MONEY-SAVING ORGANIZING HABITS

This is how clutter teaches us amazing life lessons …

You are likely here because you have joined Terry Elisabeth’s 4-week declutter challenge here and you want to develop some money-saving organizing habits! While you are reaping the benefits of this challenge, you might be experiencing the dark side of decluttering. When we really face what our clutter shows us, our hearts can break a little:

• You can find a lot of things you purchased but never used.
• You can find a lot of duplicate purchases of items you didn’t realize you already had on hand … because you couldn’t find them.
• You can also find that you pay late fees and finance charges on bills because you either couldn’t find the bill in your paperwork or even your email.

What does this all equate to? Money in the trash. Literally, you have to throw away:

• that item you purchased new but became obsolete because it sat in a box somewhere for so very long (i.e. that gadget or device that was all the rage 10 years ago).
• those groceries that became expired in the pantry or refrigerator or freezer-burned beyond recognition in the freezer because they were lost in the disorganization. You purchased these same items again because you didn’t know you had them already. Same goes for all the other categories of items you purchased again but couldn’t find (i.e. another black dress, another bottle of spray cleaner, etc.)
• those bills with the late fees and finance charges that you cannot even dispute because you found the bills 60 days later. Seriously, you can’t dispute charges past 60 days. One of my dear loved ones had to learn this the hard way because he did not stay on top of his statements and was not able to dispute thousands in fraudulent activity on his account.

I’m sorry, not sorry, that this blog is a harsh reality. But this is exactly why organizing and finances are my passions. In the picture above, this was my freezer this week. I’ve committed to only purchasing what we will consume in a reasonable amount of time. This may sound a little dramatic but, as an organizer, I’ve seen way too much waste that it is a bit traumatizing. So much “stuff” gets stashed away and just ends up getting covered in dust. It’s amazing how much I have had to throw away for people … some even have to rent dumpsters! It also amazes me how many trips to the donation center we have to make with the cars absolutely packed to the brim!

So, what I like to do to help people realize the cost of what must be thrown away or donated (click here if you missed my post about what to do with donations) is to literally have people add up the cost of what we are purging. You may want to ask me if that would make people want to keep these items even more because, after all, it cost money. What I want to ask you is, “Did you waste money by getting rid of the item? Or did you waste money by purchasing the item?” Once that realization sinks in, and once the realization of the cost of all the items you are purging kicks in, this is where the life lessons are finally learned, and the money finally stops being wasted.

Organizing Habits that Save You Money:

1. Have a place for everything. By the end of my 4-week declutter challenge, all those organizing products that have been collected (click here if you missed my post about why organizing doesn’t have to be expensive) will be put to good use and you will be able to create a place for everything. When you have a place for everything, you can find your items easily at a glance and finally stop purchasing duplicate items you though you didn’t have. My freebie library has a plethora of resources to get your spaces in order.
2. Have everything in its place. Wait … isn’t this a repeat of the previous habit? Not at all! Developing the habit of designating your spaces for items is one thing, but actually putting your items away in these spaces is another. In fact, this is the one major habit that will keep you organized. You must consistently put your items away where they belong. Put it away. That’s all it takes to prevent clutter from taking over your spaces and to prevent losing or damaging your items. Beautiful boots or purses become damaged beyond repair because they get lost under a pile instead of being placed with care where they belong.
3. Shop intentionally. Think before you purchase. My biggest pain point is the groceries that get thrown away. I don’t know about you, but food waste breaks my heart. So many go hungry, but we easily let our food go to waste and have to toss it because we didn’t have a plan to use the ingredients before they went bad. No, I don’t like seeing any kind of waste including clothing, shoes, toys, household items, etc. The thing about those items, however, is that they can at least be donated or recycled somehow. The food, sadly, must be thrown away once it expires. Shopping intentionally means you prevent clutter from coming back into your home.

I hope this was a good eye-opener for you and that we can move forward together to prevent waste! Waste in our landfills and waste in finances! The best way to do that is to prevent clutter from coming into your home in the first place. I share all about that in my post here.

Happy Organizing!

Terry Elisabeth