De-Cluttering Solutions for Your Home

The Solution: Get the Troops Involved

Kids are more likely to put away their stuff if you work with them to create systems. If your goal is to have your little son hang up his clothes, “ask him how he thinks they should be organized,” says Stephanie Calahan, president of Calahan Solutions, in Bloomington, Illinois. “You may think in terms of item—shorts, shirts—while he thinks in terms of color.” If your child likes to play baseball and soccer, instead of placing all the balls in one bin and the bats in another, “ask her if she’d rather have the gear organized by sport,” says Betsy Fein, president of Clutter Busters, in Rockville, Maryland.