I have been in the organizing business since 2005! Over the years, I have seen many situations and causes for household clutter. I have come to recognize that there are common items that cause problems in most of our homes. Below I will share my top 10 household clutter items and some ideas on how to combat them.

Top 10 Household Clutter:

1. Entryway Clutter
2. Toys
3. Laundry
4. Dead Electronics
5. Food
6. Monthly Subscriptions and Auto-Refill Items
7. Craft Supplies
8. Mail
9. Email
10. School and Kids’ Activities Paper

Entryway clutter is a huge problem because it is in your face and your space the second you come into your home. It can disrupt the physical flow of your home and well as the energy in your home. It’s just bad feng shui.

Many of us live in homes built long before the American lifestyle developed to where we are now. The entryway was built to accommodate less things and a less complicated lifestyle. In addition, we tend to enter our homes from the back door, which is near the garage. Many homes do not accommodate this flow and therefore, don’t have a coat closet near the back. When you couple that with our consumer-driven mentality, you have a large problem.

How to tackle the entryway clutter:

• Set a limit on how many pairs of shoes each family member can store by the entryway. I know this sounds impossible but it’s not.  New habits will need to be formed to make this happen. If you are over your limit, that person needs to take shoes to their bedroom. The reality is that there is no way most houses can store 25 pairs of shoes x 4 people at the entryway. (And my numbers are conservative!)
• Rotate items seasonally
• Sports equipment may need to live in a bedroom, or at the bare minimum, will need to be rotated seasonally
• Open up boxes received from online orders daily and distribute the items where they belong. Keep a box cutter or scissors at the entryway to facilitate the process

You can find more details about entryway organizing in my post: Back to School: Let the Clutter Begin!

Shoe storage solutions: Shoe Organizers – Product Comparison

Number 2 on the list of the top 10 household clutter items is a big one! We are blessed with prosperity in America and we can also be cursed by this. In my area, many families are doing well financially and the kids are blessed with lots of toys. This quickly becomes a problem for the parents because the toys are everywhere. It can also create distracted kids because their eyes are jumping all over the place searching the toy avalanche. Oftentimes, the kids only play with a few things, likely what is new, easily accessible, or on top of the heap. Parents are frustrated because the kids don’t pick up after themselves but most of the kids wouldn’t have any idea how to “clean up” the heap!

How to tackle the toys:

• Purge regularly using birthdays and holidays as prompts
• Use the one-in/one-out rule
• Rotate toys to keep interest high
• Have the kids help with the decisions on what can be donated to children who have few toys
• Create accessibility with containers that the kids can manage on their own
• Label all containers. For pre-readers, use pictures
• Remove items that you want to keep as memories. Those should not be stored in prime real estate like the family room

Help your kids understand what “cleaning up” means and what it looks like. See my post: Toy Organizing Ideas – Take Back Your House!

Eliminate “landfill toys” because they have an interest half-life of about 5 minutes. Landfill toys can be freebies, Happy Meal toys, goodie bag items, etc. Read this post from Becoming Minimalist: Why Fewer Toys Will Benefit Your Kids. Read my post on how to reduce the volume: Reduce Toy Clutter and Landfill Toys.

If you’re like most of my clients, you need better storage solutions. This post is for you: Toy Organizers – Product Comparison.

An ever-growing item in the top 10 household clutter list is electronics. Electronic devices become out-of-date very quickly! Consequently, we are regularly purchasing the latest model. In our haste and excitement, we toss aside the old and start using the new one. What happens next is there is a build-up of dead electronics, charging cords, and accessories stuffed away in drawers and closets. By now, nobody knows what goes with what or if they got all of their data off of the old device. And if you have 4-5 people in your household who all have a phone and computer, it multiplies like Gizmo Gremlin in the night.

How to combat dead electronics:

• Consider passing down an older device to a younger child, if the younger child is ready for the electronic. Keep all of the accessories with the device
• Donate what is usable NOW. The longer you wait, the harder it will be to donate them because they will be obsolete
• Put devices and accessories in a Ziplock bag and label it. This way the proper accessories are with the electronic item
• Store relevant, but extra, charging cords in a labeled Ziplock bag. Store these bags together so anyone can find an extra cord when they need one
• Recycle everything that you cannot use or donate. It is illegal to put electronics into the regular garbage stream because of heavy metals contained in them. Try Best Buy and Costco for recycling programs or check your local county for recycling events

If you need more information on recycling options, read this post: Where to recycle…?

There is more information on donating electronics in this post: Where to donate…?

The American love of a good deal and bulk shopping has created pantry disasters in our homes. Unfortunately, there is a cost for storing all of our bulk purchases: space, time maintaining, money wasted on expired food and supplies, and money purchasing more storage.

If you lived in Europe, you wouldn’t be able to shop like this because you might not have a car and you definitely wouldn’t have anywhere to put your bulk purchases in your apartment. Europeans shop nearly daily for food. This allows them to eat fresher food and decide daily what sounds like a good meal to make for dinner. I like the idea of not having to decide on meals a week at a time so I can grocery shop once a week!

How to manage food and supplies:

• Use containers as the limit for how much you need of any given item. If the container is full, you don’t buy any
• Use the FIFO method to reduce wasted food
• Purge the fridge of food past its prime before you shop
• Plan your meals before you shop
• Always shop with a list
• Use storage solutions that allow you to easily see what you have
• Periodically, decide that you will eat out of the freezer and pantry for a week as a way to reduce the volume

If you want ideas on meal planning, read this post: Meal Planning: Clutter’s Connection to Weight.

If your kitchen and pantry are already stuffed and you need ideas on how to get ahead, read these posts: Kitchen Organization – Clearing the Clutter and Kitchen Organizing – Storage Optimization.

The build-up of monthly subscription boxes and auto-refill items is a new phenomenon in my client’s homes, especially with clients under 40 years old. Marketers have done a great job of building up the excitement for a monthly goodie box of this, that, or the other thing. And online merchants are happy to auto-refill your supply of anything for you and you don’t have to do a thing! Uh oh! If you see the boxes piling up, that is a clear indicator that you don’t need the things inside the box. The excitement has faded and the backlog builds and it is challenging to get yourself to remember to go online to adjust your settings or cancel.

How to combat the backup of monthly boxes:

• If you really need to utilize these services or still love that monthly goodie box, commit to opening up the box the day it arrives and distributing it in your home, then recycle the box. Keep a box cutter or scissors by the front door to facilitate the process
• Adjust your frequency settings if you see a build-up starting
• Consider ending the auto-ship items altogether and save yourself money and time! Ask yourself if it is really necessary. As my mom used to say, “Just because you can doesn’t mean you should.”

We have good intentions about being crafty, making gifts, and enjoying crafting with our kids. Often our eyes are bigger than our schedules allow so we end up with an abundance of craft supplies.

How to overcome too many craft supplies:

• Sort the crafts, containerize, and label them so you know what you already have. This should help reduce repurchasing
• Get creative by generating some ideas of what you can make with your existing supply
• Pick one or two hobbies that you want to focus on and donate the rest to charity or a school art teacher
• If there are some incomplete (or never started) projects you still want to finish, give yourself a deadline. If the deadline passes and you have not made any progress, donate the supplies

Get inspiration from my before and after pictures: Before and After Craft Room

There are always piles of paper in my clients’ homes, even in the digital age we are living in now. But the paper coming in does seem to be less! Most of it piles up because of indecision. Ask yourself:  Do I need the paper? Can I get it electronically? Do I need to act on it or simply read and toss or file it?

• Reduce incoming paper by removing your name from direct marketer’s mailing lists
• Go digital wherever you can!  Sign up to receive newsletters, bills, bank, and credit card statements via email to reduce the physical paper coming in
• Cancel all magazines and catalogs you don’t read
• Always go through the mail daily, while standing over the garbage can. Immediately toss or recycle all junk mail, envelopes, and inserts, and shred sensitive documents
• Any mail that can be handled in 2 minutes or less, do it now
• Utilize the RAFT method. Read, Act, File, Toss

If you need a more in-depth solution to your paper piles, read my blog post: Reduce Paper Clutter – A How To Guide

We’ve moved to more and more digital communication and that has reduced physical paper. Now we have a digital inbox that is often 10,000 emails strong! Think about it. If you had a physical inbox, would you keep 10,000 pieces of paper in it? Absolutely not!

There are things you can do to combat the digital clutter:

• Treat emails like paper: RAFT, set up folders just like you would for paper, and store emails that you might need to reference later
• Turn emails into tasks or actions (In Outlook and GMail you can easily attach an email to a task and give it a due date)
• Turn them into calendar appointments where appropriate
• Delete them from your inbox! Or archive them if you are worried you’ll need it later
• Declare e-mail bankruptcy. Pick a date about one month in the past and delete or archive everything in your inbox. This can springboard a fresh start
• Unsubscribe from sales and informational newsletters that you don’t look at
• The less you have in your inbox, the easier it will be for you to find important emails and take action on ones that require it

Grade school children come home with a lot of paper, even if they are using computers at school. If you have several kids, this influx can be overwhelming!

Beat back the paper this way:

• Empty backpacks right after school
• Place artwork, projects, homework, tests, and papers in a box, one box per child.  (Feel free to ditch any you’re not attached to right away.) At the end of each semester, have your kids pick their favorites to keep
• Archive your favorite papers in an out-of-the-way location. Create a box for each child, label it, and note what school year or age they were
• Take photos of large and 3-dimensional projects
• Each night, review school notes and transfer them to a calendar, a task list or sign and return them to the backpack

Toy organizers are not all created equal! There are so many options out there and most of them are useless. Marketers play off of our desire to create a cute place to play so they focus on aesthetics and not function. I also see poorly designed toy organizers that have been around for years and keep getting replicated by other companies. I call that lazy product management. It is clear to me, as a former product manager, that the PM has never interacted with the product nor watched children use the product. They just don’t work.

Generally, when I show up at a client’s home to organize toys, I see lots of containers, things are all mixed together, and nothing is labeled. The toys are not stored in a way that gives the kids a chance to pick them up on their own because there is too much chaos and little structure. So let’s get to the meat of the toy organizer product comparisons!

Reason NOT to buy this one:

1. Toy bins are usually on an angle increasing the chance of toys falling out
2. Toy bins are on an angle reducing the amount of usable space
3. If you place the bins flat, you get more usable space but the shelves are rails. This may be challenging for kids to manage without dumping the toys. Picture shown is a unit I organized and labeled. You would be better off simply using a bookshelf and containers of your choice

Reason NOT to buy this one:

1. This is one big cavern so anything on the bottom will likely never be seen again
2. Many toy boxes don’t have quality hinges so safety of fingers can be an issue. (This example is actually a big drawer so there are no finger concerns with this one)

Reason NOT to buy this one:

1. These bins tend to be deep and sometimes dark. Stuff gets lost at the bottom
2. Because almost the entire front is open, there is little usable space, unless you use it for stuffed animals or dolls

Reason NOT to buy this one:

1. These are flimsy and kids will destroy them quickly

Reason NOT to buy this one:

1. Cute but not any more functional than any bin with a lid
2. This one is $68.99!
3. Parents want to over organize Legos by color, etc., and kids don’t care. (Read my post on how to organize toys for thoughts on Legos.)

Reason NOT to buy this one:

1. Kids are not likely to take the time to place each car in a cubby
2. They tend to get broken quickly
3. This one is $25 and the value is not there

Reason NOT to buy this one:

1. These are cute but they hold so few books
2. I see these jammed up with way too many books so the kids can’t see what is there
3. In order for this one to be useful, I think the parents would need to keep the book count down and then rotate weekly. I’m guessing most people won’t do that

Reasons to LOVE this one:

1. Very sturdy, especially the ones made of real wood
2. Flexible and can be reconfigured
3. Customizable

Buy Trofast storage at IKEA.

Reason to LOVE this one:

1. Portable, which is handy for the littles if the toys are heavy
2. You can purchase a lid for it also
3. Sturdy and good for larger toys like blocks

Buy this rolling bin at IKEA

Reason to LOVE this one:

1. Perfect for craft supplies and other small toys
2. Easy for kids to open
3. Little items won’t get lost in a large bin

Buy the colorful pencil boxes at IKEA or stock up on standard pencil boxes during back-to-school season.

Reason to LOVE this one:

1. Provides easy access to frequently used craft or school supplies
2. Perfect if you have a dedicated crafting or homework station

Buy this craft Lazy Susan on Amazon.com

Reason to LOVE this one:

1. Stores coloring books, educational workbooks, and activity books upright so you can easily access the one you want
2. Sturdier than cardboard magazine files
3. Bins link together to provide stability
4. Also works well for construction paper because it keeps the paper in better shape

Buy this magazine file at The Container Store.

Reason to LOVE this one:

1. Holds swords and light sabres upright so they take up less room

Buy this umbrella stand at The Container Store.

Reason to LOVE this one:

1. Big enough to hold all the larger balls little kids play with
2. Holds them upright so they take up less floor space

Buy this storage barrel at The Container Store.

Reason to LOVE this one:

1. Comes in three sizes so small toys can have a smaller container
2. Easy to label on two sides
3. Frame is metal with a reinforced base so it is more sturdy than the standard “popup” containers
4. Comes in neutral colors that won’t be an eyesore in your family room

Buy this storage bin at The Container Store.

If toys are out of control in your home, read my toy organizing blog posts for more ideas.

I have two quick top tips:

1. LABEL everything! It’s the only way the system can be maintained. If your kids aren’t reading yet, create picture labels and secure them on the container with clear shelf paper or laminate them and hang them from the handle
2. Place toys in positions that kids can reach and can manage the weight of the container. (i.e. Magnatiles go on the bottom shelf or in a rolling bin for easy access without lifting.)

Which products are your favorites? Please share in the comments!

ADHD (or ADD) is a popular topic amongst the general population as well as my client base. Many of us have been clinically diagnosed, self-diagnosed, or possibly have a trait or two that sounds like ADHD.  Because getting things done is usually a challenge for those with ADHD, I’ll share some strategies that can help anyone keep track of their to-do list and get things done.

So we’re all on the same page and not just self-diagnosing, let’s start with a definition of ADHD. (ADHD is a diagnosis that replaced ADD.)

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is marked by an ongoing pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interferes with functioning or development. (Source: NIH)

Three major types of ADHD include the following:

• ADHD, combined type. This, the most common type of ADHD, is characterized by impulsive and hyperactive behaviors as well as inattention and distractability.
• ADHD, impulsive/hyperactive type. This, the least common type of ADHD, is characterized by impulsive and hyperactive behaviors without inattention and distractability.
• ADHD, inattentive and distractible type. This type of ADHD is characterized predominately by inattention and distractability without hyperactivity. (Source: HopkinsMedicine.org)

Initiating and following through on tasks are just a few skills that are challenging for those with ADHD. Below I’ll share some resources on how to get things done when you have ADHD or even when you don’t!

I talk regularly with clients about tackling their work using a to-do list. This list can be in whatever format floats your boat, as long as it floats toward the finish line in a relatively straight line! The mechanism for tracking your tasks needs to speak to you and tickle your brain. The tickling your brain piece is even more important if you are a highly distractable person because your brain needs to light up to get things done. Other people may be able to push through a mundane task without external stimulation.

For me, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Outlook’s task manager. I bet many of you use Outlook at work but never noticed the task manager module! What I love most about it is I can manage my calendar, email, and tasks all in one application. I can receive an email, turn it into a task with one click, and attach the email and any other relevant files right to the task. This way, when I’m ready to work on the task, I have everything in one place. If you have never given this task manager a look, I highly recommend checking it out. Microsoft offers an app for your phone in addition to the desktop application.

For those of you who don’t use Outlook, there are many other options. Google has a task manager built into its email and calendar platform. This task manager is not as robust as Outlook but it may work just fine for you if you’re already steeped in Google world.

There are a ton of apps for your phone that you can also use. I suggest looking through the top ones and trying them for a day to see if you like the way they operate, how it looks, and how it feels. That’s probably the only way you’ll know it is for you. This article walks you through how to find the one for you and covers some of the top apps. Find the Perfect To-Do List App

Of course, good, old-fashioned paper works to track tasks as well. I have a couple of issues with paper lists, though. First, as you work through your list, it will start to get messy and hard to read and this will necessitate rewriting regularly. I find this a waste of valuable time. Second, you cannot attach the pertinent email or spreadsheet to the paper list in an orderly way. Third, what happens if you lose the list?? Yikes!

Oftentimes, we have a larger task that is really a project. Just simply writing, “write term paper”, on your list is not appealing. It freezes our brains because it is a multi-step process to write a term paper. Where do I start? How do I manage the timeline? For these types of tasks, you’ll need to break it down into smaller pieces and shorter deadlines so you can propel yourself forward and not be intimidated. I have a blog post dedicated to project management tips that will give you some good information.

If you find yourself not wanting to get started with your work, read my post, “The Art of Keeping Up with Yesterday-12 Procrastination Beating Tips“. You may also benefit from learning which type of procrastinator you are in this post, “Procrastination Types“. I’ve cultivated some of the best strategies for ADHD and executive function deficiencies from reading and seeing expert speakers. You’ll find some of the top ideas in my posts!

Please keep in mind that if you have ADHD, task initiation is often a huge hurdle. Don’t beat yourself up. When you do find something that helps with initiation, keep using that strategy!

Here are two more good reads:

ADHD Productivity Hacks

Monotask Your To-Do List

What is your most effective way to manage your to-do list? What is your method to track your tasks?

All shoe organizers were not created equally! You will find so many styles, designs, and functions of shoe organizers out there but which one is right for you? The answer to that depends on where in your home you want your shoe storage, how many pairs of shoes you need to store, and what type of shoes you are going to store.

The first thing I’m going to cover is the good and the bad of the typical shoe storage found on the market because I see many clients who have spent good money on something that is bound to fail them. I want you to find the right shoe rack for your needs that will work!

Reason NOT to buy this one:

1. Shoes will not be stable on these bars
2. Children’s shoes won’t stay on
3. Stuff from the bottom of your shoes will fall into the shoes below

This one is an improvement but..

Reason NOT to buy this one:

1. Stuff from the bottom of your shoes will fall into the shoes below

Reason NOT to buy this one:

1. The dividers take up valuable real estate
2. Men’s shoes often don’t fit well
3. Booties may not fit

Reason to LOVE this one:

1. Rolls out for easy view
2. Fits 6 pairs of women’s shoes in 2 feet
3. Mesh shelves keep most debris from falling through
4. Shelves hold shoes securely
5. Fits all sizes except maybe the largest men’s shoes

Buy this Elfa shoe shelf at the Container Store.

Reason to LOVE this one:

1. Holds shoes securely
2. Fits all sizes of shoes
3. Easy viewing of all the shoes
4. Customize rack to hold shoes and/or bins

Buy this Elfa wall or over door, customizable rack at the Container Store.

Reason to LOVE this one:

1. Holds shoes securely
2. Fits all sizes of shoes
3. Solid shelves keep debris from falling onto shoes below
4. Less expensive
5. Many sizes and colors of this simple solution are available everywhere

Buy this shoe shelf at the Container Store or other retailers

Hang your boots with this rack.

Buy this hanging boot rack at The Container Store.

Tuck your boots under the bed.

Buy this under bed boot container at The Container Store.

Store boots at the foot of your closet.

Buy this floor boot rack at The Container Store.

Hang your shoes on the back of the door and store up to 24 pairs!

Buy this over-the-door shoe storage at The Container Store.

If you have hanging space in your closet, try this one.

Buy this hanging shoe storage at The Container Store.

This slim cabinet fits anywhere and is perfect for the entryway. It can hold about 12 pairs of shoes.

Buy this shoe cabinet at IKEA.

If shoes are a greater problem at your entryway, read my blog post: Back to School: Let the Clutter Begin.

If shoes are only a small part of your wardrobe challenges, read my blog post: How to Organize a Master Bedroom Closet.

Did you figure out which solution is right for you? Tell us which one in the comments below!

1. CLASSIC – We pretend that other projects are of higher importance and we work on those instead. We can make ourselves feel good, briefly, by doing those tasks because we are accomplishing something. We do this because our brains typically prefer immediate results versus long-term results. We have an internal battle with our own brains trying to motivate our “current self” to do right by our “future self”.
2. CLEANER – We decide that if our desk, home, or office was in order, our minds would be freed up for the real work. Sometimes this is very true! A cluttered desk, home, or office sets the tone for your day. Clutter can make you feel sluggish and weigh you down mentally.
3. PERFECTION – We tell ourselves that we don’t have time to do the project perfectly and, therefore, we can’t start it until we have the proper time.
4. BETTER THAN – We feel defiant because this task is beneath us, it’s not our responsibility, or it isn’t important.
5. BLAME – We believe someone else is holding us up from getting the project done. It’s out of our hands!
6. HERO – We cannot do our best work unless we hit crisis mode and become the hero. Crisis mode usually doesn’t happen until the deadline is looming. For some people, hitting crisis mode is the only way they can overcome the boredom of the task. But studies show that work completed in crisis mode is not our best work.
7. FANTASY – We shouldn’t need to work hard to get what we want. Doing work sounds boring or frustrating.
8. WORRY – We worry so much that we won’t be able to accomplish the task and be successful that we can’t even start, thus guaranteeing failure.

When you Google this topic, there a millions of results! Let me provide you with a few tips and more resources. Keep in mind that you may only need to identify your procrastination type and then find a few, likely simple, ideas to beat procrastination. Don’t get too bogged down in the plethora of ideas. Find one or two that speak to you and take that first step forward!

When there is a part of the task that is boring, we tend to put it off. (See the HERO above.) We can’t imagine muddling through the tedious parts. This is an opportunity to define what is boring about the task. Being clear about the problem is half the battle! Once you are clear about what is making this boring, set aside a specific amount of time to process the boring parts. Incentivize yourself with a reward for surviving the boring stuff!

Maybe you have actually started the task but have found that you are not accomplishing much. Evaluate what is making the task difficult. Sometimes just getting specific with yourself will free up the flow and allow you to find a way to work smarter instead of harder.

Here is a perfect example of a task that I procrastinate. Writing a blog post can be challenging for me because coming up with a topic is not well-defined nor easy. Unless I have a quick inspiration, which occasionally happens, not having a topic to write about makes me procrastinate. I need to tell myself that there is a smarter way to create a topic. I do not have to simply wait for inspiration!  I remind myself that I can brainstorm a list of topics. Like all true brainstorming sessions, you should write ideas down with no judgment. Just let the ideas flow!  I also can review past notes of blog topics. I can then narrow down the options based on current ideas or inspiration. Once I have selected a topic, the process flows readily.

Previously on my blog I posted 12 Procrastination Beating Tips. It’s a quick read so see if you can find a couple of ideas that are meaningful to you. While researching this topic, I found James Clear, author of the NY Times Best-Selling book, Atomic Habits. He offers excellent articles dissecting procrastination as well as a newsletter. Tim Urban has a short Ted Talk that is entertaining and explains in simple terms what is going on in our brains when it comes to procrastination. I thoroughly enjoyed his talk and I bet you will too!

Take one step forward. Just one! You can do it.

Many of my clients can get organized with my help but the next challenging step is creating habits to stay organized. As I work with my clients, I share ideas on maintaining the organizing systems I have established with them. Part of the hard work is sustaining focus on being organized and the benefits of being organized. It takes weeks to really hard-wire a new habit! But if you can get that deep in the habit-building, you might have made it stick. Of course, we are happy to help get our clients back on track should a life event throw things off.  Below you will find my favorite tips on how to stay organized, and a few on how to get organized.

Give one of my tips a try and see if you can build from there. I bet you will find that even taking on one of these new habits will make your life better! It is amazing how tackling one or a few of these foundational areas of your life will bring relaxation and clarity to your life.

Did you find one or two habits to start working on? What are some of your favorite habits to stay organized? Please share in the comments.

1. Invest $10 in a closet rod doubler.  I recall my dorm closet, and most closets for the matter, as having one hanging rod.  This is great if all you wear are evening gowns but if not, you’re left with a lot of unusable space! No tools are required.
2. Bed risers will make the most of your under bed storage space. These are inexpensive and when paired with containers designed to fit under a bed it’s a win!
3. Shoe storage is a must.  If you are light on shoes, then shelves below the hanging clothes is great.  I NEVER suggest the kind of shelves with the bar you’re supposed to hook your shoe heels on.  They never stay on and you just end up with a mess.   If you have lots of shoes or maybe you want to share half with a roommate, I really like the over-door shoe bag from The Container Store that holds 24 pairs!
4. A bedside caddy would have been a great invention when I was in Lincoln Dorm at Northern Illinois University!  I had to put a small shelving unit on my desk so I could prop my alarm clock on top.  I recommend using museum putty to keep your alarm or lamp in place so you don’t knock it off when you roll over. This handy caddy not only stores your stuff but you can run a power strip to it and charge you stuff!
5. Command Hooks are great for dorms and apartments as they leave no holes behind.  You can hang just about anything on one of these handy deals.
6. Cabledrop is a clip that is nice to hold cords in place on a desktop when you unplug your laptop or phone.  They’ll be ready and waiting for you next time you plugin!
7. Drawer organizers are perfect for school supplies and make-up.  They’ll keep your items sorted and keep them from sliding away.  (Label your bins so things always end up in the right place, even if your roommate borrows something!)  I like the Linus brand because they have deeper bins to make the most of the drawer depth and rubber feet to keep them all from sliding to the back of the drawer.  I haven’t seen any other brand take advantage of the drawer depth and I’m not sure why!
8. A mobile drawer unit or small dresser to tuck in a nook or in a closet will hold all those socks and undies nicely.  If you think you will use this for several years during dorm or apartment life, it would be a wise investment to get something sturdier than the all-plastic units they sell at places like Walmart and Target.  Check out these from IKEA priced from $79.99-$169.99.
9. Use binders to organize your notes and syllabuses. One binder with tabs for each class may work or use separate binders for classes with a lot of paperwork. If your classes distribute materials electronically, create a digital file system just as you would with actual paper.
10. Use a smartphone to organize your time.  Most people only scratch the surface of the capability these phones have to help us with our busy lives!  (Really, these phones are for more than just games!)  You can use the calendar function to note appointments, tests, and schedule in time for studying.  Get a task application, to manage your to-do list.  I really love Outlook for these functions and most phones can sync with Outlook so you’ll have all your information mobile with you at all times.  Be sure to sync/back up your phones somewhere so you won’t be caught without your information if you lose your phone.

What cool organizational tools are you using at college?  What did you send your son or daughter off to school with that is a great organizational tool?  Do you think your kids are ready to organize their own lives while at school?