Getting Started with an In and Out System

An In and Out System is designed for handling projects, not chores.  To make one you will need a box or basket of some sort.  Even a large paper bag will do.  Sticky notes and scrap paper.

For a long time, I have haphazardly used this dollar store dish pan:

It has worked, but do to its size, things tend to get lost in the bottom of it.  For this reason, I decided to replace it with this basket, which I found at a second hand store:

Since it is much smaller, I have to deal with what I put in it more often.

Once you have your container, gather up your projects that need to be done, but will take more than two minutes to do.  Anything that takes less than two minutes, do!  Write today's date on a sticky note and stick it to the project.  If the project is big and/or already has a home, like a scrapbook or quilt, write the project on a piece of paper--one project, one page--with today's date at the top, and drop it in. 

Why today's date?  So you will know how long that project has been in the box!

Next, look around for non-gatherable projects, like painting walls, and add them to your box, using the scrap paper.  Remember to date it.

Now, when you have your chores done, or a bit of time for a project, you will have a box of them waiting for you.  It is recommended to work from the top down, so as you are setting up your box, you may want to sort things into the order you most want to get them done.  When a new project comes in, it goes on the top of the pile.

When a project is finished, it will be gone from the box, hence, no Out box.  If the project was written on a piece of paper, toss it when you are finished!

If you start on a project, but are unable to complete it, cross of the old date, and write today's date on it.  I like to cross of the old date in such a way that it can still be read.  This way I know how long it took and how often I worked on it.

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How I am Using My In and Out System:

Years ago, when I used this system before, I had every project in my house listed.  We moved before some of them were completed, and, I hate to admit this, but several of those projects are still in boxes.  I threw out the project from my old In box several years ago, because they were just a reminder of things not done, that I didn't have time for.

Because I do not want the box to overwhelm me--I know my tendency to run and hide--I am only working with one room at a time.  Today, I went through the kitchen, gathering projects and getting things done.  I collected, until the basket was full.  Then I cleaned the surfaces thoroughly that I had cleared.

Is everything in the kitchen accounted for?  No.  I decided ahead of time where I was starting and what the stopping point would be.  For me, the stopping point was when the basket was full.  If I had been limited by time, then a timer would have told me when to quit gathering, giving myself five minutes to wipe down surfaces and finish up.

I decided, in order to keep my In box from becoming a dumping ground, to set up a second basket, where mail and such could be put until it was time to deal with it.   Mail is on the left and my In box is on the right: