Opening Thoughts

Every time I return home to a messy room, I sink into deep frustration. Clothes carelessly tossed onto chairs, desk clutter nearly burying the keyboard, drawer full of tangled chargers and cables. The worst is having to turn everything upside down just to find a hair tie, by which time my hair has become unbearably greasy.

This struggle accompanied me until I finally decided to make a change. Through years of living in rental spaces and small apartments, I've tried countless organization methods, stepped into numerous pitfalls, and finally developed a set of organization secrets suitable for young people. Now my 375-square-foot home is not only clean and tidy but also exudes elegance, prompting visiting friends to exclaim: "You're so good at organizing!"

Space Planning

When I first started studying organization, I was like most people, unable to resist attractive storage boxes. My shopping cart was filled with various organizational gadgets, wanting to stuff every corner of my home with storage containers. The result? Not only did I waste money, but I also made my already small space feel even more cramped.

Later I realized that before buying any organizational tools, the key is proper space planning. I suggest everyone spend a weekend carefully observing their living habits and movement patterns. I took out a notebook and recorded my entire day's activity trajectory: morning routines, locations of frequently used items, common inconveniences, etc.

Through this observation, I discovered that my morning dressing routine was particularly chaotic. The tops I wanted to wear were in the closet, pants in under-bed storage, accessories at the vanity, bags on hooks behind the door, and shoes in the entryway. Just running around the room took several minutes. This situation was clearly unreasonable.

So I made a thorough adjustment, concentrating all outfit-related items in one area. Wardrobe, full-length mirror, jewelry box, and bag storage rack were all arranged in one corner of the bedroom, creating a complete dressing area. Now getting dressed every morning, from selecting clothes to matching accessories to final outfit check, flows smoothly.

I applied the same principle to other areas. For example, all skincare and makeup products are concentrated on one bathroom wall, arranged in order of use; kitchen spices are all stored in uniform glass jars, arranged by frequency of use across different levels. This planning not only improved life efficiency but also made the entire home look more organized.

The Rule of Letting Go

To be honest, good space planning alone isn't enough; the most important thing is learning to let go. When I first decided to organize my closet, I was shocked by how much I had accumulated. Just tops alone numbered over 100, not to mention pants, skirts, and jackets. Most shocking was that some clothes hadn't been worn for two or three years, still with tags attached.

Facing this situation, I invented a "three-question rule" to help make decisions:

First ask yourself: "Have I used this in the past year?" Many items clearly haven't been used in a long time, like those "bought because they looked nice but never had a chance to wear" clothes, or "might need someday" electronic accessories.

If the first question passes, ask the second question: "Will I use this in the next year?" This question helped me clear out many seasonal, ill-fitting, or aesthetically outdated items.

The final question is: "Is it really important enough to deserve space in my home?" This question is particularly tough; it made me realize that space is an extremely valuable resource. Are those things "kept just in case" really worth occupying my storage space?

Through these three questions' screening, I cleared out seven large bags of items. Some usable items were donated to charity, others sold on second-hand platforms. The freed-up space made my small room instantly more spacious and easier to organize.

And you know what? Letting go brings not just physical space liberation but also psychological relief. When I look at my neat and orderly closet and storage spaces, that feeling of lightness and joy is truly indescribable.

Organization Philosophy

After experiencing both extreme hoarding and minimalism, I finally discovered the organization philosophy that works best for me—"position management." This concept is simple: everything in the home must have its fixed "home."

Taking my living room as an example, I divided the storage space into five clear zones. The book zone mainly holds frequently read books and magazines, arranged by category and size; the digital zone concentrates electronic devices and accessories like cameras, power banks, and chargers; the stationery zone holds commonly used notebooks, stationery, and office supplies; the miscellaneous zone is for infrequently used but necessary items; finally, the seasonal items zone stores items that change with seasons, like summer fans and winter humidifiers.

Each zone is marked with different colored labels. Blue represents the digital zone, green for books, yellow for stationery, and so on. This makes it easy not only for me to find things but also for visiting friends who want to help tidy up to know where things belong.

The biggest advantage of this system is developing muscle memory. For example, after using the remote control, I've developed the habit of immediately returning it to the digital zone, so I never lose the remote anymore. Similarly, finished books always return to their proper place in the book zone, and used stationery is immediately put back.

To make this system more complete, I equipped each zone with suitable storage tools. For example, in the digital zone, I use a drawer organizer with dividers to separately store various cables and chargers; the book zone uses adjustable bookends that can be modified based on the number of books.

Clever Use of Tools

Speaking of storage tools, this is truly a love-hate topic. While there are countless organization products on the market, truly useful ones are rare. After numerous trials and errors, I've summarized three core principles for selecting storage tools.

The first principle is to be clear about what specific problem this tool solves. I often see "miracle product recommendation" videos where products look cool but have low actual usage frequency. For example, I once bought a multi-functional storage bag that hangs on the wall—clever design, but due to inconvenient access, it ended up collecting dust.

The second principle is ensuring perfect size fit. This is particularly important because even a slight size difference can greatly reduce storage effectiveness. When organizing my closet, I first measured each drawer's dimensions, then customized a set of storage boxes based on different clothing sizes. This way, each box is fully utilized while maximizing space usage.

The third principle is ease of use. No matter how attractive a storage tool is, if it's inconvenient to use, it's destined to be discarded. Take drawer organization for example: I initially bought many small plastic storage boxes which looked neat but required removing all upper boxes to access items at the bottom—very troublesome. Later, I switched to expandable bamboo dividers, which are not only eco-friendly and attractive but also freely adjustable in size, making them much more convenient to use.

Besides these basic principles, I want to share some specific storage tool recommendations. First for closet organization, I highly recommend semi-transparent storage boxes that prevent dust while allowing you to see the contents. Many brands offer combination sets in different sizes that can be freely mixed and matched according to your needs.

Additionally, drawer organization is key. I now use a type of freely combinable honeycomb-style divider that can be adjusted based on item sizes. For example, when storing cosmetics, the compartments can be made smaller; for scarves and hats, they can be made larger. This flexibility is really practical.

For small item storage, I choose boxes with lids. The boxes should be lightweight and preferably semi-transparent, so you don't need to open them to know what's inside. Plus, lids prevent dust and allow for higher stacking.

Daily Maintenance

Establishing a good organization system isn't difficult; maintaining it is. To be honest, when I first started, I often got lazy too. I'd carelessly put things down after use, couldn't be bothered to organize new purchases, and slowly things would return to their previous chaotic state.

Later I came up with a particularly useful "two-minute rule": if something can be done within two minutes, do it immediately. This method is simple but extremely effective.

For example, when receiving delivery boxes, don't think "I'll deal with it later," but unpack and organize immediately. Used items should be returned to their original positions immediately, rather than thinking "I'll need it again anyway" and leaving them randomly placed. Spend two minutes before bed tidying the desktop, returning items to their proper places.

These small habits may seem trivial, but accumulated over time, they keep your space consistently tidy. Moreover, as time passes, these actions gradually become natural habits, not feeling troublesome at all.

Besides daily maintenance, I've also set a monthly organization plan. On the last weekend of each month, I spend half a day doing a more thorough organization. I check if any storage boxes need cleaning, if any organization methods need adjustment, and can also discover potentially overlooked issues in time.

Final Words

Honestly, only after seriously starting to organize did I realize this isn't just a life skill but a life attitude. It taught me how to better plan time and space, how to distinguish truly important things, and how to make life more orderly and elegant.

Through these techniques, my 375-square-foot home underwent a complete transformation. The space became more open, finding things no longer requires searching everywhere, and my mood has improved. Most importantly, returning to this clean and comfortable home every day brings a sense of happiness from improved quality of life.

Actually, there's no standard answer for organization; what's important is finding the method that works best for you. I hope sharing my experiences can provide some inspiration and help. If you have any unique organization tricks, welcome to tell me in the comments.

Finally, in the next issue, I plan to talk in detail about creating aesthetically pleasing storage spaces and will share some practical aesthetic techniques. If you're interested, remember to follow!