Why Home Systems Matter More Than Organizing

TLDR: Home systems matter more than organizing because
systems provide foundational support for daily living, while
organization provides homes for physical items.
Caveat: I love organizing!

I’ve noticed that the term ‘systems’ can be off-putting to a lot of people. I think when they hear it they’re imagining things that happen in a cold, boring, and (least attractively) confining environment. But systems can actually be simple, kind of fun if you’re anything like me, and most significantly:Systems can set you free.A well-designed system takes less time and energy than executing tasks haphazardly, leaving the designer with more mental and physical bandwidth to apply however they choose to!There’s a reason successful businesses are run on systems. It allows necessary day-to-day operations to function while preserving space for growth within the company.This is what we need at home.When we design our homes intentionally, we can create an environment where even amidst dinner, dishes, and family demands, space is preserved for our own growth.I discovered this for myself when I became pregnant with my first child. By the time this baby found me, I already had a very well organized home. I’d become enamored with Martha Stewart as a rebellious teen (a story for another essay perhaps) and worked in a wide range of creative and administrative jobs that all taught me different pieces and parts of how to ‘correctly assemble’ a home. I had nice towels in my guest bathroom, a full set of serve ware, and am one of those weirdos who actually likes to clean, so I could host people with not much notice and get comments like “Wow, you’re so organized!”I won’t lie - when people said that, I was proud of myself. And here’s another truth - I still am. It takes a lot of hard work to assemble a home and keep it clean, and I will always love prepping a good party.But on regular, non-party days … something was missing.Sure, I was good at planning semi-elaborate get togethers (neurodivergency aside!). But when I became pregnant, something inside me unlocked. Suddenly I could see the functional gaps in the way my home worked on a daily basis. It was always a struggle to figure out what we were eating (and usually an expensive struggle). I was barely aware of the true state of our finances. And the thought of accepting one more bag of generously donated baby items into my overflowing garage made me literally itch.Something about imagining being responsible for this tiny little human FOREVER made me realize that if I could see holes in my set up now, before there was even a real live baby around to fall through them, I needed to change the way I was running my home.The first highly intentional system that I implemented was meal planning. I was determined to save as much money for my household as possible, so I started with our highest spend category (unfortunately there are no coupons for rent). Through planning recipes, cookings days, and keeping a freezer inventory, I saved untold amounts of money on takeout and covered all meals for three people for the first three weeks postpartum.My system freed me from so much added stress during one of the most difficult periods of my life.That freedom (even while tinged by postpartum anxiety) was a springboard to create more intentional systems in my home. Because I definitely needed more support.We all do.That’s why I’ve created a framework that will help identify the functional gaps in your home, so you can create systems that will give you the support that you need.So here’s to us, here’s to our homes, and here’s to becoming …
More Than Organized.