Each Of Us Has Different Organizing Brains
As professional organizers, our team takes our role in this accountability partnership seriously. We know our job isn’t to pass judgment or to simply tidy things up for you.
Instead, as your organizing coach, our job is to help you identify what clutter looks like in your home. Where does clutter bottleneck over + over again? Help you determine what to keep vs. what to get rid of.
But we’re also committed, for the long haul, in helping you clearly identify how your organizing brain works + custom-tailoring the organizing systems in your home to you.
Out of Sight, Out Of Mind
For some clients, when things are out of sight — they’re out of mind. So using storage containers or baskets that you can’t see into doesn’t work at all.
And it doesn’t work for one very obvious reason — because no matter what, you can’t see what you’re looking for.
The Easily Distracted Mind
On the other hand, for some clients…storage containers that are clear might create anxiety + frustration for them because though they can see into the storage containers — it’s distracting.
This person gets stuck on how the storage container looks or doesn’t look intentionally organized. If it doesn’t look the way it should, all the time, they can become emotionally controlled by the imperfection. And if multiple people are utilzing the storage containers this frustration can spill over into their relationships.
These are two of the most common organizing brains we encounter with clients. Neither is right or wrong.
The Right Storage Containers For Your Organizing Brain
Now you can see that assessing, decluttering + organizing BEFORE storage containers are ever considered not only is important but rather it’s integral to ensuring the storage containers are what makes sense for you.
For The Client Who Struggles With Things Being Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind
What storage containers might make the most sense? Potentially, clear storage containers. Storage containers that you can see into + know where everything is when they need them. Whether they’re looking for something or putting it back — it’s all visible to them and that puts their organizing brain at peace because they’ll actually do it.
For The Client Who Struggles With The Easily Distracted Mind
The storage container solution becomes built around the organizational systems that make sense for the way their brains work (i.e. not having clear storage bins) but rather setting the storage containers up in a way they can also be easily understood + maintained by both themselves + others. Beyond, the storage containers not-being clear.., this gets into categorizing + labeling containers.
While these are merely two specific organizing brains it’s quite remarkable to see how one simple solution (using clear storage vs. non-clear) might have two incredibly different outcomes for people.
The “what” you need to have always comes back to the “why” you need it in your home. Selecting the right storage containers is a process of helping you discover what works for you + your family.
Remember, home should be everything you need + nothing more™
That said, it’s also not uncommon for people to prefer clear storage bins in certain areas of their home + colored storage containers, woven baskets, or bins in another.
It simply means, organizing the right way takes time.
