High-tech Your Papers

      Technology exists to make our lives simpler.  Review your current practices,  and ask yourself: Is there something you can do to simplify your paper management?  Use technology or tools to make things better!

     What we are really talking about when we discuss Paper Management is Information Management.   It does not matter how the information came to you, via paper or electronically via your computer.  There are rules that can help.  Here are a few suggestions for Information Management.

1.  Papers often represent tasks to be completed, so carve out time to get things done.

  • Sorting papers into actions only takes things so far.  You also need to act!  I use Taking Care of Business Tuesdays to get my work done (click here to read my blog on TCB Tuesdays!).   Tuesday mornings are dedicated to working my organizing business, and the business of running my family.  Bill paying, data entry into my planner, follow-up phone calls, maintenance, etc.
  • There is no magic in TCB Tuesday, you can pick any day of the week you want.  Just set aside time to complete your action items.   
  • If you can’t set aside time regularly to get things done, try creating a physical in-box to collect your papers.  It can’t be too big or expand too far!  Once the in-box is full, you have to commit some time to Take Care of Business!  The in-box can be a box, a hanging vertical folder, an attractive magazine holder, etc. 

2.  Choose the Right Name for Your Files:

  • Regardless of what type of information you have, be it Paper or electronic, you still need to file data by date or category, to be able to retrieve the information again.
  • Use Naming conventions to name your folders, either paper or electronics.   “2011 September Income and Banking” or “2011 September Paid Bill Receipts”.  
  • Standardize your naming, then your paper systems and your computer drives will work together.   

3.  Knowing what to keep and what to toss is still important.  If you don’t expect to retrieve information, you don’t need to keep it.   Unimportant, unnecessary information is still clutter, whether it is in paper form or memory space. 

4.  Start with current information, and create the habit of regular saving, maintenance and scanning (more on this in a moment!).  Once you are keeping up with new and current information, then start with older papers.  Do not start with old and neglect the new. 

Technology Solutions to Paper Management

  1. Create Less Paper:
    • Request information in electronic form.  From your bank, your professional organizations, your children’s schools.  Anything we can receive in electronic form saves trees and keeps those papers from piling up. 
    • Automate your banking and bill paying, on-line through your bank.
    • “Print” electronic receipts and emails to PDF form instead of on papers.   A PDF is like a photograph of your information.  You can’t manipulate the info, like you could in a Word document, but you can save the information.   We “print” our e-information, then save it to a folder on our computer, using those naming conventions.
    • If you don’t have a PDF writer on your computer already, Google PDF programs.  Three to look at are Primo PDF (free) , Cute PDF Pro (cheap) and Adobe Acrobat (not cheap).  
  2. Manage the Paper and Information You Have:
    • The Fujitsu ScanSnap scans all papers, even double-sided ones, into your computer to let you keep the information while getting rid of the papers.  A great idea!
  3. Above all things, if you choose to scan or electrify your papers, you must have reliable back-up for your data.  Make backing up your data a habit, or subscribe to a service that does if for you.
  4. Suggestions from my techies are external hard drives; NAS (network attached storage); Amazon S3; and Carbonite, with the services more highly recommended for safety.  The services cost money, but will manage technology updates on their own.

So, my challenge to you this week is to use the technology available to clear those papers and get on to more important things! 

On a personal note, I wrote this blog while out-of-town for the holiday, picking the brains of my two favorite techies over lunch.  Guess I was using my technology to get things done, too!  Thanks this week go to my husband and my brother-in-law, for technology advice!  You two rock!

Don’t Just Pile, Act then File!

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     This week’s article is inspired by Mary and AnneMarie, so thanks, ladies, for the inspiration.   And thanks to all of you who offered comments and insight in the Pile vs. File debate, via email or Facebook.  And the responses also inspired a future topic (perhaps next week) of Cool Tools and High-Tech Solutions for your papers.

     Most of the folks who responded feel they are both Pilers and Filers of papers, meaning they pile papers for a while and then file them, with a variety of time frames, from “once a week” to “whenever I can’t find something”.  And a little pile of work to be done is Ok, but please, not too many piles!

     This month’s Real Simple reported that 83% of HR managers “say the appearance of an employee’s workspace affects their perception of the employee’s skill level and professionalism.  Want to be a go-getter?  Then go get those dirty coffee cups and messy piles of paper.”

     I find the challenge with paper is that each piece of paper represents something else.  This post-it note is not just a piece of paper, it is a place holder that represents a phone call to make, a letter to write, an action to take, a past event, a loved one.   There are 3 types of papers:

  • Active: Papers requiring action:  Bills to pay, forms to fill out and return, coupons, receipts for returns, articles to read
  • Passive:  Papers we need to hold on to for a prescribed time, perhaps to refer to or not, then purge: receipts, paid bills, kid’s activity schedules like soccer or baseball rosters
  • Archive:  Papers we need to keep forever, like mortgage papers, tax records (for 4-10 years, depending on who you talk to), birth certificates, wills, passports, etc.

Why Do We Keep Papers?

  • We haven’t completed the actions they require.
  • We think someone will care about them in the future.
  • We haven’t gotten around to doing anything with them, or it didn’t occur to us we could toss them. 

 Why Do We Pile Papers Instead of Filing Them?

  • We’re afraid if we put something away, we’ll forget where it is or that we even have it.
  • We don’t like or trust our filing systems because they are too complex, or too basic, or they were not created by us for us.
  • We don’t feel like filing, because we don’t see why it matters.  Or we are busy, lazy, got called away, the files are far away, the drawer is broken, we need to clean the old stuff out of the file cabinets before we can put the new stuff in, and that job seems too overwhelming, too, yada, yada, yada.  I do this for a living, I have heard lots of reasons why people don’t file.  The reasons against filing are legion.

 Why Does Piling Paper Cause Problems?

  • Piling papers vertically makes retrieval of information difficult or impossible.
  • Gravity.  We can only pile things so high before they topple.
  • There is only so much horizontal space in most homes
  • Visual clutter is distracting
  • Piling papers puts all papers equal, regardless of importance, type of action, value, etc.

 Why Do You File Papers?

  • Well, to counteract all the problems listed above, of course!
  • Filing things away makes finding them and everything else easier.  Papers stay where we put them.  And then we can see the beyond the clutter.   
  • File folders and holders hold paper vertically and are open at the top, maximizing space and allowing viewing and retrieval.
  • Maintenance is so much easier than catching up.  A few minutes daily is much easier than a monthly paper mess!  I am very proud of those of you who answered that you are both a Piler and a Filer. 

 First Things First:  Set yourself up to Succeed:

  • Sit down with a shredder, recycling bag and 10 minutes on the timer.  Power through your piles, re-sorting your papers into Action, To File – Passive, To File – Archival, Recycle and shred. 
  • Now that you’ve sorted your Papers, Jump In!
  • Active Papers:  Active Papers are the only papers you should have on your desk right now.
    1. Try a new way of holding your Active papers, like a standing file folder on your desk. (No Piles, remember?!?!)  
    2. Break down your Active Papers Pile into types of actions to take: title manila folders “bills to pay”, “forms to complete and send back to school”, etc.   
    3. Break down the actions into little tiny steps, if necessary.  I read an article about a woman who needs to file her expense reports more quickly. 
      • Currently:  Her expense receipts get stuffed in her wallet until it is too full, then she takes them out and piles them on the desk until the pile falls.  A couple of times a year, when the spirit moves her and / or she needs the money, she files her expenses. 
      • New Requirement:  Her employer now requires a 60-day-or-less turn around.  If she wants to get paid, she has to step up.
      • Her folders now live in a holder on her desk, and walk her papers through the reimbursement process.  They are entitled: receipts to expense; receipts to copy; copied receipts to submit for reimbursement; reimbursement requests sent; and Reimbursed Expense requests and proof of payment, 2011.
    4. Schedule time to actually act on your action items.  If you don’t dedicate time to Action items, they will never get done.  Monday morning are my Action mornings. 
    5. Once you act on a paper, ask yourself again what the next action is for that piece.  It could be Return to School, pop in the mail, give to someone else, recycle, file, etc.  Papers need to keep moving!
  • Passive Papers: Stand and deliver
    1. Once you decide a paper gets to stay in your files, spend time every day or every week filing things away.  I have spent lots of blog time on Paper Management issues, so click here for pertinent links to topics like categories, filing systems, etc. 
    2. Archival Papers:  File forever.  These are the easiest papers to deal with because you don’t see them often, and there aren’t many of them.  Unless you have 30 years of accumulated passive papers, which leads us once again back to maintenance. 

     I like filing.  I like the feeling of accomplishment, of Done-ness.   I like clutter-free, visually peaceful space that comes from filing.  I use filing as the final act of closure on my work day, before I turn off my computer and go do fun Colleen / Mom stuff.  I never have much to file, and my folders are convenient to put things away.

    I challenge you, this week, to look differently at your pile of papers.  Do a power sort and purge the easy stuff, then Act on your Active Papers and file the rest.  You can do this, I know you can.  And you will be amazed at how much better you work when the piles are gone!

Why I Organize my Family (and you should, too!)

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     My goal for writing is to motivate and educate my readers and clients about organizing. Most people who contact me need organizing motivation or education, or a mixture of both.

     My last few blogs have been heavy on the How-To, as in how to organize for Back To School, but this week I want to talk about the Why.  Why should we and our children get organized for Back To School?  And this applies to everyone, not just folks in the midst of Back To School right now!

 We want our children to do well in school and in life.

    1. Last fall, I renamed my Organize Your Kids class “An Organized Family”.  Sometimes it is not the children who make a family disorganized, but we adults. It is up to me to get my kids to school on time, even as they get a little older.
    2. Lack of organization is often interpreted as lack of preparation, cooperation or knowledge.  Good grades are great, but if your child is regularly late or unprepared, it will reflect negatively on him. 
    3. Tardiness disrupts class and instruction, and it singles out your child.  And your child has to face the teacher and school staff every morning, not you.
    4. One of my myriad of responsibilities as a parent is to cultivate a strong work ethic and life skills in my children.  We are not raising children to remain children, we are raising future adults.
    5. Your child probably wants to be on time, but may be nervous about asking you or doesn’t realize things can be different.

We want life to be less complicated. 

    1. We live in a complicated world.  There are so many responsibilities vying for our time and resources. 
    2. We want more living and less drama.  More time spent with loved ones in good relationships, less time spent on stuff. 
    3. Having a better grasp of our time allows us to not worry about being on time.  Go figure!
    4. For example, we establish our morning routine every August, and we know that if we stick with it, all is well.
    5. We are well-rested, clean, dressed and well-fed, prepared for our day and on time.  If we just do what we’re supposed to do, we have fun and relax, without drama.  

We realize we are the parents, the Adult, and we set the example.

    1. We have to teach our children to do things for themselves before we can expect our kids to do things for themselves.
    2. Be clear with your expectations.  Be clear, be brief and keep them simple.
    3. In quiet reflection after Mass, I realized that if I can give an hour, uninterrupted, to God during the Mass, I should do the same for my kids, every morning from 7-8.  So that is one of my goals for this morning, to focus solely on preparing for the day during that hour with my kids, until we’re on track.

We want to be able to say “Yes” to new things. 

    1. My way is not the only way, nor is it the best way for every family.   I happen to value organization, and am convinced of the importance of organization for success in life.  That is purely my opinion, there are lots of things to value in life. 
    2. I had an artistically creative and wonderful class participant ask me “What if some days I don’t feel like being organized?”.  I understand where she is coming from, sort of, like some days it is fun to abandon routine and go with the flow.  But I don’t view Organization as an Either / Or.  I view it as a means to a better life.
    3. Because we are organized, we can be flexible and open to new things, and respond to opportunities that come our way, or make our own opportunities for new things or activities or experiences. 

      So, my challenge to you this week is to look at your own ideas about organizing, and make a list, mental or other wise, of your answers to the Why Get Organized question.

     Above is my list of Why statements, my answers to the Why Get Organized? Question.  Your list may look completely different, and that is great!  Just give it some thought, find your motivators, post them where you can see them, and use them to help you stay on track in the busy days ahead!

A Great Morning Starts The Night Before!

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(A note: I originally wrote this article for Speech Plus in Frankfort, IL for their Back-To-School newsletter issue.  They graciously agreed to let me post the information, for the benefit of all!   For more information regarding Speech Plus, P.C., go to their website at www.speechplus.org, or find them on Facebook.)

Getting ready and out the door in the morning can be a challenge, especially for families!  Here are 5 things you can do tonight to make tomorrow morning great:

  1. Look ahead.  After dinner, check tomorrow’s schedule. Assemble by the door the items needed for your work presentation, your child’s school band rehearsal or soccer practice.  Complete permission slips, make sure your teenager has lunch money, note special needs or events.  Do this early in the evening while you still have time to run to the grocery for snacks or wash the soccer uniform.
  2. After dinner is a great time to pack all the lunches for tomorrow, too.  Pop them back in the refrigerator, and grab them and go in the morning rush.  Pack one for your self, too!
  3. Lay out clothes for tomorrow, for you and your children.  If you have small children and some open floor space, lay out the clothes on the floor, face down, as though they were on a child, to help your young one get himself dressed independently.  If you have older children, take out the guess-work and roll ensembles together or leave them on a hanger all together in the closet.
  4. Put the school work away tonight, leaving out only an item or 2 if there is last-minute test review to do.  Otherwise pack up the backpack when the homework is done for the night, and leave it by the door to grab and go.
  5. Go to bed.  Good sleep hygiene is vital to success, for you and for your children.  Calming night-time routines with family time, soothing lighting and relaxing reading ensure restorative sleep and a better morning tomorrow!  Introduce the school-year bedtime a week before school begins, to ease your sleepers and your self into the new time.

A great school day begins with a great morning, and a great mornings starts the night before.  Here’s to a successful school year!

BTS: Never Be Late Again!

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Last August, I resolved we would be on time for school. Every day. And except for the very last day of school, when there was an actual flood in our neighborhood, we accomplished our goal.

Do you know why we succeeded?  Because I realized that my own adherence to my own routine can make or break our morning.  If we are late for school, by and large, it really is my fault.

As my children grow up, the responsibility shifts to their shoulders.  Some mornings, kid cooperation is not 100%.  But it is still up to me to set the example, to create (with family in-put) and stick with our Morning Routine, to focus on the task at hand and not get distracted, to keep the goal of “School On Time and Prepared” ever in sight.

Your kids may have a few weeks until they go back to school, and soon their morning routines will get tweaked.  So, this week, get your own Back To School (or going to work every day) Routine on track, and make the BTS transition easier for everyone!

Get up when you plan to get up.

I admit, I am a snoozer.  When the alarm sounds, my hubby hops up and stays up.   Me?  Not so much.  I learn from him, though, and moved the alarm clock more than an arm length away from the bed, to keep me from smacking the snooze button without even fully registering that the alarm went off.

Why?  Because I use an alarm for a reason.  I need to get up at 6 am to get myself ready before the kids get up.  And if I don’t get up with the alarm, I defeat my own intentions before I even get out of bed.  Setting the alarm earlier and allowing snooze time doesn’t solve the problem, either, now does it?  Nope.  Same bad habit and defeatist behavior.  So bye-bye bedside clock, hello hidden-under-the-bed or across-the-room clock.

And, DO NOT set your clock ahead.  Everyone knows it is set ahead, and it loses effectiveness (unless you set it a minute or two ahead, and don’t tell anyone….)

Get Ready First.

I talk about “Back to Ready” with my clients.  It is a mental image of what an organized and ready family looks like.  We know what is necessary to get ready, how to do those things, and that once we’re there, we can go do something fun.

But it has to start with getting Me “Back To Ready”.  Why bother getting the kids or the house ready for us to go if I am  not ready?  First order of the day is to get myself up and showered and dressed and fed.  Then I am much more available and coherent when the kids get up.

Lower Your Morning Standards.

Whenever I talk about routines, I always suggest to write down what you Need to do in the morning.  And, yes, I said NEED.  Make sure the Needs are covered, then move on to the Wants.  Needs are get clean, get dressed, eat breakfast, get out the door.  Everything else is extra.

I am the queen of starting just one more thing when I should be leaving, but that “one more thing” like writing an email or starting a load of clothes can make us late.  You and I both need to Write It Down and save it for later, and get out the door.

I read an article the other day that suggested we all Need to rise before 5 am to meditate, journal, work out, conference call with Singapore and grind our own flour for organic muffins for our families (yes, I made some of that up.  But not all!) before 7 am.  But if that list of things to do is not for you, don’t worry.  Stick with Needs, then move to Wants.

Recognize Load Time and Leave Time are two different things. 

Load Time:  The time we start loading ourselves in the van.  Factor in the every-morning-search for the 11 year- old’s watch, the 7 year-old’s daily dash to the bathroom as soon as I holler “Let’s go, people!”

Leave Time:  Time you pull out of the garage and head to school.  Leave Time factors in the length of the car ride / walk to school and adds a little cushion.  Aim for 5 minutes early to start with, it’s better to be early rather than late!  And don’t consider Early early.  Consider it On Time.

If you only have yourself to get out the door every morning, you can learn from this, too, especially if you find yourself running back for a few things as you leave the house.  Know your self.  For example, if you have to leave at 7:30 am to get to the office on time, aim for 7:20, realizing you always search for your car keys, double-check the locks, share a few words with the neighbor, or forget something.  And if you actually get to work a few minutes early, that is great, too!

So, whether you are going Back to School or not, let me challenge you this week to make your Morning Routine work better for you, and Get Where You Are Going On Time Next Time.  Give it some thought, get up a little earlier (or just move the alarm clock like me) and never be late again!

Organize your Garage: Crystal Ball or Snow Globe?

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     Look with me into my crystal ball…   I can tell you exactly where you were this past February 2nd.  If you live in the Midwest like me, you were either stuck in your house or shoveling the 2 feet of snow that fell in 18 hours.   

     More importantly, for today’s message, where was your CAR?  Your second biggest investment?  Your necessary transportation tool for work or school?  Was it safe in your garage (if you have one), or was it on the street or in the driveway while your clutter stayed warm and dry?  And where will it be when snow flies again?   Organize Your Garage This Month!    It is a lot easier and more comfortable to do it in August than in December (trust me, I’ve been hired to do both!). 

     Why is organizing your garage different from other parts of your home? 

  1. Everyone uses the space;
  2. The stuff stored there is just bigger; and there is more stuff because the space is bigger.
  3. The Garage becomes a collection of indecision, a waiting room for stuff to come and go from your home. 
  4. We ignore the stuff until we are faced with a crisis or never.  And the stuff just keeps piling up… 

     Why should you organize your Garage?  Garages don’t get the respect they deserve: they are truly multifunctional!  The primary goal for a garage should be vehicle parking.  Organize your garage, protect your car and large investments, and stop paying for off site storage units.

5 Tips to Organize your Garage:

  1. Remove the big things first, like large boxes or appliances, garbage bags of donations or recycling.   
  2. Break down the Cardboard:  you’d be amazed by how many empty boxes are probably cluttering up your garage.
  3. Stop storing things for other people.  You know who you need to call.  And they know who they are, too.  Make the calls, give the “other people” a deadline, have the stuff collected or toss it.  Some tough love now will save you time, money and car care later!
  4. Take Action:  Make some more phone calls, or take some time on-line and set up appointments for pick up of the items you already know need to go away.  Your clutter is treasure to someone else.  Donate big unwanted items:
    1. HOMES, Salvation army for furniture
    2. ComEd for large appliances
    3. PennySaver to place an ad, or list your items on Freecycle.
    4. For a more complete list, check out my Recycling Guide.
  5. Do NOT store treasure in the garage, which can have excessive temperatures, -20 to 120 degrees, pests and moisture.  All can cause damage to photos, books, clothing, or things with glue or wax like seasonal decorations.

 Storage solutions for Garage Storage:

  1. Climb the walls:  With just a little effort, you can use vast expanses of vertical wall space for peg boards for small-item storage, hooks for bikes or bags, racks for yard implements and snow shovels.
  2. Big items need big shelves:  So many things in the garage are REALLY BIG.  Bikes, yard toys, coolers, holiday decorations, sleds, bins of off-season clothing (see photo below).  Standing shelf units are great solutions, and if you use your garage for many purposes, you can invest in rolling shelf units.  Then you can roll out the stuff you need and roll it back away when you are done.
  3. “Roll out the barrel” out of your garage: I cringe when I see huge barrels of yard tools standing in the corner of a garage.  First, as a mom, anything that heavy and full of sharp edges that can fall over makes me nervous.  Second, why does any one need a barrel full of anything?  You can’t move it, access it, or clean it out.   A big barrel just screams to be filled, and so we fill it.  With rakes, brooms, old wood, baseball bats, who knows?  Get rid of the barrel, or outfit it as a rain barrel.  As for the yard tools, hang them on the wall (see Climb the Walls), or try a very low-tech idea, a short board across the space between the studs around 3 feet high and stand yard tools up in the space behind the board.    
  4. Garage rafters are a great place for large and / or off-season items, like ladders, summer deck furniture, sleds, etc. 
  5. Lock it UP: Safe Storage.  Assume that everything is going to fall.  Store heavier items on lower shelves, lighter items on upper shelves.  Mount shelves / attached shelf units to wall.  If children ever use the garage, put away power tools and cords, heat or flame sources and flammable items.  Make sure poisonous house and garden products have child resistant caps, are clearly labeled and are out of reach of children or in a locked cabinet.

Set aside a couple of hours this weekend, and make some space in your garage for your car.   You’ll be so glad that you did!

I must give credit to Julie Morgenstern, Organizing From the Inside Out  and Barry Iszak, Organize Your Garage In No Time.

 

Clean Your Home: Everyday or All At Once?

     Do you clean your home?  I am assuming most of you do.  So the next question is:  when?  Are you a spend-time-on-it-everyday person, or a clean-it-all-at-once person?  Or have you ever even thought about it?

     There is no wrong answer to this question, but knowing yours helps focus your Clean House mission. It may also be helpful to note that the answer to “Clean Your Home:  Every day or all at once?” can change as your life changes.  The All-At-Once way was no longer working for me, so I made the plan and the decision to change to Every Day.

     My goal for today’s blog is not to persuade you to choose one method or the other, but to suggest:

  1. There is always more than one way to complete a work project;
  2. Before jumping into action, give your situation some thought, and determine how best to attack that project; 
  3. Be flexible and open to other ideas, and find solutions that work for you; and
  4. Even something as mundane as cleaning your house becomes more meaningful if you set your terms for getting it done.   

    I started my current experiment in May, here are my notes from that day:

  • May 15th.  I love my house.  I love my family.  But I don’t love losing my weekends to housecleaning.  My schedule used to allow one full day dedicated to my home, but as the kids and business have grown, I can’t spare a whole day for cleaning.
  • Friday was Cleaning Day, which worked great even when we traveled, because I could clean and pack as I went.  
  • However, I still have to get Back To Ready on Mondays (or if we are traveling, whenever we got back), and maintain during the week, too.  And often, Cleaning Day gets pushed to Saturday, Sunday or even Monday before I finish. 
  • I feel like I am cleaning all the time, but I don’t feel it is getting done well, and I stress with the tension between doing it all / cleaning when I have time / making time to clean. 
  • I am embarking on a new house cleaning / maintenance schedule.  I will spend a House Hour every day on cleaning and maintenance instead of the All At Once approach.  The little-bits every day approach chafes against my perfectionist tendency of wanting everything DONE at least for a moment, but I am optimistic.
  • To Sum up, Challenges:
    • There is work to do, lots of effort goes into maintaining a home. 
    • I do most of the work alone most weeks.  I don’t know how to ask for help.
    • Am I really teaching my kids any life skills if I am the only person who cleans the house, and I do it while they are at school?
    • Will I have those children that go to college not knowing how to clean a bathroom or do their laundry? 
    • Am I demonstrating that only women do house work?  All of this has to change!
    • I can clean all day one day a week, and still need to maintain every day, too.  If I have to maintain every day anyway, could I just do that for a longer block of time instead of All At Once AND Daily Maintenance?
  • July 25th:  Outcomes of my experiment.
    • Click here to see my house cleaning spreadsheet.  It hangs on my refrigerator in a plastic page protector so I can assign chores to different people, and cross things off as we complete them.  Make your own, and add whatever you want!
    • We have done pretty well.  The house is consistently tidy.  In the All At Once approach, I would give up maintenance a day or 2 before my scheduled Cleaning Day, which became a growing problem if Cleaning Day got pushed later and later!
    • I love the daily approach.  There are some days our House Hour does not happen, because we are exceptionally busy or out playing (it is summer, after all!), but then I dedicate more time the next day, and catch up.
    • As we’ve gotten better at this House Hour idea, I have learned some days are easier than others, and I can spend more of the Hour on the easy days on organizing or projects.  This week, we look at school clothes  and supplies, and clean out my little guy’s toy box. 
    • The kids are learning the different tasks and skills that go into maintaining a clean home, how a household works and how they are a part of it.      
    • I am still working on the Asking For Help part, and probably will be for life.  A finite list of things of tasks for each day is less intimidating for all of us.  Once their tasks are done, they can go play. 
    • A personal challenge for me is to accept “different” as “just as good as my way”.  This is tough for me, but I am learning.  My wonderful hubby did the bulk of our vacation laundry, God bless him.  And his way is just as good as mine, though dissimilar.  It made me momentarily crabby, then I smacked (metaphorically) my self upside the head and reminded myself that the laundry was clean and folded, and I did not have to do it.  Woo hoo!
    • I was pleasantly surprised today.   We just got home back from a week’s vacation, and I am often overwhelmed when reality rushes back in after a week away.  But things look fine today, and I can pick back up my House Hour tomorrow. 

     So if you have ever felt the tension of when / how / what to clean, give your timing some thought and see what works best for you.  Try something new for a month or 2 – you’re a smart person and you can change – and see how it goes!

Organizing: Where To Begin?

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     This week, I heard from three different people, “ I am so overwhelmed, where should I begin?”  We’ve all been there – we look around our home or office, and disorganization is everywhere!  Perhaps we’ve been busy, and regular maintenance has been neglected.  Perhaps it is a time of transition; leaving on or arriving home from vacation; career change; a family member moving home or moving away; change of seasons on the calendar; change of seasons in our life. Regardless of the reason, we wake up one day with disorganized space and a long list of projects or goals.

     Then we have that deer-in-the-headlights moment, when we are frozen stiff and our brain is racing in circles, trying to figure out where and how to start, and sometimes in that moment we get so overwhelmed that we shake our head and racing brain, turn around and leave, instead of accomplishing something, anything.  

     So, then, where do we begin?

  • Ask yourself “Which project will make the greatest impact on my daily life?”  That is a great place to start!  For example:  If you have 4 projects (kitchen, linen closet, attic and basement), start with the kitchen then the linen closet, as those projects will help everyone in your home immediately.
  • To rephrase, “Start in the area that is causing the most pain” according to Barry Izsak, CPO and author of numerous organizing books.
  • The other answer to the “So, where do I begin?” is pick a starting spot – like the doorway to a room or closet, and move left to right around the space.  Or right to left, or top to bottom.  The starting spot itself is not magic. It is the choosing-a-starting-spot-and-working-methodically that gets things done.  
  • Walk around your house with a pen and clip board, and looking objectively at each room.  Jot down necessary repairs, organizing projects, items that need to go away or be replaced, etc.
  • Make a list of the tasks required to complete each project. For example, don’t just say “organize teenager’s closet”. A task list might include:  1.   Empty all drawers, purging old or unloved clothes; 2.  Install new hardware on dresser drawers; 3.  Empty closet, purging old or unloved clothes; 4.  Paint shelves; 5.  Install new closet rod, closet light and over-door clothing rack; 6.  Swap out old hangers with new hangers for hanging clothes.
  • Be specific with your tasks list, and the needed supplies to pick up at the home improvement store quickly become evident. Also, it is easier to determine time allotment for the specific tasks, than it is for the whole project.
  • Keep a master list for all of your projects.  This will illustrate where among the projects there is common ground, like tackling two projects with one trip to Home Depot or one call to the handyman.  This saves time and money and gets things done. 
  • Repeat after me: You do not need to complete every project right now, today. And you probably could not if you tried.  Don’t you feel better already?  But you can move forward on a project today, and come closer to completion, and there is satisfaction and success in that.

To Prioritize Tasks, Ask yourself these three questions (from Julie Morgenstern, Never Check Your Email in the Morning):

  • Question 1: How long will the task take? We inflate our idea of how long an undesirable task may take. I dread balancing my check book, so it seems intimidating, but it usually takes all of 15 minutes a month. Conversely, you also must allow enough time for a project to get done. If you tell yourself you are going to paint the basement this summer, but don’t actually block out time in your calendar to get it done, it won’t get painted. Dedicate a block of time or regular intervals to make the project happen.
  • Question 2: What is the return on investment? It may take a full 4 hours on a summer afternoon to finish a project, and you’ll wish you were somewhere fun, but the return is big when you are done. Find a balance between the potential pay off of a task and the estimated time it will take. Remember too, there are lots of things that need to happen today, but not all are major.
  • Question 3: When is the deadline? Even if one project is the biggest, if the deadline isn’t for another month, do the smaller but more timely things first.

So, the next time you are faced with multiple projects and your brain is racing all around, close those eyes and take a deep breath, take a walk around your house, and then pick your spot to begin.  You can do this, I know you can!

PS:   I am thinking of starting a blog category entitled “If I Had a Nickel….” for every time someone asked me certain questions.  I could call it Frequently Asked Organizing Questions, but I like “If I had a nickel… “ better!  Which do you prefer?  And what questions should I include?

7 Things I Learned From My Summer Vacation

We host a weekend get-together every July, next year will be our 20th. 

It started out as a bunch of recent college grads gathering at my very gracious in-law’s lake cottage in Michigan.  Our numbers have expanded over the years, as we’ve gotten married and added children.  We can gauge our growth in advanced degrees received, mortgages, increasing car size (to accommodate our growing families), challenges met and conquered and learned from.  It is amazing how we have all evolved. 

After 19 years of hosting this event, there are some Organizing Truths I have learned and can share with confidence:

  1. Organizing Truth:  Life is not about the stuff, it is about people and relationships.  I am so blessed.  I am choking up as I write this because I have images of such good friends and conversations and love, a wonderful co-host (my hubby), my gracious and dear in-laws and my dad who brings us cookies every year.  I am so, so blessed.
  2. Organizing Truth: Quality time with friends and family is judged by enjoyment, not by effort.  I am getting better about judging event success by the fun had by all, and not by the diversity of menu options or the cleanliness of my house or how much effort I put in (because the more you do these things, the easier they get!).
  3. Organizing Truth:  You can learn from every experience.  After any experience, ask yourself to sum up what you have learned in one or two sentences.  Self-awareness is a valuable skill, tool and talent.  It helps you find worth in every experience, even the mundane, and helps you to constantly evolve and improve.
  4. Organizing Truth:  Take notes, and help your Future You out next time.   I have a spreadsheet for planning this big weekend from year to year, with guest and RSVP lists, menu, shopping list, etc.  In the next few days, I will open up the spreadsheet file and make some notes about what worked and what did not:  “don’t forget the softball game next year, ask G to bring more fireworks, broaden the lunch menus”.  I will save that information, change the dates for 2012 and be ready to go next Spring.
  5. Organizing Truth:  Technology can be a very useful tool!   I already mentioned my yearly spread sheet, and a glance at my file directory tells me I have been keeping notes digitally since 1998.  I annually update the email contact list and correspond almost entirely via email.  These are basics.  I can also send map links to emails if requested, and this year I was able to check Facebook and my email for arrival updates via my smart phone.  Maybe next year, I’ll use Evite and we’ll have a FaceBook page (but then again, maybe not).
  6. Organizing Truth:  Standard Operating Procedures make things run smoothly.  I have a list in my head of things that need to be done, but next year, I will hang on the fridge a list of kid-friendly jobs to be done, so I can defer to the list and delegate better.  Examples of tasks may include:
    1. Get the boats ready to go: load the cooler, count and load the life jackets and beach towels
    2. Meal Set Up:  clean off table, get out plates and napkins and utensils, consult menu, etc.
    3. Yard Clean Up:  soda cans and water bottles to recycling, sporting gear and beach toys to bins, etc.
  7. Organizing Truths:  Notes from Kitchen Duty.
    1. Set up for the next meal at the end of the current meal.  Meaning, after dinner clean-up is done, look ahead to tomorrow’s breakfast, and set out the griddle and pancake ingredients and frying pans for sausage.  Most critically, set up the coffee maker for the next morning, so whoever gets up first can flip the switch!
    2. It occurred to me along the way that I could save a lot of hassle for myself and my guests if I just did all the menu planning and shopping.  At first, everyone would bring their own stuff, and meals were a hodgepodge, the refrigerator was full of odds and ends, and coolers were lined up on the deck and needed regular additions of bagged ice.  Now, I do all the shopping (with a few additions, like Cinnamon Rolls from the Ohio contingent), the menu is posted, and this year, a team of kids even helped with prep and clean up.  It’s a beautiful thing!
  8. Organizing Truth:  Less really is More.  I could go on and on, but I won’t!

So, learn from my experiences, I know I do.  Think things through, review and revise, and most importantly, get out there and appreciate your friends and family and life.

Organized Travel: Packing tips from the Lakeside

It seems fitting and proper, kismet perhaps, that I would publish information about organized travel from the table overlooking the lake at my favorite travel destination!

We travel a lot.   We are blessed with friends and family all over the map, and we think nothing of heading to lunch for the afternoon 2 states away.  And when you pack and unpack as often as we do, you learn some things!  So here are packing tips, for adults and children alike!

  • Take everything out of your wallet and make a copy of both sides of each card, and your passport if you are traveling abroad.  Leave  the copies and your itinerary with your house-sitter, or in an easy-to-find place at home, in case you have to call home for information.
  • Assign a home in your bags for your most important items; money, passports, car keys, cell phones and medications  (e.g. always the same backpack pocket or the top left inside corner of your suitcase, etc.).  You and your travel companions should know where these vital items are at all times.
  • Give your kids packing lists. Create equations: Small children?  # of days x 2 = # of outfits.  Older children?  # of days x 1.5 = # of outfits.  Our weekend list includes:  2 pjs, 3 underwear, 3 socks, 3 t-shirts in cold weather, 1 Church outfit (top, bottom), 1 belt, 1 sweatshirt, 1 hat, 2-3 outfits:  pants or shorts, t-shirt or long sleeved shirt, shoes (sneakers, crocs/sandals).  Also, Personal Hygiene:  toothbrush/paste, comb, soap / shampoo, lotion, deodorant; and Entertainment: books and booklights, mitts and ball, DVD player and DVDs, Nintendo DS, charger and games, IPod, watches.
  • Offer a Re-Packing List, too, for re-packing your items for departure!
  • Roll your ensembles:  This is one of my favorite recommendations!  When I pack for my kids, each roll contains a top, a bottom, underwear, t-shirts and socks.  A client packs for her color-blind husband, and puts his outfits together for him before he leaves.  Rolled outfits take up less space, too, and help you make every inch of packing space count!
  • When on the road, pack for each day:  An outfit for each person on each pile, then take a pile out each day.  This keeps the kids (and spouse?) from rummaging through (read—unpacking) the suitcase every day.
  • Pack along a color scheme, too, for example: khaki, blue and white; then you know everything matches.  Or even basic bottoms, like khaki or blue or black, and interchangeable tops (this works for my sons, though perhaps not for fashionistas).
  • Have a day pack packed all the time; bottled water, juice boxes and non-perishable snacks, sun-screen, bug spray, wipes and first aid kit, hats and sunglasses, towels and trunks.
  • If you’re traveling by car, keep swimsuits and towels in a separate, ventilated and easy to reach bag, so everyone can get to the pool or lake quickly, and suits and towels have a better chance to dry fully between swims.
  • Plan for contingencies, but don’t over-pack.  My friend says “lay out everything on the bed that you plan to take -then put half of it away”.  And pack items that multitask.  I have a great wrap that can double as a blanket in the car.  The kids have wind jackets that roll up, and double as pillows.

Enjoy your travels, and let me know your favorite packing tip ever!