The Organizing Junkie has some pretty good ideas about how to organize.  I am going to use many of her hints and suggestions for tackling my project.  First I looked at her PROCESS.

I have created a simple acronym to allow you to break down your organizing project into simple, straightforward steps that will help you stick to your plan and achieve optimal organizing results.

By following the PROCESS steps below anyone can conquer any space of any size. The steps allow you to do one or all at a time depending on the time you have available for the task.

Each letter of PROCESS is a step in organizing.  Hopefully I will see results with this PROCESS and be encouraged to do it again.

First up is P:

Plan of attack – plan your project – which area(s) do you want to address – make a list – evaluate present system, what is working, what isn’t working, devise new system – determine budget – develop timeline

To get this part started she suggests asking the following questions that she found in an article on About.com written by Sarah Aquirre.

1. What do I want the purpose of my room or area to be?

A bedroom for my son, born May 16, 2009, who has been sleeping in a cradle in our room since birth.  I want it to be a place for him to sleep, play, and keep his books, toys, and clothes.

2. What do I need in or near the room to serve that purpose?

Crib, dressers, toy storage, book storage, rug, lights.

3. What can I remove from the room?

All our crap.  CDs, books, luggage, electronics, tools, old linoleum.

4. What problems do I see with the room?

Not enough plugs, no window dressings, ugly wallpaper, holes in the walls, old leak on the ceiling, mess, mess, mess.

5. What organizational tools might solve those problems?

Add more plugs, get room darkening blinds, bookcases, storage boxes, hanging shelves.

6. What habits need to change to solve the organizational problems?

everything

7. What kind of a budget do I have to work with right now for storage solutions?

Not much of one.  We really only still need paint and repair materials for the walls, a rug, a ceiling fan/light, blinds, and bookcases.

8. What kind of a timeline is necessary to organize the room? (28 days!)

We are getting a little bit of a late start in the month, but I hope to have the room cleared out enough to move my little guy’s crib in by the beginning of March.

9. What is my plan of action?

Spend a few days emptying the room.  Sort through the items in the room and make keep, store, donate, and trash piles.

10. Who can I ask to help me with this?  (working with a friend can be fun, productive and encouraging)

My husband will be helping me, but I know my mom and my sister will help me too.