Why Buying Bins Won’t Solve Your Clutter Problem

In this episode of 'Organizing an ADHD Brain,' the host welcomes both new and returning listeners, sharing updates from her recent activities, including hosting a community clothing swap and donating to charities.

Donate: RED CROSS
California Community Foundation

She dives deep into the pitfalls of buying containers as a quick fix for clutter, especially for those with ADHD. Emphasizing the importance of decluttering first, the host provides actionable tips for assessing the true needs of your space before falling into the container trap. She shares personal anecdotes, like her initial fascination with the Container Store, and practical advice on setting rules and boundaries to make informed purchasing decisions. Additionally, the episode offers insight into creating efficient systems in homes and discusses how coaching can aid in understanding and overcoming long-standing organizational challenges.

Here's the Bean Bag/ Stuffed Animal Chair
Ask yourself: Do I have a room this could go in? 
What will it be used for? 

04:24 The Container Conundrum
15:13 Decluttering Before Organizing
25:40 Final Thoughts and Membership Invitation

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Join the Organizing an ADHD Brain COMMUNITY: https://www.mindfulmegs.com/thecommunity

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Get your Free DOPAMINE MENU download MindfulMegs.com/dopaminemenu

The TO DO list Daily Planner is available here! TO DO List Daily Planner

The ULTIMATE Recycling & Disposal Guide: Disposal Guide

Transcript

Yeti Stereo Microphone: 0:42

Hey, beautiful people. Welcome back to another episode of organizing an ADHD brain. If you're new here, I'm so excited to have you, and I hope you get so much from this podcast. For those of you that are returning. Welcome back. I am thrilled to have you, and I want you to know how much I love you. I stopped reading Onyx storm today so that I could record this episode for you. There's so much going on Oh, my gosh. If you're reading it to, you got to let me know. This week, I've been focusing a lot on being a positive influence in not only my family's life, but in my communities world as well. Last weekend. I hosted a clothing swap in my community, which was amazing. So what people do is take all of their old clothing and their closets and old clothing, not necessarily old, but things that they don't wear anymore. Bring it to the studio. I hosted At the local yoga studio in my town and we hung everything up, turned it into a small boutique. And people were able to shop other people's clothing that they brought to this event. There were shirts with tags still on them shoes that had never been worn. This is the second time I've done it. And it's been such an incredible turnout. So I took some of the proceeds People paid$10 to get in. And I was able to donate to our local charity in town. in addition to that, I was able to donate to a charity that supports the LA wildfires. If you're not sure where to donate yourself, I'll go ahead and drop a link in the show notes below so that you could donate as well. Thanks sometimes I'm hesitant because I there's so many different places out there. And I just don't want to donate to a place that's going to be taking advantage of people. So this came from a reputable source. And if you feel inclined to give money, I'll make that easy for you to. I ended up taking all the clothes from the clothing, swap the things that people didn't take home. And brought them down to a local charity in Colorado Springs. Now I took my girls out of school for this, because I wanted them to understand the value of being able to give back to your community. I feel like that's really important. And there's a lot that they don't necessarily have perspective on because they're so little. So I figure I might as well start teaching them now. And what better way to show them then by taking them out of school, it's fine. As they made friends with the little girl waiting in line at the food pantry. I talked to the woman who ran this place. And we got to talking just about her journey. As well as why she's doing what she's doing. She not only runs this food pantry out of this tiny little building, but then she's got donations that are stacked so high. That she doesn't know what to do with them. It's just a lot. I can't even imagine managing something like that. So I have rallied some of the other professional organizers in the area to go. And see what we can do about making the space more organized for her, so that she is able to give back in a way that she knows where things are. And I know most of us feel. So similar, right? Like we've got so many things, but then we don't know where to even start when it comes to find our stuff. Can you imagine what that's like, if you were trained to give back to people and, and what that must be like? So I'm trying to do my part, however, small it is. I have my dopamine menu hanging up on my fridge and every morning I have been waking up and. Dancing my heart out, because if there's one thing that helps me shine my light brighter in this world. It's having a darn dance party. If you haven't downloaded the dopamine menu yet, go check out the link on my website. It's mindful mags.com. And that's one of the things I'm going to encourage my membership folks to do this week in our body. Doubling session is complete the dopamine menu, get it on the fridge as soon as possible, because we need more natural things in our life that are going to spike that source of dopamine. So that it can create more of the motivation and focus that we so desire. And don't necessarily know how to grasp that on a regular basis. With that said, I am actually surprised that I haven't done an episode on this yet because I feel pretty strongly about container buying. And I also feel strongly about how fun it is to buy containers for organizing, which is such a conundrum. here's why I'm doing this episode, because I want you to understand how buying containers can sometimes be a trap, especially for those of us with ADHD. We know how to shop. We know how to get it done. It feels good to shop and it feels like we're getting something done or we're starting a project when we do purchase items. And they just get delivered to our door so that we can take the next steps in the right direction. But being in so many people's homes, including my own, I can tell you some of the things that I see time and time again. I'd like to rewind things just a little bit back to when I used to work at the cheesecake factory back on the north shore in Boston. I'll never forget when the container store was first built. And the feeling I felt when I walked into that store. Thinking about how many solutions, all of those containers. Could provide. For all of my stuff, for all of the things that I didn't know what to do with here was the solution for everything. And then I looked at the price tag and I was like, whoa, one day I'll be able to purchase items from this store today. I'm going to choose to spend my money in other places. Now of course I was working at the cheesecake factory. I was also getting my degree down in Boston and traveling in and out full time. I did not have the extra money to spend on containers, but I felt like it was almost a Rite of passage when I could. Finally make that happen in my life. And I can't tell you how many times I've bought something, thinking that it's going to be the perfect solution. To all of the clutter that is taking up my life and making me feel so overwhelmed and what I'm doing on a regular basis. So if you're feeling that way too, and if you have stuff that's sitting in packages, still waiting to be unwrapped so that you can intricately put all of your things in this organized way. With the promise of everything being better on the other end of it. I just want you to know that you're not alone. I've been there. You've probably been there before, too, and done it before. When it comes to other people's homes that I've worked in now, I've worked in people's homes for a couple hours. I've worked in people's homes for a couple months, just depending on their budget and the amount of time that they, you know, I can certainly support them. I don't do as much in person organizing anymore because of coaching. But here's what I can tell you is most of the time, Those containers are bought. Prematurely. In a manner that is hopeful to get things under control within a short amount of time. And we love to see the big picture and think that we can tackle everything in a weekend. But what happens? As we don't give our containers jobs, we simply just put the stuff in it. And now our clutter is just a little bit more organized. Like it just. It's sitting in a container now instead of actually being organized. Oftentimes the containers that we buy. will become really pretty DOOM boxes. And do means didn't organize only moved. So they look really nice, but we've got them scattered all over the place or maybe they are in one spot, but they don't actually have a job. I'm sure some of you have an area like a mud area where you have all the shoes and you've got all this stuff. And maybe you bought those cubbies. Cause you're like, this is going to get everything out of the way and sure. It gets everything out of the way. But when you open it up, you have no idea what's inside of them because it's a mishmash of stuff. I want to give you a little insight into why buying containers first can backfire and how this episode can help you avoid the trap. And to maybe ask a few questions before you buy a container so that that you're making the right decision for yourself and not just trying to put a band-aid. On the issue that is the clutter in your home. let's analyze this marketing aspect. Think about all of the social media platforms that you follow when it comes to organizing. Most of them have to do with, oh my gosh, you have to try this organizing hack. It's so cool. Or check out what I bought to organize this. This is what I did, and this is what you can do to. Or. Look at this incredible deal I got here. You've got to go and get this. Now, there is nothing wrong with that because it can find that it's very inspiring to sometimes see all of this. But a lot of the times, we're just seeing this social media. Invitation to go and purchase something that whomever is posting. But what's hard for us with ADHD is that we see that as an immediate solution to everything that's gone wrong in our lives. And that's not the case. I remember I was organizing for someone. this was probably in the fall of 2023. And we had both seen this really cool hack for storing lids for your pots and pants. And I was like, oh my gosh, those look so amazing. I was like, cool. I'll get them. I'll try them out. And then we'll see if it's a good fit for you. So I bought some and I bought some like prettier ones cause I wanted them to be clear and I wanted them to look really nice. And I, first of all, measuring them to get the right size for the pot lid That was annoying, but whatever annoyance is fine, as long as you get it to work right. And then I got it to work. And as I would close and open the door, the pot lid would clang back and forth. And I was like, oh my gosh, this is so not what social media promised me. But it taught me a valuable lesson in that if I see something cool online, I'm going to need to do a little bit more research to truly understand if this is going to be a solution or not, because especially if you live in a smaller space. You do have to find. Weird and unique ways to store your things, your items, so that it can work for you. So I'm not saying don't go and buy things. I'm saying don't go and buy things first without asking yourself Some really clear questions. But then to that point, there's so many companies out there that literally just make storage containers. That's what they do. They make them for kitchens. They make them for pantries. They make them for drawers. They make them for garages. They make them for this, that, and the other thing. I go to the container store all the time. So there are so many companies out there telling you. That this is your solution. This is what you need to buy. And then everything will be okay. I want to paint you another picture Have you ever bought an app saying that, oh my gosh, this is your key to getting all your chores done, or this is your key to schedule management. And this is your key to finally getting it all right. And figuring out your ADHD brain. And this is the tool that's going to make it all work. And then you get it and you're so excited and you've used it for a couple of days and then you stop using it and you're like, oh, I'll get back to it at one point. And then you still don't get back to it. And now you've spent maybe a couple of months of subscription money on this app or on this tool that's going to help you. And in the end, it hasn't helped you at all. Part of that. Is because while these app designers have these incredible ideas and they figured out what works for their brain, Without you figuring out the system that works for you. And the solution to what you actually need in your space first. Nothing that you purchase is going to be a solution for you as much as you want it to be. And it took me a lot of purchases to finally figure this out. But nothing that you buy is going to be the perfect solution. Until. You truly figure out what you need. When I am in people's homes that I've worked in for, like I said, a couple hours, or even for months at a time. After we have gone through the process of decluttering. And getting things in a space that works For the people that live and operate in this home. We have a pile of organizing items. That could be used in another space. Yes. But a pile of organizing items that are just no longer needed in that space. It's just stuff. like we have a resource of organizing products that we can go to choose from. And I will tell you nine times out of 10. We don't need a darn thing because we've gotten rid of so much. You don't have to contain as much anymore. It's fascinating. And then you realize what could really elevate the space. Like on one hand, you go to a drawer or a. a cabinet, you open it up and you're like, oh my gosh. If I just had all of these containers. That could fit in here perfectly. I could put all of these different things and in all of these different spaces and it would all work for me. Except that once we've actually gotten rid of the things that don't serve a purpose in your life anymore. You realize that, oh wow. Instead of the 10 containers I thought I would need to purchase for this space. I really only need two. And actually I could use a drawer here instead, because that is what I need for these items. are you guys like picking up up when I'm putting down? go out and buy the containers if that's what makes you feel happy. Awesome. But we've got to have some rules around it because if you go up by and containers for one area, But then you get excited about another area. Now you're buying containers. For that area. Now you've got all of these unfinished projects all over your house that feel overwhelming now, because now you've got all this stuff you need to unpack. And what if it doesn't work now you're outside of the return window and there are so many other things to consider. As you are getting your home in a space to be organized. Okay, Megs. if I can't buy containers, then what do I do to get to the point where I can buy containers and I can't get excited about it. Haha. here's what you do. The first thing you're going to do is declutter. You're going to go through the stuff that you have and let go of the items That no longer serve a purpose in your home. Now, this is another episode, right? Because letting go can be so difficult for us and we can find a reason to keep literally everything. in our homes. So this is like a next step after that. But once you have found a way and peace within yourself to let go. And a method for getting stuff out of your home. You can continue to declutter throughout your home to figure out where things are actually going to live. And side note for a second. A lot of the times we have so much stuff in different places that we don't even know where it does live. So buying the containers is a moot point. Cause what if you buy it for this area, but they are actually supposed to live in this area. And now that container doesn't work for this other area. So now it's just sitting there waiting to be used. And hoping that has a purpose in the future for something else. likely we can always find a purpose for it. But we still want to avoid buying it because what if we buy too many because we do, we just do. So letting go is one of the first things, and that's why I encourage you to set a timer for 15 minutes. Find a time during the day that could work for you. When is the time that your brain allows you to be the most productive? Is it right after your kids leave for school? Is it right when you wake up in the morning? Is it right before you to go to bed at night, you get to decide what that looks like for you. Set a timer and declutter a space so that you can start making progress in a way that makes sense for you. But decluttering always has to happen first. it's all about empowering people to let go of the stuff they have so that they can make room for the life. They really want to live. And the containers, if it makes sense for you to also get containers for that space. But once you've decluttered a space, then you get to truly assess what your needs are. Now you might be decluttering an art area and that you have paint sitting there and you're like, oh, originally I wanted a drawer for all the paint. But now that I only have five paints left because that's, what's not dried out anymore. I think they can sit on the shelf and I think that's fine. But I do still want to have some sort of something for paint brushes, and maybe I find something, maybe I'm looking at the space and I take a tape measure and measure the. The depth. I measure the width and I measure the height. Of the space so that I can find something that truly works in there. And then you could simply go to I like M design or I designed, they've got a lot of really great things or take your measurements and go to the container store There's so many different stores out there that have so many different organizing tools for you. You can find something that works for you, but I encourage you to take the measurements. I know that's a barrier. That's like an extra step in getting to getting your space organized, but it's so worth it.'cause you get closer to having a space that truly works for you instead of just trying to make things fit in places that don't make sense. But, to that point, most of the time when I'm in someone's home, because we've collected all of these containers in one spot. We end up actually finding something that's going to work in that space. Without having to go and buy anything. And so it's, taking a look at what your current inventory for containers is. And assessing your needs at that point, or maybe you finally emptied out a basket that was a doom basket of items that finally got put away. And now this basket is the perfect space for you to drop your keys at the end of the day. Because it's easy. It goes right where you would have dropped your keys anyway, But now this basket can actually serve as another purpose. And It doesn't mean that you can't still shop for containers and get excited about everything. save the posts on social media and maybe never come back to them. But that's another, that's a story for another day. But continue to follow the people that create these beautiful aesthetic spaces. Just remember that if you haven't decluttered yet and your space is not truly ready to just put the items in a container and go. Then you're not necessarily ready to buy the containers yet. And that's okay. We're taking baby steps toward the end of our journey. And part of the baby steps is not buying all this stuff ahead of time. Instead. Maybe you've saved stuff in a cart. Maybe you make a wishlist somewhere. There's so many different online shopping areas where you can make a wishlist. And it just makes sense, honestly. Even if you did that. Once you are shopping for that space, you're going to find the perfect item. And it doesn't matter if you have it saved in a car or not. You're going to find the right item for you, because guess what? You're probably an incredible shopper. Like I, my clients are so incredible. They recommend the most ridiculously amazing things to be and I, to them, right? Like we. We know what to shop for where to shop for it because. Chances are, we've tried a lot of fricking things along the way. I used to have a Facebook group. When I first started the podcast, I no longer have the Facebook group, but last Amazon prime day. I think it was, last year. But I have an Amazon affiliate account. And so I was sharing some of my favorite products because that's what organizers do. But as I was doing it, I was like, you know what, I'm going to do this a little bit differently. I'm going to do this in a way. So that people shop for things in a way that They're not overspending. And there's some things that I do think that you could purchase right away without having to assess the space. Like I have this incredible bean bag chair that I used for my girls. And instead of bean bags in it, we put all their stuffed animals in it. And it's one of my favorite things. I don't think that you can go wrong with it. It's also linked on my website and my blog. if you guys are interested, I'll put it in the show notes below, but if you don't, it's not, if it's not in the budget, don't go and get it. for most other things, I set some parameters around purchasing these items first. And I want to share that with you today because you can write these down. You can use them for you. Before you go to purchase it. Ask yourself. Do you even know what room you're going to buy it for? Is your closet, is it your bedroom? Do I have a specific job for this container? And what I mean by that is. what is its purpose going to be? Are you going to put towels in it? Are you going to put shoes in it? Maybe all your winter gear, maybe just winter hats, maybe just winter gloves. Is it going to be for hair, bows and accessories? Is it going to be just for hairbrushes, maybe you're buying something under the sink, just for your curling iron. So for that type of stuff. What is the actual purpose that this is going to serve? Because sometimes we look at these items and you're like, Gosh, I could use 10 of those. I don't know where I'm going to use them, but I'm just going to get them because then I'll have them. And then as soon as they go to organize, I'll know where to grab them from. And then it'll be super easy. Except I think we all know how that can turn out sometimes. ask yourself, have I actually decluttered the space, then I'm going to use this in. Or am I hoping it just solves the clutter problem. Of what I'm already going through right now. If it's just solving a clutter problem, maybe it's not time to purchase it. Then I want you to ask yourself. Have I bought another container recently, that's waiting for me to unbox it and unwrap it and use it. And have I actually done that or am I doing this now? Because I'm excited about it. And I've lost interest in this other project that I'm also working on. It's funny because we hate roles. But we also thrive on rules. we're so good when we set rules and boundaries for ourselves, it's just, most of the time we've never been taught to set rules and boundaries for ourselves. So we don't necessarily know how to do it. So that's where asking some simple questions like this before you buy something is going to be very helpful. But that got me thinking even more about just this. Like we go and find this container we think is going to be the solution to everything In our lives. And it just ends up causing more frustration and creating more clutter. Raise your hand. If you've bought containers and now they're just adding to the clutter. That is the clutter already in your home. If your hand is raised. Write down these rules. So truthfully, like it, it just comes back to simplicity declutter your items first. Assess the needs and what you truly actually need. And then shop intentionally. With the understanding of finding what's going to add to the system that you've created for yourself. Instead of just buying something that you're hoping to be the solution to everything that you've been hoping for in your life. Organizing is about creating systems that work. I truly want everything to be as pretty as possible, too. I love that. Look when I've organized a space and everything is in this perfect space. Amazing. it feels so good. And. It's so much more about finding the right spaces for you in your home. And not just about the beautification. I love the aesthetics. And we've got to be intentional about the aesthetics. Otherwise all of the containers are just going to add to the craziness that is going on in our brains. Last week I held my first Q and a in my membership and it was really awesome. We talked a little bit about this. We talked a little bit about the shame that comes along with clutter. We talked a little bit about where to start and what to do with the stuff, how to rehome things ethically and make it make sense. And so I'll be talking about that more on the podcast to come, but if you want some more personalized guidance, And other people who get it, especially ADHD women. Come join the membership. There is a. code in the show notes below. I believe it's podcasts that gets you$5 off at least your first month. I can't remember how long it is. Sign up for the dopamine menu. Download that is linked on mindful max.com. It's a little pop-up when you first get to the website and. Check it out. It's a really cool download to help promote some. Natural dopamine production throughout the day. And additionally to that, if you're looking for some more personalized support and coaching, I would love to help you along this journey. Coaching is pretty incredible. I have a coach myself and it's one of the reasons why I became a coach is because it's not just about doing the stuff and having someone force you do the stuff. In fact, that's not what it's about at all. It's about. Really understanding the belief system. And why we've been operating the way that we've been operating for so long. And taking a step back and evaluating some of the things that we've been doing unconsciously for so long. And starting to do it in a conscious way or in a way that. Helps you realize that you can make your dreams come true when you really put your heart and your mind to it. No matter where you're at in the journey, there's a place for you. I'd love to work with you. I'd love to meet you in my membership. And if you have any questions, book a call with me in the show notes below. I'd love to chat with you more. And if nothing else. If you're a homebody and you don't like to talk to people and coaching and a membership is not for you. Thanks for listening along. I'm happy to be in your ear. And I would love if you could leave a review for how this podcast is impacted, you. Or a loved one. Thanks for listening in until next week. Happy organizing.