Learning to Unclutter Your Home

I am naturally organized. There's a place for everything and everything has its place.

But most people accumulate clutter, and even filth, because they put off the cleanup. Kathy Coupland, who's an expert at cutting through the mess, shows us how a few minutes up front can save you valuable time down the line…

Busy people have a tendency to put their clutter out of sight out of mind, like the garage. One of the things I recommend is to not use solid boxes to store your items, but instead use clear bins so that you can see what it is your storing and what you have.

And that can save you time later when you need to find something…

I make it a point to make my bed every day. Even if it's cluttered or dirty in other places, a made bed presents a room. Another tip is I go ahead and keep these disposable dust-cloths in drawers … in all my drawers so that I can quickly top dust. And dusting the whole home doesn't become an issue. One of the things I do for myself and for my clients is install an inexpensive paper towel holder… Every time you use the bathroom you can quickly, easily wipe it down so when you come back in, the bathroom's always looking spotless. Having the over-the-door hooks is a convenient place to store your jeans… putting a hook in the middle of the door allows children to store their book bags conveniently… every home needs a hamper…we've installed hooks for scarves — things like that…and in this closet, put in an adjustable, portable rod to extend the space of closet-hanging clothing. I keep a stepstool in my closet to reach the higher places…as you'll notice there are no shoes on the floor. I store my shoes on the shelf in the closet, in the boxes they originally came from. They're organized and I can identify what shoes I have. It's a good idea to keep a small towel in the car to pick up those spills that seem to frequently happen with coffee and soft drinks. And I store it in the side compartment. I also keep a feather duster so that when I'm sitting ideal and stopped…I dust the areas that seem to get so dirty and dusty.

Keeping things clean and tidy as you go may very well ease your stress level and will likely free up extra time to focus on the more important things in life. For WebMD, I'm Damon Meharg