You’ve made it halfway! It is Day 5 of the 10 Day Organizing Challenge! Every day for 10 days we are tackling a different space for 10 minutes of focused organizing!
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It’s Flat Surface Friday!
We are enjoying the sound of this and are totally going to make it our regular thing — flat surface Friday!
For today, choose any flat surface in your home that gets covered with clutter; dresser, bedside table, coffee table, a kitchen counter, etc, and work through that pile.
I think we can all agree it is nice to keep your flat surfaces free of clutter, but where do you put all the stuff that is currently residing on these spaces. If your flat surface is looking more like a mountain, have we got the episode for you!
In my opinion, this is how junk drawers get started. You want to work at a surface and you need to clear off your counter quickly. Or it’s dinnertime and you need to find the surface of your table. At the point you want to use the space, you’re not stopping to organize and find homes for everything. In your scramble, things just get stuffed into a drawer (or moved to a different flat surface).
Even when you do clean off your flat surfaces, you are bound to end up with things that don’t have anywhere to go. That’s why the stuff was on the counter in the first place!
So let’s work on processing the pile on your flat surface, one item at a time. Grab your materials, set your timer for 10 minutes, and let’s get started.
Step 1: Whichever counter or flat surface you’ve chosen, start with the first thing on the top of pile. Decide what is the next action step that needs to be taken with that item.
- Does it need to be put away where it belongs and you already have a designated home for it? Put it in a “Put elsewhere” pile to return it to its home after the 10 minutes are up.
- Is there a follow up step that needs to be taken before the item can be put away? If it takes less than 2 minutes, consider tackling it now, or doing it once the timer goes off. If it is a longer task, add that task on your to-do list to tackle at a later time.
- Is there a decision that needs to be made before you know what the next action is? Write that step on your calendar! You might write, “talk to someone about x” or “decide about x” on your calendar or to-do list.
Are you still feeling stuck with an item?
If you have items you don’t know what to do with some of these past podcast episodes could be helpful.
Is it paper? Check out Ep 35 Clear your Paper Pile in 5 Steps, Ep 27 Stopping Paper Clutter Before it Starts and Ep 28 Stopping Paper Clutter: Mail Edition.
It is papers that belong to your kids? Check out Ep 5 Kids Paper.
Is it tasks to do? Check out Ep 14 Taking Action: The To-Do List.
Step 2: Continue through each item on your flat surface, sorting them into where they live or what action needs to be taken next.
Step 3: After your flat surface is clear, reflect on why the items were put there if the first place.
- Do they not have a designated spot in your home to live?
If you’re finding items that don’t have homes consider where these items get used the most. For example, Bethany had loose change, hair ties, and chapstick all cluttering up her work space surface. She placed a small dish to corral these items as she’s working.
Even though she has a change jar in the kitchen, and a spot in the bathroom where hair ties live, they were ending up on her desk because she’d empty pockets or fuss with her hair as she was working at her desk.
It’s unrealistic to say, I’ll just stop my work and go put this hair tie in the bathroom where it belongs. It made much more sense to have a spot for it to live on the desk, even if’ it’s a holding spot until she needs to head towards the kitchen or bathroom.
You can also check out Ep 59 Knocking out Common Clutter, Ep 58 20 Things to Throw Away Today, and the post, Everything in its Place, for more ideas on how to tackle items that don’t seem to have a landing place.
- Are they unfinished projects you need to remember to do? or Are you keeping this item out to serve as a visual reminder of a to do/ task?
We’ll talk more about this when we tackle to do lists later this week, but for now designate a spot where these in process items can live, and write the reminder on your to do list.
If you don’t yet have a trusted list/ system for keeping track of your to dos, we’ll work on that. But for now, designate a spot (that is not on your flat surface) where these items can live.
Bethany and I both have one small drawer in our house where we stick items that are in progress. The to-do isn’t forgotten because it’s on your to-do list and when you’re ready to tackle it, you know just where the physical item is waiting.
Making a permanent spot for projects you are working can really help reduce clutter. In Ep 69, Creating a Cleaning Schedule, we found a solution for Bethany’s school papers, which was a constant project that needed a permanent home.
This bag ended up being the perfect solution to contain papers while still keeping them accessible enough to work on. She keeps her school papers in this bag and can haul it by the couch or her desk if she’s working there.
- It this flat surface a natural “drop zone” when you come home?
If it is a natural drop zone, embrace it. Make an inbox for papers or add a basket to collect kids items. Whatever it maybe, use a container to make the drop zone more organized.
For instance, I added a basket to the shelf in our entry table because it was a natural drop zone for shoes.
We did it!
We want to celebrate Day 5 of the challenge with you, so check in with us! Let us know how it went!
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.
Did you miss a Day?
Also, it is not too late to invite a friend! We made this handy, dandy image to make it easy to share far and wide! We’ll see you tomorrow!
