Throw away, donate, recycle. The three commandments of decluttering can save you lots of headaches when trying to get your home organized. If you’re having a hard time parting with things, follow these easy steps.

1. The Rule of 10. Organizers swear by the Rule of 10, which states that every 10 days, you should get rid of 10 items. You can choose anything from knickknacks to old clothes to expired food or old leftovers. Things can be donated or trashed, depending on what they are and their condition.

2. Designate homes for your things. Get large plastic containers, moving boxes, or an extra set of drawers and put everything away. This includes bills, paperwork, seasonal decorations or sport items. Create a rule that whatever gets into the house has to be put in its proper place within five hours (or within a day if you’re on the go).

3. Attack one room at a time. If the room is overflowing with things, attack one box or a drawer at a time. Go through it quickly, keeping only the things that you absolutely love or need. If you can’t decide within 10 seconds, let it go.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, June 24th, 2010 at 1:34 am and is filed under Home Organization. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.