It happens to all of us. We go on a long, rejuvenating trip and return home to an overwhelmingly disorganised space. The suitcase only adds to the chaos, leading to a procrastination streak with no end in sight.
In a recent survey, 88% of participants admitted to procrastinating for at least an hour a day. So, if you’re putting off unpacking, you can at least count on the fact that many people suffer the same struggles.
As many as 1.4 billion people are travelling every year, and most struggle to get organised again when they come back. However, it doesn’t have to be this way. With the right strategy, you can organise your home and unpack efficiently in no time at all.
Read on to learn how to unpack and organise your home quickly after a vacation.
Recover
When you return from a vacation, don’t put a ton of pressure on yourself to unpack right away. If you allow yourself a little recovery time first, you’ll be more alert and focused when you unpack and organise your home.
Assess the situation
Before you begin unpacking from vacation, take a look around your home and see if anything needs addressing first. Did you forget to do the dishes before you left? Could the furniture use some dusting?
Unpacking into a messy house will likely sabotage your efforts, leaving you with an even bigger mess than before. If you want to set yourself up for success, take care of the cleaning first.
Organise your home
An organised home leads to an organised mind, so you’ll be doing yourself a big favor by organising your home after you return from vacation.
If the situation calls for it, you should organise your home before you attempt to unload your luggage. That way, you’ll have a clean slate and can easily unpack once you’re through.
Here are a few decluttering tips to help you clear some space:
- Start by removing any stray clutter on countertops, tables, furniture, etc. (e.g., dishes, garbage, junk mail) and using storage boxes to hold any loose items
- Use a bin for donations and a bag for items that need to be thrown away
- Remove any items that don’t make you happy when you look at them
- Add hooks and other home storage solutions to help store everything
While you don’t have to make this a big spring cleaning project, it still helps to declutter before you start unpacking. Then, you’ll have an easier time putting things away.
Unpack your suitcase
Now that your home is clean and organised, you’re ready to unpack your suitcase! Use your new organisation system to unpack all your belongings and put them away. Be sure you keep the above process moving along so you’re not waiting forever to unload your travel belongings.
Life after vacation
As much as we often don’t want to, everyone has to come back from vacation sometime. However, the process of integrating back into real life doesn’t have to be such a struggle. Now that you know how to organise your home and unpack after vacation, you’re ready to make your successful return!
For more tips, check out our other blog entries.