Organize by the Month Blog

Last night I was reading the book “The One Minute Sales Person” by Spencer Johnson. It talks about the best way to sell anything (products, ideas, services) is to help the person/customer get what they want from the product, idea, or service. So what does this have to do with decluttering and organizing? Actually plenty because when we work on decluttering and organizing our homes we not only have to “sell” ourselves on the idea we also have to “sell” our family members on it.

We can work on keeping our own things cleaned up but if our spouses and/or children leave things laying around we will become frustrated and discouraged. We know that begging them to help usually doesn’t work in the long run. We have to figure out how to convince them that decluttering and organizing helps everyone in the household. That is where the “selling” comes in. We have to let them know how they will benefit from getting rid of the old things and organizing what is left.

The specific benefits may different for each person but here are some basic benefits of decluttering and organizing that applies to all of us.

1. Fewer things laying around (toys, electronics, etc.) makes it easier to find and put away the ones we really use and enjoy.
2. Putting dirty clothes in the proper designated place makes it easier to keep the laundry up. That means they will have clean clothes when they need them.
3. Putting the dirty dishes in the dishwasher or washing them by hand instead of leaving them all around will allow you to use clean dishes instead of paper ones. That’s better for the environment and today’s children are learning to take pride in protecting the environment for their own future.
4. Keeping track of how much money is spent on “things” and if they are “wants” or “needs” will help save money and keep the clutter from building up around the house. I call this conscious buying and it benefits everyone.

How do you “sell” yourself and/or your family members on the benefits of decluttering and organizing? Please let me know by leaving a comment so I can share these ideas with all my readers. Thanks.

I looked through some old blog posts and found ones that may help inspire you to find the benefits for you and your family.

Wants vs Needs     http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=156

Mindfulness in the Home     http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=87

“Things” Can Be Freeloaders    http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=370

Time To Get Off Autopilot    http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=354

Mistakes As Clutter    http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=210

To a lighter load along the way.
Janice Scissors

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