Getting Organized: Work on These 7 Projects to Help Reduce Unused Items in Your Life

    

At the beginning of the week, I like to jot down small, medium, and large tasks (with its list of small steps) on a master "to-do" list. Then I choose the one I'm most interested in at the moment to work on. This method motivates me to start and finish a small task and at least get started on a larger project that I can tackle the next day or week. When I write down my goals/tasks I'm inclined to start and finish them, whereas thoughts alone may drift away, be forgotten, and remain unacted on.

Items on a task list may vary between individuals due to varied interests and objectives. A high-ranked task for me may not appear on another person's list; therefore, it's important that each family member prepare their own job list.
 
Examples of different-sized projects family members could work on to meet the goal (albeit mine/yours) of reducing the accumulation of unused items:

• Assess the number of unworn shirts or tops hanging in the closet? Start on one side of the rod and remove one top or shirt, for example, at a time that you: don't like or wear, fits incorrectly, is stained, or needs repair. Remove it and the hanger from the closet and decide which pile it goes into donate or trash. Donate gently worn items so that they will be useful to someone else rather than continue to collect dust.  
• Decrease the number of coffee cups acquired on vacations or jobs (yours or someone else) that take up space in the cupboard, unused, and collect dust. 
• Collect all of the empty shipping boxes you have saved after the warranty expiration from these purchased items: appliances, televisions, electronics, printers, computers, cell phones, golf clubs, and shoes, etc., stored in the attic, basement, and/or garage.  If you make many moves, perhaps keeping the large television and/or computer/printer boxes makes sense; however, boxes for those items can be purchased for a nominal fee. Empty boxes take up a tremendous amount of space and may not ever be needed or used again. 
• Reduce the abundance of hobby items jammed into the garage, acquired over numerous years, and abandoned as new interests emerge. Start on one side of the garage, one item at a time, and determine its usefulness. This one could be a large project and will require more words at a later 

 

• Reduce your paper stacks. Review your papers, one paper at a time. Decide if the document requires action, filing, recycling, shredding, or the  trash receptacle. Paper, if left unchecked, tends to multiple, spread out over the surface it is on and continues to grow.  
• Remove items that have accumulated on surfaces in your home such as the countertop, kitchen table, desktop, furniture, floor, etc. Each family member collects their stuff in some container, such as a laundry basket or paper bag, and returns it to where it belongs and puts it away.
• Purge the "junk" drawer. Some junk drawers, small or large, are so full of stuff that they are hard to open. At least take every item out of the drawer and sort it into categories. Pitch the plastic bits that you have no idea what they belong to or what they were used for. Place divided inserts or repurpose containers that you already have in the drawer to separate the categories. 

All of the tasks noted above require many decisions that could make the processing an overwhelming one. Working through it, one step, one item, one decision at a time brings you success and goal achievement through patience with yourself if you keep at it however long it takes. Once items are reduced, keeping only what we need makes it easier to get and stay organized. Rewards of fewer things: more space, more calmness, more free time, simpler life, less stress, less anxiety. 

What Inspires You?

Family, friends, flowers, and organizing make me happy.  My sister Robin gave me two small hardy Cyclamen plants two years ago.  When I finally planted them in the ground, their flowers were long gone....I wondered if they would survive.  The following February, I was pleasantly surprised that the two bulbs had survived and multiplied, and then delighted me with their lovely flowers.  Robin owns Hansen Nursery and specializes in hardy Cyclamen, which she grows from seed with great care, and then ships across the United States.

This year, in early February my white Snowdrops bloomed first, then the white and pink Cyclamen, and now my purple and yellow Crocus.  Even though Spring officially begins March 20, 2013, Spring arrives for me when I see the these three plants emerge and produce flowers...along with a day like last Sunday.  I was inspired by the plants' colors and warmth of the day to tend to my flowerbed inhabitants.

While soaking up the sun and working with garden tools in our flowerbeds, I thought about the many "tools" we use to manage our lives.  I suppose my mind drifted to this topic for two reasons:  Scrapbook Club members requested information about management of financial documents after my recent presentation about basic organizing skills; and I wanted to share the information I discovered by writing a blog post.     

Internet search led to this great website, www.usa.gov; it includes two articles:  Managing Household Records and roadmap for important papers.  The first lists financial documents and how long you need to keep each.  The second worksheet, when completed, provides your family with your personal information, from your accountant's name...to whomever has keys to your home—to help you out in case of emergency.

Tracking Time Tips

Do you lose track of time and end up late for scheduled appointments because you need to straighten up every room you walk through...before you reach the door?  Then...do you get annoyed with yourself because you're late?  That's me.  I purchased a simple device called a Time Timer which enables me to visually watch time elapse.  When it dings--and it only does so once--I have to stop the task I'm working on and leave.
I also use the Time Timer when working with organizing clients.  The timer gets set for 60 minutes for the first hour of an organizing session, so we "see" how much time it takes us to evaluate/sort/organize contents of a box, or one area in a room.  We continue this way, except for the last hour when the timer gets set for 45-50 minutes.  The last few minutes are used for gathering tools, discussing progress made, and talking about goals for the next session. Clients pay attention to the Time Timer, notice when it "dings," and seem to speed up their decision-making the next time we work together.
Fellow Professional Organizer and Coach Megan Spears, Disorder2Order, finds the Time Timer I-Phone application useful for her two young sons when setting amounts of time allotted for reading and play.  Her comment, "It's awesome!"  The Time timer also works as a helpful tool for managing projects and homework.  Imagine the Time Timer's possibilities, especially for those of us challenged with keeping track of time with a more traditional method.

Why do we accumulate a lot of emails?  Perhaps we don't want to deal with them, or maybe we save them for future needs.  There is a similarity between overflowing email in-boxes and piles of paper mail; both "stacks" represent unmade decisions.  Emails usually arrive daily and multiply quicker, without proper management, than mail delivered by the post person.

Five reasons I get behind in processing email

1.  Emails require action.
2.  Spider Solitaire snares my attention--until I win a game.
3.  Reading an action-packed novel is more enjoyable.
4.  My computer stays at home when I visit my Mom, for several days.
5.  Kitty drapes herself over my shoulder and needs to be held up and petted.

Five ways to reduce email accumulation:

1.  Sort email by "From."  This method seems organized, whereas arrangement by "Subject" or "Receive" appears jumbled and takes longer.  Process those emails that require a response--first.
2.  "Unsubscribe" to emails sent daily or weekly from airlines, bookstores, and catalogs, etc.
3.  Reduce the number of your email accounts, especially if you seldom look at them.
4.  Ask friends to cease sending chain-letter type emails, jokes, and/or forwards, if burdensome.
5.  Read and process 10 emails before playing 3 games of Spider Solitaire, or reading 5 pages in a book.

Before you start to tackle email clutter, ask and answer these questions:  "Why am I putting off processing this email?  Do I really need to save it?  Can this information be found elsewhere?"  Choose a time of day that works best for you to read and act on your emails.  It works!

Quick Steps Move You

       Do you make to-do lists to tidy your home and complete work projects?  I do.  Finishing one job and crossing it off this list inspires me to do another.  Each lined-off task moves me on to the next.   
       Some days...I don't make a list and would rather "shut the door" on an untidy room...and nothing more.  Does that happen to you?  If it does, my friend and fellow organizer Jill Viglione, owner of Embrace Your Space, suggests we:  Take ten tiny actions.  These may be as minute as turning off a light in an unused room; putting away a pot holder in a kitchen drawer; or rinsing off one dirty dish.  Finish one, cross it off your mental list, and then complete another little chore...until you've reached your goal of ten. Taking care of each little job is a reward in itself; and it might inspire you to bring order to an entire room.  If others live with you, invite them to join in the fun and share in the maintenance of your home.
       You can use this method on any space, room, or for paper pileups. Try it! It's fast and it gets you moving!

Messy Sock Drawer

 Five reasons it makes sense to organize your sock drawer:

1.  Your sock drawer looks like this:

Messy Sock Drawer

2.  Socks removed from the dryer are thrown into a messy drawer...sock hunt required later.

3.  Two socks are selected without turning the light on; crossed ankles in a seminar later that morning reveals one black and one blue sock. 

4.  Purchase of a new pair of socks is easier than digging through the stuffed sock drawer to find mates.

5.  Annoyance is experienced because of the reasons noted above.

Even though I fold and put away clean clothes right away...usually...sooner or later my socks end up jumbled.  I decided to try out the drawer dividers pictured below before recommending them to clients.

Five reasons I like these drawer dividers: 

1.  It only took a few minutes to remove all socks from the drawer, sort and pair matching socks, discard singles, and insert the dividers.  

Tidy Sock Drawer

2.  Neatly arranged socks take up less space than a bunch of socks tossed in a drawer.

3.  Specific type and color of socks are so easy to select...at a glance; no mismatched sock surprise after arrival at work.

4.  It's only necessary to buy new socks when a different color is needed, or socks wear out.

5.  Satisfaction is derived from the one small change--organizing your sock drawer--no wasted time in  mate matching.

Note:  Purchase sock drawer dividers on-line, or at Bed Bath & Beyond and The Container Store, for example.

Stacked Up

One or more magazines arrive monthly and are scanned, or not, and plopped onto a pile of other unread magazines.  My Yoga Journal met this similar fate after its second 2-year renewal.  Does your Better Homes and Garden, National Geographic, Southern Living, or Time Magazine, for example, get treated like this too?  My five reasons magazines may mount up: 

1.  National Geographic may be like classic cars:  occasionally taken out, opened up, dusted off, and then put back.  Why?  Interest in them may be low.

2.  The new Sports Illustrated arrives in the morning and by afternoon the comfy couch beckons the receiver to rest and read.  The article's first paragraph gets read because it grabs your attention.  Then...the magazine slides off your lap and slithers to the floor, in a heap.  Nodding off requires repetitive rereading.

3.  The new Golf magazine joins its mates on the coffee table.  Your lifelong subscription and lack of actual golfing makes reading it unimportant in your busy life.

4.  The last, and previous issues of Better Homes and Garden nest in a basket by your chair.  Several weeks pass, and then, a telephone solicitor offers a new-subscriber rate--hooked!

5.  Throwing away or recycling magazines feels like throwing away money.

My thoughts about magazine reading and recycling

1.  Do you save magazines because you may read them in the future?  Maybe you won't.

2.  Check out this National Geographic website for reuse of this magazine.

3.  Keep a magazine in your vehicle for road repaving standstills, doctor's appointment waits, or friends delayed.  It makes the time pass pleasantly.

4.  Give your previous month's magazine to a friend when the new edition arrives, or try these tips for recycling magazines.

5.  Let go of guilt about reading your magazines.  Lehmkuhl and Lamping suggest, in their book, Organizing for the Creative Person, "...Stop everything and decide either to do it and forget it, or not to do it and forget it, and not feel guilty...."

Paperwork Past Its Prime

 

                 Paper, in some form, arrives daily in most households.  True?  Advertisements, bills, junk mail, magazines, donation requests, and newspapers are received by mail; documents are brought home from work and/or school; and business cards, fliers, and pamphlets are collected at business networking meetings, expositions, and trade shows.  Upon arrival, the tendency is to lay the paper object on the nearest chair, couch, desktop, or kitchen counter with the intention of taking care of it...later.  However, unprocessed, miscellaneous papers lie around, multiply, and may spread into other rooms.   

                Eventually, the time is right, or an occasion arises and the paper finally gets some attention. Hours upon hours are needed to sort, review, and dispose of the amassed paper collection.  Recently, a client’s decades’ worth of papers was processed by us, and inspired me to write this cinquain poem:

Papers

Many, saved

Reading, filing, recycling

Stack up, clutter minds, cause disorder

Toss!

Trips and Totes

          In early October 2009, my husband and I made a leisurely road trip from Vancouver, Washington to Boulder, Grand Lake, and Westcliffe, Colorado for a cousin's wedding and a visit with relatives and friends.  My husband drove the entire time, while I occupied space on the passenger side of the truck.  I imagined this road trip would be similar to hunting trips my husband enjoys.  Quiet. He is a hunter and comfortable with lengthy stretches of silence needed while scanning the terrain for wildlife.

          Long lulls in conversation were anticipated and required a bag full of things to keep my mind engaged and my hands occupied.  I hunted and gathered stuff in Fred Meyer:  mystery novels, a newspaper, Sudoku  puzzle book, pens, pencils, snacks, and bottles of water.  I wandered some more...then my eyes were drawn to these colorful bags with wonderful designs, neatly hung in vertical rows on a wall--especially the bag with a white bowl full of cherries on it.  When I opened the tote, I "found" three inner pockets in the middle.  Perfect for holding bottles upright, plus there was plenty of room for other trip items and my camera.

Patty Reed Designs' "Insta-Totes"

          Since that early fall trip, I have explored Patty Reed Designs web page and discovered additional totes:  Insulated lunch and grocery totes, zippered totes, and wine totes.  I like (love) them all!  These bags can be used for multiple purposes and "...are lightweight yet super-strong, with a virtually indestructible waterproof surface that can be wiped clean and reused indefinitely."  These totes are affordable and easy on the environment as they're made from recycled water bottles which can be recycled again.  Here's another cheerful favorite:

Patty Reed Insta Tote Inc.

          I love to use these boldly colored, sturdy bags to prepare for any trip or meeting...a short jaunt or long journey.  My favorite preparation practice is to sit the tote, with a "to-do" list attached to it,  next to the front door.  When I gather things and place them in the bag, I line through the item on the list (for some reason, that small act provides a sense of accomplishment).  On departure date, I'm ready to leave with all essentials organized in the "Insta-Tote."

          Read About Patty Reed Designs.

Organized Packing

Does this sound familiar? You take a trip out of state that requires living out of a suitcase for several days. On day one, you go to breakfast at the hotel, then change into something casual for some strolling and shopping, followed by suiting up for an afternoon swim, and  later, dressing up for dinner. By the end of the first day's activities, your suitcase is a mess! All of your clothes--once packed neatly in your suitcase--are now jumbled up. You spend the rest of the trip unpacking and repacking your suitcase each day in an effort to stay organized, but are never really able to keep everything straight.

Packing Cubes

My niece Tara and her husband Matt traveled to Italy several months ago and discovered a better way to pack using Packing Cubes from eBags.com. They love these cubes, as they made living out of a suitcase much easier by allowing them to keep their suitcases organized. My niece put her shirts in one cube, pants in another, and toiletries in yet another--which made finding what she was looking for a snap!

During a recent trip to the West coast, they each kept their clothes for warmer weather in one cube for their time in California, and then packed cooler weather clothes in another for their drive up the coast to Washington. This is when I first saw the packing cubes; I liked them immediately!

The variety of colors makes it easy to pack for a family vacation. You can easily identify each person's cubes by color or size. The cubes can also be used to store out-of-season clothing, keep toys separated in a child's playroom, or store your gear in your gym bag--by activity.

Click on the links below and check out the different colors, shapes, and sizes of ePacking Cubes. Even my brother-in-law, who keeps his suitcase totally neat the entire trip, might like the Shoe Cubes and the Pack-It-Flat Toiletry Kit: 

shoe cubes  

 eBags Pack-It-Flat Toiletry Kit.

*The above images are from the eBags.com website.

Progress

I created my home-based professional organizing business a couple years ago because retirement, from the Air Force Reserve and Civil Service, was looming. I wanted new challenges and had a strong urge to tap into the creative side of myself. You might imagine how this side of me had gone dormant after years of a highly structured, steeped-in-tradition, hierarchical job where many decisions made at the top quickly slid down the chain of command and landed in the lap of the lowest rung of management.

My job now is one-person deep—me. I love it. I'm the sole everything of my business: administrator, secretary, bookkeeper, marketer, salesperson, tax preparer, etc.

(This probably is a good place to interject that I took zero business classes in college—only upper-division psychology classes for me!)

Yes, the learning curve has been steep. I had to figure out: where to start, come up with a business name, pay license fees, set up a checking account, and create forms, marketing material, a website, and a pamphlet, and so on. Oh, and ALL decisions were and are made by me, a bit unlike previous jobs.

I am a challenge to myself because of my extreme self-criticism, which leads to procrastination and zero decisions made. That’s hard to admit. Two months ago, I couldn't make up my mind—write a newsletter, or create a blog? I wrote articles for a newsletter, found fault with them, and buried them on my hard drive. (I almost buried them in the backyard, but the hard drive was easier!)

Then, three events occurred in slow succession: I received Publishing a Blog with Blogger, by Elizabeth Castro, a clear, succinct, step-by-step book, (with color pictures!); I picked a blog title; and I decided to get over myself.

I want to thank Amy for the book, Molly for name suggestions and editing, and my twin for her Forever (like the stamp) support regarding anything in my world.

My blog is launched. Progress?