A successful move is about more than lifting with your legs or putting the heavy boxes on the bottom. It's about planning, foresight, and a willingness to roll with the punches when things inevitably get stressful. Here are a few helpful moving tips and checklists to help you alleviate moving stress before you even pack a box.
Get Everyone on the Same Page. You should be making checklists for almost every aspect of your move -- rooms to pack, rooms to clean, address changes, etc. -- but don't forget to include everyone on the list-making process. If everyone knows where the master list is, whether it's online or in a brightly-colored binder somewhere, then tasks can be checked off more efficiently and productively, and you won't have to retread the same ground multiple times.
It's About Time. Whether you're moving by yourself, moving by container, or hiring a full-service company, make sure you know the schedule forward and backward. If you're renting a truck, when is the earliest you can pick it up, and what time does it need to be back? If you're moving by container, how much advance notice does the company need to deliver it to your home, and what's the expected arrival time at the new place? And if you're hiring a full-service company, what is the timeframe they've allotted to load the truck, and is there a penalty for going over?
Prepare to Roll With It. No move is perfect, and last minute surprises will always pop up. Sketching out some last minute moving tips and checklists before emergencies happen may save you a heap of trouble and frustration. Designate one person as the store runner if supplies run out (boxes, tape, packing material, etc.). And have a friend with a truck on standby if you underestimate the space inside the truck or storage unit.
Have you found (or come up with) any useful moving tips and checklists in your experiences? Please feel free to share them in the comments section below.