Make A Box For Out Of Place Items To Remind Yourself To Organise

It may seem counter-intuitive to add a box to your pile of stuff just to serve as a reminder that you have things to put away. For some of us however, it serves as a great way to keep items from piling up elsewhere, and is a single place to look for “lost” items.Photo by Becky Stern.

The trick is simple: just take an empty box of some kind and put it somewhere that stray items tend to accumulate, and consider it the “this doesn’t belong here” box. When you have items that you mean to put away but just can’t get there, or you’re convinced you’ll do it later, drop them in the box. Ideally, when the box starts to fill, you’ll pick it up and put everything in their proper place. Worst case, when you’ve lost something, it’s the first place to look.

The author of The Orderly Diva uses a large recycled wooden crate from a brewery, so it looks nice and fit well in the room. She notes it’s especially good for kids’ toys, or a book you don’t want to take downstairs before bed. You don’t have to go that fancy though, you just need a box large enough to hold a few things until you’re motivated enough to declutter. Would this work for you, or just add one more item to your household mess? Sound off in the comments below.

The “It Doesn’t Belong HERE” Box [The Orderly Diva]


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