You know how this story goes…you’re in a rush to get the children and yourself out of the door, then you realise you can’t find your keys, or your mobile phone, or your purse. You spin around for a while like a dog chasing its tail, while everyone asks you where you put if last (very helpful question, that one!).
Suddenly, you have a Eureka moment and decide to use the house phone to call your mobile, but it’s on silent… doh!
The worse part is that after your rushing has melted all your perfectly placed make-up off your face, as the sweat beads make their presence known, and all the while the keys were in your pocket, along with your phone and purse. But you could swear you looked there first!
Some things are unavoidable, but there no is a ‘cure’ for busy working mums who keep losing things… here are a few tips that will help, though:
Step 1. Become a creature of habit
There’s nothing worse than going through the scenario described above a few times a week. It really can be stressful, so why not get yourself into a habit of having a habit – have a designated place you put your important things like keys, mobile and purse. Don’t leave it in full view of potential thieves looking through your letterbox, but have a caddy in the bedroom or kitchen where you chuck these things in when you come home and you really can’t go wrong.
Step 2. Keep things that are used together, well…together
If you always leave the house with your keys and purse, then keep them together, it really makes sense. That way, you won’t have to spend time looking for two items in different places overtime you need to pop out. If you follow Step 1, you won’t lose them anyway, so there is no fear of losing two or more items instead of just the one.
Step 3. Keep things within reach of where you use them
So, if you have a favourite armchair in the sitting room where you like to watch TV, why not keep the TV remove next to the armchair. Train everyone else in the house to put the remote back in that spot and it should make life easier for the whole household.
Step 4. Keep a pen in every handbag
If you’ve every tipped your back out just to find a pen you’ll know how frustrating it can be…especially if you suddenly remember that you left it in another handbag. The remedy is to keep a pen inside every handbag. Why not put it in the mobile phone pocket, so you know where to look in all your bags.
Step 5: Declutter
The whole ‘just in case’ attitude really doesn’t help when you’re trying to find something. Decluttering is a very good habit to cultivate, so get rid of the old things you don’t use or want so you can see the things you need and want…it really is that simple. If you need items, but just not every single day, some storage bags or boxes that have been clearly labelled will go a long way to helping you know where things you’ve put away are.
Whatever you do, get organised – it really will be worthwhile for your health and your sanity…not to mention the stress levels at home.
