Checklists

• Author and time management expert Shafir Ahmad praises checklists as "the best way to get organized for any event." Checklists allow you to organize your organization plans by having you write out what needs to be done to de-clutter. Creating a list of the organization tasks you have to do around the home makes keeping track of the project easier. It helps you stay on track to see a written list of what still needs to be done at any point in the process. It's a powerful motivational tool to complete a task on the list and check it off, working your way to crossing off every item.
  
  

"A Place for Everything, and Everything in Its Place"

• This is Maria Garcia of LifeOrganizers.com's number one rule in her list of "Seven Habits of Organized People." Literally everything in your home should have a proper place. Before beginning your organization consider writing every piece of clutter down and writing the ideal place to store it. Where you put things should depend on how often you use them, with the most used items the most convenient to access. Storage bins can easily fit in closets or under your bed to hide some of the things you use less frequently, but still keep them close by for when they're needed. Once you've determined a definitive place for everything, all that's left to get organized is to follow your list and put the stuff away.
  
  

Organizing on a Budget

• If you don't have the money to spend on expensive closet shelving systems, plenty of simple, inexpensive solutions exist on the market. Cardboard boxes can serve as inexpensive or free storage bins, while RealSimple.com recommends a simple piece of plank or particle board with nails in it to provide an ideal place for hanging tools in the garage. Rubber bands make great wire organizers for computer and electronics wiring and cordage, proving that you don't always need a lot of money to find useful organizational tools.
  
  

Staying Organized

• Once you've got your home organized, you'll realize that keeping it organized is your best strategy going forward. The first rule of remaining organized is to put absolutely anything you use back where it belongs when you're done. While leaving one thing out may not seem big now, over time the clutter will begin to pile up and you'll be back where you were -- buried in clutter -- again. Also, don't horde things; if you don't use it, find a place for it out of the way so you can easily access it when needed. Using storage bins, the garage and closets to organize rarely used items keeps them out of sight, within reach and well organized.