Ask HN: How to Organize?
13 comments
I have had to teach my SO exactly these habits. This is what worked for us:
Pick one small area to start with. We chose the kitchen because it is used several times per day so keeping it clean pays the biggest dividend.
Think about how your storage should be organised. Most frequently used items in the most accessible cupboards. How should people move through the space? Where are the bottlenecks/sharp corners? This is a UX problem.
Throw away all the useless, broken stuff and the stuff that you haven't used in a year. Be ruthless.
Clean your area properly for the first time - every surface, every item. Use powerful cleaning products NOT hippy, earth-friendly coloured water. Wear rubber gloves. Break into a sweat. This first clean is hard work.
Next time you do anything in your area, ensure that it is clean before you start. Throw away rubbish, wipe up dirt, wash up, dry, put away. This should not take long.
Clean up whilst using your area. Clean up after using your area. You are not a teenager, pick up after yourself.
Schedule a time for cleaning. I find Wednesday evenings good because work/TV/social-life is usually empty on Wednesday evenings. It is possible to clean a (tidy) two bedroom apartment top-to-bottom in two hours, but don't expect to be this efficient when you start. Two-three hours once or twice per week is plenty unless you have pets/kids/coalminers living with you.
Take the time to notice that using your area is massively more efficient when it is tidy and give yourself a mental pat on the back. When you mess up (we all do), the motivation to get back to the tidy state should be there. You are now a grown-up.
Pick one small area to start with. We chose the kitchen because it is used several times per day so keeping it clean pays the biggest dividend.
Think about how your storage should be organised. Most frequently used items in the most accessible cupboards. How should people move through the space? Where are the bottlenecks/sharp corners? This is a UX problem.
Throw away all the useless, broken stuff and the stuff that you haven't used in a year. Be ruthless.
Clean your area properly for the first time - every surface, every item. Use powerful cleaning products NOT hippy, earth-friendly coloured water. Wear rubber gloves. Break into a sweat. This first clean is hard work.
Next time you do anything in your area, ensure that it is clean before you start. Throw away rubbish, wipe up dirt, wash up, dry, put away. This should not take long.
Clean up whilst using your area. Clean up after using your area. You are not a teenager, pick up after yourself.
Schedule a time for cleaning. I find Wednesday evenings good because work/TV/social-life is usually empty on Wednesday evenings. It is possible to clean a (tidy) two bedroom apartment top-to-bottom in two hours, but don't expect to be this efficient when you start. Two-three hours once or twice per week is plenty unless you have pets/kids/coalminers living with you.
Take the time to notice that using your area is massively more efficient when it is tidy and give yourself a mental pat on the back. When you mess up (we all do), the motivation to get back to the tidy state should be there. You are now a grown-up.
I can't recommend it enough, hire a professional organizer to setup your house work area etc and then have them teach you the hacks to make it stick and be efficient. It does cost a little bit of money of course, but it is SO worth it.
My wife isn't necessarily a professional organizer but has done it for people and a few companies. She is one of those super organized people (and creative about it) and she kicked my ass about my bad habits. She still calls me the stacker from time to time, because I used to keep stacking shit on my desk for months and then go through it to organize it. What sucked is like half the pile would be trash by that point and I missed dates for things etc. She thought it was ironic because a number of my clients have given me compliments and sent me emails that say I am so organized and my code and project deliverables are so clean and well thought out. They just never saw my desk before.
She changed the workflow for me and has basically made me WAY better. When I get stressed out I will tend to stack still sometimes, which tells me it isn't yet 100% ingrained but I am working on it. But I know it has mostly worked because now the irony is that I get stressed if I see stacks or things aren't in their place, so its good.
The biggest habit to change is don't say I will get to it, just do it now. That was (can still be at times) one of my biggest issues.
On the household things, my wife uses the daily & weekly routine. About an hour everyday spread out throughout the day is dedicated to doing little tasks so they don't stack up. Like wiping down the sinks in the bathroom after we are done in the morning, it takes 3-4 minutes but then they don't get dirty and require extra time to clean. She also planned out our cleaning schedule. So like my 16 year old does his laundry on Wednesdays, she does my daughters laundry on Thursdays, and ours on Friday. Sheets and towels are left for Saturday. She does that with everything so that no day does any one of us spend more than about an hour throughout the day doing any of the tasks. At first I thought it would suck but after a while it has turned into the greatest stress relief and efficient plan for us.
My wife isn't necessarily a professional organizer but has done it for people and a few companies. She is one of those super organized people (and creative about it) and she kicked my ass about my bad habits. She still calls me the stacker from time to time, because I used to keep stacking shit on my desk for months and then go through it to organize it. What sucked is like half the pile would be trash by that point and I missed dates for things etc. She thought it was ironic because a number of my clients have given me compliments and sent me emails that say I am so organized and my code and project deliverables are so clean and well thought out. They just never saw my desk before.
She changed the workflow for me and has basically made me WAY better. When I get stressed out I will tend to stack still sometimes, which tells me it isn't yet 100% ingrained but I am working on it. But I know it has mostly worked because now the irony is that I get stressed if I see stacks or things aren't in their place, so its good.
The biggest habit to change is don't say I will get to it, just do it now. That was (can still be at times) one of my biggest issues.
On the household things, my wife uses the daily & weekly routine. About an hour everyday spread out throughout the day is dedicated to doing little tasks so they don't stack up. Like wiping down the sinks in the bathroom after we are done in the morning, it takes 3-4 minutes but then they don't get dirty and require extra time to clean. She also planned out our cleaning schedule. So like my 16 year old does his laundry on Wednesdays, she does my daughters laundry on Thursdays, and ours on Friday. Sheets and towels are left for Saturday. She does that with everything so that no day does any one of us spend more than about an hour throughout the day doing any of the tasks. At first I thought it would suck but after a while it has turned into the greatest stress relief and efficient plan for us.
A good framework, for overall organization and cleaning, to co-opt, is the 5S methodology used in Lean Six Sigma Manufacturing environments
https://goleansixsigma.com/5s-infographic/
https://goleansixsigma.com/how-to-easily-apply-5s-to-your-wo...
Its actually quite easy to understand and implement.
https://goleansixsigma.com/5s-infographic/
https://goleansixsigma.com/how-to-easily-apply-5s-to-your-wo...
Its actually quite easy to understand and implement.
Consider a professional that helps people get organized. A house cleaner can help you with some of these, like how often to dust or vacuum. A professional organizer (that you work well with) could help you with more of them, like creating systems that help keep track of documents or organizing your food containers. Check out highly rated people on yelp or get a referral from a friend or national professional organization.
Life Pro tip: For some of these, hire a house cleaner and ask him/her about these questions (might have to pay extra for that). You can write down the steps they do and tell you to do, and try to repeat them. You will have a live demo to guide you as well.
Build pattern recognition.
Map your self and items, memory test your script as you try to place things, find your settings and preferences for variables important.
I find if you make a point of what you do, your organization to find a system can teach you things about your memory.
Map your self and items, memory test your script as you try to place things, find your settings and preferences for variables important.
I find if you make a point of what you do, your organization to find a system can teach you things about your memory.
For me it worked this principle: "Leave everything in the same condition as it was before using it".
That's it.
You can make an initial order, and after that order will stay if you commit to this basic principle.
That's it.
You can make an initial order, and after that order will stay if you commit to this basic principle.
I'm in the same boat as you! I never developed strong organizational habits and would appreciate some guidance.
Hey Andrew, same offer I gave rthomas6 stands for you. If you want some one-on-one guidance, let me know. papandrew (at yahoo.com). This is a topic near and dear to my heart.
This stuff is pretty near and dear to my heart since I'm a clean freak/organizing nut. My wife thinks I have OCD.
This might be basic, but I'll give you my answers:
1) This may not be a satisfying answer, but the key for me is that my home is neat and tidy to begin with. When some activity takes place, I might deploy stuff to that area but as soon as the activity is done, I clean things up and put them away. If I'm cooking, I might bring things out and continuously clean up the kitchen as I go. The main point is that keeping an area organized and clean throughout the process is part of the key.
2) So for this problem, my solution is two-fold: (1) Find a place for everything in your home and organize stuff thematically so it's easy to find. Think of your home like a library with a Dewey Decimal system for all your household stuff. Hall closet? Maybe that's a good spot for cleaning supplies, sponges, brooms and the like. I have 3 kids, so one of my closets is all school supplies, art supplies, pens, crayons, binders, etc etc. The key thing here is to group like stuff together. This will make it easier for you to FIND stuff in the future. Also, in order for this to work, you must constantly put things away after you are finished using it. If you don't do this, you'll fail with your organizing (b/c you can't find stuff easily). (2) Attack the supply side of the problem and eliminate unnecessary stuff. This is a big task and a tough one for a lot of folks. I could go into more detail on this one, but unless you are willing to purge some crap, effectively organizing stuff will be challenging.
3) Are your plates and containers a hodge-podge of individual pieces not from a common set? If so, this is your problem. If you purchase plates and containers from a single set/design, you should be able to effectively stack your bowls and plates. Ditto on the containers. If you buy from the same product line, they often come in sets of nestable pieces or stackable pieces. Get rid of the one-off odd bowls and get a uniform set (e.g. 6 bowls of the same make).
4) Physical documents: file cabinet with hanging folders and/or manila folders. Each folder is a different topic/category: Automotive, Home Electronics, Bank Info, Home/Property documents, Travel documents/passport. I probably have 2-3 dozen folder "topics". I get a document that needs to be saved, I immediately file it in the cabinet. Taxes are always a breeze. As soon as I finish my taxes for the prior tax year in April, I create a new tax folder for the current year. Any docs with tax implications (letters from charities for donations, receipts) goes straight into my tax folder. I do the same for digital documents. Just carve out a little spot on your hard drive. Create work and personal life folders. Route the files that you need to save accordingly. Do this diligently and you won't be confronted with the insurmountable deluge of documents. You can also solve the supply side of the equation by periodically reviewing both your physical and digital documents and purging stuff you no longer need. As with my response to #2, if you file things properly, FINDING STUFF when you need it in the future is always a breeze.
5) Depends on your personality and how much mess you can tolerate, but I typically spend 15-30 minutes in the morning organizing my household before I go to work and maybe the same at night. Mind you, I have 3 kids and a wife with a busy schedule, so in order to manage the chaos, I need to organize things twice a day. This may be overkill for a single guy (assuming that's your status). The key thing is that by investing a small amount of time here and there you can keep your organizational system humming. As long as things are put away, things are easy to find. Once you let things slip, it gets tough. As a side note, this is usually when I listen to podcasts (so the time isn't completely wasted on humdrum cleanup).
6) Again this is personal preference and dependent on how much of a mess you make. Beauty of this is that you can outsource these tasks! After my 1st kid was born, that's just what I did. Now I have a house cleaning crew that visits my home every other week and cleans the bathrooms, kitchen, vacuums and mops the floors. You might be able to get by with once a month. 2x a month is better. Personally I'd like once a week but I don't want to pay more than I already pay at 2x/month.
I don't know if these responses are helpful. Happy to chat more about it if you want more pointers. I've been contemplating an Ebook on this topic, so would be interested in hearing more about your problems in this vein. If you want to continue the conversation, let me know: papandrew (at yahoo.com)
This might be basic, but I'll give you my answers:
1) This may not be a satisfying answer, but the key for me is that my home is neat and tidy to begin with. When some activity takes place, I might deploy stuff to that area but as soon as the activity is done, I clean things up and put them away. If I'm cooking, I might bring things out and continuously clean up the kitchen as I go. The main point is that keeping an area organized and clean throughout the process is part of the key.
2) So for this problem, my solution is two-fold: (1) Find a place for everything in your home and organize stuff thematically so it's easy to find. Think of your home like a library with a Dewey Decimal system for all your household stuff. Hall closet? Maybe that's a good spot for cleaning supplies, sponges, brooms and the like. I have 3 kids, so one of my closets is all school supplies, art supplies, pens, crayons, binders, etc etc. The key thing here is to group like stuff together. This will make it easier for you to FIND stuff in the future. Also, in order for this to work, you must constantly put things away after you are finished using it. If you don't do this, you'll fail with your organizing (b/c you can't find stuff easily). (2) Attack the supply side of the problem and eliminate unnecessary stuff. This is a big task and a tough one for a lot of folks. I could go into more detail on this one, but unless you are willing to purge some crap, effectively organizing stuff will be challenging.
3) Are your plates and containers a hodge-podge of individual pieces not from a common set? If so, this is your problem. If you purchase plates and containers from a single set/design, you should be able to effectively stack your bowls and plates. Ditto on the containers. If you buy from the same product line, they often come in sets of nestable pieces or stackable pieces. Get rid of the one-off odd bowls and get a uniform set (e.g. 6 bowls of the same make).
4) Physical documents: file cabinet with hanging folders and/or manila folders. Each folder is a different topic/category: Automotive, Home Electronics, Bank Info, Home/Property documents, Travel documents/passport. I probably have 2-3 dozen folder "topics". I get a document that needs to be saved, I immediately file it in the cabinet. Taxes are always a breeze. As soon as I finish my taxes for the prior tax year in April, I create a new tax folder for the current year. Any docs with tax implications (letters from charities for donations, receipts) goes straight into my tax folder. I do the same for digital documents. Just carve out a little spot on your hard drive. Create work and personal life folders. Route the files that you need to save accordingly. Do this diligently and you won't be confronted with the insurmountable deluge of documents. You can also solve the supply side of the equation by periodically reviewing both your physical and digital documents and purging stuff you no longer need. As with my response to #2, if you file things properly, FINDING STUFF when you need it in the future is always a breeze.
5) Depends on your personality and how much mess you can tolerate, but I typically spend 15-30 minutes in the morning organizing my household before I go to work and maybe the same at night. Mind you, I have 3 kids and a wife with a busy schedule, so in order to manage the chaos, I need to organize things twice a day. This may be overkill for a single guy (assuming that's your status). The key thing is that by investing a small amount of time here and there you can keep your organizational system humming. As long as things are put away, things are easy to find. Once you let things slip, it gets tough. As a side note, this is usually when I listen to podcasts (so the time isn't completely wasted on humdrum cleanup).
6) Again this is personal preference and dependent on how much of a mess you make. Beauty of this is that you can outsource these tasks! After my 1st kid was born, that's just what I did. Now I have a house cleaning crew that visits my home every other week and cleans the bathrooms, kitchen, vacuums and mops the floors. You might be able to get by with once a month. 2x a month is better. Personally I'd like once a week but I don't want to pay more than I already pay at 2x/month.
I don't know if these responses are helpful. Happy to chat more about it if you want more pointers. I've been contemplating an Ebook on this topic, so would be interested in hearing more about your problems in this vein. If you want to continue the conversation, let me know: papandrew (at yahoo.com)
Here are my opinions on how to do this - these ideas may not work for you and part of the journey will be figuring out what works for you.
* How do I efficiently clean up an area and keep it clean while still using it?
- First, start with recycling/selling/donating/throwing things that you don't need. A good heuristic for things you don't need are "If I haven't used this for X months, I should get rid of it." X will depend on a few things, but choose X such that it is somewhat uncomfortable. You may regret a few of your decisions, but that's OK. Of course, your level of nostalgia may work against you. If there are things that you must keep for sentimental reasons (pictures, things of value) set these into another pile.
- You'll now find that you have significantly less stuff, and less mental overhead. You also will (hopefully) have more space. You must now find a home for everything. Which leads me to the second question...
* How do I put away a large number of miscellaneous items in a manner that I know where they are and can easily be found again?
- Group items together in logical categories - I have bins filled with cables, computer stuff, home improvement stuff, clothing, snowboarding stuff. For smaller things, find divided containers like a clear fishing tackle box.
- Clear bins that are shallow are best so you don't have to root around to find something, simply turn the container a few times to find what you're looking for. Put them under your bed.
- For things that are more frequently used, put them in your desk or kitchen drawers. Definitely use drawer organizers.
* How do I put away bowls and food storage containers such that they don't avalanche on me when I open the cabinet?
- Stack them. If your food storage containers are heterogeneous and don't stack well, invest in some.
* How do I organize important documents such that I never lose them and can retrieve them after several years?
- For the most important paper documents (marriage certificates, vehicle titles, social security cards, bearer bonds, passports, etc) get a fireproof filebox, or if not paranoid about fire or theft, a filebox. Again, group things logically in hanging file folders, if you can't come up with a system just create a file for each item. This box should not have a lot of contents.
- Go paperless as much as possible. Paystubs, bank statements, etc. should all be paperless. It is not hard to recreate these if needed unless you work for someone who writes paper checks.
- Get a document scanner like the NeatDesk and scan/OCR everything else (offer letters, receipts, non-marketing material) to Dropbox or Evernote. Boom. Most things are searchable. There are few documents that can't be destroyed at this point. Again, this should not be a lot of stuff.
- Opt out of all pre-screened offers for credit cards. Go to www.optoutprescreen.com. This should cut your junk mail in half. Recycle the rest immediately.
* About how much time should I expect to be devoted to house chores each day/week? * What chores should I do on a regular basis, and how often? (How often should I dust? Vacuum? Clean toilets?)
- One thing I have noticed in my life is something I call the "seed of disorder." Once an area is clean, and something is left out of place in that area... entropy develops around that seed. Do everything you can to ensure that any seeds are dealt with as soon as possible. Papers, dirty dishes, etc. They all get out of control if you let them.
- If you do that, you won't have to do more than taking out the trash, doing and _putting away_ dishes, and cleaning your food prep areas on a daily basis. If you're in SF and don't have a dishwasher figure 15 minutes a day to do those things.
- For the rest, it depends on your level of personal cleanliness (and those that come visit you!). Ideally, hire someone to come every two weeks. Bathrooms, floors, dusting, etc. are not fun. Plus, when you have someone come clean you have to "pick up" and make sure everything is in its place to begin with. If you can't afford a cleaner to come about twice a month here's a good frequency:
- Vacuum carpets: At least once every couple weeks. Get a roomba, it can do it every day if needed.
- Toilet: I'm assuming you're a guy. Wipe the rim off once a day. Put cleaner in and brush once every two weeks, more often if you forget to flush.
- Bathroom floor: Once every two weeks with a wet swiffer.
- Dust: Once every two weeks unless you have allergies. More frequently if you do, but use a respirator/N95 mask. Buy a very good true HEPA air filter - this will reduce your dusting needs as well. Use a swiffer to dust wood floors, and a swiffer hand duster to dust objects.
- Change bedsheets: Again, if you have allergies, more frequently, but at a minimum once a month.
- Clean kitchen: Sweep the floors every two or three days, stuff tends to get on the floor often. I have a roomba robot do this for me. Wet swiffer the floor weekly. Move everything off each surface and wipe it down at least twice a month.
- Refrigerator: Check the refrigerator for bad food at least a couple times a week. Don't let it get funky - you'll want to deal with it even less. Once every three months or so get everything out of the fridge and wash down every surface.
* How do I efficiently clean up an area and keep it clean while still using it?
- First, start with recycling/selling/donating/throwing things that you don't need. A good heuristic for things you don't need are "If I haven't used this for X months, I should get rid of it." X will depend on a few things, but choose X such that it is somewhat uncomfortable. You may regret a few of your decisions, but that's OK. Of course, your level of nostalgia may work against you. If there are things that you must keep for sentimental reasons (pictures, things of value) set these into another pile.
- You'll now find that you have significantly less stuff, and less mental overhead. You also will (hopefully) have more space. You must now find a home for everything. Which leads me to the second question...
* How do I put away a large number of miscellaneous items in a manner that I know where they are and can easily be found again?
- Group items together in logical categories - I have bins filled with cables, computer stuff, home improvement stuff, clothing, snowboarding stuff. For smaller things, find divided containers like a clear fishing tackle box.
- Clear bins that are shallow are best so you don't have to root around to find something, simply turn the container a few times to find what you're looking for. Put them under your bed.
- For things that are more frequently used, put them in your desk or kitchen drawers. Definitely use drawer organizers.
* How do I put away bowls and food storage containers such that they don't avalanche on me when I open the cabinet?
- Stack them. If your food storage containers are heterogeneous and don't stack well, invest in some.
* How do I organize important documents such that I never lose them and can retrieve them after several years?
- For the most important paper documents (marriage certificates, vehicle titles, social security cards, bearer bonds, passports, etc) get a fireproof filebox, or if not paranoid about fire or theft, a filebox. Again, group things logically in hanging file folders, if you can't come up with a system just create a file for each item. This box should not have a lot of contents.
- Go paperless as much as possible. Paystubs, bank statements, etc. should all be paperless. It is not hard to recreate these if needed unless you work for someone who writes paper checks.
- Get a document scanner like the NeatDesk and scan/OCR everything else (offer letters, receipts, non-marketing material) to Dropbox or Evernote. Boom. Most things are searchable. There are few documents that can't be destroyed at this point. Again, this should not be a lot of stuff.
- Opt out of all pre-screened offers for credit cards. Go to www.optoutprescreen.com. This should cut your junk mail in half. Recycle the rest immediately.
* About how much time should I expect to be devoted to house chores each day/week? * What chores should I do on a regular basis, and how often? (How often should I dust? Vacuum? Clean toilets?)
- One thing I have noticed in my life is something I call the "seed of disorder." Once an area is clean, and something is left out of place in that area... entropy develops around that seed. Do everything you can to ensure that any seeds are dealt with as soon as possible. Papers, dirty dishes, etc. They all get out of control if you let them.
- If you do that, you won't have to do more than taking out the trash, doing and _putting away_ dishes, and cleaning your food prep areas on a daily basis. If you're in SF and don't have a dishwasher figure 15 minutes a day to do those things.
- For the rest, it depends on your level of personal cleanliness (and those that come visit you!). Ideally, hire someone to come every two weeks. Bathrooms, floors, dusting, etc. are not fun. Plus, when you have someone come clean you have to "pick up" and make sure everything is in its place to begin with. If you can't afford a cleaner to come about twice a month here's a good frequency:
- Vacuum carpets: At least once every couple weeks. Get a roomba, it can do it every day if needed.
- Toilet: I'm assuming you're a guy. Wipe the rim off once a day. Put cleaner in and brush once every two weeks, more often if you forget to flush.
- Bathroom floor: Once every two weeks with a wet swiffer.
- Dust: Once every two weeks unless you have allergies. More frequently if you do, but use a respirator/N95 mask. Buy a very good true HEPA air filter - this will reduce your dusting needs as well. Use a swiffer to dust wood floors, and a swiffer hand duster to dust objects.
- Change bedsheets: Again, if you have allergies, more frequently, but at a minimum once a month.
- Clean kitchen: Sweep the floors every two or three days, stuff tends to get on the floor often. I have a roomba robot do this for me. Wet swiffer the floor weekly. Move everything off each surface and wipe it down at least twice a month.
- Refrigerator: Check the refrigerator for bad food at least a couple times a week. Don't let it get funky - you'll want to deal with it even less. Once every three months or so get everything out of the fridge and wash down every surface.
Something I have realised over time is that mess inherently attracts mess. If there are dirty dishes in the sink, clothes on the floor etc, you are significantly more likely to add to said mess (often it's unconscious).
With the above in mind, take a look at everything you own, every single item in your apartment. Do you really need all of them? Don't fool yourself by holding on to random crap thinking it will be of use one day - it won't. Either throw it out or give what you can to Salvation Army. Less is more.
> How do I efficiently clean up an area and keep it clean while still using it?
When cooking dinner, for example, I have the sink filled with hot water & detergent & I go back & forth between cooking & washing what is finished with. As you're waiting for something to boil, do some dishes etc.
TIPS:
.Rinse all dishes in VERY hot water & they dry very quickly by themselves, so you can simply put them away after you've eaten.
If you've just fried/cooked something on the stove, scrub the pan immediately after you drain the food out (while the pan is still hot) with detergent. Don't give any food/oil a chance to solidify - it will take you 4 times a long to clean if you leave it until tomorrow.
In certain situations, it's better to leave a pot/pan to soak overnight (e.g. after cooking rice).
> How do I put away a large number of miscellaneous items in a manner that I know where they are and can easily be found again?
Create themes of storage areas for the items that go in them. Garage for tools, cleaning supplies. Study for stationary, printing ink etc. Basically, keep things that are related to each other in the same place.
> How do I put away bowls and food storage containers such that they don't avalanche on me when I open the cabinet?
How many food storage containers do you have? How many do you need? You know the deal..
> How do I organize important documents such that I never lose them and can retrieve them after several years?
Take screenshots with your phone - archive everything in folders via email (bills, tax, receipts etc) so that you can always refer back to it.
> About how much time should I expect to be devoted to house chores each day/week?
Hard to say without knowing exactly how messy you are. In a general sense, dinner dishes & hanging clothes in your room are a daily chore. Do a big vacuum/sweep, mop & clean toilets on Sunday morning each week with some fun music on. Do a big bathroom clean (bleach, glass cleaner etc) once a month.
Perhaps create a schedule/calendar for yourself to hold yourself accountable. Start thinking about Saturday or Sunday as "chores day". And when you've done your chores, make sure to reward yourself in the afternoon/evening to reinforce the habit.
With the above in mind, take a look at everything you own, every single item in your apartment. Do you really need all of them? Don't fool yourself by holding on to random crap thinking it will be of use one day - it won't. Either throw it out or give what you can to Salvation Army. Less is more.
> How do I efficiently clean up an area and keep it clean while still using it?
When cooking dinner, for example, I have the sink filled with hot water & detergent & I go back & forth between cooking & washing what is finished with. As you're waiting for something to boil, do some dishes etc.
TIPS:
.Rinse all dishes in VERY hot water & they dry very quickly by themselves, so you can simply put them away after you've eaten.
If you've just fried/cooked something on the stove, scrub the pan immediately after you drain the food out (while the pan is still hot) with detergent. Don't give any food/oil a chance to solidify - it will take you 4 times a long to clean if you leave it until tomorrow.
In certain situations, it's better to leave a pot/pan to soak overnight (e.g. after cooking rice).
> How do I put away a large number of miscellaneous items in a manner that I know where they are and can easily be found again?
Create themes of storage areas for the items that go in them. Garage for tools, cleaning supplies. Study for stationary, printing ink etc. Basically, keep things that are related to each other in the same place.
> How do I put away bowls and food storage containers such that they don't avalanche on me when I open the cabinet?
How many food storage containers do you have? How many do you need? You know the deal..
> How do I organize important documents such that I never lose them and can retrieve them after several years?
Take screenshots with your phone - archive everything in folders via email (bills, tax, receipts etc) so that you can always refer back to it.
> About how much time should I expect to be devoted to house chores each day/week?
Hard to say without knowing exactly how messy you are. In a general sense, dinner dishes & hanging clothes in your room are a daily chore. Do a big vacuum/sweep, mop & clean toilets on Sunday morning each week with some fun music on. Do a big bathroom clean (bleach, glass cleaner etc) once a month.
Perhaps create a schedule/calendar for yourself to hold yourself accountable. Start thinking about Saturday or Sunday as "chores day". And when you've done your chores, make sure to reward yourself in the afternoon/evening to reinforce the habit.
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Specifically:
* How do I efficiently clean up an area and keep it clean while still using it?
* How do I put away a large number of miscellaneous items in a manner that I know where they are and can easily be found again?
* How do I put away bowls and food storage containers such that they don't avalanche on me when I open the cabinet?
* How do I organize important documents such that I never lose them and can retrieve them after several years?
* About how much time should I expect to be devoted to house chores each day/week?
* What chores should I do on a regular basis, and how often? (How often should I dust? Vacuum? Clean toilets?)