Peace of Mind Organizing

The power of 15 minutes

20 March 2009

A decade ago, Flylady told me to set my timer for 15 minutes and declutter. She told all of her followers, “You can do anything for 15 minutes.” I’ve put that into use over and over again through the years. And I blog about it a lot because it’s so true. I use my Time Timer all the time (especially the one on my computer—I especially like the Time Timer software) to measure 15 minutes when I’m starting a decluttering project.

Yesterday, my friend (and partner), Shannon Wilkinson, blogged about how she cleaned up her desk top in only 15 minutes.

I was so inspired by her before and after photos, that I went upstairs to tackle my knitting clutter. A bunch of stuff had accumulated next to my spot on the couch where I knit. I’d been finishing a lot of projects lately and not putting away the project bags, the extra balls of yarn and needles, and they just kept piling up. Here’s the before photo (I’m cringing a little as I post this):

Even that Kleenex box was part of my knitting.

I set my timer and just seven minutes later took this picture:

Ah, that's better.

That’s not the whole story, since I was able to clear that space by taking away all the stuff that didn’t belong there. It belongs in the fabulous Elfa drawer system that I use to store my knitting gear. So I took an additional eight minutes to put everything away.

15 minutes. Why in the world did I step over all that knitting clutter when it took only 15 minutes to make it orderly? It’s a question for the ages and one I grapple with all the time, as do my clients.

One of the things I’m so excited about with Declutter Happy Hour is that we’re providing 30 minutes during the teleclass itself for participants to do some decluttering. If I can create the order pictured above in 15 minutes, just think what you can do in a half hour.

P.S. The price for Declutter Happy Hour goes up by $30 on Sunday, so if you’re inclined to sign up, you’re going to want to do it before Sunday.

P.P.S. If you like my Elfa drawer system, Oprah wants you to save money on it. She’s offering viewers a 25 percent off coupon from the Container Store, good through April 13 (as part of her “Clean Up Your Messy House Tour with Peter Walsh). In addition, all Elfa is 30 percent off. Just go to the Container Store’s website for details.

Tagged with: 15 minutes, clutter, declutter happy hour, decluttering, flylady, shannon wilkinson, time timer

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