Mission #1: Home neat home
The plan: Clear the clutter in your house by April 1.
The tools: When you're overwhelmed by all the stuff in your home, it can be tempting to load up on totes, baskets and other doodads to help you get organized. But cleaning up starts with clearing the clutter. Your mission requires only a few simple tools: a clipboard, paper, pencils, sticky notes and a calendar.
The execution: Step 1 is turning your family into a clutter-busting team. Take everyone on a tour of the house and create a "laundry list of pain," says Elaine Shannon, an organizing expert in Rothesay, N.B. The list could include the messy kitchen counter, the kids' toys strewn across the floor and anything else that makes you cringe. Everyone gets a say.
Next, sit down together, say during dinner, and jot down each family member's goals for the home. Maybe Dad wants to get rid of the clutter around the bathroom sink, your teen wants to organize her overstuffed closet and you long for a garage where every tool has its place. In the end, you will have a collection of domestic dreams -- and your family unity will get a boost, too. "You have a road map," Shannon says. "Everybody's creating a vision, and all of a sudden, you're bringing lives together and you're connecting."
In this domestic democracy, family members choose their chores. Break out the calendar and mark completion dates for each task. The big garage clear-out could happen over spring break, for example. "Closet Day" could be a Saturday in February, and you can take a crack at that junk drawer for an hour next Tuesday. Everyone works better on a deadline. "You go through the list and you slot (each task) into your schedule," says Shannon, "because if you fail to plan, you plan to fail."
The unexpected: Yes, your family could get tired of cleaning. To keep the team happy, Shannon suggests building in rewards. For example, if you sell some stuff, celebrate your success with dinner out.
When it comes to parting with personal items, sentimentality can sneak in. If you feel guilty about chucking the green blazer Aunt Gertrude gave you, envision someone else wearing it to a job interview. "Your clutter is somebody else's survival," says Shannon.
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