Are you ever faced with a shelf or drawer that looks like this? Does it devilishly hide useful things? Does your blood boil when you look at it (If not, maybe it’s ok! Our aim is for things to be “organized enough”)?
But if so, the magical process called a PRE-SORT will make this overwhelming project easier. Block out at least 30mins and make a pile or box for each major category, eg tools, office supplies, jewelry, recycling, discards; there’s no need to make any more decisions than that during this phase. Then, redistribute the groups: put the recycling in the bin, discards in the wastebasket, anything that has a home elsewhere (office supplies in the office? Tools in the basement?) in that home. Those categories that remain will be much easier to manage, and can now be returned to the shelf or drawer, with or without a container such as a drawer divider.