My Struggle with Organization as a Type B Personality

Cleaning as a Type B is difficult.

I am a solid Type B personality kind of girl. I love this about myself, and believe it has helped me creatively, allows me to be in the moment, and gives me a less stressful take on life.

The bad things about being a type B personality are things like procrastinating, not being able to focus, and being too relaxed about things not getting done.

This means that the laundry may get washed and dried, and even folded, but it stays in the basket for days without getting hung up or put away.

As a Type B I am not good at:

• Labeling
• Keeping a schedule or using a planner
• Organizing my pantry, fridge, cabinets or closets

Things I am good at as a Type B:

• Cleaning Surfaces
• Rearranging Furniture
• Decluttering shelves and spaces

I adore the clean, well organized spaces some of my favorite mom bloggers and YouTubers have. My favorite vlog mom, Sarah Therese, is a great example of someone who is really good at cleaning and organizing.

But I am fairly certain Sarah is type A, and it's gonna take me a LONG time to get to her amazing level of organized.

What are Type A and Type B personalities?

There are a TON of differences in people, and their personalities. Generally, there are two that people lean more one way or another on.

Type A people are assertive, goal oriented, task driven, list makers. They thrive off order, cleanliness, and being in charge in a group setting. They tend to have outgoing personalities, are leaders, and love to bring order.

Type B people go with the flow, are creative, tend to not know what time it is, procrastinate, are easy to be around, and try not to take things personally. We can be relaxed, chaotic, care free and non-confrontational, but also like a challenge as long as it doesn't have a deadline.

These things aren't true of all Type A or Type B, but generally are.

The chaos and order of owning a home

Last spring, my husband and I bought our first home!

It was a crazy time since we closed literally a week before they issued the lockdown in our city. We had a big painting party (with 10 or less people because of the party limits in April 2020) and tried to get as much done as we could over that weekend.

Buying your first home gives you a big sense of ownership, and makes you really think about all the stuff you own. I wanted to be more minimal before we moved in, because as a type B it's hard for me to organize.

Less stuff means less things to organize, right?

Before we moved, we piled a TON of stuff to get rid of onto the kitchen table. We filled up at least 10 bags and 3 boxes full of everything from clothing, to books, to kitchen appliances we never used, and donated it all.

What I learned from buying a house in Quarantine:

Moving into our unfinished ranch home during quarantine was CRAZY. When we moved in, the house had no appliances, and we had none either. Not even a stove or refrigerator. We had to get scrappy and be creative as we slowly acquired everything we needed.

We also learned a lot about keeping our new home clean, and as organized as we really could at the time.

So, what did we learn?

1. Organization is necessary, and you have to get good at it.

This whole process taught us a lot about cleaning, organizing, and just living in our own home. Getting everything sorted and out of boxes, cleaning the dust and dirt out of the old wood floors, and figuring out how our belongings fit in this new space.

My husband works two jobs, so I had to figure most of this out on my own. I did figure it out though!

I wrote a whole post about cleaning room by room on my healthy lifestyle blog, inspired by what I learned from owning a home and having to clean it.

While I am still working on my organization and cleaning skills, especially as such a type B, this checklist has helped me a lot. Sometimes I write things for myself as much as for the readers on my blog.

2. Keep Surfaces Clear

If my time as the Furniture & Décor dept. head at World Market taught me anything, it that clean surfaces make a clean home.

Empty (or empty-ish) surfaces make a home look cleaner, and less cluttered. A less cluttered space helps you have a clearer mind and be able to focus better, which definitely helps me when it comes to cleaning the rest of the house.

3. Donate what you don't need

There are some things it's okay to hold onto for sentimentality's sake, but I am finding that list is not very big.

A big one for me to focus on has been clothing.

Keeping clothing items that I no longer wear just because they have memories attached to them. That's something I need to work on quitting.

I know someone else could actually use that clothing item if I donate it, rather than it just sitting in my closet collecting dust.

How I'm making it easier on myself as a Type B

I am both giving myself a little grace, and trying to start implementing a few things this Spring to really help myself learn to clean more efficiently.

I'm learning from other bloggers how to clean easier, and organize better. Especially this mom at EastValley.MomCollective.com, with her great article below! It has been so useful as a fellow type B.

One thing she talks about is getting help from your husband or partner, your kids, or even your mom with things that you don't excel at. It can be a great way to clean, have family time, and make it easier on you if organization doesn't come first hand.

So if you are a Type B like me, don't stress too much.

Focus on what you can do, like sweeping and mopping, cleaning counters, doing laundry, and then get help with the things you struggle with.

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-Leah H.