Get organized: Purge, pack, and prepare

“By all these lovely tokens
September days are here.
With summer's best of weather.
And autumn's best of cheer.”
                                                    - Helen Hunt Jackson

Summer has come to an end, school has started, and the Jewish New Year has begun. You know what this means, right? Time to get into that closet and start the new year off right with the three P’s: purging, packing, and preparing. With music from your favorite Pandora station, a friend by your side, and the right mindset your end of summer transition will be easier than you thought. Organize & Create Discipline (OCD) has some quick and easy solutions no matter where you live.

PURGE

We all know the clothing we used this summer, because it’s fresh on our mind and in our summer pictures. What sticks out more are those sad, sad pieces of clothing. Remember, the one’s that you said you would wear, but just didn’t get the chance to. Summer is about 100 days long. So chances are if you missed out wearing those “I said I would wear” items, then they are as good as Goodwill. Whether your excuse was, “I will fit into it next year,” or “I forgot I had it,” 100 days is A LOT of time to get miles on those clothes. Purge all of the clothing you never touched this summer by donating them or giving them to friends. Once your purge has been finalized and you’ve dropped your bags off at Goodwill then it’s time for the next step. Pack!

PACK

If you have limited space in your home, and live in a climate where the weather will change, a system should be in order. (All New Yorkers understand what I am talking about!) The main drawers housing your clothes should switch for the season approaching. No one needs to have access to summer clothing during the winter, so take out all of your summer items and pack them away until summer returns. You can leave some of the clothing accessible, like t-shirts and a few pairs of shorts, but your winter clothing should have prime real-estate for the cold weather approaching. This system should be easy for you to maintain between seasons, so the switch can happen effortlessly. Store the summer clothing in airtight bins and pack them away in any area of your home/apartment/storage that is out of the way but accessible. If you have plenty of room in your home and dressers, don’t worry! Just shift your summer clothes down to the lower drawers and your winter clothes to the higher drawers. AND if you live in a city like Los Angeles where the weather is always perfect…aren’t you lucky?! J

PREPARE

Now that your clothing has found a new home, prepare yourself by keeping a disciplined mindset through the rest of the year. We all have clothing we don’t wear and we all like to buy more that we may never wear. So be smart about your purchases. Organize & Create Discipline is about saving money as well as saving time, so think twice before buying anything. Most purchases are on a whim. Cutting out that whim and making smart, informed decisions will save you a lot of money in the years to come.

Prepare yourself for 2011 by keeping an eye on the clothes you wear and noticing the clothes you never wear. Trust me…if you constantly look in your closet and see the same clothes collecting dust, most likely they are going to continue collecting dust until you do something about it!

And like always, I want to hear from YOU! Tell me what organizational questions cross your mind. Email Organize & Create Discipline at ocd@ocdexperience.com and maybe your organizational challenge will be discussed next week.

Justin Klosky is a professional organizer who runs Organize & Create Discipline ( www.ocdexperience.com ). You can check his website for more tips and videos on how to organize your life.