Organizing Projects: How to Organize Your Handbag

All of the current quarantine and social distancing happening across the country due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) have many people looking for projects to do to vary how their time is spent at home. There’s probably a long list of organizing projects you’ve been putting off waiting until you had more time to get them done.

For me, an organized handbag is important for many reasons. Living in NYC, walking is a main means of transportation especially now. By limiting the contents of my bag to just the essentials, it weighs less making it easier to also carry essential groceries. In addition, being able to find my keys, hand sanitizer, and phone when I need them is important.

I approach organizing my handbag in a similar way to organizing any space in my office. To start, I empty the bag and sort out the contents. I’ll discard Select Bus receipts and used tissues, and then return any items that don’t need to be in the bag to their rightful location in my apartment. This makes it easier to review the remaining items and decide what must be kept in the bag.

The next step is to assign a location for those essential items that I want to keep in my cross-body bag. I always keep in mind the items that I’ll need to access frequently. My Metrocard goes in the front pocket, my wallet right behind it and my phone in the pocket closest to me so that I can feel it vibrating when I’m out and about.

As in any organizing project, the key to long term success is maintenance. By spending just a few minutes each night emptying extraneous items from my bag and ensuring that each item is in its home, I’ll be able to keep my handbag organized and ready for the next day.

Some other strategies that might work for you include keeping a small ziplock-type bag in your handbag and use it as your portable trash bag to collect used tissues and receipts. This will make it really simple at the end of the day to quickly empty the bag! Another idea is to designate a section of your wallet or add an additional pouch just for accumulating receipts. Based on the volume that collects, determine the best frequency for removing the receipts for scanning or filing. Additionally, remember that large bags tend to get overstuffed. To combat this, before you ever add a new item to your bag, remove at least one that’s already there.

As you continue to organize your home and office space, reach out to your NYC Professional Office Organizer for strategies and support.