Apr 17

Apr 17 How To Tidy Like A Rockstar

The question of what you want to own can be seen as the question of how you want to live your life. Have you thought about how clutter can hold you back?

This is about being tidy so that you are surrounded by items you love. Everyone needs a sanctuary to help them unwind after a day’s work. Tidying keeps a home-livable and the unwinding possible – cue in the work-life balance.

To help with our stress management and healthy habits, we can be effective by constantly questioning what we own, why we own it, and whether we could do without it.

“…tidying at home may be exactly what is needed to help with stress management and striving for work-life balance.” - Nathan Kolar

It’s more straightforward to get rid of items when there is an obvious reason to do so. Therefore, the main question to ask yourself when tidying and reviewing an item is…..“Does this spark joy?”.

This question follows a tidying process of first discarding, then deciding where afterward. The time to think about where to put an item is when you’ve finished getting rid of everything you don’t need. Again, first discarding, then deciding where afterward.

Here are some small wins for tidying accomplishments, before you even begin tidying:

a) Author and Retired Officer of the United Sates Navy, Jocko Willink, explains the importance of making your bed in the mornings. This can be your first act of tidying each day.

b) As explained by Charles Duhigg, American Journalist and Author, habits can be formed from a framework of cue-routine-reward. When the cue of a finished meal at home is reached, your routine to clean the dishes right away can be a reward as another tidying accomplishment on a consistent basis.

Now, here are six (6) practical knowledge and skills tips when it comes to tidying:

In terms of the best time-of-day to engage in tidying, try the early mornings. This is because due to human biology, we are more likely to hold onto possessions in the evenings when darkness is present, which linkage to our evolutionary past of ancestors who survived amongst animal predators on the savannah.
Tidying can be fun by thinking about turning it up! What is meant by this is to unleash your inner rockstar with your headphones or speakers to make tidying your concert time. Playing music while tidying can certainly make the experience more enjoyable. Try podcasts as well!
Set a specific time to do a deep tidy – and as you know, a time in the early mornings. For Neil Pasricha, Canadian Author and Speaker, he writes about having an Untouchable Day every week. This is a time he cuts off WiFi and turn on Airplane mode on his mobile devices. Neil sets his untouchable days 16 weeks ahead of time! He says, plant the Untouchable Day flag before anything else can claim that spot. If conflicting priorities arise, don’t delete – reschedule. The point, you can fit your tidying into an Untouchable Day, or treat the scheduling as such, just like how Neil schedules his Untouchable Days.
Start with the easy items in terms of intrinsic values or memories. Vires acquirit eundo – “we gather strength as we go”. This includes starting with clothes, books, papers, miscellaneous items (e.g. kitchen equipment), and lastly, items of sentimental value such as old photo albums, past down furniture, or those kept love letters of yours.
Ignore the big picture. The whole house is a mess? The room a total disaster? Cannot see the top of the desk? Forget all that! The important question is, “What can you do right now?” This is when narrow vision is welcomed, because it can be used to help focus on the small things – one item at a time. Repeated, one item at a time.
Remember the vertical dimension. Tidying can include tactics such as hanging remaining items or stacking them in an organized fashion, such as folded clothes. This is where dedicated shelving can be used to stabilize items being organized further or higher from the ground.

Moving forwards, since your identity has now become one of a tidying rockstar, maintaining this healthy habit is vital. Remember this, leave a room better than you found it. This relates back to cue-routine-reward. When the cue of leaving a room is reached, the routine is to take a moment to ensure tidiness, followed by the reward of a tidy space consistently achieved.

Tidying can also apply to your workspace and workday through the 5S methodology and framework from Lean Six Sigma.

Sort (order, eliminate, return) – distinguish and keep only necessary items, utilize categories.
Set in order (tidy, place, organize) – arrange items to promote effective workflow, find a place if item retained for easy and immediate access when needed.
Shine (clean, upgrade) – cleanliness of the work area such as minimal dust or dirt.
Standardize (simplify, integrate) – set standards for a consistently organized work area (particularly for the workplace).
Sustain (educate, communicate) – maintain and review standards (particularly for the workplace), application of knowledge and skills.