How to Organize Your Car While Getting Gas

In a world filled with instant gratification, visiting the gas station grows more and more painstaking. Waiting for your car to fill up can take almost ten minutes. BUT – next time you feel the urge to update your Facebook page with a mildly clever status, resist. Instead, use the time to organize your car.

Here’s how to do it:

Make A Car Cleaning Kit. You will need the following:

• A one gallon size zip-lock bag to use as the kit bag
•  5 or 6 grocery bags – the plastic disposable ones that you never know what to do with
• A pack of sani-wipes or baby wipes. I love earth-friendly Mrs. Meyers Lemon Verbena Surface Wipes.

*Designate a place in your car to keep it, like under the front seat or in the door pocket. 

To make the mess feel less overwhelming break it down and fill your bags. Here’s how: 

• TRASH. Take one of the grocery bags and gather all trash-- fast food containers (admit you go to In & Out), coffee cups, wrappers, water bottles, etc. Throw it away in the gas station garbage or save the recyclables for your own bin.
• PAPERS: Next pick up all of the paper, receipts, mail, tickets, work papers, etc and put them in another bag. It is very important that you do not dwell on what each piece of paper is, that takes up time. Just put it all in your bag to sort at home.
• HOUSEHOLD ITEMS: Take another bag and pick up all your household items -- reusable coffee mug, spoon from your yogurt that morning, extra sunglasses (you only need one extra pair in the car), Tupperware containers, etc. 
• KID ITEMS: If you have kids use one bag for all kid items; toys, clothes, and snacks (that are still edible!)
• PERSONAL ITEMS: In the last bag place extra clothes from the gym, make-up, shoes, office sweaters, raincoats, golf gear, etc. 

Once you have your bags of savable stuff put them in the back or front seat. Don’t put them in the trunk! Chances are you'll never look at them again.  Once home, bring them with you into the house. Set aside some time to put everything away so you are not turning your car clutter into house clutter.

Designate Spots: 

• If you have 5 reusable shopping bags, consolidate four of them inside the one and designate a spot for them, like the trunk.
•  If you have pens and paper, put them inside the glove box, plug in your phone charger, put your extra sunglasses in your console and so on. 
• Find a specific place to keep everything you want kept in the car.  But be conservative! You only need 1 or 2 pens...not 10.

Clean:
Use your Car Cleaning Kit wipes to wipe down your steering wheel, the console, the cup holder where your cups go, and your door handle. 

 *After you use your Car Cleaning Kit, remember to put the plastic bags back in and put it back in the car.

Can this really all be done in 10 minutes? YES! The key is to not dwell over each item, just simply sort & bag in order to get your car cleared out.  That’s always the first step to getting organized.  Living in L.A. most of us spend a portion of our day driving.  By including these simple steps in your gas station routine...you will be able to enjoy that time in your clutter-free-car much more.

Coriann Bright owns & operates Bright Living.