I have been thinking about principles in regard to organising. Are there some fundamental truths, that would mean that no matter who you are, or what system you use, you have to adhere to them? If you don’t, getting organised is not going to happen.

I have been asking myself that question for several years now. You see there is plenty of organising advice out there, some of it works, some doesn’t. It depends on the fad, the personality, and sometimes the tools you use. But behind this, there have to be principles that withstand all those things. Rules like gravity, accept it or not it is still there.

I am not sure if this list will be 100% but it surely has some very strong truths about organising we have to acknowledge each and every time if we want to declutter and organise.

A list of truths about organising

You will have to go through every physical item you have before you can organise it.
You will need to group similar things together in categories, to assess the volume.
You need to work on particular groups of items when you organise.
You need to throw stuff out.
All items in your house will need a home (which in organising terms means the final resting place where you place an item before it is needed next).
If you are not psychologically ready to let things go and go through items, organisers cannot help you.
You need to create a system for your items to be used and remain organised.
You need to maintain an organised house via habits and routines.

All of these points can be expanded and discussed but breaking any of these points and organising will not work. The truth is organising is hard work but so is anything worthwhile in life.