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A few weekends ago, my church put on a women's conference with various different classes offered for us to attend. One of these classes was about how we can best declutter our life. Having attended similar classes before, I figured it would be the same as always: I would listen to someone tell me the same old stuff about how to organize, I'd be gung-ho for a week or two, and then I'd never realistically keep up with it. It's just the way these things work for me, as I'm sure it works for many others. However, this class was differentthis class wasn't the same ol' same ol'. For once I was given something that actually made sense!

The woman who taught the class is a professional organizer (who even knew such people existed?) in Seattle. I think she was from Oasis Organizers (www.oasisorganizers.com). She gave us a great outline of how we can organize our house, one space at a time. Here's the outline she gave us, with a few of my thoughts and comments:

1. Answer the question: What is the purpose of this room? What is its job? (Sleep? Eat? Store clothes? Get ready for the day? Travel from one place to another?)

As an example, she told us about one family she helped and their process in cleaning the stairs. It was a nice house with a pretty staircase that went up and had a landing with windows and a railing and then continued upwards. The stairs had become an obstacle course. There were stacks and shoes and all sorts of things that were "waiting to go up or down" but never made it in either direction. Her question for them was "What is the function of the stairs?" The immediate answers were that it's for walking up or down, to get one place or another. Another thing she interjected is that they are for beauty. She emphasized that you can't forget that some parts of your house are not only functional, but add to the beauty of your home. The landing on these stairs was just one of those places.

2. Take out anything that doesn't help the room do its job. (Put it in a pile to be sorted through just a little later.)

After determining the function of the room, you literally take everything and put it into piles out of the way. Don't bother trying to sort everything as you go or putting things in their places. Just take it off and dump it somewhere else for a while. For the stairs, that was everything.

3. Put the biggest things (such as furniture) in their proper places. (Remember to place things in a room in such a way that your life is made easier. Don't make things hard

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