Decluttering Goals: The Toy Room

Start the New Year by setting a goal to get your home organized and clutter-free. While this may seem like a monumental task, it can be achieved by breaking down your goal by focusing on one room at a time. Choosing the first room to start with can also be a complicated decision – why not start with one of the rooms that always collects clutter: the toy room!

The first step is to gather all the toys in (and out) of the toy room. Go through everything and immediately take out anything that is broken. Decide if it can be fixed (does it just need new batteries?) or if it needs to be recycled or discarded. Anything that is old or unused but still in good shape can be set aside and donated when it is possible to do so.

Make sure there is enough storage space for what toys remain. Do more bins or shelves need to be purchased to make sure everything has a home? Using open shelving with see-through or clear bins and baskets means toys are easier to find during play time to avoid the need to empty out the entire toy chest to access one item. Try to use storage that is also easy for your children to grab and open – something lower to the ground and with drawers or bins that aren’t too heavy if they need to be moved.

Larger items like playhouses and sets can be harder to store, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have a designated spot in the room or closet where they can be placed after they are used.

However, it is important to keep the number of toys you have manageable. While some extra storage may be needed to get everything organized, you don’t want to keep accumulating more and more toys and taking up more and more space.

Set a goal to regularly go through the toys and organize the room with your family to make sure the space stays manageable. This shouldn’t be a job just for one person. Everyone should be involved in the activity – especially the children! Make cleaning up after play time a new routine now so it continues throughout the rest of the year.

All toys should always go back to their designated spot after they are done being used. By making clean-up time a routine, you are already doing a lot to keep the space organized and maintained long-term.

Focusing on small and achievable goals not only makes you more successful but creates consistency. If we decide to accomplish something that is over-the-top and unrealistic, it becomes more difficult to maintain in the long run and likely won’t be successful. If an issue occurs and we fall off the plan, a smaller goal is easier to pick up again and keep going.

Persistence and consistency are key, because anything unattainable is difficult to pick up again. Realistic goals, like getting the toy room organized instead of the entire house, is a goal that you can easily achieve.

Over the holidays, remember what's important!

During a holiday season unlike any many of us have ever experienced before, take some time to appreciate what is most important in life and get down to basics. It isn’t always about the grand parties, expensive gifts and material items – it’s about spending time (even if it is virtually) with the people you love and taking time for yourself to relax and enjoy the time off from work and other activities.

Whether it is sharing fond holiday memories with friends and family over a Zoom chat, sending cards to relatives out of town, or sending a fun picture over text from a previous year’s celebration, take the time to remember the best things about the holidays. It shouldn’t be about spending a lot of money or worrying about all the activities you aren’t able to do this year. Instead, focus on what you can do and make the holidays a relaxing and fun time.

The holidays are also often a time to look towards the New Year and setting goals to achieve in the next 12 months. With uncertain times still ahead in 2021, that doesn’t mean you can’t still think about some achievements you want to make. For example, it could be to simplify your life, whether it’s by organizing your material possessions or your day to day activities. It could be to take more time to connect with family and friends, or to live a healthier lifestyle. Whatever you set your mind to do, make sure that it is something that you want to achieve and know that you can realistically achieve in the time you set for yourself. Goals will be unattainable if they aren’t set correctly in the first place.

This Christmas will be different for everyone this year, but that doesn’t mean that it can’t still be enjoyed and that there isn’t much to still look forward to in the New Year. Make sure you take the time to remember what is important about this time and appreciate all we do have this year.

Procrastination is Only Delayed Decisions

Everyone is guilty of procrastinating – there are always projects and tasks that we know we need to do, but we always seem to find an excuse to not do them.

The only way we can beat procrastination is to decide on action instead of inaction. We must stop delaying making a decision on what we need to do and start working towards completing whatever our goal or project is. 

The best way to start the decision making process may seem simple, but the best way to get started is with a check list. Making a list not only keeps you organized and on track of what you need to do, but it also serves as a physical (or digital) reminder to help ensure the decisions aren’t put off any longer.

Whatever it is you need to get done, the best way to stop procrastinating and start doing is start your checklist. As we approach the end of the year, procrastination is more important to tackle than ever as we look towards setting goals for the year ahead and plan out what we hope to achieve. 

Larger goals and problems won’t be solved right away – but making a list and breaking the steps down one by one can make the problem seem more manageable and help make the decision making process seem less intimidating. Even smaller day-to-day tasks can be made more manageable by breaking them down into easy-to-follow steps.

Stop procrastinating and start working! Creating all these smaller tasks may seem like its making even more work but instead it can make everything easier. Having smaller tasks that are easy to complete means having “quick wins” to help keep motivation high and ensure the end result is achievable.

As we get closer and closer to the New Year, put procrastination aside and start getting things done!

• Create a to do list – check!

• Complete a 2021 goal list – check!

• Hire Calm Order to help with kitchen organizing – check!