A whole new profession has arisen of saintly people who make their living solving other people's clutter and organizational problems. They will come into your home and—working either with you or by themselves—will clean out the closets, install the necessary organizers, set up a filing system for you, and generously encourage the calm you've longed for to emerge from the chaos that's been driving you crazy.
How do you find a pro? Look in the yellow pages under "Organizing." In the San Francisco yellow pages they're listed under "Organizing Services and Systems—Household and Business." Another place to look is through community-oriented classes. Household organizing or anticlutter classes are taught several times a year in San Francisco, and the instructors usually work in the field themselves.
There's a catch to this rule, however: We insist that you use it only if you promise to follow all the other rules once the professional has come and gone. He or she will leave, and the clutter will return almost immediately unless you modify your behavior. Implementing this rule does not reduce the number of rules to just this one, in other words.
Rule 1: When in doubt, throw it out.
Rule 2: Use it or lose it.
Rule 3: Efficiency counts, so store things accordingly.
Rule 4: Handle something once.
Rule 5: Recycle it.
Rule 6: Pick a number and stick with it.
Rule 7: Use a file cabinet.
Rule 8: Do Something.
Rule 9: A place for everything, and everything in its place.
Rule 10: Items displayed in the house have to pass a test.
Rule 11: Don't do things "later."
Rule 12: Label things.
Rule 13: Call in a professional.