UNCLUTTER YOUR LIFE IN ONE WEEK
By Erin Rooney Doland
Publisher: Gallery

This is quite a clever book. It’s like having someone hold you by the hand and take you through your house and your office and literally telling you to get rid of things! Erin Rooney Doland is an organisation consultant (yes, they have things like that in the United States) and the editor-in-chief of Unclutterer.com, a website on removing the clutter that has been featured in The Washington Post and The New York Times, among others.

This book is divided into the seven days of the week, in keeping with the title, and it takes you through each day - morning, noon and night. The introduction gets you all geared up for the first day of uncluttering by making you think about sentimentality, the need/want tug and working around your organisation style.

Bright and early on Monday morning, the book tackles your wardrobe. There’s a checklist that’ll take you through your items and an interesting chapter on how you process information - whether you are a visual processor, auditory processor or tactile processor. Determining this will help you find the ideal organisation solution for your wardrobe. It then teaches you how to manage your laundry. All these before you even start work!

Next is your office. You are taught to analyse your space and rearrange it if necessary, for a better flow. In the evening, you now move on to build a reception station, which is uncluttering talk for the first area you see when you come home, something to welcome you home to a serene, uncluttered space. If that’s not pure genius, what is?

On Tuesday, it’s the bathroom in the morning before work, followed by a major overhaul on your workspace. You are guided through building a filing system that is optimal for your working style. In the evening, it’s back home to organise your regular chores and putting in place a routine. On pages 98 and 99, there is a chart that gives you an idea of the kind of routine you can set, followed by a checklist for a major cleanup every season.

On Wednesday, work on your bedroom in the morning, as that is your sanctuary. Organise your sheets and unclutter your sleeping area. The book also talks about commuting and how to use that time effectively. Next, it’s all about communication. This is a more work-centric chapter, where you are taught to maximise meeting times at work and how to ensure better communication with your peers and superiors. It also delves on the clutter at work - email, spam, social media - and how these eat into our time. After a long day, it’s back home to organise your kitchen and dining area. There is even a section on meal planning and eliminating stress during mealtime.

On Thursday, it’s time to tackle your living space, which is where you spend the bulk of your waking hours. It guides you in planning storage spaces for this area, and streamlining your belongings (books, knick-knacks, etc). It’s about maintaining order on a day-to-day basis. If you work from home, there’s a helpful section on setting up a home office.

On Friday, it’s all about scheduling your life. The book recommends several tools to get your life organised, whether it’s for work or personal. It talks about managing deadlines at work and creating a work-life balance.

The chapter on Weekend is about enjoying the fruits of your labour. Now that you’ve organised your chores and surroundings, it leaves your weekends free for your hobbies and other pursuits.

If you need someone to cheer and egg you on to unclutter your life, get this book!