need to get organized. With the stress and chaos of everyday life, home organization tends to fall by the wayside; surfaces get cluttered, closets and storage spaces are a mess, and the thought of tackling the clutter seems unimaginable. In all actuality, organizing your home will reduce the stress and the chaos, leaving you with a space you enjoy and can relax in. Here are a few tips to get you started.

Don’t Rush It

Assuming that you can get your house completely organized in a day tends to be unrealistic and will end up leaving you frustrated. Set a practical and attainable schedule to organize each room by marking it on your calendar as a goal for you to achieve. For example, mark Saturday as the day to organize the kitchen, as this is an attainable goal with a realistic time frame to achieve it.  Get started in the morning and you’ll be excited to cook when it comes time for dinner. Once that room is done, set your next goal. 

Go Room by Room

More than likely, some of the areas of your home are more in need of organization than others, so determine which of the rooms are priority and start there. If you find items in that room that belong elsewhere, simply move that item into the room in which it belongs and return to the room that is the priority. You want to avoid getting sidetracked and off focus so don’t feel the need to find the perfect spot for the item – simply return to your area of focus.

Deciding What to Keep

Diving into an organizational project is also the perfect time to weed out the belongings you no longer need, want, or use. Be selective about the items you choose to keep – does it have sentimental value? Does it have financial value? Do you use it on a regular basis? Also determine if you can downsize the items you are keeping. For example, you may have two years’ worth of cooking magazines, but do you really think you will make all of the recipes they include? Probably not, so scan the recipes you like and go ahead and recycle the magazines. 

Everything Should Have a Place

The key to getting and staying organized is that everything should have its place, allowing you to put your belongings away quickly and easily. If you find that you don’t have the actual storage to house everything, add some. Utilize your wall space by adding shelving, utilize the space under your coffee table by adding some baskets, and utilize your extra floor space with an organizational cart. You don’t necessarily need to change to a minimalist lifestyle to be organized; you just need to have a home within your home for your belongings.

Have Fun

Just because you’re tackling a chore doesn’t mean you can’t have fun in the process. Crank up some music to get you motivated, peruse through your photo albums as you clean, try on the clothes in the back of your closet, or rearrange the furniture to make your home feel fresh. You’ve already set your goal and allotted yourself a realistic time frame, so it’s okay to use some of that time to reminisce, sing, and have fun. All of the aforementioned are stress relievers and can make the process a lot less taxing. Also be sure to reward yourself with a nice meal or relaxing bath once you’ve gotten the job done. You worked hard, celebrate your accomplishments.

An organized and comfortable home minimizes your everyday stress. Once you take the plunge and delve into your organizational overhaul, it’s simply upkeep from there on.