The Top 5 Biggest Organizing Mistakes

Find out if you’re making one of the biggest organizing mistakes, and learn how to fix it below. We’re counting down what we consider to be the Top 5 Biggest Organizing Mistakes that people make. We’ve certainly spent lots of time perfecting the craft ourself, and have made plenty of mistakes along the way. These 5 mistakes below are ones we want you to avoid at all cost!

1. Putting Your Most Often Used Items in Places That are Hard to Get To/Put Away.

Let’s use the example of a bathroom for this one. You’re at the part in the process where it’s time to put the items you are keeping back into place. You’ve already checked expiration dates on every item, you’ve decided you’re never actually going to try that sample you got at Sephora two years ago and you can donate it to a place where it will be so cherished.. and now it’s time to sort everything back into the cabinets and drawers.

We recommend starting the process by looking at the items you use the most - for example: toothbrush, hairbrush, floss and sunscreen. Put them in a place you can easily get to, so you will easily put them away when you’re done and keep the space looking organized.

How to identify those easy to reach places? Go through your routine, as you’re standing in front of your bathroom vanity, what drawers or cabinets can you most easily access - without moving anything (including yourself) and start there. Continue this process until you get through all the items in your bathroom. Make your morning and evening self care rituals smooth and enjoyable with this process.

2. You Forget About the Vertical Space

We get it, this can be daunting. How to use big open, up high spaces so that you can maximize your organization? Let’s take a look at the garage, the space that often leaves most people perplexed with what to do. There are so many items of various categories, only needed at certain specific moments - or often.
Often times when we are planning to work with someone on their garage space, we make sure there are shelving units we can utilize. Additionally, we look for opportunities to use hooks to hang sporting gear so that it’s easy to grab when you want to use it and even easier to put away when done.

Download our free Garage Organization Guide and start the transformation today.

You can see below, how powerful the impact of shelves can be. Without shelves, these bins would be stacked on top - which is not earthquake safe nor helpful if you need anything from a lower bin.

And here, you can see how fun and easy it will be for the kids to play with all of their sporting equipment. Strategically putting the items for the adults up high where they can easily reach it too.

3. You Keep Waiting for “The Perfect” Weekend, Week or Month to Do the Organizing.

Spoiler alert, it will never come. We’re all guilty of this, thinking I need a full day to make anything happen and the day never comes. What I’ve learned is it’s better to start with small chunks and make it a habit, maybe 15 minutes here, 45 minutes there and start chipping away. Once you see the progress, it will be easier and you’ll find the energy to keep going and finish the project.

Of course, the other option is to look for help! We have a phenomenal team of organizers who can come in and just get it done for you.

On a project recently a client said to me “I really thought I would be exhausted and drained after this day, I made no plans for the rest of my day to recover. But now, here at the end of the day I have so much energy I don’t know what to do with myself”

Just let us put the energy back into your life, schedule your 15 minute consult today and let us do it for you.

4. You Don’t Get the "No Longer Used” Items Out Fast Enough

I feel as though I don’t need to explain this. Raise your hand if you currently have a bag of no longer needed items just sitting in your garage, closet or car “waiting” to be donated. Well, what are you waiting for? We recommend that you don’t consider your organizing project COMPLETE until those no longer needed items are gone.

A great way to say goodbye to items is by finding a Non-Profit near you that will benefit from your items. We have a long list of Charity partners who would love your no longer needed items. If that doesn’t work for you, we are known for posting items in our local Buy Nothing Group.

It’s incredibly simple. All that you need to do is join. the group local to your neighborhood. Post a photo and general description of the items and offer a time window they’ll be waiting outside or select a location to meet up and give the items. In many cases people will reply back wanting the item that very day. Win win!

5. You Don’t Leave Room for Future Items

As nice as it would be to think that after a space is organized, life will freeze and you’ll never add anything new to the space.. that is not reality. When you’re organizing do your best to avoid completely filling a drawer, bin or space. Where possible, even leave a completely empty bin for future categories that don’t exist yet. Your future self with thank you.

We hope you learned something from this and are now feeling confidently motivated to spending those 15 - 45 minute chunks of time organizing a space in your home.

And remember, we’re always just one phone call away.