If you’ve ever moved, you know how it goes. The initial stages are full of excitement as you gather all of your belongings into boxes, and you feel ready and motivated for the work ahead! Once the more tedious work starts, you realize all of it will take a lot longer than you imagined.
Once the moving day finally arrives, the long and drawn-out day of heavy lifting and sore muscles comes to an end, and you are left with a new home full of boxes! Life doesn’t stop either. You still have family, kids, pets, jobs, and whatever else is on your daily schedule.
It’s an undeniable fact, that with moving comes stress, and we want to share some tips with you to hopefully make the process less stressful!
Carve Out Time
Time is one of the most significant factors of moving stress. More specifically, there isn’t enough of it! You can’t avoid it altogether, but you can definitely make it a lot easier on yourself if you make sure to allot yourself enough time to get everything done.
Try and estimate how many days it could take you to pack up your home, and be sure to give yourself ample time to select and schedule a moving truck, set up utilities for the new home, and do a clean-up in your current home before leaving for good.
Starting early is a smart way to go because it can be easy to procrastinate and find yourself scrambling to pack with just a few days left!
Prioritize Organization
In order to not feel overwhelmed, try and pack up one room at a time. When sorting and labeling boxes, do it in a way that makes them easier to locate and unpack. Keep any important documents you may need in the near future in a safe and secure place, staying organized from the beginning will be a huge factor.
When labeling boxes, write clearly and even consider writing on the box the room they need to be placed in. The goal is to not have a truck full of identical boxes, which is sure to cause confusion and waste your time!
Pack an Overnight Bag
Once everything has been packed up and ready to move to your new home, it can be daunting to find what you need right away on that first day/night.
In order to avoid feeling rushed to unpack every last box on the first day, save yourself the stress and pack a bag with whatever you need to function normally for the first night or two. This could be outfits, toiletries, phone chargers, or even snacks. This will ensure you can unpack your belongings comfortably and not frantically!
Get Moving!
Above all else, when it comes to moving, you need a game plan if you want to minimize stress. Start early, one room at a time, clearly labeling each box! Keep some essentials in an overnight bag so you don’t find yourself frantically searching for those things on your first day. Also, contact utility companies to change or cancel services, and update billing addresses.
Preparation and organization result in less stress and more time to celebrate!