10 Common Organizing Mistakes & How to Fix Them

How many times have you tried to get organized, but despite your best efforts, you find yourself searching for a new solution time and time again? Well, the problem may not be a faulty organization system, rather you may be making common organizing mistakes.

These mistakes often make it difficult, if not impossible, to get started or to keep moving forward on your organizing projects. They also hinder your ability to maintain the organization systems you’ve worked so hard to create.

But the good news is that once you know the most common organizing mistakes, they are pretty easy to fix. The solutions are straightforward and will have your home organized in no time!!

So let’s get started — here are 10 common organizing mistakes and how to fix them!

This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a small commission if you purchase something mentioned in this post. See more details here.

1. Organizing Is Not a Priority

One of the most common organizing mistakes is failing to make organizing your home a priority. Getting and staying organized takes work.

It’s plain and simple, to get organized and get a handle on the clutter you need to make it a priority. When organizing and decluttering is relegated to your spare minutes you will never get the results you are working so hard to achieve.

The Fix

Treat organizing your home like it matters! Just think of what finally being organized will do to your life. You will relieve so much stress, create an atmosphere of peace and calm, and finally have time to do those things that matter to you.

Having said that listen carefully, this does not mean you have to spend all your free time organizing and decluttering. It is equally important not to obsess or stress over the organizing or decluttering process.

All you really need to do is schedule regular appointment times in your calendar when you will work on organizing and decluttering your home. Write it down in your planner like you would any other appointment. You will be surprised how quickly you see positive results when you make regular appointment times to organize and declutter your home.

It’s a simple solution to this common organizing mistake! If you need some motivation to make organization a priority, be sure to check out these Life-Changing Advantages of Being Organized.

2. You Move Stuff Around Rather Than Clear it Out

Another one of the common organizing mistakes people often make is failing to actually remove the clutter from their home. I hate to admit it, but I am still guilty of this one from time to time.

When I don’t know what to do with something it is so easy to just move it somewhere on the top shelf or the back of a cupboard. Out of sight out of mind as the saying goes.

The problem is that you really can’t organize clutter.

The Fix

PURGE!

The reality is, it’s impossible to stay organized if you have too much stuff. It just can’t happen.

And honestly, I get it, decluttering can be hard. Especially when it comes to certain items that have an emotional attachment. Often, it’s thinking about those sentimental items that make us freeze up in our decluttering efforts.

So the solution is to start with the easy stuff.

If it is broken or in need of repair, toss it. If you have duplicates, get rid of one. Make a conscious effort to notice what things you have in your home that you aren’t using and really don’t need. Toss them into a box, when the box is full, DO NOT look through it. Toss the full box in the car to take it to your local donation center.

When you are ready to deal with those sentimental items, read this article on How to Conquer the Emotions Preventing You from Decluttering.

3. You Don’t Start

When your home is filled with stuff, the thought of clearing the clutter and getting organized is very overwhelming. Because we’re not sure of where to start or what to do with everything, we often give up before we ever really get started.

If this is you, believe me, you are not alone here. No matter how much you want to be organized, the simple fact is that it’s easy to freeze when we start thinking about all that needs to be done.

The Fix

Just start!

Truthfully, it’s as simple as that. Here is the thing though, if you are feeling overwhelmed don’t start with the biggest problem areas.

Start small. Find the easiest area in your house to organize and start there. By starting small you will build momentum. Pick a single drawer to start with. Also, the bathroom is a great place to start.

When you have cleared and organized that area out give yourself a little win. Those little wins snowball into an organized and clutter-free home.

4. You Haven’t Given Yourself the Right Tools

Another one of the common organizing mistakes is failing to give yourself the right tools to get and stay organized.

One of two things can happen with organizing tools. Either you have purchased a wide variety of inappropriate tools, that only adds to the accumulation of clutter or you don’t have sufficient organizing tools.

The Fix

Having only those organizing tools that work for YOU!

To figure out what the right organizing tools are for you, look around your home and note the specific trouble spots. For example, do you have an area where the clutter keeps arising, such as the dining room table or other flat surfaces? What about an area in your home where things just never get put away.

For example, one of the big problem areas in my home for many years was paper. Every paper brought into my home somehow ended up on our dining room table. The first thing I did was purchase a basket to organize all mail that needed to be dealt with and a tray for papers that needed to be filed. Everything else gets scanned to the computer.

Another area where things often accumulated in my home was my bed. I was always tossing clothes on the bed because my closets were overstuffed it was too much of a chore to fit them all in.

If this is you, start organizing by decluttering your closet. For cluttered drawers look into purchasing some dividers. I use a large decorative basket in the bedrooms to make it easy to keep on top of clothing that needs to be uncluttered.

The solution to this common organizing mistake is to only purchase those items that will work for you, in your home!

Your challenge is to spend some time this week really watching and looking for those areas that clutter gathers in your home or things are left out. Then use the organizing tools you already have on hand to start. Then, if you need to purchase some new items make sure you only purchase what you actually need.

If you’re not sure what you need, here a some of my favorite organizing tools that help me organize my small home!

5. You Think Organizing is One and Done.

You’ve already organized once, the system just didn’t work. Uh wrong, organizing is an ongoing activity. Just as your seasons of life change so does the need to change your organizing systems.

The Fix

Schedule regular times to work on organizing projects. This could be something you do on the first Saturday of each month or at another time that works for you. The key is to make it something you regularly schedule.

It’s also important to remember tidying up is not the same thing as organizing. A quick tidy up allows you to clear your surfaces and place things in a drawer, cabinet, or basket. Organizing means that everything has an assigned place and is put into that place.

If you make the habit of regularly organizing your home, soon, it will become natural.

6. You Don’t Know How to Organize

Organizing mistakes are guaranteed if you don’t know how to organize your home. And well, if no one has taught you, how can you know what to do?

Don’t feel bad if you don’t know where to begin or what to do when it comes to organizing. Organizing is a skill that necessitates a teacher and lots of practice.

The Fix

I have a few posts that go into detail on the how to’s of becoming clutter-free. You can start here with Getting Started on a Clutter-Free Home. You may also want to check out these posts:

Once you have a handle on your clutter, one of my absolute favorite how-to organizing sites is Just a Girl and her Blog.

If you are looking for some good organizing books I would recommend:

7. You’re Not Asking For Help

I know it can be hard to ask for help. But the truth is, it is also very difficult to stay organized when you live with other people and you’re trying to do it all on your own.

The Fix

When it comes to your family show them the organization systems you are working on. Also, show them how they can help you maintain them. With your children, set boundaries as to their stuff. Give them physical spaces their stuff must fit into.

If you have a friend that’s good at organizing, I’m sure they’d be happy to help. All you got to do is ask!

8. You’re Holding Onto Unused Items

Do you have items in your home that you don’t use and just never got around to getting rid of? Maybe you feel guilty for getting rid of perfectly good items that you paid good money for, even if they are no longer useful. Holding on to unused items interferes with your efforts to get fully organized.

The Fix

First, realize that guilt is a negative emotion not worth holding onto. Next, realize that the damage is already done.

What I mean here is that you’ve already spent the money. Holding on to the item is not going to bring that money back. Moreover, every time you look at the item you are feeling those feelings of guilt all over again.

Getting organized means making good decisions about what to keep and what to get rid of. If you’re not using it, let it go.

Depending on the items, you can simply donate them or if they are valuable, look into various ways to sell them. No matter which you decide, getting rid of the unused items will enable you to stay more organized.

9. You Store Everything Out of Sight

I am a huge fan of keeping surfaces clear as much as possible. However, by storing everything out of sight you are taking things out and putting them away all day long. As much as I love the look of clear countertops, sometimes it’s easier to keep things organized when you have what you need at hand.

The Fix

Spend some time thinking about what you really use. Things you use on a regular basis need to be accessible.

This means it’s important to be realistic about your real-life. You want to live in your home, not have a showcase. Keep those things that you use on a daily basis in a place readily available. This will make your home easier to organize and keep clean.

10. No Follow Through

Lastly, of all the common organizing mistakes, the single biggest mistake preventing people from getting organized is failing to follow through.

Knowing exactly how to organize and declutter your home isn’t going to help you if you don’t follow through. I’ve given you many actionable steps here but you must follow through.

But, I know you can do it!

P.S. Just for fun! How cool are these organization tools to make the most of your space!