Organizational Stewardship

Blogger didn't cooperate so I posted two posts yesterday instead of scheduling one for today. Oh well.
Today I'm posting my final thoughts from the book One Year to an Organized Life.
1. Begin each organization project with some time to think through and plan what you want the finished project to look like. This is a good time to see if your room needs some decorating updating too. Are you using the room to the best use or could you convert this room differently or get new furniture?
2. Reward yourself when you finish each organization project. Sometimes it can be a reward for yourself, sometimes rewards for the whole family like serving their favorite dessert when they helped with the project.
3. Clean out what need to get rid of first, then buy the organizing products you need to organize that what is left, not the other way.
4. Goal is to make house peaceful for your family to live in, welcoming to visitors to your home, and to use each room in the house and park your cars in the garage (not have a junk room or so much junk in the garage that you can't park there). My new goal is to make use of all areas of our new home-not have rooms just to store things just because we now have 5 bedrooms.
5. Organizing your address book is going to be painful. Painful to remove those loved ones that died and to admit that you are no longer in contact with some of your friends. Take time to do this well so you can easily find addresses. Not only does your address book need to be cleaned out, but also your e-mail address book. Reward yourself after finishing this painful project. Each night enter any new addresses or phone numbers that you scribbled on post-it notes, repairman phone numbers, and new e-addresses when you learn of them. Try to keep on top of this each day before the post-it notes pile up.
6. Perfection in your home is not an achievable goal. Do the best you can do and then enjoy your home and your family.
7. Teach yourself first and then your children the habit of completion. After play time they put their toys away, after using an afghan they fold it up before they leave the room, after playing a board game they put it away.
8. The house that we bought is new and beautiful. I want to be a good steward of this new blessing in our life. I also want to be a good steward of everything we own-not have boxes of stuff sitting in the garage unorganized and never used. My goal is to make a place for everything and get rid of the rest-giving it to someone that can use it when possible.