Expert-Approved Productivity Hacks For Your Home

You're getting ready to leave the house and you can't find the one thing you need. And this happens all the time. If this sounds familiar, you may be in need of some solid ways to make your home organized and efficient.

And I'm no stranger to this phenomenon. I went through a period of being so disorganized that I would lose important pieces of mail in my own home. I'd also feel continually frustrated when I couldn't find the other earring in a matching set, or felt like I could never really get anything clean because there was just so much stuff around. Not to mention I started avoiding having visitors because actually making my place look "presentable" could take up an entire afternoon.

And disorganized homes don't just look messy — they can start to actively make us less productive and efficient with our time since we end up spending so much of it looking for things.

Interested in ways to improve my own productivity at home, I was recently able to touch bases with lifestyle expert and celebrity designer Courtney Cachet via email and pick her brains about ways to organize our homes to maximize productivity. After peppering her with questions, I've distilled her answers down to five major bullet points to help keep our homes productive.

1. Declutter

"The most important part of the home organization process is getting rid of what is no longer useful," Cachet says. "I emphasize the term 'useful' because you could have held onto the most beautiful evening gown from when you were younger, but if it no longer works for you, it's no longer useful. By doing a purge, you will remove items you don’t wear or use anymore and make room for the new." Consider taking a weekend to rid your space of things you truly no longer use.

2. Start Small

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Cachet notes that one of the single most important things to recognize about organizing for the sake of productivity is that you should start small. "The biggest home productivity mistake that most people make on a regular basis is not understanding that productivity and organization start at the smallest, most basic levels. For instance, if you don’t have an organized kitchen drawer, the same usually goes for the rest of your home spaces. First focus on the smaller organizational adjustments, which will set the groundwork for accomplishing your overall goal," says Cachet.

My personal favorite place to start is with paper clutter, as it usually takes care of some of the most crucial items in your home, like bills or credit card statements.

3. Have A Method

Cachet also says that it's important to have a solid plan of action before tackling home organization. "First, start room by room and prioritize in order of importance," Cachet says. "Next, compartmentalize your items in an orderly manner so that you can easily find them, and last but not least, label everything!"

4. Get The Right Tools

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Cachet notes that another big part of organizing for productivity is having a few of the right products and accessories on hand to help you keep an organizational system in place. "Some of the best game-changing products that will increase productivity include desk organizers, file cabinets, and storage boxes," she wrote. These items make the overall process easier and your space more attractive. She specifically recommended items like stylish baskets and storage ottomans from cost-efficient places like TJ Maxx and Marshalls.

5. Remember, It's A Process!

And finally, Cachet reminds us that keeping our homes and lives organized is an ongoing process that never really has a true end point. "Staying organized is a daily habit, not an event," Cachet notes. This means that once you've established your personal organizational systems, it's up to you to maintain them. Cachet says when you do, there is actually a lot of enjoyment and satisfaction in the process.

Your home should be a source of calm — never stress and frustration. And the good news is there are super simple and attainable ways to organize your home that will also increase your productivity. Just go in with a plan of action, and remember that maintaining your systems is just as important as implementing them in the first place. Now go forth and organize.

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