Here’s a step by step guide on how to organize your life in one week.
Disclaimer – This post may contain affiliate links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my link, at no extra cost to you.
If you feel like your entire life is in shambles, you’ve no idea what day it is, are trying to find your car keys for 3 hrs and . . . you’re wearing 2 different socks, you need this post!
Well, THAT ^ might be an exaggeration, lol. But this guide on how to organize your life in one week will really help you get your sh*t together, from your routines to finances to an organized home!
That too in just one week.
Just take 1 hr of your day every day for the next week, and trust the process.
There’s no elaborate cleaning routine or a secret organization hack; and that is exactly why this process works! All you need to do is get back to basics and take small steps over the next week.
Every time I find myself in a mess and want to regain control of my life, I come back to this process. Here’s the exact step-by-step guide on how to organize your life in one week.
Here’s a step by step guide on how to organize your life in one week.
How To Organize your life in one week
Step 1 : Setting Realistic Routines
The best way to feel organized and in control of your life, is by starting a routine. A realistic one at that.
1) Derive routines from your personal goals
Look at your personal goals, and derive what habits you want to start from those goals.
Eg, if you want to get in your best shape, maybe start working out everyday for the next week, or start following a diet.
If you want to reduce your stress, start journaling or meditating for the next 7 days.
2) Morning routines for the win!
I’d actually prefer for you to start a morning routine. Mainly because if you nail down a simple morning routine that works for you, it will improve your productivity in the long run.
A morning routine that makes you feel calm and on top of things sets the tone for a productive and happy day.
3) Start a 14 day challenge
If you have struggle staying consistent with a routine, turn it into a 14 day challenge.
And if you’re anything like me starting a challenge will push you to stay consistent.
Don’t overthink it, you’re not married to the same routine for the rest of your life. You can constantly improve it or change it completely and make it work for you.
But for now, create a simple routine, or pick a healthy habit to follow for the next week.
Related Post : 18 Genius Daily Healthy Habits For Busy Women
Step 2 : career, goals and shiz
The first thing that comes to mind when you think about how to organize your life in one week, is organizing your professional life.
And before you start getting into creating better work systems and habits, answer this first.
Imagine that it’s one year from now and you’re living your best life. What does it look like? Where do you work? Do you like your job? Also, Where do you live? What are your habits?
Get specific on every detail.
And set your personal and professional goals from this vision.
Often times, you work your a*s off climbing the corporate ladder only to realize you never even wanted it in the first place. So use today to derive your goals from this vision, and come up with 2-3 actions that you can take this month to get closer to your goals.
And I’m talking from experience here, the more specific you are the better it is.
Not a manifestation story!
6 months ago, I was lying in bed, getting anxious about switching jobs (from software engineer to data analyst) because I absolutely hated my current one.
But I wanted my new job profile to be in the same office complex as mine. My brain was telling me that either I won’t get the type of work I want or I won’t be able to work in my preferred location.
But in an attempt to calm my mind, I got up and wrote down exactly the kind of job I was looking for. Letting myself daydream that it exists!
Fast forward 2 weeks later, I got the exact job I wanted!
And here’s what I learned from that.
When you get very specific, your brain starts generating ideas instead of indulging in confusion, and it’s only a matter of time that one of these ideas works.
Step 3 : sort your finances
The next thing on ‘How to organize your life in one week’ is finances.
Whether you’re someone who already creates a monthly budget but struggles to follow through, or someone who doesn’t even like to look at her bank statements due to money anxiety, you need this.
Put on some background music, light a candle, order your favorite pasta, and have a money date!
1) Track your last month’s income & expenditure
Open an excel sheet or get a notebook and simply write down your last’s month’s income and expenditure. Now categorize the main areas where you’re spending your money.
Most people aren’t even aware of their money flow. Being aware is the first step towards being abundant.
When I did this for the first time, one of my main spending categories was junk food. And that was alarming for me, because that’s not the kind of person I wanna be. It really forced me to start making healthier choices.
2) Set a monthly money date
Make it a habit to have weekly and monthly money dates. You need to do this regularly to stay on top of your money goals.
You can simply track your income and expenditure every week and analyze them at the end of the month.
3) Budget & Rewards
Set some money goals. And not just big ones like buying a car or the house, but also small money goals like saving money for the next trip, or that Zara dress.
Setting such money goals will motivate you to save more and spend your money intentionally. And achieving them will make you feel more in control of your $$.
4) Investing
No, you don’t need to do all this today.
Just come up with a plan to invest your money better (or learn more about investing). Because money sitting there just gathers dust.
5) Automate your bills
This is a genius hack in how to organize your life in one week.
And will save you from the last minute hassle or extra charges. Simply automate your monthly bills on your payments app and voila!
Step 4 : clean and organize your space
How can you be your most organized self if your house is a mess? I mean, sometimes it’s hard to even think straight when you can see a big pile of laundry on your bedroom chair.
And the time that’s wasted trying to find everything, ugh!
Now, you don’t need to deep clean your entire house today, but here are some home organization systems you can start setting up.
1) Everything should have a space
This is a golden organization rule – everything should have a place. If you don’t have a key holder near the door, there’s a high probability that your keys will be on the dining table.
Or things like T.V. remotes. Get a circular disk or a basket to hold your remotes if you don’t want them lying on your couch.
2) Create a productivity and rest corner
Clean out your work desk and set up a productive work corner.
Get a Bluetooth mouse, remove excess documents lying on the desk, and maybe even add a Bluetooth speaker to play focus music when you’re at work.
Related Post : Genius Home Office Organization Products You Never Thought Of
Similarly, organize your rest corner. You know, the cozy bean bag that’s perfect to read your books or the couch that you have all your movie nights in.
3) Sort your documents
Don’t you hate the feeling when you’re looking for an important document but you just can’t find it because it’s all mixed up.
Use this wall document organizer to easily categorize them and throw out the ones you don’t need anymore.
4) Clean out your common use areas
Do a quick clean of your most common areas. Like, office, kitchen, bathroom.
Go throw your pantry and bathroom essentials and throw away expired products. I’m sure you might have some expired makeup products in the bottom drawer.
5) Clean your sheets
Ah! The feeling of sleeping on clean sheets. If that doesn’t make you feel organized and Type-A, I don’t know what will.
6) If you’ve been putting something off, do it now
I’m sure there’s one area of your house that you’re wanting to clean for the longest time but just can’t get to it. Maybe your closet is a mess as you read this. This is your sign to get that sh*t in order.
Step 5 : digital declutter
Because your laptop is your second home nowadays. It’s not the most common advice for how to organize your life in one week but practically, it might be the most useful one!
And if you’re intimidated to open your mailbox, or look through your google drive, that’s a sign that you need to do it right away.
Now, it’s a fort that you need to conquer step by step, so here are some areas that you can look into today.
1) Inbox deep clean
Okay, dealing with e-mails is overwhelming and downright boring. Yep!
So, take some time today to go through your emails, and unsubscribe from the ones that you no longer need.
You can’t clean out the entire inbox. So today, just focus on the past week’s emails (Maybe even just the past 2 days). Don’t dig too deep.
2) Create mail templates
This hack is going to change your email game, and honestly, your life!
Create mail templates for you most common replies. You can use this website to get some ideas.
This is going to save you so much time AND sanity in the future, and you won’t have to worry about writing a lousy mail.
3) Organize the folders in your laptop
If you have a habit of saving everything on your desktop, then that’s a good place to start cleaning up the mess.
Delete unnecessary files and folders, pin your most used apps to the toolbar. Categorize everything.
4) Organize your life with Notion
Omg! I can’t even tell you how organized notion can make you feel.
You can store everything from your goals to your finances to resume in there.
I recently created a reading journal on my Notion to track my current reads and it makes me feel organized af, haha!
Step 6 : finding a system that works for you so that you stay this organized
Getting a one week organization plan is good & all, but the goal is to stay this organized throughout the year. Here are a few things to create systems that’ll make you feel on top of your game!
1) Plan your weeks
I don’t know about you but I feel my most productive self when I plan my week on Monday. And it hardly takes 30 minutes of my time!
I you want the exact fail-proof weekly planning system, get inside Take Your Weekends Back Course. Trust me, it’ll help you get more done in 5 days than most people do in a month.
If you don’t wanna do much, at least jot down all your to-dos and then assign them to each day.
2) Habit tracking
Remember the realistic habits and routines you set in step 1, you need to follow up on those as well. Using a habit tracker increases accountability and hence, your consistency.
3) Weekly debriefs
Every Sunday, simply look back at your past week and analyze what went wrong, and what went right.
The thing is, not every organization hack works for everyone. And this debrief makes you realize what works for you and what doesn’t.
4) Prepare for your weekly habits
If you’re starting a new habit, the best way to make sure you actually stay consistent with it is to make it easy and simple.
For eg, if you wanna start going to the gym; pick out your outfits the night before, or plan your exercises in advance.
If you wanna start journaling, keep a journal on your bedside table as your visual reminder in the morning.
5) Set your monthly appointments
At the beginning of every month, schedule your important meetings and appointments. Whether you want to have a spa day or go to the doctor for a monthly checkup.
Set reminders for them. This way you won’t be blindsided in the middle of the week.
Related Post : 16 Things To Do Before Starting A New Month
6) Dates with yourself
We talked about doing money dates in step 3. Similarly, you can schedule time for self care dates, or weekly check-in dates with yourself.
And make it legit. Show up to these dates like you would show up on a date with your crush. Dress up, maybe even go to your favorite cafe, have a glass of wine, and have fun.
Step 7 : self care day
Now that you’ve covered and organized all the major parts of your life, it’s time to take a much needed break and focus on self care.
Sometimes, this is the part where most people lack. People who tend to jump from one task to another and so on, are more likely to get overwhelmed and quit everything all at once.
I mean, there’s no point of deep cleaning your house for 6 days only to fall sick and let it go to shambles again.
Instead, take regular breaks, prioritize self care and rest time. And create a sustainable routine that helps you stay productive in the long run.
If taking a nice long shower at the end of the day helps you relax, make that your self care ritual. If having a self care Sunday fuels you for a productive week, then practice that!
There are no rules to self care . . . EXCEPT one! You have to stay guilt free.
I don’t care if eating popcorn and watching a reality show is what helps you relax, as long as it is your preferred self care activity, own it and be absolutely unapologetic about it!
If you want some tried and true self care ideas, here are 42 simple ideas for you!
Related Post : Ultimate Daily, Weekly & Monthly Self Care Checklist To Swear By!
Here’s a step by step guide on how to organize your life in one week.
