It is everywhere, on Pinterest, Blogs, TV shows, Books, everyone is talking about decluttering and organizing, tidying up like the Japanese guru but a lot of people are confused on what exactly these words mean, or they mistake one for the other. As a Professional Organizer I get people contacting me to help them declutter and organize, which can be intense experiences but very rewarding in the end, but sometimes during our phone call consultations I realize what they mean is TIDYING UP. I hear things like “I have piles of laundry to put away” or “my living room is overrun with toys that no one puts away” these are TIDYING UP tasks. If you already have a place to put them in but lack the time to do so, and you don’t intend to get rid of anything, there is no decision making process needed, and TIDYING UP is all that is required. As a Professional Organizer I sometimes do that, these sessions are called Maintenance or Reset sessions. Many clients with busy work and family schedules, after the initial Decluttering and Organizing use my services to Maintain the organization systems we put in place. So here is a brief explanations of what these terms mean. TIDYING UP: to make a place or a collections of things tidy. When you tidy up you put things back in their proper places so that everything is neat. SYNONYMS: clean up, neaten, straighten out. Tidying up is not ORGANIZING. Your belongings already have a home, and there is no need to rehome them or find the right place for them. They just need to be put back where they BELONG. Tidying is what you do at night after dinner and before you head to bed. You straighten up the pillows on the couch, remove drinkware from the coffee table, pick up toys and put them away etc. so that your living room looks TIDY, and everything that does not belong there is put back in it’s proper place. In short it is a RESET, where everything returns home ready to be used the next day. Some professional Organizers offer this service, some call it Maintenance session, some call it a Reset and that is basically what it does it resets the area/room back to an organized state. This assuming you have worked with the Organizer in creating the systems that will keep you organized, in the first place. DECLUTTERING: to remove unnecessary items from an overcrowded place/area, in order to make it more pleasant and more useful. SYNONYMS: dejunk Decluttering is not ORGANIZING or TIDYING UP. Decluttering involves decisions making, when you declutter you “remove” things that you no longer want/like or use from an area or room. You will have to decide if you will trash (what is broken) keep (what you are still using or like) or recycle/donate (you no longer want it but it is still works). In some cases the items you will keep will be re-homed somewhere else where they are more accessible or will make life easier for you. ORGANIZING: to arrange something according to a particular system, to form into a cohesive unity or functioning whole, to set up a structure. SYNONYMS: systematize, methodize We are not all organized by nature, some will struggle with this more than others but we can all benefit from an organized environment, be it home or work. Organizing is NOT DECLUTTERING or TIDYING UP, organizing involves setting up systems and creating routines and habits that will be the base for becoming and staying organized. The scope of organizing is to make things functional, eye pleasing and make your life easier. Once you are organized and have your systems and routines in place, you will be able to TIDY UP at the end of the day in a matter of minutes. Now that you have a clearer idea of what each word means, and what it can do for you, how will you put it to work? Let me know if there is anything else I did not cover and that you would like me to add. |
AuthorHello, my name is Vicky and I am a Professional Organizer in NYC. I am passionate about anything related to organizing and most of all I fully believe in the benefits of it. Archives
January 2024
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