What's a Disorganized Person to Do?

by Stacey Platt

An easy-to-read, idea-packed guide for anyone who wants to be more organized―and who doesn't?

Everyone has overflowing closets and desk drawers, countertops loaded with kitchen gadgets, and overstuffed computer desktops. We dream of getting organized―but what's a disorganized person to do? In this book, professional organizer Stacey Platt comes to the rescue with empowering ideas on putting and keeping things in order.

Like earlier titles in the series, such as the best-selling What's a Cook to Do? , this book offers easy-to-scan and access solutions to everyday aggravations: How do you keep from misplacing your cell phone or house keys? What's the best way to organize the fridge? How do you pack efficiently for a trip? This user-friendly book, illustrated with stylish, full-color photography, is up-to-date on the latest technologies for organizing everything from music to family photos.

Here are hundreds of ingenious solutions for gaining control of clutter so you can live happily in your space. There are quick solutions as well as one-hour projects―from organizing your emails so you can find your passwords to sorting the area under the bathroom sink―that readers can tackle, one weekend at a time, with big payoffs. From the kitchen to the home office, the bedroom closet to the car, this thoughtful guide will help readers carve out more space and more time.

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Reference, Productivity, How To

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Dayna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Imagine an avid Pinterest user's "Organize" board put into book form, and this is it. It's a collection of tips and techniques for organizing your home, room by room. As other reviewers have said, it's not all that original. If you're already a very organized person, or a collector of these types of books, you won't find it very helpful. But as a natural piler with disorganized tendencies, I found it to be very helpful. Although, it could be an advertisement for The Container Store. But I think it comes down to knowing yourself and what you will keep up with. I don't think every closet, shelf, bin, tray, divider, rack, or peg board is necessary for every person, and I do not believe that you have to spend a lot of money on those things in order to be organized. Take Platt's example of the fork...forks go with forks. They have a place, you know where they go. After a fork has been used and washed and dried you put it back with the other forks. It doesn't have to be an expensive system in a fancy drawer. While not every tip is appropriate or useful for me, as I read from cover to cover I often found myself thinking, "That's a good idea."

[Tammy · Rating 3 out of 5]

If only reading a book would solve my diorganization!

[Heather C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I guess I can't give a book that is about organizing my pots and pans five stars when I have given five stars to books that have caused a great spiritual or emotional change in my life, now can I? BUT, this book totally changed how I organize my home, and that is massive. I don't know what it was about this little book that changed the way I look at everything in my household, but it worked. I liked her theory of the fork. Everybody knows where the forks are in their home. You don't have to search for them and curse yourself for putting them somewhere obscure. They're in the kitchen, where they'll be used. When you're finished using a fork, you clean it and put it back. With the other forks. In the place where the forks go. So why can't the rest of the household run that way? Well, it can, she says. And I now agree.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has numerous good ideas, but the problem with being organized is that no matter how many sorting boxes you put in your house, it wont matter unless you make a point to USE them.

I've begun to use a few of their ideas, and while sometimes I feel like I'm being all OCD about sorting, they're generally working. There were a few thoughts like magnetic strips on the kitchen wall that I feel look just too utilitarian and unwelcoming, and so you need to balance homey-ness with clutterlessness. Your choice. Yes a knife block takes up some more space, but who really wants a bunch of knives stuck on and obvious on the wall, all edges glistening. And if you are a fervent cooker, then having more than one pot of certain sizes isnt clutter, its necessary. Again, its like work-life balance.

So take what you need, and good luck!

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

There weren't too many ideas here you couldn't find on Pinterest, but this saves you the time of searching. It was a little bit out of date, but I suppose there are still some landline phones out there that need an organized message system.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has a lot of great tips-- some of them were common knowledge and some were eye-opening.

Now all I have to do is actually implement what I learned... later.

[Barbara Harper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stacey is a professional organizer and runs a company in New York with a wide variety of clients. One reviewer described this book as an organizer’s Pinterest board.

The book is organized according to different rooms in a house, except that the last chapter deals with trips and moves. Yet within each chapter are tips not just for the physical objects there, but for saving time and energy. Scattered throughout the book are one-hour projects, like organizing under the sink, the junk drawer, the bathroom vanity, or making a master grocery list.

I appreciated that the book was filled with specific tips, though some principles were discussed. Many books on organizing/productivity/time management that I have read are filled with broad principles, or are so rigidly organized as a whole system that they are overwhelming. This books lets you pick and choose what works best for you.

The book is probably meant to be dipped into as a reference resource rather than read straight through as I did. But I didn’t want to miss anything. 🙂

Some of the tips didn’t appeal to me; some I already used; some seemed like overkill. A few were outdated (this book was written in 2010. But I marked many tips to remember.

This appears to be the only book Stacey has written. I didn’t find a website for her. I did find one with her company name, but I am not sure it’s hers.

I can recommend this book as a good resource if you’re looking for organizational tips.

[Erica Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book changed my life. Realized I had a problem being disorganized and wanted to change my ways. My grandma randomly plopped this gem in front of me the week before I was going to move into a new place. I took the it’s super practical advice/tips, am 6 months in to being more clean and orderly than ever before, and even get to help my friends clean/organize their spaces now!! GBTG

Five Takeaways:
1. Really understand your why (I wanted to be more like Jesus #cleanlinessisclosetogodliness #John 20:7, have a space that is inviting and ready to host at any moment, and give myself a peaceful environment when I’m working from home)

2.Envision your space how you want it before making any changes

3. You need the right ingredients to make the receipt. AKA you need tools/supplies to do it right… label maker, clear bins, drawers for bathroom cabinets, etc. (Visually assess how much stuff you have and buy supplies as necessary)

4. Purge!! Set aside a day or two to get rid of everything you truly don’t need

5. Make note of all of the tips in the book you can apply and give every single type of item you own a designated space (this is where your tools come in… labels are so in for 2025)

If you are anything like me and weren’t born with the “super orderly person” genes, fear not!! It’s not always easy to be organized, and takes routine maintenance, but it is possible!

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good practical information, this book gets very basic at times, covering advice like: "put things into containers that won't topple over in the car before you put the things into the car." But I guess it's nice to have a comprehensive list to work from. I found the concise individual topics easy to use and put down and come back to throughout several days.
I had read this before (probably as soon as it was released in 2010?), and some individual things had stuck in my head without me knowing where they'd come from. Some pages were disorienting because of that; a familiar, common-sense tip followed by a new lifehack that I didn't recognize.
You wouldn't guess that it's 10+ years old.

[Brendygirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I review this book every time we move since I got it in 2010. Lots of solutions since the same organizers don’t fit in every home. It’s good for ideas and reminders about keeping streamlined. These organizer Professionals are aware of all the reasons their clients come up with for keeping stuff and they have clever rebuttals that help you push beyond your comfort zone so your house can be more restful and organized. You will want to help your friends get rid of their clutter, even when they didn’t ask.

[Nic]

So I'm house-sitting for a friend and this book was sitting on her kitchen counter and I'm like "Hmm, looks interesting, I'll page through it," and ended up reading the whole thing in one go (there are lots of pictures so it didn't take very long.) It's visually pleasing in the way it's set up, and I came away with a few things I'd like to try. The book was published in 2010 so some of it is a little outdated at this point, so I just skipped those sections.

[Brittany · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great guide for quick and easy organizing ideas, broken down by room. It's a fast read and really has some good ideas, supplemented with visuals and little tips to give it more oomph. Definitely recommend for anyone looking to get organized, and who doesn't know where to start, or even for seasoned organizers who want some fresh ideas to expand their arsenal.

[Ligaya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick read, best for someone new to the organization quest. Out of the 317 tips, I dog-eared 4 pages. So, not a lot new here (for me). There are lots of little illustrations, photos, and quick tips. I wish there was less emphasis on just tossing things out and more ideas for repurposing items we might already have.

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed certain chapters (book has sections per room) more than others. Did not enjoy suggestions for online files, and did not enjoy the packing and moving sections. Other sections were enjoyable. Book has large type and many pictures illustrating what the text is referring to.

[Cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although some of this book is quite basic in terms of instruction for someone who is quite organized, it contains a lot of great tips. Since it was published in 2010 and so much has evolved in terms of technology, it could use an updated edition.

[Luv · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this book up from the library. New year, new you! It is 2024, and 14 years after the publication date. Apparently, a lot of stuff has happened in those 14 years. Parts are quite out dated. That can't be helped, but I this edition of this book can come off the already cluttered shelf.

[Simon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book explained things a bit easier than Marie Kondo's books, made it a little simpler and offered alternative ideas, not all of which I will agree with or act upon. A book like this inspires the excitment to clean and sort your stuff, amidst the chaos of it all.

[Carter Hemphill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Among the organization books, this is among the better ones. The colorful photos are also helpful. A good reference book to keep and review periodically.

[Stephen Chin]

A disorganized person is very like someone who has lost his way in a large forest. He has no idea where to place his next foot step. And it is getting dark.

[Erin Stevens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really nice to have a huge complies list all together! Some of the advice would be rather expensive but overall great ideas and great list of resources and other helpful tips.

[Rachel E. Meyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I mostly browsed through this book for ideas. It had some interesting ones and some outdated ones as well.

[Kaitlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Does have some good tips but is a little outdated. I have used some of the advice and its helped in some areas.

[Andrea]

I ordered this book on Amazon and it arrived yesterday. At first glance I thought - this is more of a 'read a section here and there' book rather than a 'read cover to cover' type of book. But I nearly did just that yesterday! It was a bit overwhelming seeing as how being organized doesn't come naturally for me *at all*, but it was so much fun to read and has some fabulous organizational tips and ideas. I especially like her attitude about throwing things away, I'm more of a thrower-awayer type of person and it's nice to hear a similar point of view. I see a few potential problems though. The main problem being the amount of money I'm going to have to spend to achieve said organization. Every tip requires a basket, a bin, a container, a shelf, a contraption to hook to the wall, etc... and when you think of doing this to every space and room and closet in the house it's really gonna add up... I don't know if 'the husband' is going to allow me to spend that kind of money just for the sake of being more organized. It'll probably just have to be a very gradual process, space by space, closet by closet, until I have things the way I want them. I'm going to save my star rating until I can see whether I'll be able to realistically incorporate any of these things and STICK WITH IT. We shall see...

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great little book with ideas for organizing any thing and any space in your home. A lot of it isn't new, but it definitely did have some good tips I'd never considered before. It's organized by rooms in the house and has photographs demonstrating almost each principle. The only thing it didn't take into consideration is homes that might not have as much storage space as this book assumes. When we moved in to our new house over 2 years ago, we unpacked all our boxes quickly just throwing things in closets and cabinets, so now it's finally time to get everything organized in more logical places! I'll definitely be checking out this book from the library again to refer to as I do my organizing!

[Ruthie Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is definitely an eye-pleasing book (lots of pictures), but a lot of this information is common sense or stuff most people learn throughout their lives. Unfortunately, nothing just gets organized. Organization (and staying organized) takes work and diligence. All the containers and labels and whatnot won't help if you don't do it and keep it up! Platt's book covers pretty much all areas in our homes from closets to kitchens to food storage to home offices/guest rooms and everything in between. There were a few moments when I said, "That's a good idea," so the book has been useful. I was pleased to note how many organizational ideas outlined in this book that I already use or practice. If only there were a fool-proof and permanent method of "organizing" laziness, I'd be all set...

[Carol Kinsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stacey gives some great tips for home organization. She also gives packing, office, and car organization ideas. It's a practical reference book that gives great ideas and inspiration! My favorite part was the section on organizing the pantry! I've begun using Ball Canning jars to store my dried goods (beans, flour, sugar, etc.) and it not only keeps the food fresh, but it makes the pantry look nice. I've had so many complements on how organized and clean my pantry looks ever since I implemented this idea. I also appreciate that she tells how long the various pantry items stay fresh. Great job, Stacey!

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mostly common sense stuff with lots of pretty pictures of perfectly arrayed things. Although, Platt seems to assume a limitless budget for buying tons of storage organizers / folders / boxes / cubbies / shelves (think California Closets) and tons of space ~ not renting a room / living in a <500sq ft apartment ~ given how many references there are to "just organize it & store it in the basement or garage".

It'll be on the reference shelf, but the most useful thing was the information for opting out from preapproved credit card offers.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know what you're thinking. Though you may consider me an organized person, you'd change your mind if you saw the areas of my house that I never let anyone see (except Christy)!

I'm always on the lookout for tips that will help me feel more like I own my stuff rather than having my stuff own me. This book lists 267 organization tips. I now have a basket for gloves on the shelf in my coat closet. I suggested to my husband that he store extra wastebasket liners in the bottom of the wastebasket. For the most part, however, I could have written this book.

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a very organized individual but always looking for tips/advice to increase my own efficiency and cut down wasted effort. Most of the things in this book I already do but there were a few items I learned that will help me at home. Plan on buying book as a present for a very disorganized person I know (evil grin)!

[Barb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh! I LOVE this book! I'd love to be this organized! The pictures are awesome. I show my husband those pictures and just sigh. The utility room....man, I'm drooling over it! Really though, the book is organized by rooms in your home and there are helpful tips for each. Even a way to organize a paper piler like me! I can read little bits at a time and dream away....