DeClutter Your Life by Getting Rid of One Item a Day - Challenge Yourself to Get Organized

A while back I had come across an interesting article about challenging yourself to get rid of one item a day for one year. This meant cleaning out closets and drawers and looking for charitable donations or going through old files to shred and throw away.

While being fairly organized I believe I still had enough stuff in my home that this could be accomplished. Now, it may not be possible to get rid of one thing a day but looking in a closet, a cabinet, or a drawer once a week to see if there was anything in there that was not needed and could be tossed.

Begin with a closet and look at the clothes you have hanging in there. If something does not fit than get rid of it. If you think you will fit into it after you loose the weight still donate it. If you do succeed in weight loss you should treat yourself to something new! The rule is if you haven't worn it in at least one year than it is time to donate!

Look in your kids closets, drawers, and go through old toys. If a child has out grown a toy be sure to donate it. If the toy is broken it is time to throw away.

Check out your linen closet for old towels that you can use as rags or to dry the dog off with. Old sheets can be recycled or donated to a place that uses fabrics and makes new items out of them.

Be sure to check CD's, DVDs, and other miscellaneous items. Don't forget to clean out the junk drawer, the garage, basement, and other items in your home that you wouldn't normally think of cleaning out on a regular basis.

Over the past year, I have pondered over getting rid of old items that have been taken up space. So at least once a week I say to myself "what should I donate or get rid of today?" It has been easier each week to let go of some items that have been sitting around collecting dust way too long.

There were old Christmas ornaments that weren't being used, toys that I hung onto because they held a special memory, computer monitors that were taken to the recycling place, lamps, furniture and many items that were just taking up space.

You won't believe how much you can get rid of if you just think about removing one item at a time and putting it in a bag. You can make several bags, boxes or bins and mark them as donate, trash, recycle, or garage sale (or eBay), and place items in there for a few months before they are removed from your home.

Create a to-do checklist and organize one area each week. Checklists make it easier to get things back in shape. Focus on one mini-task until it has been completed. This will help you achieve your goals of getting your home and lives organized. Don't move on to the next task until you have checked off or completed one. As you go along additional tasks can be added to the list. Use this as a guide to purge and get rid of clutter in your life.

Removing items and clutter from your home can sometimes seem impossible and overwhelming to do all at once so why not take the extreme de-cluttering challenge and remove a few items from each room of your home at a time. It may be just the ticket in becoming organized.

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At least twice a month I receive a card in the mail looking for donations of old clothing, knick-knacks, shoes, furniture, small appliances etc. These are from non-profit organizations and are tax deductible. The great thing about these organizations are that they pick up the items from you home so all you have to do is call them and be sure to put the items outside on pick up day!

There are many wonderful organization to donate to. Salvation Army, Goodwill, Purple Heart and many others accept donations. Check their Web sites to find out what types of items they accept.

If you have old computers and televisions lying around Goodwill now has a recycling program for those items just check the Goodwill Web site for a list of what they take and how to prepare the items.

There are also programs through Best Buy and other stores that allow you to bring in old electronics. Check with your local store first.

Be sure to Google for example "recycle items in (your city)" you will be sure to find a list of places that accept old electronics and other household items.

Another way of getting rid of old items is to have a garage sale or sell some items on eBay for extra cash. This can be a fun way to sort through old items and whatever items do not sell be sure to donate them to charity.

If you have old paint cans, household chemicals, and other materials check with the city you live and find out what can be done to get rid of these items. Many cities post information on their Web sites on how to dispose of different materials.

Once you remove the clutter from your home you can start organizing by packing old items in containers and marking them for your storage area.

Purchase furniture that can be used as storage also. If don't have a lot of room in your home there are many great shelving units, bedroom and living room furniture and other organizing tools that are available online and in many stores.

If you don't know where to start check out Web sites for professional organizers or just get yourself a good book and jot down some ideas.

It time to take the challenge and remove items from your home and eliminate some of the stress also! It also makes it easier to keep a clean house once the clutter is removed and you can move around items and furniture easier.