Many of us will agree that last year was very difficult, and taxing on our health. Something that many of us may not be aware of is the effect of social isolation on our mental health.
As the government-imposed isolation is gradually being lifted, we must be sure not to impose isolation on ourselves, family, and friends due to the embarrassment of clutter in our homes. Working and attending school from home has transformed our living, dining, and recreational spaces into multipurpose areas. This can completely alter the frequency and way in which we organize that space in our homes.
One way that we can prevent this from happening is to be sure that we create healthy lifestyles. One definition of clutter is anything that we keep that doesn’t add value to your life. We don’t want to allow clutter to dictate how we interact with family and friends. Clutter creates stress and it is often embarrassing. WebMD suggests that a tidy house feels inviting for the people who live there and for guests. A cluttered home often creates
feelings of sadness, and loneliness that can lead to isolation. That is the reason why disorganization can overlap with depression and anxiety disorder. When we are embarrassed about our homes due to clutter, we will avoid family and friends by not inviting them into our homes. Today any homes are multigenerational due to the financial drain that COVID-19 has placed on families due to the loss of jobs. In these homes, several generations of families and sometimes friends are sharing the same space out of necessity. Respecting everyone in the house is an absolute necessity. Eliminating clutter and creating more space for everyone is one way to respect one another. If recognizing the need to declutter is the first step, the logical second step is where to begin. Document management creates order by purging paper documents that are no longer needed.
Adopt the motto “Organization is not a luxury, it’s a lifestyle”.
Everyone should create their own system of managing every piece of paper in their home. Designate a day and time that you will organize your paper documents. Select a comfortable work area and bring all of the papers into this area. Place all of your documents into a large pile. Start sorting them by subject matter that reflects your life. Examples are medical, banking, car insurance, renters’ insurance, school, by family members’ names, cable, insurance, etc. In the beginning, it may seem as if there are too many piles, but there aren’t. This is a tedious but necessary step. If done well, it only has to be done once. Have a container or plastic bags that can be used for any documents that are obviously junk mail. Sort the junk mail into one pile that should be shredded, and one pile that can be recycled. After all of your papers have been sorted, create labeled file folders and place your papers in the appropriate folders.
Everyone is more than capable of organizing their paper documents and then maintaining a document management system. However, if this seems like a daunting task and assistance is needed, there are Professional Organizers who are trained to assist you in reorganizing space in your homes and offices to help you create spatial order and efficient tidiness. They will give their clients customized organizing systems to increase their productivity by improving paper filing, electronic organization, and document management skills.
They encourage and empower their clients to repurpose, reuse and recycle.
Life Files Professionals is a Records Management/Consulting and Professional Organizing company that provides confidential, document management, and environmentally-friendly organizing solutions to New York City residents, small businesses, and government agencies in the tri-state area.
lifefilespros.com
Charlotte@lifefilespros.com
718-548-1282