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What is the hardest part of getting your house organized? Finding organization supplies which are affordable and convenient? Nope, that is pretty easy with a nice set of plastic storage bins. Finding time to organize? That probably depends on how busy you are, but most of us can find plenty of time on the weekends. Actually, for a lot of people, the hardest part of home organization starts before it’s even time to put everything in plastic storage boxes. The hardest part is cleaning house beforehand and getting rid of things we no longer need.

This can be especially challenging if you are emotionally invested in your possessions. When you care about your things, letting them go can feel like a betrayal. One way to make it easier is to get a donation station set up. This is also a great idea even if you are not emotionally invested in what you own! Throwing away items someone else could potentially use or enjoy is extremely wasteful. There are so many better ideas for getting rid of your stuff. Here are some places you can take items to donate:

• Thrift stores
• Retirement homes
• Churches, synagogues, and other religious establishments
• Halfway houses
• Homeless shelters
• Women’s shelters
• Etc.

All of these organizations can take your unwanted possessions and see to it that they find new homes where they will be appreciated and taken care of. If you think about it, you may come up with other ideas too. Every location has its own special organizations dedicated to helping others. Sending your possessions to these organizations is much better than throwing your unwanted things away. While you may be thinking of hosting a yard sale or something similar, you will generally end up with a lot left over, so even then you will typically end up donating. Plus, organizing a yard sale is a lot of work, and you may be tempted to use that as an excuse to avoid de-cluttering and organizing!

With a donation station, you simply get a large plastic bin (or several for specific types of items or destinations), and set them up in a corner of your house. Anyone in your household can drop stuff off in the donation bin. Then, once a week or once a month, you simply take the contents, put them in a plastic bag, and take them to the thrift store or another of the organizations listed above. If you schedule these runs regularly and stick with your schedule, this will prevent clutter from accumulating in the future.

An uncluttered home is easier to keep organized than one which constantly accumulates unwanted items. Donating isn’t something you need to do just once or twice a year. If you take regular trips, you will find it much easier to keep up with, and you will also form good habits. Eventually, you will find it easier to part with things and de-clutter your home. And then you will be ready to start organizing what you really do want and need!