So, you know how there are several different parenting styles out there? Helicopter parents. Gentle parents. Tiger parents. Many of us fall into one or several of these parenting style categories.
But did you know there are also several different types of organisational styles or cleaning styles? All of them are based on a different ‘bug’, thanks to the clever Cas, the organisation queen behind the Clutterbug philosophy.
Curious about which type of cleaning bug you are? Take a look at the various organisational styles and let us know which one(s) you fall into.
What’s Your Organisational Style?
TYPE 1: THE LADYBUGS
- Stressed out by surface clutter.
- Tends to chuck things into drawers rather than see them on display.
- Prides themselves in having a clean and well-decorated home.
- Pretty and shiny on the outside.
- Keeps the chaos and clutter hidden away in various junk drawers and closets.
- Loses a fair bit of stuff (check your drawers).
Top Tips for Ladybugs:
- Invest in plenty of baskets and containers for your hidden areas.
- Once a month declutter: Set a time once a month to go and donate items not in use anymore.
- One drawer at a time. Focus on decluttering one junk drawer, cupboard or other hidden disaster zone in the house every weekend. It may only take 15 minutes to do a quick tidy.
TYPE 2: THE BEES
- Always buzzing with projects on the go which means lots of extra stuff to store (think craft stuff, scrapbooking stuff, woodworking materials, cooking and baking utensils, photographs, and exercise equipment).
- Organised, they prefer to keep their items on display rather than stored away, which can look like clutter and chaos.
- Tends not to clean or organise until the project is finished.
Organisation Tips for Busy Bees
- Reduce your on-the-go projects to less than three.
- Use Project Boxes for your various projects. At the end of each day, place the items into the box to keep your supplies out of the way but still easily accessible to work on the next day.
- Look into peg board organisers, clear bins, baskets and jars to store smaller items.
- Open shelving is a good way to keep things on display but also organised. Bookcases work wonders for busy bees.
- Follow the year rule. If you haven’t used something for over a year, time to let it go.
TYPE 3: THE CRICKETS
- Considered the super bug of organisation.
- Overly organised which can lead to feeling consumed by the need to clean and an eye twitch anytime something is left out of place.
- Has a spot for everything, from tea towels to coloured pens.
- A mega fan of labelled jars!
Tips for Cricket Cleaners
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- Set a timer for ‘clean and tidy time’, and focus on using this time to clean without spending too long on each task.
- Be mindful that not everyone in your home is a cricket. Labels are a good way to teach other bugs in your house where everything goes so you don’t feel like you are constantly reorganising for them.
- Try to ditch the eye twitch. It’s okay if things aren’t perfectly in place. Try to embrace the ‘good enough’ rule. Perfection is overrated anyway.
TYPE 4: THE BUTTERFLIES
- Prefer to see everything they own on display meaning clothes, clutter and chaos everywhere!
- Their drawers will most likely be empty but their countertops will be full of stuff.
- The idea of organisation sends them into a panic.
- Doesn’t like the idea of ‘hiding’ their belongings in boxes or drawers.
Butterfly organisation tips
- Invest in clear bins. You can still see all your stuff but it won’t be everywhere.
- 21-item toss: Grab a bag and race around to find 21 items to get rid of as fast as you can. Do this once a month.
- Hooks and open shelving are also great for butterflies as you can visually see your items but keep them off the floor and table.
- One-minute rule: If something takes less than one minute to put away, do it right now. Putting everything off until “later” gets you into trouble!
Unsure of which cleaning bug you are? Take a look at Clutterbug’s quiz to see.
