Back to Monthly Organizing Checklists Index Monthly Organizing Checklist

January 2021

by Maria Gracia Our NEW January Organizing Checklist provides an organizing TO DO for every day of the month… Join our newsletter to be notified when the newest Monthly Organizing Checklist is available. For a PRINTABLE VERSION, click here ____ Jan 1 New Year’s Day. Get your 2021 calendar in order…either your paper or digital version. Be sure all birthdays, anniversaries, and other recurring events are entered. Add all known upcoming appointments. ____ Jan 2 Get rid of 10 food items that are not going to be eaten…whether they’ve expired, are stale, are not part of your 2021 eating plan, or that you simply don’t care for. If it’s a non-perishable item, bring it to a food pantry. If it’s perishable, trash it. ____ Jan 3 Start getting your 2020 tax paperwork in order so you’re well ahead of the game when tax time rolls around. ____ Jan 4 Delete 50 email messages, either in your inbox, virtual folders, or both. ____ Jan 5 Weed out 5 overstuffed file folders.  ____ Jan 6 Give homes to any holiday gifts you’ve received. Giving everything you own a home is one of the 7 habits of very organized people. Put gift cards in your wallet if they’re for in-person stores, so you have them with you and can use them when you’re out and about. For digital gift cards, make a folder for them and add dates on your calendar for doing some online shopping. .____ Jan 7 Begin stowing away indoor Christmas decorations…and outdoor ones if you live in a warm weather area. If you have a lot, work on this task for 15 minutes a day until it’s all in storage. .____ Jan 8 Make necessary doctor, dentist, and veterinary appointments. ____ Jan 9 National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day. Send a card of support to your local police department…or share something wonderful on social media about someone you know who is in law enforcement. ____ Jan 10 Return any gifts you received that you don’t care for or that don’t fit. Exchange them for alternate merchandise or get a store credit. ____ Jan 11 Begin reading a new book. It can relieve stress when you stray from reality for a bit. Plus, it forces you to sit down and relax. Even reading for 15 minutes at a time can be a nice mini-break. ____ Jan 12 Clear clutter on a surface, like the kitchen table or counter. ____ Jan 13 National Clean Your Desk Day. Empty out a desk drawer. Clean it well. Then organize the “keepers” back in; discard the rest. ____ Jan 14 Pay a bill or two…ahead of time. ____ Jan 15 Martin Luther King Jr’s Birthday. Go to the library or online and learn something about the life of Martin Luther King Jr. ____ Jan 16 Assess your budget. Are there some expenses you can do away with so those funds can be used for catching up with other bills? ____ Jan 17 Keep emergency information (contacts, medical information, prescriptions, etc.) easily accessible…on your fridge, perhaps, and in your wallet. If you’ve already done this in the past, update your information if needed.  ____ Jan 18 Delete one or two unnecessary apps from your cell phone. ____ Jan 19 Use a phone app to scan loose business cards that you need to keep. This way, you don’t have to store the card at home…and the “card” will be with you when you’re out and about. ____ Jan 20 Organize your sleepwear drawer. Declutter sleepwear that has seen better days or that you no longer wear. Nicely fold those you want to keep and place those back in the drawer.  ____ Jan 21 Clean out your medicine cabinet. Safely get rid of anything expired or that you’re no longer using…medications, hair accessories, toiletries, cosmetics, etc. ____ Jan 22 Reorganize winter accessories (hats, mittens, etc.) for each member of your household. Separate each person’s gear in his or her own tote bag or container. ____ Jan 23 Is your cleaning schedule working for you? If not, now is a good time to revamp it. ____ Jan 24 Clean bed linens, especially if it is well overdue. Bed linens should be laundered every two weeks minimum. ____ Jan 25 Delete recorded DVR programming if you have an overload. ____ Jan 26 Sort through a box of “stuff” in your basement or attic. Decide if you still need to save those items or not. If not, get rid of them. ____ Jan 27 Donate one or two items in your clothes closet…items that don’t fit or flatter. ____ Jan 28 Delete some unwanted photos from your cell phone to free up storage space. ____ Jan 29 Give your stove top a good cleaning. ____ Jan 30 It’s a good day to catch up on laundry. ____ Jan 31 Post a February goal on social media…and ask someone to keep you accountable. Then do a small action to get you started on this goal. Back to Monthly Organizing Checklists Index