This morning I woke up to my usual stream of new ideas and a long “to do’ list, excited to start my day. But as I moved through my morning routine I realized the residue of yesterday’s creative activity was driving me crazy. I paused, looked around and saw that there were literally piles of chaos all over the house. Some of it mine, some my husband and adult kids, some from an energetic grandchild.

Now there are days when the momentum of creativity and busyness sweep us along and the piles don’t matter – but there are also days when we all need to stop and tidy up. This is especially important for visual tactile people, who tend to leave signs of their creative thought process all around them, much like Hansel and Gretel’s trail of breadcrumbs.

Visual thinkers tend to be creative people that are more interested in doing than organizing. But there are tremendous advantages to finding a healthy balance between spontaneous activity and being organized.

Here are some things that help me make sense of things:

Everything needs a place to be. Young or old, you need a plan. Be intentional about creating designated places for shoes, coats, keys and toys. Creating order in the external environment is key to the development and maintenance of one’s internal sense of order.

Now put it there. Consistency is key. Put things where they belong. Everyday. Every time.  Knowing where your keys are every morning is just one way to distress the morning routine. Your commitment to maintaining a reasonable sense of order is also a powerful example for your kids to do the same.

Be flexible. Not crazy. Creative people may not organize the way everyone else does and organizing should never become more important than living and doing. The key is to recognize order matters. Starting with a belief that everything has a place, and pausing the action from time to time to put things back in place, will actually benefit even the most creative among us.

What are some of the ways you organize your home to help the family function more smoothly?

Bette Fetter Founder and CEO of Young Rembrandts and Author of Being Visual [email protected] Follow Bette on Twitter