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When trying to save time and money at the grocery store, the first step is to start with your menu plan. Plan your meals by making a weekly menu. Of course you can also do bi-monthly or monthly if you feel so inspired, but if this is a new process start with a week until you get comfortable with this idea.

For each day of the week, plan what your meals will be including breakfast, lunch, snacks, and beverages. Now check to see if you have written any specialty recipes down that may require additional ingredients such as spices, etc. Start making your grocery list based upon your menu.

Check your pantry and make sure you have all of the ingredients or food items you need to accomplish your meal plan for the week. If you do not, write them down on your grocery list. This way of planning will keep you organized so preparing and cooking your meals will go off without a hitch. Being organized will help to prevent the need to run back to the store for forgotten items or ingredients.

Keep a running grocery list during the week for any supplies that run out or are getting low. Add these items to your grocery list. This is an especially helpful household task for when you have multiple family members. If you used the last of something, put it on the list, do not let the next person needing that item be the one to find out it’s not there when they need it. A detailed grocery list helps you from forgetting items that you may need.

Do you use coupons? If not skip this paragraph. If so, keep your coupons in a file or a convenient place such as your pocketbook. Organize the coupons in the same manner you organized your list; by the order of where those items will be found in the aisles. Check that you are purchasing the exact brand, item, size requirement, etc. from that coupon as you are selecting that item. This will save you time and embarrassment at the checkout counter from choosing an incorrect item. Also check for expiration dates on your coupons.

Now if you want to save time at the grocery store take this list one step further and organize the list based upon the grocery store aisles where you do your shopping. This way you are able to cross items off the list as you go up and down the aisles.  This will help you from going back and forth through the aisles if you skip something. It also helps from forgetting items.

To recap:

1. Make a weekly menu
2. Check recipes for all ingredients you may need
3. Make a list of all recipe ingredients
4. Check your pantry for all necessary items from your menu
5. Make a grocery list of all items needed
6. Do a check for any staples that may also be running low that you may need to add to the list
7. Organize your grocery list to coincide with the arrangement of the aisles at your grocery store.
8. Organize your coupons to coincide with the arrangement of the aisles at your grocery store.
9. Check off items from your list at the store.

Planning your menu and grocery list in an organized manner will not only help you become an organized shopper, it will save you time and money as well.  Happy Shopping!

“Help! I can’t stand it anymore! My office is a disaster. Papers are piled everywhere. I don’t know where things are. I don’t know what supplies I have until I run out. My bulletin boards have announcements for events that happened two years ago attached to them. I’m behind on my work, and I hate being in my office. My life is a mess!”

“Was this a phone call I received from a potential client?” you may ask. No. This is what I said two weeks ago when I felt like I was drowning in paperwork, and my life was a mess. “But wait,” you exclaim. “You’re a Professional Organizer. You know how to organize stuff. Why can’t you just organize your office?” The answer is that even we, who are experienced and proficient organizing other people’s things, sometimes cannot do it for ourselves.

Every morning I would walk into my office with incredible determination. “This will be the day that I finally and completely organize my office and my life!” But when I walked into my office, something happened. I looked at the piles of paper and the disorganization, and I became paralyzed with dread.

It doesn’t matter whether the area that is disorganized is an office, a kitchen, a bedroom or a play room. Sometimes it just feels as though as much as you really, really want to get organized, you’re just having a hard time doing it. So I asked myself what I would tell a prospective client if they called me with a similar situation.

1. Just because your (insert name of area here) is disorganized, it doesn’t mean that your entire life is a mess. Remember, you can gain control over the disorganized area.
2. Set aside a time that you want to do some organizing. Find a timer (a kitchen timer or one on your cell phone works well). Set the timer for five minutes. Yes, I realize that’s not a whole lot of time and that you won’t get a whole lot of organizing done, but it is a manageable period of time to start the process.
3. Choose a very small section to work in. Remember, you only have five minutes.
4. Get rid of the easy stuff first. You know, the stuff that is out of date, moldy, torn, or the thing you just never really liked anyway. Take these items and either recycle or trash them.
5. By now the timer has probably gone off. If you are on a roll and you don’t mind going further, set the timer for another five minutes. This may seem like an arbitrary amount of time, and it is, but I have found that five minutes of doing almost anything seems easy.

But what do you do if you can’t get yourself to commit to tackling that cluttered area for even five minutes? Take a tip from a professional who has been-there-done-that. Either call a friend who is nonjudgmental and willing to help or call a professional; which is what I did. I figured that if I call a doctor when I’m sick and go to the dentist when I have a toothache, I should call a professional organizer when it feels like my (insert name of area here) needs organizing. What about you? Take just 5 minutes and call for help. Now? Yes! If not now, when?

I love the idea that someone can use a storage unit as a business location, a man cave, a wine cellar, or as a place to store their cool sports car.

I love that a college student can use a storage unit to store their dorm rooms over the summer and that someone can store excess furniture while their house is being marketed for sale.

I love that a builder can use a storage unit to store supplies while they are doing a renovation.

I hate the idea that people are using storage units to store old, dirty appliances, inexpensive furniture, and things that are eventually going to go in the trash, get donated, or get sold.

I hate that people abandon their units with valuable items in storage units and that there are reality TV shows based on this.

During the past couple of weeks, we have worked in storage units, and I am so glad we could help clients get out from under the stuff that was being stored— which had less monetary value than the month’s rent of the unit.

Understandably, people go into storage units for a valid reason initially. In the words of my eloquent husband, “storage units can take on a life of their own.” The items being stored take root in the unit, and the bill is on autopay. This makes it easy to forget or avoid the whole thing.

Many times people no longer know what is in their unit— a hint to me that there is minimal value, emotionally and financially.

Before you make the decision to take on a storage unit, think of the following:

• What is the end game or time frame? Have a clear date and plan as to how long this will take.

• How much is it going to cost in time, rent, insurance, trash hauling, and moving in and out of the unit?

• Do you need what you are storing?

• If you got rid of it, would you miss it?

If you answer these questions and can develop a plan, rent the unit.

• Make sure there is a dumpster where you decide to store your things.

• Make sure you do not store things on the ground level; use pallets (in case of a flood).

• Make sure that everything is wrapped in plastic (there may be bugs, including bed bugs).

• Make sure your items are labeled so that it is easy to retrieve them.

• Keep a basic inventory for yourself so that you can more easily retrieve items.

• Use a lock that a bolt cutter can’t get into.

• Do not leave valuable items in the front of your unit. While the door is open you do not want people to see what you are storing.

• Remember that you are paying for the space; fill it carefully using uniform sized boxes that are sturdy.

• Most units do not have power so you may want to have extension cords, work lamps, and flash lights.

I hope this advice helps you make a good decision and prevents you from being burdened by a storage unit that takes on a life of its own. If renting a storage unit is the right thing for you, I hope that you have picked up a hint or two to simplify the process.

Every email that comes in is an opportunity.  Every Facebook article is a worthwhile read. Every free 60 page ebook is a life saver. But come on now, if you read everything you could read you would NEVER BE DONE and on top of that YOU WOULD NEVER GET TO WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT.

I’ve been a long-time advocate for short and sweet, so I always try to keep everything I share manageable and digestible in 5 minutes or less. That’s what I can do for you.

What can you do for yourself?

1. Delete email articles you didn’t ask for: Just say no – Let them go
2. Disregard free or low cost deals you don’t have time to use: Just say no – Let them go
3. Ignore electronic chain letters and social media games – no the baby bunnies in your yard won’t turn into mutant ninja rodents and take over your life: Just say no – Let them go
4. Skip networking events with people that don’t match your target market: Just say no – Let them go
5. Don’t attend free webinars and classes that have nothing to do with your short-range priorities: Just say no – Let them go

If you choose to spend your time on things that just pop up and come your way you will NEVER get to the work you want to do. To be a high performer be clear on what is important and spend your time on what matters. All the rest?  JUST SAY NO – LET THEM GO.

Finding the time and energy to garden has been a challenge for me in the past few years. Our property seems to be getting bigger or am I getting older? Regardless of the reason, I’m not willing to give up the great exercise and satisfaction I get from planting my garden, so I need to get more organized to get it done. I also have to be satisfied with an hour or two here and there instead of a full day of gardening. After I planted my garden last year, I took pictures of the planters and the gardens and made a list of the plants I bought at the local nurseries.

Our garden shed was built on top of an old outhouse and frankly it could withstand a hurricane. It has a waist high counter and wooden shelving. We used leftover linoleum flooring from the kitchen for the floor. It’s just the right size to hold the following:

• gardening gloves and ball caps in a closed plastic container
• small gardening tools-store in plastic carrier or basket with a handle
• gardening planters
• folding lawn furniture stored under the counter
• gazing ball and stone statues for the garden
• rod iron poles for hanging baskets, plant and tomato stakes, and long tools (small shovel, rake, edger)-stored in 5 gallon plastic bucket with metal part up
• items to decorate my screened-in porch
• flower seeds and bulbs in a metal container
• leftover potting soil in 5 gallon plastic bucket with a lid

In the spring:

• Use 5 gallon plastic bucket with handle to pull out weeds.
• Pull everything out of the shed and sweep it out (mice and chipmunks have made their winter homes in my shed).
• Take plants out of the garden that died over the winter.
• Throw out older seeds and bulbs that didn’t make the winter.
• Divide perennial plants if too big and share with your neighbors or replant in other parts of your garden to save money.
• Move other plants around to fill in where plants died or didn’t come up.
• Using pictures from last year, I bought plants and vegetables and planted the planters and the gardens.

In the fall after the first killing frost:

• Fall is for planting, so buy perennials on sale and fill in where plants didn’t live.
• Don’t forget to call 811 before you dig too deep to prevent damage to electric lines and natural gas pipelines.
• Wash out the planters and store in shed.
• Store leftover seeds and bulbs in metal containers
• Donate any ceramic planters or recycle plastic containers you didn’t use

After plants have been hit by frost, I like to fill in with fall décor so it doesn’t look so empty. I use some of the more colorful pots I emptied to hold mums and fill in with straw bales, pumpkins, cornstalks and gourds. Organize your gardening so it’s a pleasure, not a chore.

Clutter Tips:

• Don’t store 9 volt batteries against each other or other batteries. They can spark and cause a fire.
• When you clear the clutter in medicine cabinets donate unused and unexpired medical supplies, to C.U.R.E., c/o Mission Central, 5 Pleasant View Drive, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050.

Green Tips:

• Latex paint disposal: equal parts kitty litter and latex paint. Let sit for one hour and throw in garbage.
• Make the switch to permanent water bottles instead of putting plastic into our oceans. Even recycling plastic bottles produces toxins.

Can you believe another school year has come to a close? They just fly by. Although it’s the last thing on most mom’s and dad’s minds in June, come late August, preparing for ‘Back-to-School’ can be a hectic time to recon with.

As we begin the second month of summer, I want to share my annual routine in addressing this issue. Although, as you’ll see, I choose to get an early start; you still have the luxury of setting aside less than an hour to make the transition from summer to ‘Back to School’ stress and hassle free.

With that being said, I always use the last day of school as my barometer to get all my boys’ school supplies sorted, purged, donated, reorganized, and stored away until September. I’ve found few people that do it. Most wouldn’t even consider it. Believe it or not, being organized the first day of school starts with a little ‘to do’ list the final day of the current school year!

In our house, the last day of school signifies the official start of summer, and as you can imagine, in most every household, the excitement is palpable. Each year, I pick the boys up at school which allows me the opportunity to see how excited they are and the smiles on their faces when the bell rings and they charge out of the school. It’s also a wonderful opportunity to say goodbye to friends, teachers, and classmates. Going out to lunch continues the euphoria, and this is where I set the expectation of going home and organizing their school supplies for next year. Realistically, who would want to contend with this the last day of school? But, from start to finish, it only takes about fifteen to thirty minutes.

The first decision is to ascertain if their school bag is still in good enough condition to weather next year. If so, it is cleaned out and stored in our coat closet until September. If not, it is cleaned out and put in our donation pile. Moving on, the purging continues with pens, pencils, pencil cases, rulers, scissors, crayons, markers, folders, etc. The rule of thumb is trash, donate, or keep. Trash is immediately taken out, donations are put in our designated donation pile, and anything that can be used in September is stored in the school bag for next year. If their school bag is being donated, then, the supplies are stored in either a zip-lock bag or container until September.

You’ve only just read this. Yet, aren’t you breathing easier knowing when Summer ends, ‘Back-to-School’ is on auto pilot? Have a happy, safe, and enjoyable summer.