Serving Eastern Pennsylvania, Central and Southern New Jersey, and Delaware
Serving Eastern Pennsylvania, Central and Southern New Jersey, and Delaware
Recently, my workshop for the Holistic Mom’s monthly meeting on “Paper Management for the Green Home” was rescheduled due to a foot of snow. Like many of us, you may be stuck inside during these cold winter days. So why not take advantage of being indoors and organize your home office? Here’s a plan to help you clear your desk while “going green” with less paper.
The first step is to go online and opt out of the unwanted mail coming into your home. Try DMAChoice.org for general junk mail, TrustedID.org for unwanted catalogs and Optoutprescreen.com for pre-approved credit card offers. Create a new email address for coupons and ask to have your monthly statements sent via email.
There are also some wonderful apps for your phone. Catalog Spree allows you to view a variety of different catalogs online. Retail Me Not offers coupons to local stores, and Snip Snap stores your coupons digitally after you take a photo of them on your phone.
Now that you’ve reduced the paper input, it’s time to tackle the existing paper piles.
SORT
PROCESS
FILE
SHRED
Holistic living is a lifestyle which seeks balance knowing that all things are interconnected. What you bring into your home directly affects how you feel. How does your home make you feel? Is your home office stressing you out? Try to tackle your paperwork often, perhaps in short intervals, every other day. If you need help, get help! Remember, your home is your sanctuary.
Letting go isn’t easy — but when you allow yourself to say goodbye to books you haven’t read, children’s toys that have been outgrown, and clothing that no longer suits your style — you get more than a tax receipt. When you give, you get…
SATISFACTION: Allowing someone else the pleasure of enjoying your stuff feels good (so does recycling).
SPACE: You will literally regain space…
• Whole drawers can be emptied
• Shelves will no longer bow under the weight of your old textbooks
• Closets will sigh with relief that they’re not overstuffed and cramped
Being able to see your belongings enables you to enjoy and appreciate what you have.
FREEDOM: We are privileged to live in a free society, but some of us are slaves to stuff and the need to acquire more. When you let something go, a wonderful emotional freedom grows.
As a professional organizer, I am privileged to witness people stand straighter, smile more freely, and breathe easier by letting go of things that were holding them back. Releasing physical items from our spaces gives us the freedom to decide what will take its place. Let it be positive memories and new opportunities.
Celebrating family time at my home
I could NEVER let a Professional Organizer into my house!
This is a sentiment that I hear frequently once someone finds out what I do for a living. The reaction normally sounds something like: “You mean you help people get rid of clutter and get their homes organized? Oh, I need you!” And then, “Your home must be perfect.” This is a response that I, and every organizer I know, have come to expect upon meeting someone new. So yes, helping people free themselves of clutter and get organized is a good way to sum up what I do.
Even though this profession has been around since at least the 1980’s, it is relatively new to the general public and just beginning to be understood. “Reality” T.V. shows have given a glimpse mainly into one small area of professional organizing — hoarding. The industry is so much broader than that.
There are professional organizers who specialize in office & paper management, productivity, time management, home downsizing, digital organization, move-management, ADHD support, senior support, families and children, special needs, and so much more! So, when someone says, “I need you,” they’re probably right. Everyone could use a professional organizer in some way or another, whether to help manage their homes, their businesses or their lives.
To address your curiosity about whether our homes are perfect, I’d like to share a personal story from my recent trip to New Orleans to attend the annual NAPO conference:
Having spent a full nine-to-five day in training courses, an evening of networking with other professional organizers from around the country, and then preparing for the next day’s training, I was exhausted. It was the beginning of the week, and my roommate, a fellow organizer from my chapter, had just arrived. I was so happy to see her and yet apologetic because I had to admit that I sometimes snore at night. In response to my obvious embarrassment, she responded, “Oh, you’re human? Good. I’m human too. I was hoping to get a human roommate.” We laughed and then set out for a walk to the local 24-hour drug store to buy earplugs!
This sums up one of the most valuable benefits you will find if you hire a professional organizer. We’re human, and we expect that you are too — no judgment, no shame, no outrageous expectations. Our goal is to help you by supporting and guiding you in creating peaceful and joyful spaces.
Yes, my home is organized, but no, it’s not perfect. I don’t waste my time on perfectionism. My time is better spent keeping a home that is happy and healthy, comfortable and efficient, so that the people who live in and enter into my home feel the precious value of their own worth.
Now that the Super Bowl is over, wouldn’t it be great if you could pass the fun of football into the fun of organizing? Try following these game rules to motivate your household during your next home organizing project!
Huddle Up – Take on the role of Coach and gather the team (a.k.a. your family) on the couch. Get them running by warming up some Queso dip and letting the smells waft up to their rooms. You could even invite everyone to put on their favorite football jerseys.
Strategize – While you are munching, decide on a room to tackle, such as your living room. Make a plan; assign a specific task to each member of the team. For example, have the kids put their toys and games away while the adults go through the mail, sorting out the junk mail from the bills and other important papers.
Snap into Play – Set a timer for 15 minutes, which is a good amount of time to get a task done, or to work on a task without it being overwhelming. Coincidentally, it is also the length of time of a quarter in a football game! Then move on to another task for an additional 15 minutes.
Halftime – Time for a break and some entertainment! Have some snacks and drinks, play a board game, or watch a show that everyone will enjoy.
Snap into Play (again) – Repeat two more tasks, each lasting 15 minutes. If you are having fun and can’t seem to stop, just consider it as overtime!
Touchdown for the Win! – Congrats! You are the winning team! But just remember, whomever wins goes on to play another game — there is another room to organize in your near future!
Happy New Year and Happy National Get Organized Month! I always set a few goals for myself and my business each New Year and organizing certainly plays a key role in accomplishing those goals. Over the years clients have asked for my assistance for many different reasons including New Year’s resolutions.
On the other hand, those resolutions are often derailed because “life happens.” Whether you are ready or not, you could lose your job, suffer through an illness, or deal with a divorce. You can’t always be prepared for the ups and downs of life, but being organized can help. Here are my ten organization basics to help you handle the uncertainties of life and achieve those pesky resolutions you are so adamant in keeping. Let’s break it down:
If it takes less than 60 seconds, do it! Whether it’s putting bills away, making a quick phone call, adding a number to your phone, sending a quick email, do it! Take seconds now or hours later.
A home for everything. Finding a home means you know where to put it when it gets misplaced and when you need it — it’s there!
Choose a time management tool. Use a day planner or smartphone to keep track of appointments, tasks lists, self-appointments, and vacation plans.
Keep lists. Use your time management tool for all lists: clothing, household items, food, gifts, etc. Keep sizes and dimensions on the list. Lists save time and money and no more buying things twice (you aren’t the only one).
Consolidate contact information. Gather mailing addresses, emails, and phone numbers and place them in your time management tool. No more little pieces of paper and sticky notes all over the place.
Convenience is the key. No digging and no searching. Place things where you use them; keep most-used items front and center — no pushing other things aside to get to what you need.
Focus! Small and large task completion requires focus. Break down any large task into smaller, manageable pieces and stay focused: one bite at a time.
Know what to eliminate. Surround yourself with tasks, events, and people who support your goals. Eliminate the rest and learn to say “no” (I have a handout on my website).
Consult the experts. Don’t reinvent the wheel; ask friends for recommendations and referrals; consult the Internet (but don’t believe everything you read); and then trust your judgment.
Maintenance! Things will get out of order (even in my home), so do a little each evening or once a week in order to keep it that way. Have respect for yourself, your time, and your home. Every time you put something away, it’s a gift to yourself.
Whether you are making resolutions are just trying to smooth out life’s bumps in the road, get organized! You’ll be glad you did.
Clutter Quote: “God takes care of the breath of your life; it is your responsibility to take care of the depth of your life.” Unknown
Let’s face it we all have the same 24 hour day, so it’s not really time we need to manage, it’s ourselves we need to manage. According to experts, during the last 25 years, our leisure time has declined by 37% while our work week has increased by a full day.
Make Time for Yourself
This means we need to be sure to make time for ourselves first. If we don’t take care of ourselves — in the long run — we will not be able to take care of anyone else. That includes eating well, exercising, meditating a few minutes a day, and spending time with family and friends.
Set Daily Priorities
The best way to do this is to set daily priorities and intentions. Setting daily priorities creates a space for achieving your goals. It gives you a clear focus so the mind can hone in the day’s activities. Spending 10 to 15 minutes every morning mapping out your day can save up to 6 hours a week.
Scheduling
Now that you have your list of priorities it’s time to put them on the calendar. Schedule appointments with yourself to complete priority work. This will block out the space you need to get your tasks completed in a timely manner. Be sure to schedule the most important tasks at a time of day that you are most productive. If you are a morning person, then do your most important task first thing in the morning.
Put your personal & business schedules into one calendar so you have a snapshot of all your commitments at a glance. If you need several calendars for work, home and kids, then consider something like Google calendars that allows you to create a separate calendar for everyone in the family that can be snapped together as one calendar and separated on an as needed basis.
Go over your schedule each evening for the next day. This will help you sleep at night by preventing some of the list making that goes on in our heads when we wake up in the middle of the night.
Tasks
Try not to plan too much in one day. Too many items on a to-do list can create paralysis instead of action. Adding fewer more important tasks forces you to focus on what is really essential in your day.
• Prioritize your list so that you get the most important items completed first
• Break projects down into actionable steps
• Add any info you need to complete the task—phone #, links, addresses, etc
• Separate work and personal tasks
• Group tasks together like all phone calls, all errands, similar writing projects
• Avoid multitasking. It takes the brain four times longer to recognize and process each time you change gears to a new task. If you switch back and forth constantly you are wasting valuable time.
• Consider timing your tasks to give you a more accurate idea of how long certain activities take each day. This will help you to better plan your time.
Parting thoughts:
Most people are dis-organized because their organizing systems don’t match their current lives. If your system is the same you used in college or when you first started working, it may be time for a change. Using a new organizing system takes time and practice. There is no one-size-fits-all. If you have been doing the same thing for 20 years and you implement a new system — give it a little time.
