Thursday, May 22, 2014
My Favorite Organizing Tips
By Bailey R Gaddis
Mail: Have a basket, bin, or other decorative object to catch mail as it comes into the house. Locate this by the door where the mail comes in. If there's room, have a separate mail bin or baskets for each member of your household. It makes distributing information easier. Plan to review mail at a predetermined time in your weekly schedule.
Closets: Whenever you remove an item from a hanger, put the hanger in a basket. When you get ready to do laundry, bring the basket for easy "out-of-dryer-onto-hanger" action!
Time: Learn how long it really takes you to do your routine tasks and chores, like getting ready in the morning, driving to work, emptying the dishwasher, getting the kids up and dressed for school, laundry, grocery shopping, and so on. This will help in organizing your daily and weekly schedule. If you assume it takes you ten minutes to get ready and leave the house, but in reality it takes thirty, you'll be twenty minutes late for whatever is next on your schedule, and so on for the remainder of the day.
Photos: One way to sort backlogs of photos is to collect shoe boxes or plastic containers and write a year on each one, if the photos are on the computer sort the photos into digital folders labeled by year. This can be done in brief sessions- even fifteen minutes a night will make a difference by the end of the week. Along the way you can eliminate any duplicates, ugly photos, blurry images, and so forth. Once the pictures are sorted by year, decide how you want to sort them further. Chronologically? By event? Then you choose how you want to store and/or display them. You will have a better idea of what size album, box, or frames you'll need.
Family Meetings: Designate an hour a week to synchronize your family. Everyone brings their calendars, to-do lists, and schedules to the table. Spend the time reviewing the events for the upcoming week, expectations for dinners, chores, et cetera. The week will move much smoother!
Store it where you use it: The closer you store items to where you use them, the quicker and easier it is to clean up. For instance, if you knit at night while watching TV, create storage right near where you sit. It can be a decorative basket that slides under a coffee or end table. Whenever you put away your knitting, it goes into its basket and is stored immediately-instead of sitting on the coffee table waiting to be returned to its home.
"Lid-off" policy: When and wherever possible, remove lids and doors. It means one less step to putting things back where they belong.
Bailey is a Professional Organizer in Ojai, and Ventura and Los Angeles counties. She owns Serene Living Spaces http://www.serenelivingspaces.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bailey_R_Gaddis
Time and Your Priorities
By Karin E. Fried
Time is something that we can't control. I know. I've tried. I keep saying "if only I had a few more hours in the day... ".
But, then what? You could cram more things into your life? Step back and take a look at what's important. Do you really have to do all of the things that you try to do? Really? Are you being honest with yourself? Or are you just trying to impress all of the people around you with how much you can cram into your day and your life?
I remember when the kids were little and one of my neighbors had her kids in gymnastics, ballet, basketball, piano lessons... and on and on. I was exhausted just listening to her. I know that they didn't really have the money for all of the activities but it seemed like it was "expected" of the parents. Give the kids everything. But at what price?
Doing too much costs you time, money and your sanity. Let's be honest!
Kids get tired just like adults. They need "down time". They should be allowed to run outside and play, without being dragged from one "activity" to the next.
And adults... same thing goes for you. Are you involved in too many activities that you don't have enough time for yourself? Or your family?
Are you on too many committees and trying to impress too many people with how busy and exhausted you are? Why? Will being on all of these committees and going to all of the "after hours events" really do anything for your career or job? For most people the answer is "no". Unless your job requires you to "sell" anything and you are on commission or your "business socializing" actually brings in money for your company, you are really taking away time from your family.
Step back and re-think your priorities. Family should come first. That doesn't mean that you drag them to every possible event. It means that you give them your time. Your undivided attention. That is more precious than everything else in their life.
Time... It goes by too quickly!
Re-examine your priorities. Yes, you can have activities... but don't go overboard. Do what feels right for you... not everyone else. You don't need to impress your neighbors with how busy you are.
Have a great week and remember... Less Clutter in your Life makes for a happier you!
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Karin_E._Fried
Does Your Clutter Define You?
By Julie Riber
What a question! As I enter neighborhoods and people have their garage doors open I see all sorts of different garages. In some I see building materials and tools leading me to believe the owner might be a builder. I see garages jammed with all sorts of items like bikes, garbage cans, and gardening tools telling me that they have a large family and not enough room. And then I see garages with very little in them telling me that maybe they just bought the house or are minimalists. I will never know the truth about their garage unless they are a client or I ask them. I am probably not going to go around asking anyone about their garage, but I have formed a guess.
The inside of houses I visit yields the same result with every house being different. I have clients with paper in piles all over their homes and they struggle to get through it all. I have clients with so many clothes they cannot get it in their closets and drawers. I have clients with toys everywhere and no room for furniture. I have clients with crafts in 2 or 3 rooms and they cannot find anything and usually have multiples of many items and there are the clients with just one room they have difficulty finding a place for everything. Many have multiple unfinished projects in all areas of their home.
So, does the clutter define them? The common denominator in all these is that clutter is a delayed decision. They cannot decide where to put it, what to do next, or what to purge, so the clutter evolves. I believe their clutter defines them as someone who is having difficulty making some decisions. As a member of the Institute of Chronic Disorganization, I have learned that some struggle more than others and the some individuals have been chronically disorganized their entire lives.
The answer to the question is sometimes your clutter does define you. It might be situational and your clutter goes away when your life returns to normal and in some cases your clutter and lack of making decisions does define your work and home environment.
Julie Riber is Certified Professional Organizer and has been organizing in the central Ohio area since 2004. She helps organize individuals spaces, time, and lives and she helps businesses streamline processes, increase productivity, and organize their spaces. She is a Golden Circle member of the National Association of Professional Organizers and a board member of the Ohio Chapter of NAPO since 2005. Sign up for her free monthly newsletter with organizing tips. http://www.transformare.net
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Julie_Riber
De-Clutter Your Life and Gain Perspective On What's Really Important
By Karin E. Fried
When you walk into a business that is organized and clutter free you have confidence that the person that runs the business knows what they are doing and are successful.
When you walk into a home that is organized and clutter free you feel a sense of calm and are happy to be there.
De-cluttering your home and your business is not only important because it allows you to function better, be more efficient and saves you time and money, but it also makes other people feel better and makes them want to associate with you.
If your house or business is cluttered or disorganized people will not want to associate with you and you might be too embarrassed to have people over to your house, thus creating social isolation.
But there is also "life clutter". You have too many things that take up time in your life. Too many activities. Either in your job or in your personal life. You are pulled in too many directions. But you can't seem to let anything go.
Life clutter can be things such as being involved in too many business groups or too many extracurricular activities (yours and your kids). Yes, there are some business functions that you have to go to, but how many is too many? Are they taking away from your family? Will missing an after hours business function really hurt you? It seems like that when you are young and just starting out, but as you get older you realize that family is more important and kids grow up too quickly.
What about kid's activities? How many sports and other activities (piano lessons, swimming lessons, karate lessons....) does one child actually need? Or want? Do they want them or are you pushing them on your children because you didn't get to do it as a child? Be honest.
If you never have time for your family and friends then your life is too cluttered. Friends are like the plants in your yard. They need to be nurtured. Take the time to nurture your relationships.
Decide what's really important and let the rest go. Get rid of the life clutter and start living your life.
Member: National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO); Member: National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization (NSGCD); Certificate of Study in Chronic Disorganization; Certificate of Study in Basic Hoarding Issues with the CD Client; Certificate of Study in Understanding the Needs of the Elderly CD Client; CD Specialist - Level II Certificate; NAPO, Quantum Leap Trainer; NAPO in the Schools Trained Provider
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Karin_E._Fried
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