Basic Organizing Strategy: Leave only Footprints

We’ve all heard the saying “Leave only Footprints” but today Laurie is relating it to how to keep yourself and your home Organized, please read on…

In reading through other Organizers Blogs I saw a short blurb on something that made total sense to me and I thought it would be something easy that I could share with my clients and friends. The statement we’ve seen before: “Take Only Pictures. Leave Only Footprints” but in this case I want you to think about it more for your home than our National Parks. It’s the most basic and simple idea of keeping yourself organized: if you get it out, put it away… it honestly comes down to being just that simple.

 You can have the most organized, color coded, contained home but it you aren’t putting things away, chances are no one else in your house is either. It starts with the Matriarch and goes from there, sorry Ladies, we set the tone of the household be it good, bad or ugly. I have been tempted to just throw my jeans on the floor of my closet when I’m trying to get dressed in the morning and I’m running late but taking that extra 5 seconds (and that’s really all it takes) to hang the jeans back up allows me the peace of mind to know that the next time I open my closet I don’t have to go backwards in order to go forwards. I won’t have to clean up my mess from this morning in order to get ready for bed when I’m tired, likely cranky and just want to be done with my day.

 It’s the same with making the bed and leaving dishes in the sink, who wants to come back home to that? I’m reminded of the Nike slogan, “Just do it” and if you follow it, you can begin to stop that vicious cycle of always, always feeling like you are catching up instead of really keeping yourself on top of things.

 So, start thinking about it – “Leave only Footprints” not piles of clothes, dishes air drying instead of taking a few minutes to wipe them down and put them away after you’ve done the dinner dishes. Just take that little step further and put the toolbox back in the garage vs. just putting it by the back door.

Try it today and at the end of the day, see how it worked and how you feel. You’d be amazed at how little time it takes sometimes to stay on top of things.

Holler back at me and let me know how you are doing, I’d love to hear from you!