Category: Back To School / Kids

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!

The Day the Bags Come Home

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Summer relaxes our daily routine, and brings opportunities to work on organizing projects.  Paper is always an issue, but working on kid and school papers in the summer offers the rare opportunity of cleaning papers off the desk or kitchen counter, and having them stay gone for a few months!  Yeah!!

     In less than 2 weeks, it will happen.  You know, IT.  That Day, the one where the contents of your child(ren)’s desk and classroom comes home in bags from school.  Ugh.  But we can handle this, I promise!  When the bags arrive, take half an hour and WITH YOUR CHILD’S ASSISTANCE:  

  1. Purge garbage immediately. 
  2. Review school supplies, set aside those items that can be used all summer or next year, and trash the rest (knowing you all will want some new things for Back-To-School. 
  3. Set aside the rest in a bin or bag, and put a date on the calendar for another hour with your child to review it.  If you are feeling really inspired, tackle this step right now, but we often want to go play on the first day of summer.

In a few weeks, when that scheduled hour arrives and you have both gained distance and perspective on the school year, decide what papers stay and what papers go.  The school papers fall into 4 or 5 categories:

  1. Tests and assessments: SAVE A FEW, especially the official reports from state testing.  And you can keep really big and meaningful projects, like book reports or essays. 
  2. Achievements, awards and progress reports: SAVE MOST, and just the last progress report if it is cumulative.  And there probably won’t be more than 10 or 15 of these.
  3. Daily school work and home work:  TOSS!
  4. Art and craft projects: TAKE PICTURES of big ones THEN PURGE the projects; save a few small ones.  If you struggle with all the Art, try: Creating a gallery on a clothes line strung across the bedroom with clips for papers; Creating a magnet wall with magnetic paint and a border, and clean it off once a month; buying a grouping of inexpensive frames, and swap out pictures every week or month.  Your little Picasso is wonderful, of course, but not every piece is a masterpiece.
  5. Other business of school (unless it is about the next Academic School Year): TOSS!

ACADEMIC BINDER:

     The important stuff in the first 2 categories goes into the Academic Binder.  Each child has an Academic Binder begun in preschool, with testing assessments (MAPS and ISATS), end-of-year grade reports, class pictures, award certificates, event programs for band and choir, special notes from teachers, etc.  My oldest recently completed an application for entrance into National Junior Honor Society.  He had to list awards and service projects from the current and past school years.  All the information he needed was in the Binder and it was huge help in putting together his application.  He enjoyed flipping through it, too.  When we start applying for high school honors and scholarships next year, we’ll be ready to go!

(Click here for a past blog on creating Binders)   and (Click here for past blogs on more Paper Management Topics)

Daily School Work and Art:

     My middle son would keep every paper he ever touched if I let him (But I don’t).  Some rainy summer day, we will go through this year’s school papers and whittle the big pile down to his true treasures:  reports or essays, big projects, math tests that earned him his math medal, etc.  We’ll wrap the keepers with a rubber band, or in a 9×13 envelope labeled with name, date and grade.  We’ll take pictures of any large or 3D art projects, and keep just the pictures.  We have a plastic box on the shelf with past years bundled in it already, and this year will be added to the top.  We have yet to review any past years, but he likes to know we kept some stuff and I respect his wishes (with limits).

Stuff as Treasures:

     Boundaries and limits are needed in the amount of papers and treasures you keep for your child.  With babies, we want to keep favorite outfits or toys or books, and keepsakes like greeting cards and growth records of course.  As the kids get older, they start to generate more keepsakes, like handmade mother’s day cards or pre-school papers, and they start to value stuff on their own, like event tickets or “treasures” like toys or balloons, etc.  Now that my boys are older, they choose to keep or toss their own stuff, in addition to stuff I deem necessary to keep, like grade reports and programs from their shows and concerts, and things.

            So, try for a sweater box size of keepsakes per year (OR LESS), regardless of what is in the box.  We keep less and less these days as keepsakes, but my boys accumulate their own “stuff” now.   Are you keeping things for you to review in 20 years, or for your child to review in 20 years?  There is no wrong answer, but if you think you are keeping things from them, ask yourself what you would want to keep from your own childhood (tip: NOT piles of old homework papers).

      As you keep papers or other treasures, WRITE A NOTE about the paper or item and leave it in the box for your child to read when he or she gets older, so you both remember in 20 years why you kept an item.  We like to see some things from our childhood, but we don’t want to be burdened with an attic full of things we don’t remember.  And always remember that activities and time spent together will be more important to your child than any stuff you may keep.

So, block out a little time in the next month to review those kid papers, purge most of them, and set some aside as to keep and treat as treasure.  And enjoy a few months with a clear kitchen counter or in-basket!

“If I Had A Nickel…” Getting Buy-In From Your Family

       If I had a nickel for every time I was asked “How do I get my family to get and stay organized?” I’d be rich.  Perhaps you want to get organized, but you feel challenged with young children, your spouse, maybe even aging parents or grown-up children who are still / again living at home. 

     Remember, please, I am an organizer, not a parenting expert or marriage counselor (as my husband and kids will attest).

     We love our family members.  No one is broken, and No one needs fixed.   Each of us has strengths and skill sets.   And sometimes, a family member’s strength is NOT organizing.  Or maintaining systems, or even seeing how their actions or inactions affect others.   BUT, we need to be able to live together in shared space.   So, here are ways to gain cooperation or “Buy-In” from family members (or co-workers, employees, etc):

Determine Your Needs.  Not Wants, but Needs.  We need clothing and shelter, we want nice clothing and a big house.  Stating “Needs” instead of “wants” creates urgency.  For example, I want things to be pretty, but I need things to be organized.  So I am willing to spend effort and money on organizing first, and “pretty” later.  And I live in a house with all men and “pretty” is not a want for them.  So I stick with needs. 

Solve a Problem.  Identify specific problems in your household, and how organizing can solve each.  If the problem is “We’re always late”, organizing your time and Launch Pad better could help you be on time.  Focus on one specific challenge.  Resist trying and failing to change everything at once.

Get Clear in Your Own Vision so that you can communicate it to others. 

“Be the change you want to see in the world.” (Mahatma Gandhi)  Set the example.  This helps us to Speak From Experience, which lends us believability.  Be willing to step up and organize yourself if you are expecting others to get organized, too. 

Keep it Simple.  Keep your ideas and message simple, dispassionate and to the point.

Keep it Realistic.  Keep participant ages, skill levels, attention spans, etc. in mind when you ask for assistance.  Strive for little steps in the right direction instead of big global changes.  Also, don’t make organizing look so easy that no one will ever offer to help; or so difficult that no one will ever want to help.

Don’t Tell, Teach.   Remember Organizing is a process, and we often need to teach the process.  No one reads minds.  Lay out each person’s part of the process for them.   I learn more every day, and I do this for a living.  Understand there is a learning curve for all family members.  

Use Marketing to sell the Organizing Process:

  1. Make a statement, how every one is going to try this new idea.
  2. Make it a Team Effort.  And let everyone know they are needed.   
  3. Express the “Why”:  Why and how everyone will benefit.
  4. State the expectations for everyone.  (And mention that you are only human, and you, too, are feeling your way through these changes).
  5. Offer assistance and resources for your projects and to help others.

Find a Motivator.  Point to something personal, specific or tangible: More money?  Less stress?  Different stuff?   With kids, the motivators could be:

  • A better morning routine will get us out the door and on to activities sooner. 
  • Purge and sell your extra toys and games and use the money for a new game system.
  • If we clean out the basement, we can gain a play / recreation room.
  • If we get more organized, we can stop driving Mom crazy. (maybe that is just me…..)
  • If we prove we are responsible in one area, we can get xx or yy privilege. 
  • If we plan the menu and put stuff on the shopping list, we get foods we like, and the cabinets are full.
  • Use life transitions, like a new school year or moving from tween to teenager, to motivate change. 
  • My boys are growing, as is their understanding of the world around them. We try to do things because sometimes they are just “the right thing to do”.  Recognize motivators can change as people grow.
  • Take advantage of Summer Vacation.  Plan an organizing project per week, and offer a reward upon completion.  E.g., Clean out the garage this morning, play this afternoon.  Work on a new habit or behavior for a week, with a trip to Rainbow Cone at the end. 

If you can’t achieve Buy-In, create boundaries.  If a family member is unwilling to participate in the organizing efforts, allow chaos in their own room but not in common space.  And if they can’t keep common space organized, then limit access to that space (this works for kids, not so much for adults!!).

     So, be specific about your organizing projects, be a good advertiser for the process, and find creative ways to get your family members involved in the process.  You will gain assistance in the short-term, and a more organized family in the future!

Organize to Your Family’s Learning Style

     I took a class recently on Organizing to specific learning styles.   There are three main learning styles: auditory, visual and kinetic. 

  1. Auditory learners prefer to hear or speak messages;
  2. Visual learners learn by seeing and / or reading; and
  3. Kinetic learners learn by doing and by moving around. 
  4. The most prevalent styles in the general population are visual and auditory learning styles. 
  5. And we all may have strengths in more than one style.

      This is good information for all of us to understand, that different people learn in different ways.  As a Professional Organizer and as a parent, I use this knowledge every day because everyone I encounter has different strengths in learning styles.  Every day, I need to remember to communicate my messages to them in their learning styles, if I expect them to learn and understand me.

      As Mom, as She Who Sets The Schedule, I took a few moments this week to fix some glitches in our morning routine.  With each of my sons’ combinations of learning styles in mind, we made some changes. 

 Visual:  
     It’s spring.  Every morning, my hopeful middle son asks what the temperature is, to decide between winter coats or the preferred Hoodie sweatshirt to wear to school.  Every morning he asks, multiple times until he receives a response, regardless of what I may be doing at that moment.  So, I am using the large bathroom mirror and a dry erase marker (favorite organizing tool ever!!) to daily publish:

  • Today’s Forecast
  • Reminders: e.g., Monday is Dress Like a Rock Star Day
  • Schedules for School and afterschool:  D – Band Today, A – Book Club after school, J – Scouts Tonight!
  • Projects:  A – don’t forget your book report

     Also, I thought we could learn from our favorite hotels – I started laying out all the breakfast stuff on one counter – toaster, bread, bagels, cereal, hard boiled eggs, fruit, bowls / plates / cups.  It has been days since anyone has asked me what was for breakfast!  They all see their options in front of them, and can choose.  My youngest actually asked to take his vitamins the last two days, and everyone has been eating more fruit.  Win-win!

Kinetic:  
        Things have changed for us since the beginning of the school year.  All 5 of us now shower in the morning, even the youngest.   Now, everyone heads out the door in the morning sans bed-head and smelling sweetly (I have a teen and a pre-teen boy.  Nuf said.). 
     Logistically, this requires that I take on a better habit for all of us (especially if we want hot showers).  I get up and get in the shower, at 5:45 am, without thinking about it – just doing it.  Kinetic learning.
     The older boys have been relegated to shower downstairs, to keep the upstairs bathroom free for the little guy and for all of us to finish getting ready.

Auditory:  
       I set the kitchen timer for noon the other day, so even though I was not home, the boys would eat lunch at noon and be ready to leave when I got home to pick them up at 1 pm.  And it worked!  Gotta try that again soon!
      Also, my teenager has been verbally objecting to expectations lately (yes, I know, he is a teenager) because I have not told him of upcoming events.  He feels I am springing these things on him.   So he will be keeping a copy of the family schedule in front of him for a few weeks, and reporting verbally to me and the rest of the family what is on the schedule for the day and the week.  He felt he did not have enough information, I have a feeling now he will think he has too much.  But too bad!

     So, remember that we all learn in different ways.  And we can use this information to teach and communicate better with the people in our lives!

Are You Drowning in Kid Papers?

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      A friend recently stated she was “Drowning in Kid Papers”, and I know we all feel that way some days.  So let me lend a hand and pull you out of your paper flood!  

     There are 3 kinds of papers:  Archival, Passive and Active.  Most of those Kid Papers bogging you down are Active Papers.  Active Papers require a next action and soon!  They are items such as permission slips to complete; a party invitation that requires a phone call, and then a trip to the store for a gift; coupons to take shopping and redeem;  and bills to mail, etc. 

     How do we get to Act on these Papers?   Decide on One and Only One place for these papers to live.  In our house, the active papers live on the kitchen desk (our Command Center).  They live in Only One Place because that makes acting on them a lot simpler!   And This One and Only One Place is also where all papers land when they come into our house, either via our mail box, backpacks, work briefcases, etc. 

  1. Use the Steps from Julie Morgenstern, Organizing From the Inside Out:
  • Sort and Purge – Make purging easy:  What can go now?  Trash?  Shred? Recycle?
  •      Complete forms and put right back in the backpack (we keep envelopes and small $$ in the desk drawer)
  •      File school papers right away. 
  • Sort the rest into Active, Passive and Archival papers
  •       Put away passive and archival immediately
  •       These are Active papers, so sort them by action:  Calls to make, Forms to complete.  Or, Sort them by when you want to Act on them, By Day:  I have a file for each day, so if I have calls to make, I’ll tuck all those reminders in this week’s Thursday file, when I know I will have an hour at home to make the calls.  Or, The Best idea:  Act on them RIGHT NOW, if you can, and move them along.
  • Assign a Home / Containerize:  Have a work space the whole family knows about, and if it tends to be a kitchen counter, so be it.
  • Equalize (Means Maintenance):  Regular maintenance is vital to any paper management system, so plan to act on your Active Papers every day or two, and to look at your Passive Papers every month or two.  Purge the information that is no longer important to you or that is about events and seasons now over.  Every Friday we clean out backpacks and folders, with my sons standing next to me.  We use four categories: Papers for Mom to Act On, Recycle/Toss, File (keep) and Homework to Complete. 

       Here are some examples of files on my kitchen desk, use them as inspiration to create and name your own files:

  1. “To File – Child’s Name” files, one for each child. I fill this file during the week as backpacks come home with papers, then file the items in a bin on each child’s closet shelf when I clean house (every week or 2)
  2. “Academics – Child’s Name” file, one for each child, for quarterly assessments, certificates, awards, etc. throughout the year.  These become part of their Archival records in their binder.
  3. Kids Activities: Current team rosters and contact lists, receipts for paid fees, raffle tickets, etc.
  4. Kids (Possible) Activities (for ideas when they come in the back packs or mail)
  5. Kids Extra Pix (pictures people give us through the year, extra school photos)
  6. Kids Religious Education (handbooks, general information)
  7. Kids Music (handbook, repair information, copies of completed sign ups)
  8. Kids Gifted Program (handbooks, overviews, resources)
  9. Kids Boy Scouts (contact information, handbook and yearly info)
  10. Kids Service (ideas for service projects, things to do)
  11. Kids School (handbooks, schedules, Principal notes and newsletters, sick child policies)

I also have a file holder on the desk, for general Family files.  All of these are accessible to all family members.

  1. Family: Adventures (ideas for places to do and things to do, parking passes, free day passes, etc.)
  2. Family: Events (guest lists for RSVPs; info or permission slips from venues, menu and party ideas for upcoming events)
  3. Family:  Home Improvements (ideas like paint colors or new front door brochures; active bids for projects, info on a new couch)
  4. Family:  Memberships (membership cards and literature for aquarium, zoo, museums, etc.)
  5. Family: Menus and coupons (take out and catering menus, along with coupons and such)
  6. Family:  Recipes (finally, some place to toss all the recipes I grab out of magazines, in a place where I can actually flip through and try them out!)
  7. Family:  Travel (travel info and packing lists for upcoming trips, accessible to me and my hubby, file goes on vacation with us)
  8. On a clip above the desk, we have upcoming event information, in reverse chronological order.  These are just for information purposes, Actions have already taken place:
    1. Invitations I have already responded to
    2. Newsletters from the library, with events I have signed up for circled or initialed
    3. forms to be turned in, like registration, with the due date noted on top
    4. Look ahead to tomorrow’s schedule

      Archival Papers are those items worthy of Long Term Storage, For example: mortgage papers, wills, passports, birth certificates, etc., and annual tax papers (for 4-7 years).  We store archival papers in small and movable labeled bins (not too big), file cabinets, or bankers boxes.   Archival Kid papers could be Keepsakes and treasures from each school year.  A great way to store those are Binders (a separate blog published 2/20/2011)

     Passive papers will most likely not be needed or retrieved except for disposal.  We keep them for a pre-determined amount of time and then discard.  Passive Kid Papers include: Completed everyday assignments and art projects; Yearly school handbook; contact lists for teams, or schedules and calendars (after we input the information into our date book / PDA of choice).   Here are a couple of ideas for How to take care of Kid Passive Papers:

  1. Short term – Open file holders on the desk or counter top, see above for suggestions 
  2. Monthly “Reminder”  files – a file for every month, for upcoming events, reminders, deadlines, etc. more than a month away (birthday party ideas and gift ideas are great to pop into monthly Reminder files).
  3. Also, if your young Picasso’s artwork and projects are gumming up the works, keep a few from year to year, or save them all to review in June, after school is over, and have your child pick their top 10.  Or, take a photo of the artwork or project, and print up and keep the photo as a memory (then you can toss the big cumbersome original)

     So, friends, if you, too, feel like you are “drowning in Kid Papers”, consider this your Life Preserver!  Spend a little time setting up your space to manage the deluge, and then spend a little time every day maintaining, or “staying a-float”.   Peace to you – Colleen

Bind Up That Paper Monster!

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Published originally in July, 2010 via  my website.   Copyright © 2010 M. Colleen Klimczak

 

I hear paper management questions all the time:

  • “What do I do with my kids’ school papers?”
  • “I cut out lots of recipes, how can I remember to use them?”
  • “How do I store my papers so that I can find things easier?”
  • “Maintenance is a pain – how can I make it go easier?”

            The answer to all these questions can be “Binders!”  Early on in my business, a friend and client helped me embrace the idea of Binders, so thanks to DCD!

 When to use a Binder system:

  • When you work with categories, like Children’s School / PTA or Medical Papers, 2009;
  • If you are a visual person or prefer to see your papers instead of filing them in file cabinets;
  • When you want or need your papers to be portable;
  • You have space limitations, binders work well instead of large file cabinets;
  • When you don’t have a system that works, or are ready to try something different to get a handle on your paper management (WHICH MEANS ALL OF US!).

Why use a Binder system:

  • You can read your information like a book;
  • You can organize your information how it makes sense to you;
  • Binders are Portable, to work on when you are on vacation, when you travel, when you are out and have some time while waiting, etc., or to take with you to doctor’s appointments;
  • Binders are Flexible, you can add or subtract folders as life evolves;
  • Binders are Duplicate-able, meaning if they work for one family member’s medical issues, perhaps you can use them for other areas of your life.

Situations that might benefit from a Binder System:  I use them for:

  • Working with categories, like
    • Children’s School / PTA or Medical Papers, 2009
    • Class topics / presentation notes, organized by topic
    • Recipes, like Main Dishes, Appetizers, Desserts, Beverages, Family Favorites
    • Children’s academic papers, organized chronologically and by child (see below for example)
    • For Bills, organized in pockets in the Binder…
  •  
    •      Chronologically by year, then by vendor
    •      Chronologically by year, then by month
    •      Use pockets for pen, calculator, check book, stamps / address labels

How to set up a Binder system:

  • If you don’t have Binders and accessories at home, take a trip to the office supply store.
  • Pick up a few 1”-3” 3-ring binders, a 3-hole punch, a stapler, 2 or 3 sets of binder pocket folders with tabs, plus pens and notepapers.
  • Sort your papers into categories, if you have not done so already, and pick a category like “Your Name – Medical” to try out the Binder idea.
  • Within my Colleen- Medical binder, I have clear binder pocket folders labeled:
  • An example of a non-medical Binder is a Binder for each student in your home.
  • As my kids get older and involved in more academic and leadership opportunities, it is so easy to access their report card history, special achievements and activities, since all the information is already grouped together.
  •  
    • Insurance Statements from my insurance company
    • Bills or statements from my physician appointments
    • Completed / Paid bills for those insurance statements and paid bills, once they are matched up and paid in full
    • Notes or articles I want to ask my doctor about
    • Articles about things I want to learn more about, like Heart health or weight loss
    • Other items might include pre or Post-operative instructions, prescriptions to fill, information about prescription meds I am taking, etc.
    • You can also keep your lab results or similar items in a binder, to make it easier to flip through them and review your progress over time.
  • We have 3 sons, therefore 3 Binders on the shelf in the kitchen.
  • Each child has a Binder, and in that Binder is a pocket for each school year.
  • We 3-hole punch the various papers or use sheet protectors (also available at your office supply store) to store awards received, newspapers articles, school pictures in photo pages, grade reports, team pictures from sports, notes, etc.

     Imagine the Binder system is like the main drive and folders in your computer.  The Binder is the main drive, and the binder pocket folders are the sub-directories for different areas of your life.  Think about the different areas, the “categories” of your life, and give paper management and a Binder system a try! 

Published originally in July, 2010 via  my website.   Copyright © 2010 M. Colleen Klimczak

Soar to New Heights: Your Landing and Launch Pad

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Every day is a good day to to work on your “Landing and Launch Pad”.

Your Landing and Launch Pad:

  • Is the flat surface near a door where you drop your stuff and bags when you enter your home and pick them up again to take with you when you leave;
  • Is crucial to your success in arriving at destinations on time and prepared; and
  • Is one organizational project that will improve your life immediately.

Why do you need a Landing and Launch Pad?

  • We come and go from home daily, often multiple times! At Klimczak Central, 5 people come and go, to and from many destinations and events.
  • Assign a Home to your necessary items (like backpacks, briefcase, keys and cell phones), corralling them in one location.  Eliminate the last-minute scramble on the way out the door!
  • You probably have a L/L Pad already, but maybe you haven’t given it much thought.  This is your chance to consider your stuff and space, and make both work better for you!

What belongs on a Landing and Launch Pad?

  • Essentials like backpacks, briefcase, keys and cell phones
  • For Launch
    • Shoes, coats and accessories
    • Boots, gloves and hats in winter
    • Umbrellas, sunscreen, ball caps and sunglasses in summer
    • Activity Accessories:
      • For Example, Bags for Soccer with shin guards and uniforms; a bag for Band with music and instruments, etc.; and the bags to go to Choir with me, Cub Scout meetings with us, etc.
  • For Landing:
    • A place to hang your keys and empty your pockets, an envelope for receipts, a jar for loose change, and a shallow bowl for your pocket contents
  • Time between Landing and Launch:
    • Phone chargers and a surge protector
    • Stock items for purses, backpacks and diaper bags, like our stash of small snacks, tissue packets, chap stick, band-aids, anti-bacterial lotion or wipes

 Where should a Landing and Launch Pad be, and what does it look like?

  • Just like your Command Center, let function dictate form.
  • Choose one door as your main entrance, and funnel all the family through there so stuff doesn’t end up all over the house.
  • A L/L Pad near your coat closet is a great idea, but not always feasible, for example our coat closet is at the front door, and our L/L Pad is at the back near the garage door.  We just limit the number of coats out at any time to 1 per child, and 2 per adult.
  • We set a 2-pair shoe limit per person at the L/L Pad to cut clutter.  Extras are stored in bedroom closets.  This time of year, we see boots and sneakers, and sneakers and crocs in the summer.  (I am the worst offender of the 2 pair rule, but I am working on it!)
  • To encourage participation, consider each family member.  For example, my youngest son has a row of hooks for his coat and backpack at his eye level, and he’s great about hanging his stuff there!
  • Use vertical space – coat racks, baskets under benches, over-the-door shoe organizer with pockets for shoes, of course, but also seasonal accessories like gloves and mittens, or umbrellas and sunscreen.
  • We keep it basic.  A bench for staging bags and for putting on shoes, hooks for coats and bags at varying heights for all of us, a basket for extra hats and gloves, and a large rubber (waterproof) mat for boots and shoes.

As with any Organizing Endeavor, maintenance is critical to your Landing and Launch Pad:

  1. Pick a spot for your essential items and stick with it.  Label it, if that helps.  But ALWAYS USE IT!
  2. Give each person assigned and labeled space (e.g. a hook or two, a cubby or basket, even a magazine holder on a shelf) for their Launch stuff AND USE IT!
  3. Re-pack bags immediately upon returning home.
  4. Keep only current season (weather and sports) items in your Landing/Launch Pad, to cut confusion and clutter.    There is so much activity there, it is essential to keep only the stuff you really need.

Invest a little time and thought (and perhaps a little money) this week, and set up your Landing and Launch Pad to make your comings and goings run more smoothly!

Your Command Center: Knowledge is Power

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Every home needs a Command Center.  Your Command Center:

  1. Is one (and only one) centralized location to manage all information (paper and electronic) that enters and leaves your home or business.
  2. Is often a part of your Landing/Launch Pad (next blog topic!).  Command Centers are all about information, Landing / Launch Pads are all about stuff,

 Why do you need a Command Center?

  • Because life is complicated!  And lack of communication, resources or information complicates it further (“Houston, We Have A Problem”)!
  • Command Centers are all about information.  Knowledge is Power.
  • A Command Center makes life simpler, easier and better.  It
    • Keeps you informed and guides your actions.  Where to go, what to do, who is going, etc.
    • Keeps you informed as a family, with everyone working off the same information.
    • Keeps you prepared for whatever life may throw your way.
    • Helps you make good and informed decisions.
    • Enables you to act on your action items, like school papers, bills to pay, forms to complete, errands to run, etc.
    • Saves time, money and peace of mind by keeping vital info on your day-to-day life easy to find.

 What belongs on a Command Center? 

  • Communication or Message Boards:
    • Contact Lists, like soccer team rosters, phone trees and our permanent one with doctor’s numbers, neighbors, family members, poison control, school, etc. (I have all the info in my phone, but it is nice to have a reference for everyone else!).
    • Lists everyone’s use, like grocery lists, task or chore assignments, homework reminders.
    • Notes to each other:  “Band Practice After School”, “Late Meeting – be home by 7 pm”, etc, keeps things running smoothly around here!
  • Calendars
    • Menu plan for the week
    • Travel plans and itineraries
    • Schedules, like Band and sports teams
    • Reminders for upcoming events.  Our event reminders, like invitations or fliers from school, are clipped together in chronological order.  As soon as an event is completed, the reminder comes down and the next event reminder is now on top.
  • Paper (just some suggestions here!):
    • Shopping lists
    • Grocery lists
    • Receipts
    • Bills to pay
    • Errands to run (receipts for returns, mail to mail, papers to drop to other people)
    • Other to-dos, like calls to make
    • A folder for current house projects, to collect bids, contact information for contractors, etc.
  • Note: Many of my Command Center functions are on my smart phone and laptop in MS Outlook.  However, I want other family members to participate, so the same info is also available in my Command Center, accessible and visible to all family members.
    • There are great websites and apps out there, like www.Rememberthemilk.com, TaDalist.com and Todoist.com to manage tasks and schedules, and multiple members can have access.

What does a Command Center look like?

  • Let Function dictate your Command Center.  Make sure there is a place for communications, calendar and paper management, and perhaps an inbox or board for each family member.
  • Google “Command Center” and see what is available.  There are some ultra cool ideas out there, but resist the Racoon Response (don’t jump at something just because it is shiny and pretty!).
  • Surf around, grab some ideas and put together what works best for you.  Make sure your ideas work before investing $$.  Pre-fab or complicated Command Centers are not necessarily better tools, they are just more attractive.  Here are two cool examples, from Real Simple, easy to implement and not too pricey:
  • The kitchen or your family entrance are the most successful places to set up your Command Center.  It needs to be centralized and convenient or it won’t get used.
  • The refrigerator door seems an obvious place for a Command Center, but beware, magnetic clips can slide down the front if they get overloaded, and strongly shut doors can send everything flying (trust me on this one!).

So, spend a little time this week and think about what you want on your own Command Center, where you want it to be, and who should use it.  Then get creative!

Your Calendar Is A Decision Making Tool

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This Blog Entry will also appear on also appears on The Savvy Woman, an on-line magazine for Women.   

Truths about Time Management:

  1. Keep A Calendar: You must keep a calendar, a written or digital record of where you need to be and when, and you must keep it with you.  All the time.
  2. Keep Only One Calendar:  You are only one person, no matter how amazing you are and how many different roles you play.  The roles of parent, child, sibling, boss, employee, volunteer or domestic hero are all played by just You.  So track your movements in just one place.
  3. Your role of Manager of Others is also important, so track the movements of loved ones and even co-workers, if their actions impact you, in that one place, too. 
  4. Make your Calendar More Complete with Contact Information.  Your calendar, written or digital, should contain a contact list of all pertinent phone numbers.  As a matter of maintenance, input every phone number for friend, family, client and contractor as soon as you get it.
  5. Make Your Calendar A Planner, and Keep A Task List with it as well.  You take care of many things, personally and professionally, so incorporating a rolling Task or To-Do List allows you to note what needs done without attaching it to a calendar date or time.
  6. Use that One Planner as a Management and Decision Making Tool.  You are given 168 hours every week to spend in your endeavors. A visual record, written or digital, helps You then decide how to distribute your time and talents.
  7. You have to trust that the One Planner is correct, and it is only as good as what you put into it.  All information must go into the Planner. Do not assume you will remember something, because maybe you won’t!  As soon as you get information about upcoming projects or events, put them into your Planner.  If you do this regularly, it will become a good habit and you will trust your One Planner to help you make decisions.  If you don’t maintain the good habit, you will never quite trust your Planner as a tool and then it is useless.
  8. Create Scheduling Guidelines:  No one schedules anything without checking with the Keeper of the Planer, You.  This pause gives you a chance to say “No” gracefully, too.
  9. Use your Planner to cultivate new positive habits:  I signed up for a 5K and cleared one hour 4 days a week to exercise.  By putting it in the Planner, I made it happen.
  10. Use your Planner to Help People Help You:  I use Outlook on my laptop computer as my time management tool.  I input all information into it, and sync it with my I-Phone a couple of times a day.  Because the info is on both my phone and laptop, my spouse can check the laptop in my absence, to make decisions, too.

Charge up your Monday Mornings

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     Happy Monday!  I read 2 different Facebook entries this morning from friends stating they had great weekends, but need another day just to catch up. 
       I  feel that way most Mondays!  So, on my calendar, I carve out until noon most Mondays to catch up, and call it my Monday Charger Morning. I do not schedule clients on Monday mornings, so I use the time to catch up on weekend stuff, take care of routine home chores and plan strategically for the week to come, both personally and professionally.
       If you don’t have a Monday morning to spare, the same results can be achieved by spending a couple of hours on a Sunday evening Charging up for the Week.   Monday morning, after delivering everyone to school:

  1. I come home and plug in my cell phone, blue tooth ear piece and IPod (hence the origins of “Charger” Morning)
  2.  (1 Hour) I get my home Back To Ready now that everyone is back to school and work. I complete my BTR routine, working room by room in the same order every week:       a.  Beds Made, bedroom surfaces cleared off;
          b.  Clothes and shoes dealt with – dirty ones in the hamper, clean ones put away;
          c.  Sweep all rooms and Empty all trash;
          d.  Kitchen cleaned up, dining room table wiped off;
          e. Bathroom cleaned up, towels hung up, surfaces clear, mirror wiped clean; 
          f. Laundry started in washer and/or dryer, dishwasher loaded and running, crock pot on!
          g. Papers gathered together for me to work on them, or purge or shred them.
  3. During my BTR Routine, I jot down the random ideas that occur to me during this particular exercise. The ideas could read “Need laundry detergent, need snacks for baseball, bake cookies for friend, new dress shoes for A, change smoke detector batteries, etc.”
  4. (1 hour) I exercise. I find that if I can do this on this first morning of the week, it sets the tone for the rest of the week. I do my 45 minutes, come home and take a shower.
  5. (1.5 hours) I sit down at my desk, now that my house is tidy and I am energized by my walk. I pull the personal papers that need my attention. Today the list includes:        a.  Schedule Medical appointments for two of us;
            b. Gather information for new front door and garage door, for purchase and installation;
            c. Write a check and fill out a permission slip for a school activity;
            d. Set up an on-line account for a fundraiser for a cancer walk next month;
            e. Send out an email to friends and family regarding a Cub Scout / Boy Scout fundraiser;
            f. Call church about music for an upcoming event this week;
            g. Pay bills for my Business, write out Thank You notes and birthday cards to drop off at the post office tomorrow on my Taking Care of Business Morning (next week’s topic!).

      My Charger Morning gives me a chance to personally re-charge and take a breath before jumping into our busy life. It gives me a chance to clear my desk and my head, and provides focus and clarity for the rest of the week. So carve out an hour or two at the beginning of your week to set the right tone for an Organized and Charged Up week!