12 Months to a Systematic Home: Master Bedroom

I am beginning my 12 month quest for a systematic home where I begin and end each day... in my Master Bedroom. You may choose start with any room you want to, but this is where I am starting. Because this is our first month, I'm going to assume that it's going to take a little longer this month than others to get things systematized. Fortunately for us, it's also January and that means we have new year's resolution momentum to get us going!! So here's how it works...

STEP 1: Take pictures of your room.

Now, before you go cleaning and tidying so you can take a picture, STOP. This needs to be a real picture. What does your room REALLY look like RIGHT NOW? Sometimes it takes a dose of reality for us to know what we're really up against.

Here are the pictures of my room. It is a MESS. (That was a warning.) Are you ready?

My Bed

My Dresser (and a giant mess o' laundry that seems to have invaded my floor)

My Husband's Dresser 

Decorative Bookshelves

STEP 2: Study the pictures to see what is out of place, needs to be fixed, etc. 

 This is my bed. Um, I have no idea why the blankets are all at the top of the bed, except that my husband was doing laundry earlier today and I'm guessing he "cleared" a spot to sort his clean clothes. 

Here's what I notice about this shot... There are hangers on the floor by my bed. They don't belong there. Also, there are papers on my bedstand that don't belong there. And I'm not a fan of the cords that cause an unsightly mess in my "charging area" on the bedstand. I think I also see a hairbrush on the floor and a couple other random things by the bed on the floor. I know the hairbrush is there because Eliana asks me to brush her hair for school before I get up on days that Leif takes her. It looks like there is also a tap dispenser on my bedstand that doesn't even belong in this room. And the trashcan next to my bed is full (or overflowing... whichever word you want to use. Ha!). I'm also noticing that the bed skirt we've been using for our queen size bed is actually made for a king size bed. I knew that, but it's REALLY obvious in this picture. We could afford to fix that. 

 This is a GIANT mess. For some reason, this basket of laundry has gone from "needing to be put away" to "taking over the majority of the floor." Honestly, I don't even know whose laundry it is, how it got there, who washed it, or anything. I don't think any of us do, and that's why it's there. You see, everyone in my family does their own laundry. My husband does his, I do mine, and even our 6 year old daughter does her laundry from start to finish. This seems to be a mix of things including sheets, towels, some of Eliana's clothes, some of my clothes... And I think when Eliana was looking for underwear one morning she went riffling through it and it didn't all go back in the basket. That's a problem.

I'm just going to point out here that laundry is a HUGE system that I need to create this month. We have parts of a functioning system in place, but it obviously breaks down somewhere.

The other big thing I see in this picture is my dresser. It has become a catch-all for stuff that doesn't really have a home. I don't know if I want my dresser top to have a purpose (where I put my jewelry on, for example) or if I just want it to be cleared off and decorative all the time. That's something I need to decide. What I don't want it to be, though, is a clutter catch-all. And that's sort of what it seems to be.

 This is my husband's dresser. He doesn't have the clutter catch-all syndrome that I seem to have. As a result, the top of his dresser has remained decorative (and dusty, though you can't see that in this picture) and clutter free. The biggest thing I see in this picture, though, is the laundry. Once again...

I NEED TO CREATE A LAUNDRY SYSTEM THAT WORKS FOR ME!

This is just a decorative set of book shelves we have in our room. We've never really "used" them for anything functional, but we like what they look like. That said, they're kind of sad. I mean, the picture frames, which I love, still have the original "fake people" pictures in them. Yeah. Sad. I would like to do something fun with these shelves, and perhaps even something functional if possible, I just don't know what. 

To help you think through what's going on in each of your pictures, I created this worksheet... Enjoy!

Download your copy HERE.

STEP 3: Determine what the Income and Outflow for your room is. If you want to learn more about what I mean when I say "Income and Outflow" check out my previous post HERE!

The Income for my Master Bedroom is... my calendar/planner, my phone, my kindle, clean laundry, jewelry, and the dirty laundry that I am wearing. 

The Outflow for my Master Bedroom is... dirty laundry that needs to be washed, trash, and jewelry that needs to be put away. 

As for what systems I need to create for this room, Laundry income and outflow is a big one. I'd also like to create a system for bringing my calendar/planner into my room each night and having it as part of my evening/morning routine. I don't yet have a good system for emptying the trash. I DO have a system for charging my phone and kindle, though I would like to streamline it a little better than just having them rest on my nightstand as they charge. The cords are a little unsightly. 

STEP 4: What is your vision for this space? How do you want to feel when you are in it? 

My vision for my Master Bedroom is a place of calm, quiet warmth. I want to enjoy relaxing, sleeping, reading, and spending time with my husband here. I want to avoid stress and seek peace. I want my Master Bedroom to be a sanctuary for me. 

STEP 5: Implement the ideas you have had and think, really think, about how you want to deal with items as they come into this room. Every item that comes into or flows out of this room impacts how it feels to be in the room. Think about that as you create guidelines for how to handle items that find their way into this space.

This is where the rubber meets the road. This is where we create systems. Some think of a system as a complicated, expensive thing that restricts what we can and cannot do. I choose to think of it as a set of guidelines that, if followed, will create an environment that is pleasant to be in and is easy to maintain. 

Steps 1-4 are things that are easy to do over the course of just a couple hours. Step 5 takes a little more time. We will spend the first week this month on steps 1-4, and then focus on implementing strategies to form a lasting system the rest of the month. Consistency over 3 weeks should form the start of a good habit, so we will spend most of the time there. For this week, though, here is a worksheet that will help you as you work through steps 1-4. 

Download the worksheet HERE.

I will be posting updates on my own progress as well as daily challenges to keep you motivated on my facebook page. I'd love for you to follow me at Metamorphosis Life Systems. And, as always, if you find these worksheets helpful and download them, I'd love for you to leave me a comment! I love hearing from you!!