6 Ways To Get Organised In The New Year

1. Audit your current ways of doing things.

Sometimes when we’ve been super busy, our current way of making to-do lists or getting things done can become tired and messy. Sometimes it’s good to sit down and figure out a fresh way of doing things. The important thing to think about here is how you prefer to do things. Are you a pen and paper type person? Maybe you could start using a to-do list diary. Or maybe that’s not possible for you? I love pen and paper, highlighters and super cute notebooks. But - I had to be real and come to accept that with a newborn and 2 toddlers, and never knowing what part of the house I’ll be in next and whether I’ll have enough hands free to write (as well as my toddler trying to grab the pen out of my hand and destroy my cute stationary). So I now rely on my phone. And to be honest my notes section was okay, but it was getting messy. UNTIL I found Trello. With an app like Trello, I can prioritise the tasks that are more urgent and split up everything I need to get done into categories. Which brings me to number 2!

2. Split up your to-do tasks into categories.
These can include top priority, so most urgent things to do jumbled up together, and then broken down into categories including things like house/home, family, cleaning, events/coming up, work.

See below for examples so it makes a bit more sense:

• House/home - paying bills, buying new storage tubs, buying a new calendar for the year, needing to contact services such as for broken air conditioning or things that need fixing around the house, etc.

• Family - appointments that need to be booked, organising after school activities, sorting out bank accounts and money, etc.

• Cleaning - list of things bigger than daily tasks that require attention e.g. cleaning out the pantry, cleaning out toy boxes, taking items out to the tip, cleaning out rooms or areas e.g. office spaces, shelves, air vents or wardrobes

• Events/coming up - birthday parties, events like Halloween trick or treating, Christmas festivities, etc.

4. Make a plan.

What needs the most attention at the moment? I'm sure you know the feeling when you look around your house, or you have organised your to do lists, and the amount of things to get done just feels overwhelming. So it’s better to keep a list that’s prioritised according to what’s the most pressing or important, and go from there. That way you’re not tending to things that really might not matter as much. For example, my wardrobe is a complete mess at the moment. But since I’m still pretty soon post-partum, I’m happy wearing my maternity leggings and baggy t shirts for comfort. So, my wardrobe can wait a little bit and I’d rather put my focus into organising my baby’s clothes since she is growing so quickly in these early months! It all depends on where you’re up to.

5. Invest in a folder and a document holder to keep everything in.

You know all of those random pieces of paper you’ve stashed in different places around the house? (You know the ones!) Collect them all and put them into a pile. Next, go through one by one and seperate into two piles: keep or shred. Then, invest in a large folder and a plastic document holder to put on your wall, and find a spot in your home to put them. These are going to be your new homes for all those random bits and pieces that either come in the mail or get given you to say at work or daycare etc! I recommend putting them in a convenient spot close to the kitchen or home office where you tend to spend a lot of time doing things so you've got quick access to put them and can come back to them to sort out later, and go through it at least once a month. Even better if it’s every week but, just being realistic here! I have a big, cute pink folder, and I refer to it as my “housekeeping folder” (lol!). I also invested in thicker plastic for the sleeves rather than the thinner flimsy ones so it really felt good for me to use. 

6. Streamline meals and to-do lists!

I’ve printed out a meal planner where it’s got categories varying from things like easy, go-to meals through to feelin’ fancy. It’s a simple table with about 4 columns and I have it printed and stuck up on the wall next to the kitchen. Then every week, I go and choose about 3-4 meals from it and that’s what we eat for the week. How simple is that! I recommend writing down what your top favourite meals are, and printing it off so it’s somewhere handy to look at, to make mealtimes easier. Remember this list can be dynamic and you can add things all the time.

You can do the same with to-do lists. Think about daily tasks that need doing every day e.g. loading then unpacking the dishwasher, followed by weekly and monthly tasks like cleaning out the fridge and cleaning the bathrooms. You can simply make 3 columns on a word document, and print it off and stick it somewhere close to where you spend a lot of time in your house. That way, you can just use it to guide you through your day and week without feeling like you’re behind the 8 ball. This will make you feel like you’re out in front and it’s not getting on top of you!

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Little did I know that a huge part of becoming a mum would involve learning all about housekeeping, I.e. keeping and maintaining a home with cleaning, laundry, maintenance, all the things. It’s a full time job! Even before I was a mum, I honestly wish I had been doing all these things earlier because it just would have made life easier and more enjoyable. Keeping a home and being organised was not something I was taught about growing up. On one hand my mum was pretty all over the shop, and on the other hand my dad and stepmum just didn’t teach me. We had a cleaner, and my stepmum would do all the washing and cooking. Even though I’m super grateful for that, I actually love involving my own children because I think it’s so important to learn and be the in the habit of these things.

In saying that, it’s a skill that can always be refined, and everyone has their own way of doing it! So after becoming a mum of 3, I’ve really figured out some strategies and processes I always do now so that I don’t get bogged down by all the piles of laundry and amounts of things there are to get done. Because, it’s a frikken lot! And then it frees up my mind and my time so I can actually enjoy my life more (lol).

So here are 6 really awesome ways to get organised in the new year:

3. Prioritise 3 tasks a day.

I’m sure your list (or lists) is way longer, but if you manage to get the most important stuff done, you won’t catch yourself out. Sometimes I used to get on a roll doing things, only to find that I’d forgotten to do the most important stuff and I’d be kicking myself that I forgot to do it - even though I had been super productive that day. If you really feel overwhelmed because you feel like there is so much more to do than just 3 tasks, see my next point!

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