Organization 101

I HATE it when I can't find things.  Just ask Patrick.  When I start looking for something that has been misplaced, he almost gets a scared look on his face because he knows it's the one thing that will send me completely around the bend with rage.  Considering that I feel that way, you'd think I was organized, wouldn't you?  But no...
So, in an effort to end the chaos that has become my life (ie. the laundry room pre-organization) and unbury myself from piles of junk, I have been reading some organization books.  Part of my problem is that I just don't know where to begin.  I want the "perfect" system...and I worry that I will "do it wrong"...

These are the books I have been reading... And here are a few gems I have picked up that hopefully will help me get started:

1. Put no more than FIVE items on your to-do list for any given day.  Whatever time you think each item will take, plan on it taking twice as long.  You can always add to the list, but if you make a long list and don't get most of it done you'll feel like a failure.  I've actually been doing this and it's very true--5 is about the limit and sometimes I am even pushing it with five.  Not to mention, in my own mind I move a lot faster than in real life...
   
2. Get rid of stuff you don't use or need.  Woah.  That's a biggie.  I suppose that means I should get rid of clothes that have been hanging on the hanger so long they have a layer of dust on the shoulders? And you'd think I was never planning on buying another pair of shoes for the rest of my life the way I hang on to shoe boxes.... but you just never know when you're going to NEED 15 shoe boxes.
3. Pick it up, don't pass it by.  My whole family needs this lesson (including me)  It's so easy to just step OVER things.
   
4. Create a launching and landing pad. It's funny that you can see the progression of people entering the house, as they drop their stuff one by one on their way to wherever they're going...and then we all get to stub our toes on 10 shoes that couldn't make it farther than 3 feet from the front door.  It's also quite funny that when I say "go put that away" what I am REALLY saying is "go put that on the couch/table/computer desk/floor so I can tell you to put it away again in 10 minutes".
5. Only touch things once. Apparently, this means I should toss the junk mail as I look at it instead of making a nice neat pile so I can look at it AGAIN later.
6. Streamline your morning routine.  In other words, sign all papers, pack the backpacks, and make sure everyone has what they need the night BEFORE. I get on a big kick to do this occasionally but then I always lose steam.  By the time homework is done each night I have given up.  That's why I hear things like "I need a lock for P.E." five minutes before it's time to walk out the door in the morning...
7. Keep a spare. Since I have been building my food storage, this has actually been one of the benefits.  No more do I have dead batteries in the remote control, only to find out I don't have any more batteries... same goes with toilet paper :)
8. Take some "alone time" to gain some focus. With my kids all in school now, this should be easy but it's really not.  Even when I'm alone, I'm too busy trying to do things to stop and focus on what I need to really do.
9. Set up a reminder system.  I need this desperately.  I have paid enough in library late fees in the last year to buy the books..okay, maybe not ALL the books, but at least a few of them.  Speaking of which, I think these organizing books are due tomorrow...
10. Hire a professional organizer.  Wow, wouldn't that be handy.  Unfortunately, I'm not sure a professional would really do things the way I would want them anyway.  Organizing, like decorating, is kind of a personal thing.

I'm still not done reading all three books, but I'm getting some good information.  I still have a ways to go to get everything as organized as I want it, but for now I just need to go watch Clean Sweep so I can feel really good about myself.