Don’t Put It Down, Put It Away
When I recently talked to a man about our in-home and virtual organizing company, The Uncluttered Life®, he Immediately related to what I was saying about organization. At first, I didn’t expect him to have one bit of interest in the subject, but he was curious and animated when telling me about the way he grew up. He told me his mom had a saying, “Don’t put it down, put it away.” This statement resonated with me because it is a direction that most people can follow. Simple, and to the point.
This statement is like the “touch it once” rule. The general idea is that as soon as you touch something, whether it’s a piece of mail or a bill that needs to be filed, you immediately act on it. This action can be either fully completing the task or determining the next actionable steps to move the process along. Following this strategy not only saves you time but also removes mental clutter.
How to put it away.
The “Touch It Once” Rule in Action
I have learned over the years that it’s a good idea to bring my mail right in from the mailbox, sort the loose papers over the recycle bin, and bring the rest inside. This saves me multiple steps and calls to my attention what needs to be handled. I also realize from this that I am not picking up the same piece of paper multiple times. It’s the “Touch It Once” rule. In this case, I am touching the bill I need to pay once, going to my computer, paying it, and shredding it after I’m finished. There is no need to move it around my office or put it in my pending file. I don’t need to pull it out again unless I have decided to pay all my bills once a month, or on the first and fifteenth. In that case, I have a pending bill file and place it in there until the date I pay my bills.
In my research on this statement, I have seen some people attribute it to Marie Kondo, but I’m not sure about that. I have seen lots of blog posts about “Don’t Put It Down, Put It Away, and a ton of TikTok videos and images on Etsy using this motivational phrase as home decor wall art. This statement really seems to resonate with people. For that reason, I have decided to reinforce the statement in this blog. Keep it in mind the next time you’re tempted to put something down instead of putting it away.
Clutter Accumulates
Clutter tends to accumulate when we do not put things back into their designated spot or they do not have a spot to live in. Items start to pile up and it can begin to seem overwhelming to tackle the clutter pile. More accumulation leads to more anxiety and procrastination about putting things away. It becomes a vicious cycle, both physically and mentally. By putting things away instead of putting them down, we can stop clutter in its tracks.
Don’t let the stack of paper get away from you. File regularly.
Last night, for example, I had a pile of bills that I had been sorting for another woman. The pile was tall and it kept falling over. Things became disorganized and the order she had tried to set up was no longer viable. I explained to her that had she filed everything the day it came into her home, she would not have this pile of paper. While it is not a big deal in the scheme of things, it demonstrates that large amounts of items that need to be put away tend to make us procrastinate. And, it also shows that it often takes more time to do things all at once than one at a time. I know that this seems counterintuitive, but it isn’t. If we file one piece of paper, it takes about a minute. If we let things accumulate, it takes much longer. That pile of paper took me close to an hour of time to put away, and I had to sort before I could file. For that reason, I always encourage people to put things away immediately rather than saving up piles of laundry or chores to do all at once. It also reduces mental fatigue about putting things away.
My mom used to say, “A place for everything and everything in its place.” She couldn’t have been more on-track. This is the same as today’s “Don’t put it down, put it away.”