Can’t Bring Yourself to Start Packing for a Move? Here Are 4 Ways to Boost Your Motivation

Don’t want to? Can’t bear to? Amid all the stresses of moving your household, the idea of packing may be the most tiresome. Boring, tedious, and overwhelming, packing is not fun.

If you’ve done it before, it makes it a bit easier. It may help you organize things better, but it still takes a lot of motivation. So, if you’re not hiring a moving company to help you pack, here are some tips.

4 ways to motivate your packing:

 

• Split the duties! The move is not yours alone. There’s your partner and kids to bring on board. And, if you’re on your own, call in your friends’ I.O.U.s. With everyone around the table, you can lay out the tasks and collaborate on solutions. Perhaps, the others have good ideas to consider.

 

You should start with the assumption that everything is not moving with you. It’s a great opportunity to get rid of a lot of things. Each party should be prepared to sort through their “stuff” — papers, collections, clothes, gadgets, books, CDs, and everything they call their own. Once sorted, the goods can go can sell or trash or send to Goodwill or the next residence. It might be more productive if you go through this twice because there is always stuff they can still get rid of.

 

• Make a checklist! Matco moving offers a checklist including things you might not think of. The list includes all the people and services you must notify. It covers the services you should cancel or transfer. And, it prompts you to carry certain items on your person like insurance policies, passports, and toothbrushes.

 

• Go room be room!  The current residence and the destination each have layouts and floor plans. Taking some time to yourself, color code, and number the rooms. There are kits you can buy to position the furniture. The time on your own lets you do things your way before everyone else has their say.

 

Using those magic markers, you can make and color code the labels. Moving.com recommends, “There are a variety of materials available, including bubble pack, foam peanuts and tissue.”  It will help unpack more than pack, but it will make things easier for the movers. If you have the time, you should also affix a list of the contents so you can prioritize both ends of the move. And, if there are kids involved, you can encourage them to choose their colors or to decorate their boxes, so they can track them.

 

• Take a break! Like it or not, if you find yourself in charge, you deserve a break. With the packing on a calendar, you should include some free time for you and your crew. Take a walk, go to the gym, or take the kids to a movie. If you don’t schedule it, it won’t happen. You, and everyone involved, need a distraction.

 

Take a deep breath!

You can do it. And, you can make it fun (sort of). If you think of those families that relocate repeatedly for the military and business reasons. Consumer Affairs suggests, “Pack for the new house, not the old one.” Thinking of the future can be the best motivation.