How To Squeeze In Organizing When There’s No Time

How can you find organizing time when there seems to be no time?

We were all sitting on the couch watching the end of the Kansas City Royals baseball game on Memorial Day. It was 10:00 PM and our son, who had moved into an apartment a few weeks prior, was going to leave soon.

My organizing focus for the month in Organized Life Academy is the garage. One part of the garage I’d been wanting to organize was the cubbies that hold everyone’s shoes.

But who has time to organize? How do you get organized when you have no extra time?

First, organize when the opportunity presents itself.

Since the family was home, I jumped off the couch, went into the garage, and pulled all the shoes out of our cubbies, matched them, and lined them in a row by the car. That took me five minutes.

Then, I called the family out. They cheerfully came out to the garage and stood there. I asked them to go through each pair of their shoes and only put back the ones they wore that fit.

They went to work all crowded in the little space, laughing, trying on shoes, asking each other’s opinion, even complaining a little.

At the end of ten minutes, we had a pile to donate and throw. All the other shoes were put in the assigned cubbies. I loaded the donated shoes into the donate bag that we keep in a tub in the garage.

DONE! Organized shoe cubbies!

How do you get organizing done when you “don’t have extra time?” You jump up when the opportunity arises!

Second, organize in tiny increments.

There was a pile of stuff on top of the cubbies that I wanted to organize. I didn’t have time to go through everything right then but what I did do was grab the hats, gloves, and scarves and threw them in the washing machine since winter is over.

Two of the Academy students are 15-minute organizing queens. They have changed their homes in 15-minute increments. 

Instead of repeating “I don’t have time,” ask yourself, “What’s one thing I can do right now.”

Third, if YOU want something organized, YOU do it.

Our expectations are everything. Blaming others that we don’t have the result we want isn’t useful.

Instead of waiting around for a time when my husband would be out there helping me, I decided I would do the work and then requested my husband’s help like this, “If I pull all the things off the shelves and line them up will you come out and just walk down the line saying keep or throw? I’ll do all the rest.”

He agreed.

I went to work. It took 15 minutes or so to SORT (step #1). I wiped down the shelves. I made decisions on the stuff that I could and then I called him out.

We continued with the PURGE (step #2) together. I pointed or lifted each item quickly and said, “Keep or get rid of?” or “What category is this?”

Next, I ASSIGNED HOMES (step #3) to things and put them back on the shelves.

DONE! Organized shelves.

Fourth, make organizing fun!

We have time to do what we want. If we made organizing more fun, maybe we’d choose to organize. 

This week we brainstormed ways to make organizing fun…even organizing the garage!

• Plan a reward.
• Listen to a book or podcast. (I made donating plasma fun by only reading this book while I donated. One of the Academy students is going to only listen to this one while she organizes her garage.
• Get your favorite drink (my personal favorite is a Sonic 44 oz diet strawberry limeade with mango)
• Listen to a new playlist!
• Pray over the person whose item you are touching, donating, folding, etc.

In what ways have you made organizing fun? Share in the comments.

And ALWAYS give it to the Lord.

God, how can I use my time wisely?

God, guide me to make quick decisions. May I trust you fully, knowing you provide everything I need…when I need it. 

Blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him. Jeremiah 17:7, NIV

God, help me be a good steward of Your things.

Begin today by asking yourself, “What’s one way I can show up organized today?”