Space For What’s Important: Organize Month By Month

By: Sonya Fehér

Since we’re solidly in the middle of February, it’s a good time to start thinking about what you want from your home in 2024. You might be thinking that you should have done this at the beginning of the year, but January isn’t necessarily the best time to plan new projects. Whether you’re trying to get back into a routine after the holidays or the very short days sap you of extra motivation, January may give you no jump start whatsoever.

Enter February, a wonderful month to begin planning.

First, get a pencil and a piece of paper. Or you can do this on your computer so you can make changes. For a fancy bonus visual organizing method, use sticky notes. Create one note for each month and put it up on the wall. Then create a sticky note for each area. You can move the notes around as you consider which area will be organized when. Once you’ve finalized your choices, you can move the sticky notes to your wall or desk calendar so you’ll have a visual reminder of what you’ll organize each month.

Next, make a list of the spaces in your home and yard. This can include rooms, closets, storage areas, and both indoor and outdoor spaces. You might group types of areas together – like clothes closets and bathrooms.

Thirdly, list the months from March – December. I’d like you to think about your year now and how your home gets used differently depending upon what month it is.

Let’s start with the weather. Whether it’s a seasonal clothes switch out or you’d like to organize your garage before you’re in triple digit temperatures, planning when you focus on certain spaces based on seasons and weather is worthwhile. Room organizing projects based on the weather might include entryways and mudrooms with coat closets, bedroom closets, garages and attics, storage sheds, and outdoor areas.

Next, think about what activities you do that mean certain areas of your home get used most. Maybe you hang out in the backyard in spring or summer. You might be organizing outdoor games, camping gear in the garage, your grill area or pool toys. Maybe you have more kids’ slumber parties or out of town guests in summer so having the guest room, kids’ rooms, or playroom organized then would be especially helpful. Or you travel more at a specific time of year, so you want to get your luggage and other travel items organized before that time.

When do you ask the most from your kitchen? Do you bake a lot over the holidays? Need to get the kitchen set up to make school lunches or start saving money by making more meals at home and taking your lunch to work?

Filing taxes usually makes people wish they had their papers in order. A big paper organizing project won’t necessarily work while you’re doing tax prep, but planning ahead to get your papers organized before tax season next year might be helpful.

These are just a few ideas to consider when you’re assigning parts of your home to certain months of the year. So, start a room and month match up. Some areas may not need to be at a particular time. You can assign those to the months that aren’t taken. Prioritize the areas based on what’s giving you the most trouble or what would be easiest to approach.

Finally, assign rooms/areas to particular months. If you have too many in a particular month, reconsider what you’ll do when or plan out your organizing project over a two-year period instead of just one. Here’s a sample schedule you might use to get started and then move things around based on the rhythm of your year. Rearrange accordingly.

January: Papers, office, finances

February: Bathrooms

March: Clothes closets

April: Garage/garden sheds

May: Playrooms/hobby rooms

June: Living room

July: Kitchen & dining

August: Entryway & hall or coat closets

September – Pantry

October: Linen closet & laundry/utility

November: Holiday décor/guest room

December: Bedrooms