It is Day 10! You have made it through 10 days of the 10 Day Organizing Challenge! Whether you did all 10 days, or just a few, you made positive steps towards getting your space more organized and functional. You are making space for the things that matter most!
If you haven’t already, sign up to grab your free guide to walk you through the 10 Day Organizing Challenge as well as get the daily challenges sent straight to your inbox.
We figured no better way to wind this challenge down, than by thinking of how we can create a space for the clearing of clutter to continue. Today we are organizing donations.
Here are 2 possible options you can focus on for these next 10 minutes:
- First, you can totally spend this 10 minutes just doing a walk around with a bag in hand, grabbing items that you are ready to say goodbye to.
- Another idea, and what we talk about on today’s episode, is to create a designated spot in your home for donations.
Let’s Get Started!
- Grab your materials – trash, a box for donations, notepad/pen,
- Set your timer for 10 Minutes
- Go!
A Permanent Home for Donations
So often when people start decluttering, the thing that stalls people is deciding where the item will go next. When you have a place for items you no longer use or need, you can put them straight in the box without it cluttering up your home until you get a chance to make a donation run.
Make your system work for you. For example, Bethany likes to donate her books to the library, teacher supplies to other teachers, and household items to goodwill, phew, I’m tired just typing it.
or 3 Permanent Home for Donations
Bethany has 3 “designated” spots for donations. One of these spots is a bag of things she saves to give to others. Her second spot is a donation box in the closet. When she’s getting dressed or putting clothes away, if there’s an item that she’s ready to part with, she can toss it in the box, and keep going.
Her third spot is a box that she tosses household items, books, and any other items heading to the goodwill. When it’s full her husband drops it off at goodwill on his way to work. It’s a system that seems to be working as she’s steadily decluttering.
Now to me, this sounds too complicated. I don’t want three places to keep track of. I have one bin and one bin only. But the thing about systems is they have to work for YOU.
If your system seems overly complicated to you it won’t work. But if it makes sense to you and it’s working, then embrace it. When a system stops working, or if there’s an element that isn’t’ working, give it a tweak and keep it flexible.
I used to keep a second donation bin in my daughters’ room because they would go through clothes so fast! My system keeps evolving as my family’s needs change. (Check out this article from Parade, they shared similar tips in #18 and #6.)
It’s also helpful to keep in mind if something is donation worthy? Sometimes, it does need to head to the trash, (or like in Bethany’s case, to my family, haha).
We did it!
That wraps up our 10 Day Challenge! We are so beyond thrilled that you joined us for this adventure.
We want to hear how the challenge went for you.
- What have you learned?
- What was the hardest part?
- What was easy?
- Are you going to keep going? Brainstorm what other places do you want to continue organizing 10 min at a time! You can use the blank checklist in the free 10 Day Challenge Guide to keep going.
We have so loved connecting with you and hearing from you during this challenge. And we’ll keep cheering you on!
We welcome all updates, before and after pics, or even questions that came up for you as you started the project. Tag us on Instagram @AtoB podcast or Facebook. Or send us an email Hello @ AtoBpodcast.com.
Before you go, we have one more ask. Could you head over to iTunes to leave a rating and review? It’s so helpful for us to get feedback and it helps others to find the show. Thanks so much for listening!
