An organizing system is anything that helps you contain and control something: a filing system for papers and information, a kitchen drawer for gadgets and cookware, a calendar for events and To Dos, and so on. Each system involves more than just a container to hold things and labels to let you know what's inside. In fact, there are seven components to any effective organizing system. Here's a brief look at each one.

#1: Location
Location may not be everything, but in terms of organizing, it's definitely important. One of the main components of any organizing system is a location that makes sense based on the types of things in your system. Simply put, your goal is to store things close to where you use them, and to clear each space in your home or office of the things you don't use there.

#2: Categories
In any organizing system, whether for papers, kitchen gadgets, clothing, electronic files, or garden tools, you're likely to have more than one kind of thing. Dividing things into categories (for example, in a closet, short-sleeved shirts together, long-sleeved shirts together, pants together, and so on) helps keep similar items together, making them easier to find and put away; it also helps make the system more refined and effective overall.

#3: Guidelines
Related to creating categories for the stuff within any organizing system is establishing guidelines for what goes in each category. If, for example, you've set up a filing system with categories that include Auto, Banking, Insurance, and Legal, you'll then want to decide what belongs in each of those folders. It's a good idea to write down your guidelines once you've decided on them so you'll remember what you came up with the next time you need to get something from the system or put something away.

#4: Containers
Containers alone are not an organizing system, and simply buying containers won't make you organized. That said, having the right containers is an important step in creating an effective organizing system. The containers you choose for each system should hold what you need them to hold, fit the space in which you're using them, and be easy and painless to use (that means no bins whose lids are impossible to pry off and none of those ancient metal filing cabinets whose drawers need to be opened with brute force!). I very strongly recommend not buying containers until after you've sorted and weeded so you can be fairly sure you have an accurate sense of just how much stuff you need to store.

#5: Labels
Labels provide signposts within an organizing system, making it easier to find what you're looking for. In addition to creating obvious labels--such as those on file folders--also consider labeling things like drawers and cabinets in the kitchen (this drawer holds potholders and towels; this one holds utensils), sections of your closets, areas of the tool storage system in your garage, and so on. Labels are especially helpful if more than one person is using an organizing system.

#6: Understanding and Skills
An understanding of an organizing system, and the skills to use it, are important components of any system. To understand why, think of trying to unload the dishwasher at a friend's house and put things in their proper homes. If you didn't have an understanding of the organizing systems in your friend's kitchen, you'd probably need help getting things put away.

If you're using a system you've created, chances are you have the necessary understanding and skills to make it work for you. But if others in your home or office will also be using the system, or if you need to use someone else's system, be sure everyone has enough info to use the system effectively.

#7: Habits
Finally, keeping an organizing system running smoothly requires developing a few habits around using the system regularly and making sure it's up to date. Even the most detailed, finely organized filing system won't stay that way if you don't get in the habit of using and updating it.

These seven parts add up to an organizing system that will fit your space and your lifestyle and that will serve you well over the long term.