Spring into Organization!
April 5, 2012 “Spring into organization”
Personal organization interview with Organization Queen Sara Sanchez-Mustapha.
Sara, a little about yourself:
Sara –“I am a believer, a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend. I love people and developing real relationships with others, but deep down I’m pretty introverted. Also, just for the record, I want to say that I by no means have this being organized thing all figured out, but by nature I prefer organization to chaos.”
-How has being organized helped in your life?
Sara –“Being organized really helps me be more effective in tasks. Having a logical sequence to how and when I’ll accomplish a given task really helps me stay focused. I also feel so much more at peace when my space is organized, so for the sake of my psyche, being organized is a huge help!”
-When/ how did you get into organization?
Sara-“ I think I’m just wired to think organizationally. From a very young age (maybe 7 or 8) I remember always loving to organize the drawers in my dresser or my bookshelf. I loved keeping my desk at school neat and my pencil box (do you remember pencil boxes? J ) in perfect order. My dad is also a super neat freak (the man color coordinates his sock drawer), so I think some value was placed on tidiness and being organized in our home. (and maybe it’s genetic)”
-What are your favorite most organized zones or places in your house? Why?
Sara- “My closet and my kids’ craft/ toy closet tie for my favorite O. Zones in our house. I like that it’s easy to find what we’re looking for, and honestly, I love the way it feels to open the closet doors and look at a really tidy space, it makes me happy.”
-How long did they take you to organize?
Sara- “It took about 2 hours to organize each closet, but it was worth it because for the last few months they’ve stayed pretty well organized. I think it really helps us know the expectation, and with everything having a place we know where things go when we’re done with them.”
Sara-“ They’re organized based on the function of each item and I try to also organize things so they’re kind of aesthetically pleasing. For instance, if I’m organizing a bookshelf, I like to categorize all of the books by subject. Then I place the books in order based on their size so it’s easier to read their titles. Plus, I just think it looks nicer. I just feel like I can breath when I see an organized space.”
-How much time would you say you dedicate daily to staying organized/tidy?
Sara-“Boy, this is hard to answer. It feels like I’m constantly picking stuff up, but I also have little kids. If I had to put a number to it, I’d say about an hour total, but that’s maintenance. That hour doesn’t include if I were to organize a new space that hadn’t been organized before.”
-How do you feel about lists/ daily schedules?
Sara-“ I LOVE lists and schedules. Lists seriously save me on a daily basis. I’m able to get my thoughts on paper and order my priorities for the day. Being very visual, lists help me a ton. Plus, I get the added bonus of the super gratification of checking items OFF of the list, I LOVE that! J Having a schedule also helps me and our kids know what’s coming next.”
-What are your end goals when you first decide to organize a space?
Sara-“ I always consider the function and a secondary consideration is how aesthetically pleasing the space will be after it’s organized.”
-At least one thing you would suggest doing daily to stay organized/tidy.
Sara- “Make your bed! I know this sounds nuts, but an unmade bed makes a whole room look so much messier than it is. If I could add a second tip, I’d say make sure your dishwasher is always emptied before you start your day. Since the kitchen is often the center of a home, if there’s constantly a pile of dishes in the sink, the whole space looks and feels a ton messier. With an empty dishwasher (or sink, if there’s no dishwasher) all dishes that are used can be immediately placed in the dishwasher (or cleaned by hand). It takes a few seconds and saves my brain from the feeling of our kitchen being constantly cluttered.”
-Personal strategies you suggest for getting organized at homeàworkàwith family (these are suggestions but feel free to go off this path and make it as long as you want. Include anything you think is relevant. I will edit it down, with your consent, if it’s too long but doubtful.)
Sara- “Pick a room, decide its function, figure out everything you want to keep in that room and be very generous with the things that you get rid of. I find it easiest to pick one area of the room I’m focusing on and stick with it until it’s organized. At first it feels like piles of junk are being shifted from one spot to the next in the same room, but once all is said and done, you realize that it’s all put away. For instance, when organizing our office I chose our desk area to work on first. We had tons of junk that belonged in different spaces sitting on our desk. I moved all of the “junk” to a table in the room and only focused on office supplies and computer stuff that needed to be in the desk. Then I moved to the book shelf, I found books and DVDs from the “junk pile” that was moved from the desk to the table so those books and DVDs got put away, and the “junk” pile from the desk got smaller.”
“Also, when organizing a room, you’ll inevitably find items that belong in a different space. One thing that has really helped me is that I make piles of like items that I can transport to their “real home” all at once instead of having to stop my organizational process to put something else away in another room. I find this especially helpful in my kids’ rooms. When organizing I always seem to find toys that belong downstairs, hair ties that go in the bathroom, sippy cups that belong in the kitchen, etc… If I wait to take all bathroom items at once (when I’m finished organizing the room) I am able to stay on task much more effectively.”
I tend to get overwhelmed when my life/spaces get too out of control, which is often, for me.
Suggestions to stay on top of it?
Sara- “Have a designated place for everything you own and make sure you put things back in the same place when you’re done with them. it sounds pretty basic, but it makes life so much easier.”
-How to not get discouraged?
Sara- “Allow yourself a junk _____________. I have a great junk drawer in my kitchen and my purse is always a black hole. It helps to not feel the pressure to have to have everything ‘perfect’.”
-What are some tools you use to organize your spaces? (ie labels, containers, etc.)
Sara-“I love labeled clear plastic bins. These are especially helpful for toys, craft stuff, old greeting cards I’ve received, etc…”
-Roomates! I’ve lived with some really messy people. (and I’m sure others could say that in reference to me, depending on their tidy scale.) I know you’ve also had roommates and even lived in a sorority house with many people. How would you encourage others you live with to keep their spaces, as well as common spaces neat, or tidy after use?
Sara-“This is a hard one for me. I tend to shy away from confrontation, so usually I would just do my thing and hope they’d get the hint. I think I typically roomed with pretty neat people, though.”
-Children. I don’t have them, but I’ve seen them. Some are tidy some are not. You are not only a mom but a teacher.How could parents who’ve not traditionally been so organized, but who would like to be, begin to teach and encourage organization skills to their children who’ve not previously been so exposed?
Sara- “Start small! Have kids put their toys away immediately after they’re done playing with them. Also start young. I’m not always the best at this because sometimes it’s so much easier to do it myself, but I do think it’s important for them to learn early on to make good habits. “
What are some things NOT to do when trying to become organized personally?
Sara-“Don’t be down on yourself if it doesn’t happen overnight. It takes a long time (is it 21 days?) to develop a new habit. Look for small victories and congratulate yourself in a way that is meaningful to you.”
Free write! The most fun part of the entire interview! Everything you wanted to say but I didn’t ask.
Sara –“I’m almost embarrassed to admit this, but after organizing a space I go back in again and again just to look at it because it makes me feel so good to see organized things. Maybe I have a real problem, but it just seriously makes me happy. J I feel so much better and calmer, at peace when my physical space is in order.”
To contact Sara for Organization tips/ questions, personal organizing jobs, please send emails to [email protected]
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