Does your car feel like a second home to you? We eat and drink in our car; we store our summer chairs, blankets, sports equipment, and grocery bags in the trunk, and we keep a variety of personal items on hand (tissues, mints, umbrellas, etc.).
Many of us also use our car as a “holding station” for a variety of items that are destined for elsewhere:
Recycling
Donations
Returns to stores
Library books
Borrowed items to return to friends
Just like our homes, our cars benefit from ongoing organizational maintenance. Fall is an excellent time to organize and reset your car. Here is one approach to consider:
LIST: make a list of the places that you need to go to drop off the bags and boxes in your car
CONFIRM: check online or call to confirm the hours and accepted drop-off items at the locations and note them on your list
LABEL: write or put labels on your bags and boxes so that you can easily identify which ones to grab at a particular stop
BATCH: look at your calendar for the upcoming week and see if you can batch any errands (i.e., drop off donations at a bin in the grocery store parking lot before you shop)
SCHEDULE: schedule time on your own calendar to make any of the stops that you are not able to batch with another errand
MAP: put your list in an order that makes sense for you to accomplish geographically
GO!: make it a quest to see if you can empty your car in the time you have planned
TREAT YOURSELF: once I empty and reset my car, I like to treat myself to a car wash and vacuum (I realize that my idea of “self-care” may need some jazzing up!)
A client sent me a text last week that simply said, “Empty car.” Because we had filled her car during our last session, I knew exactly what she meant and how good it felt for her. Her quest was complete. Best of luck with yours!