New Year, New Thing: Get Organized with a New Way of Thinking

I’m so excited about today’s post in the New Year, New Thing series!  Liana George is a professional organizer and she is going to help us re-set our thinking about getting the clutter out of our hearts and lives.  

Being organized is not a personality or genetic trait that God passed out to a select few – it’s a skill that anyone, including you, can learn and developI talk with many people who want to make getting organized one of their New Year’s resolutions. When I hear the goals and plans people make to bring more order to their homes and lives, my heart jumps for joy! I believe that we are called to live lives of order, but I know from experience that reaching that goal is not always an easy one.

It’s often a messy journey, full of ups and downs, progress and setbacks. When I step in to help out, many people will ask me, “What am I doing wrong? Why can’t I be an organized person?”

Oh, friend, know that you can be an organized person!

Being organized is not a personality or genetic trait that God passed out to a select few – it’s a skill that anyone, including you, can learn and develop.

Developing our organizing skills requires time, effort, knowledge, and a willingness to change. Of these, I’ve found that change is the most difficult part of the organizing equation.

Not only do we need to change some of our behaviors and habits, we have to change our way of thinking too. Why? Because our thoughts become our actions. If getting organized is one of your resolutions for this year, I want to encourage you to do a new thing and adjust your thinking!

4 New Ways of Thinking

There are numerous thoughts that can run through our brains when it comes to getting organized. Rather than letting your mind run the gauntlet of despair and doubt, try focusing on these new ways of thinking to help bring order to your life and spaces:

Think small

In a world that screams, “Go big or go home!” the concept and value of small is often overlooked. But when it comes to getting organized, thinking small can be the key to your success.

Whether you invest a small amount of time to restore order to your home (15 or 30 minutes/day) or you start organizing a small space (a drawer, a small pile of papers, or a small section of your closet), thinking small can make a huge difference.

The concept may be totally opposite of what the world says to do, but if God can use a small boy to defeat a giant or a few fish and bread loaves to feed thousands – just think what could he do with your small organizing efforts!

Think abundantly

The first thing that usually comes to people’s mind when they think about getting organized is what they will be losing: the time that will have to be sacrificed to get the work done, the cost of purchasing supplies, or the loss of their items in the decluttering process.

When we think that way we are operating out of a mindset of scarcity. We’re always focusing on what we’ll be losing and ending up with nothing more than fear, failure and discontentment. But Scripture tells us that God gives us life to the fullest, in great abundance!

So why do we focus on our losses?

I encourage you to think with an abundant mindset instead. Take time to consider what organizing will add to your life: less stress, more peace, and the ability to find things easier, to name a few.

When we approach the organizing process with an attitude of abundance then we find the joy, fulfillment, and success we are wanting.

Think of your bigger why

I’m very curious and always wanting to know the why behind every story or process. So when others tell me they want to get organized, I can’t help but ask them, “Why?”

Many times the answers I get to that question are the same:
• I want to find things easily
• I want to invite people over without being embarrassed

Those are great reasons to get your spaces in order, but I want to encourage you to dig a little deeper and find your bigger why.

Why?

Because when the organizing process gets difficult and you’re tempted to give up, your bigger why will motivate you to keep moving forward.

Why do you want to find things easily? Because it will allow me to have more time with my family and friends and more time doing the things I enjoy.

Why do you want to invite people over? Because I want to have meaningful relationships and be able to minister to people in my home.

Understanding your bigger why will not only give you a clear vision and focus for bringing order to your life, but it can also be the inspiration you need to sustain it.

Think outside the box

“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” – Romans 12:2 (NIV)

Too often, we think of organizing in terms of worldly standards – what we read in the magazines, what we see on TV, or what we view online.

But how could our organizing journeys be different if we shifted our organizing efforts from what the world suggests and opened our eyes, hearts, and minds to see what God’s Word reveals about orderly living?

Although there’s no specific verse that says, “Thou shalt be orderly”, Scripture does give us examples of orderly living. We can see it reflected in Creation, through the life of the Proverbs 31 woman, and in the way Jesus conducted his ministry.

God is a not a God of disorder but of peace. You may have never thought of organizing as a spiritual practice, but if you’ll think outside the box, renewing your mind with the truth of God’s Word, you’ll find the peace that orderly living can bring.

I know that getting organized can be a daunting task. But if you will do a new thing and develop a new way of thinking with your organizing efforts, you’ll find that they’ll lead you to the orderly life you long for.

RESOURCES

To help you turn your organizing efforts in a new direction, Liana offers her 180 Challenge. The 180 Challenge is a 10 month decluttering challenge where you and Liana will work together to clear the clutter from your spaces so that you can have breathing room to live and enjoy your home once again. To learn more about this challenge visit her website at www.bygeorgeorganizing.com and click on the Classes & Challenges tab.

And check out the other posts in the New Year, New Thing series!


Liana headshotLiana George is a professional organizer, speaker, writer and teacher. She is the owner of By George Organizing Solutions, where she works with clients who are overwhelmed and stressed by the chaos and clutter in their lives to create lasting solutions customized to each client’s personality and style. Liana lives in Houston with her husband, Clint, and is mom to two college-age girls, Kayley & Abbey. When she’s not organizing something, you can find her curled up with a good book, playing tennis, or planning her next diving adventure.  You can connect with Liana on Facebook or on Twitter

 


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4 thoughts on “New Year, New Thing: Get Organized with a New Way of Thinking”

  1. Liana, I loved your point about thinking abundantly. I was reminded of John 10:10 when I read your post. “…I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

    Great post. I think of myself as organized (for the most part!) but this blessed me with some new thoughts. 🙂

    Reply
  2. Thank you Kelly! I’m glad you enjoyed the post and walked away with a new way of thinking about your organizing efforts. I heard that success is 80% mindset and 20% mechanics so hopefully changing the way we think will bring about the success we are wanting in life. Take care!

    Reply

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