Why am I Getting Organized?

We are heading towards the end of January and the end of "Get Organized Month". Yes, there really is such a month, and of course my professional association, The National Association of Professional Organizers has designated it so. Being organized is a resolution that many of us have because we know that we will be able to do more things in 2011 if we get organized. In fact "Getting Organized" is cited as one of the top 10 resolutions for Americans each year.

If getting organized is your resolution, I recommend that you write down at least 10 reasons for why you want to achieve this goal. Read your reasons daily and it will be a motivator, a coach and a visual reminder that will help keep you on track.

Break down your big goal of getting organized into manageable smaller organizing tasks and projects. And better yet, instead of making getting organized a 2011 goal, make it more finite, such as by the 1st day of spring I will have completed my top 3 organizing projects. It is much easier to achieve smaller goals which then will give us the momentum to continue to meet our larger goals. Then you can reset your goal to have a new deadline. In some respects having a tighter time line holds a person to task better.

As we head into the 2nd month of the year, don't worry if you have fallen off track, just read your reasons for getting organized and keep plugging away.

Incidentally, the strategy for writing the reasons for wanting to get organized can work for other resolutions you may have. I do think though, just like with clutter, "less is more" when it comes to setting resolutions. Keep them few, and have as tight a timeline as possible and as silly as it sounds, write your reasons for wanting this change.

Good luck!