Every new year, millions of people resolve to get organized. In fact, this is one of the most popular New Year’s resolutions; and with good reason, as becoming organized can also help you meet some of your other goals, such as getting fit, losing weight, and enjoying life more fully with family and friends. Essentially, decreasing clutter increases your energy levels and motivation, and decreases your risk for depression and anxiety. Now that you know getting organized will benefit your life in more ways than one, here are some easy life hacks to make it happen. Of course, dreaming too big can occasionally set yourself up for frustration, which is why we’ve broken these hacks down into

Make your entire day far more productive and organized by getting ready for the morning the night before. Lay your clothes out, get your lunch ready, and set your car keys and work materials by the door. You’ll be ready to tackle the day and far more likely to stay organized than you would if you were chaotically scrambling to decide which outfit to wear, what to eat for breakfast and lunch, and where you put your car keys. As an added benefit, you won’t have to come home to piles of clothes and dirty dishes that you didn’t have time to wash or put away because you were too busy rushing around.

It only takes a couple minutes to sort through all the mail when you get home, but it’ll take a couple hours if you let it pile up for weeks. Do menial tasks right away – before they have time to pile up – so you don’t have to spend your entire Saturday at home struggling to catch up. Also, when it comes to menial tasks, multitasking is a great solution. If you can do a load of laundry while talking on the phone, for instance, you’ve just lightened your workload!

Organizing your life starts with organizing your mind. Since it often feels like there are a thousand things to do every day, it helps to get it all out on paper and then create a plan of action. Also, once your brain isn’t inundated with so many small details, you’ll have more time to focus on other, more important things. Just make sure you’ve crossed off most of the important items on your checklist by the end of the day!

Nowadays, almost every bill can be accessed and paid online. This is one of the easiest ways to eliminate clutter and waste. Create a separate folder for bills in your inbox and move them to a “paid” folder when you’re done. Make your life even easier by setting up your accounts on automatic payments. You’ll never have to worry about looking for a lost bill again. Likewise, catalogues you subscribe to that lead to clutter piles around the house can easily be transferred to an online membership. Or, better yet, simply unsubscribe!

This trend is a super easy way to reduce the amount of clothes you have and simplify getting dressed – and simplify your life in general! The idea is to choose a wardrobe centered around quality pieces of clothes you love to wear, while eliminating items you wear infrequently or that don’t match the rest of your wardrobe. Find out more here.

Get rid of any extra stuff you have laying around that you rarely use – Dishes, sheets, towels, handbags, etc. The less you have, the less time you’ll have to spend cleaning and organizing. Also, think before you shop. Make a detailed plan of what you need in order to avoid impulse buys. In addition to having less clutter around the house, you’ll be able to cut back on storage unit expenses.

Study after study shows that stressing out simply isn’t good for your health. Do these little things to simplify your life and cut back on clutter so you stress less and have more time to just relax and do what feeds your soul – Whether that’s spending time with your family, taking a bath, going for a run, or reading a book. After all, what better way to spend your new year?

Have any of these mini-steps worked for you in the past? Let us know your thoughts on Facebookand Twitter!