Category: Motivation

8 Tools in your Focus Toolbox

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Congratulations!  It’s a new year!  You cleaned your desk and set up your workflow.  Awesome!  Now it’s time to get to work.  And your brain betrays you.  Ugh.  Instead of focusing, it wants to be anywhere but sitting at your desk getting things done.  Oh, wait, maybe that’s just my brain.

Focus, both noun and verb, is defined as “to bring to the center of interest, to concentrate”.  When working from home, I want to make the most of my time and get my work done, so I can finish up and go do something else.  And when I am working with a client, it’s my responsibility to keep our projects on task and focused, to make the most of our time together.  Focus is very important, for me and for you.

As I’ve thought about improving focus, I’ve discovered tools to use for different people, situations, assignments or types of tasks, even different times of day.  And I guess that’s my point today.  Next time you need to really buckle down, give one of these Focus ideas a try, and find out what works for you. 

Getting Started:

  1. Start with your easiest task. Sometimes we can get our brain to focus on business if we start with a couple of easy tasks first, to quickly cross them off the to-do list.  Or….
  2. Start with your hardest task.  Spending time on your toughest task ensures some progress today.  The tough tasks are also typically the longest, so we need to make time early on to get them done.
  3. Set a deadline for your self can help you stay focused and on-task.  Instead of wondering IF you can get a task done in an hour, a day, a week, resolve you WILL get it done, and get to work.  I don’t do well with open-ended assignments, so this works great for me. 
  4. Keep a pad of paper or pile of index cards next to you, to collect distracting ideas and address them later.  Keep the idea, but don’t let it derail your focus.

While You Work:

  1. If you find your focus drifting, stop trying so hard.  It might be time to take a break.
    1. Focus on or do something else for a short time, since letting your mind wander for a few minutes can actually improve focus.
    2. Take a break and walk away.  Walk around the block, take some deep breaths.  Don’t just surf the net for a few minutes, let your eyes see something new for a bit. 
    3. Be comfortable.  I can focus a little too well sometimes.  So well that hours can pass, and then I am stiff, cold, hungry and really tired.  Take breaks to keep your self comfortable as you do your work.
    4. Count to 10.  Or 20.  Or 100.  Or backwards from 20.
  2. Music:  Sometimes music helps me, sometimes it is distracting.  Know your self.  If low background music helps you focus, use it!
  3. If repeated interruptions are sabotaging your focus, take control:
    1. Turn off the tech, and respect your own time.  No email notifications, no phone calls, no Facebook or Angry Birds.
    2. Close the door, or put interruptions in your calendar.  If someone interrupts you, pause the question for 10 seconds and finish what you are doing, promise to get back to the person at an appointed time, make a quick note of the time, and then get back to work!
  4. If you are writing and you can’t seem to focus:
    1. Start with a review of what you wrote most recently.
    2. Write anything for 3 minutes, even if it is gibberish.  Just writing words can help our brain focus. 
    3. Use structure.  Remember the 5 paragraph essay you learned in elementary school?  Make a statement; offer 3 points to prove or illustrate the statement; flesh out those points; restate your statement.  My writing often starts with these ideas, or ends up in outline form with bulleted items.  If such structures help you flesh out ideas, use them!

So, next time you find your brain wandering away from the task at hand, pull one of these ideas out of your toolbox and give it a try!  Here’s to a productive, focused brain!

Six Essential Steps to An Organized Desk

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Spend an hour on your desk for National Clean off your Desk Day!   

     Focus on visual results, and save acting on ideas for another day. Corral your papers into meaningful places, so you can see what you have and start getting things done.

     Most folks are capable of sorting and piling papers into categories of their own choosing. But mid-sort, they find they need to reclaim their work space, and the papers get piled together again and set aside, instead of finding a new home. So the desk stays a mess, and they never feel “done”.

     Another challenge with papers is that they typically represent something else, like a memory, an event, a task to complete or an idea we want to keep. Acknowledging that, you need a physical storage system for your papers and ideas, and the motivation and perseverance to finish and maintain your system.  Here is what you need to do: 

    1. Remove non work related items from your desk (see last year’s blog for a list).
    2. Set up a physical system for Passive Papers (Idea from Freedom Filer, and tweaked for my clients!).
      1. Passive Papers have been acted upon, and now wait for a pre-determined time until they are no longer needed for reference (e.g., receipts, paid bills, balanced bank statements, etc.).
      2. The storage system consists of 24 hanging folders in an open top vertical holder on your desktop
        (preferred) or a very near desk drawer.  Label the folders 2 for each month, with a  “- Even Year” or  “- Odd Year” tacked on the end.  You will end up with two full years of folders, one set for last year (2011, ending in “- Odd Year”), and one for this year (“ –  Even Year”).  The Odd Year folders will hold last year’s papers from your desktop, and the Even Year folders are for adding to during 2012.  Few papers need to be kept longer than one calendar year. 
    3. Set up a physical system for Active Papers, also in an open vertical folder holder on your desk top, with folder names based on What Actions To Take or By Project, or sometimes, both!  For Example:
      1. What Actions To Take:  Receipts for Reimbursement; Calls to Make; Bills to Pay; Forms to complete and return; or Coupons, gift cards and shopping ideas.
      2. By Project (examples from my desk):  Past clients to check in with; Proposal for Home Office and Productivity Class Series; LLC Research and Paperwork; Event Folder, May Communion Party.
      3. Strategic Management, product development ideas
    4. Set up a box for Archival Papers / Treasures.  Archival Papers are long-term record keeping papers, like home purchase papers, filed taxes, appliance manuals and warranties, wills, etc.  Treasures are school project, travel papers, received greeting cards, photos, etc.  These are all projects for another day, get them off your desk.
    5. Grab two bags, one each for papers to shred later and recycling, and start distributing your desk papers to their new homes.  Grab a notebook and jot ideas down as they occur to you, do not get distracted and lose focus.
    6. Now, Get Up and Put Your Stuff Away.  You have distributed your papers to your new folders, but you may have other items that need to go elsewhere in your home or office.  Get up and Put Them Away in their final homes.  Even if this 10 minutes is in the middle of your project, Get Up and Put them away.  Then bask in the glow of your clean desk top, and keep going.  A fellow organizer calls this the Stand And Deliver step, but I can’t find out who that was, and I would happily give her credit.  The point is…. Embrace “Done”!  And feel good about your efforts!

Next Week I will offer some insight on work-flow and productivity, to get things done now that your desk is looking better!

This Is Your Chance To Choose Your Changes

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Last year, I learned that less than 50% of us make New Year’s Resolutions.  So in January, I gently nudged my dear readers to try a little to make simple painless changes, maybe, if they felt like it.  Well, you are all still dear to me, but I’m not being gentle with the topic of Resolutions this year. 

     The celebration of the New Year is not our only opportunity to make positive changes.  We can wake up any morning and say “today is the day”.  The New Year is the most publicized opportunity, though, and there are lots of available resources to help us make and keep our resolutions.  Health club memberships are discounted, as is exercise equipment to purchase.  Programs abound for weight loss and smoking cessation, healthy recipes populate the media and grocery stores run specials on the foods we are supposed to be eating.  Professional organizers send you information about goal-setting, paper management or National GO (Get Organized) Month. 🙂

      I think you are fabulous just the way you are, don’t get me wrong.  You are wonderful and fully evolved, and I do not think you need to be different.  However, we all need to realize is that Change is going to happen, no matter what.  Things change every day, every minute of our life.  And we can either be carried along with a wave, or we can start swimming.  Change happens, no matter what, but we can guide the change if we are willing to make the effort. 

Many years ago (original posting 2012!) I watched a great motivational video of Matt Cutts, previously a bigwig at Google, https://www.mattcutts.com/blog/about-me/ .  He spent 2011 completing 30-day challenges, trying new things for 30 days.  Turns out, “30 days is just the right time to start a new good habit or get rid of an old, bad habit”.  His last line really resonated most with me, “The next 30 days are going to pass, whether you like it or not”.   We might as well do something great with them!

So, two words for you:  Change and Choice.  I encourage you to think make and keep Resolutions this year.  If you don’t want to get rid of any habits, think about 12 habits you wish you had.  Change is inevitable, but we can choose our focus, and make this a positive experience.  You get to choose.

So what is it going to be?  Knowing that change will happen anyway, how will you choose to guide your change and your life in the new year? Here are some tips:

  • If you are new to the Resolution idea, try choosing one good habit from each of these areas:  personal, family, home, spiritual and financial.
  • Keep language is positive.  I am taking on new things instead of focusing on the negative. 
  • Make choices for yourself, not for others.
  • Make it public.  Letting others in on your resolutions makes you more accountable for keeping them.  I will publish mine next week, after I have added action points for myself. 
  • Throw in a couple of “gimmes”. Some easy goals that will take maybe an hour or 2, and then you can feel good crossing them off your list.  Organizing your desk drawers, cleaning out the pantry, making a long delayed doctor’s appointment, etc. 

      You can do this, friend, I know you can!  And you will be so happy when you do!  Happy New Year!

Be Peaceful and Relax With Me This Week

Reposted, original post 12.26.2011.

Can I move to the UK? Or Canada? Just for the day? I am writing this on December 26th, and my original first line quipped “my annual Boxing Day dilemma” and that I would have to look up to actually see what Boxing Day is. So I did. And, as God would have it, Boxing Day is exactly what I needed!   My dilemma was about how to spend my day, relaxing or taking care of business.   For once, relaxing won!

In other countries and cultures, the day after Christmas is reserved for relaxing and spending time with family, eating party leftovers, being thankful for what you have and giving generously to those in need. How awesome is that?

I struggle daily with two opposites: feeling compelled to constant work and motion, versus feeling the need to relax and recharge. The titles of the saved emails in my in-box this morning were indicative of these two opposites: “You-time is vital to survival”, “Take back your weekend”, “Take time off this Christmas time” on the one hand; “Productivity during the Holidays”, “Strategic Planning for the New Year!” and “Head Start Week for Businesses (using this last week of the year to get ready for strategy and organizing for next year)” on the other.

Work and motion always win. I spent the last three days lovingly and happily working hard to extend hospitality with a clean home and lovely meals, and making sure Christmas wishes came true. I cantored Christmas morning Mass (a great joy of mine), spent time with wonderful people, had some emotional ups and downs around great joy and tragedy and loss, received lovely gifts and counted my blessings.

I am sharing this not for props, but to explain why I am very tired today. So, friends, if you also struggle between work and rest, let me suggest that this week both you and I allow relaxing and re-charging to win for a change.

One of the blogs I follow states relaxation is vital to survival, an opportunity to replenish “the well”, to regain the energy we have expended and prepare us for tomorrow.  For me, today’s relaxation included sleeping in and staying in my fuzzy robe for a while, looking at lots of Legos, reading a magazine, catching up with a good friend far away and going to the movies with my family.  I believe there will be more movie watching and vegging out later this evening if I hide the remote control now….. ok, done.

I find it difficult to do nothing, so I also cleaned out my in-boxes, tidied up my house, re-pledged to healthy eating and taking my vitamins, and did some strategic planning for next year. I find positive energy replenishing, so I enjoyed these things, too!  And I did it all while wearing jammies and drinking coffee or tea from my wonderful new Keurig, my gift from my even more wonderful husband.

So, take a breath this week, take a break, and replenish your energy to prepare for the new year. If you need me, I’ll be eating leftover cheesecake for dinner and playing Wii games with my family.  Smiling all the way.

Christmas Dinner: Food and Guests Rule

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     When I blogged about menu planning a few weeks ago, my message was about saving time and money.   For special occasions, though, we want to make a meal to delight our guests.  For those events, we focus on the guests, the food and the presentation. 

     Menu planning is always a help, making impressive meals easier!  The process is similar, regardless of the focus of your meals. 

  1. Start with cleaning up your kitchen, cleaning out the fridge and clearing some work space!
  2. Consider your guests, family traditions and other logistics.  For example, I need to make sure there are ample veggie options for the vegetarians coming to Christmas dinner, and someone in the family does not onions.  We also have a Christmas Birthday in the house, so we always have birthday cake for dessert!  Logistically, count guests and plan your servings accordingly.   Remember it’s better to have leftovers than not enough.
  3. Make your menu.  Determine if and what anyone else is contributing to the meal.  Let those folks bringing items know what time dinner will be, so they know when to arrive and can determine if their dish needs to come hot or cold to your meal.
  4. Look at your recipes, check what you have on hand and make your grocery list.  Shop at least a few days ahead of time, so you can start your prep, though you may have to run out for forgotten items or last-minute purchases.  Our menu for Christmas, and my grocery items and notes in parentheses, are as follows:
    1. Ham with glaze (my MIL brings the ham, buy cranberry sauce and marmalade for the glaze, I have the rest)
    2. Baked sweet potatoes (MIL will bring)
    3. Baked or mashed potatoes (have)
    4. Biscuits (have)
    5. corn casserole (a family favorite, check sour cream, I have the rest of ingredients)
    6. green bean amandine or Christmas (petite) peas with lemon zest (buy veggie, and almonds or lemon)
    7. A pear, walnut and pomegranate spinach salad I am cobbling together from 2 recipes, choosing my favorite parts of each.  (here is one, Kraft special spinach salad, the other is from FamilyCircle.com) Should be very pretty and colorful on the table.
    8. Turtle brownies for the birthday boy (buy cake mix and caramel, have condensed milk)
    9. Cheese cake with raspberry sauce (have most ingredients, buy graham crackers and frozen raspberries)
  5. I really love cooking a big holiday meal for my family.  But it takes time in the kitchen on those special days, so I do as much as possible ahead so I can still enjoy my guests.  I can do the following a day or 2 before:
    1. Clean out fridge
    2. Make glaze
    3. Scrub potatoes
    4. Shred cheese for biscuits
    5. Sugar walnuts
    6. Bake desserts, make raspberry sauce
    7. Ice / chill wine and beer
    8. Check table linens
  6. One of my favorite tips:
    1. Wash serving dishes and roasting pan ahead of time, leave them on the counter.   
    2. Write item name on a card (or click here to see my porcelain cards) and leave card on corresponding serving dishes;
    3. Place serving dishes on server or table to make sure there is room for everything.
    4. Helpful guests can place the items in the correct dishes with the correct cards.  Let others help you!!
  7. Check the cook times on your items, then move back from your dinner time to determine when items go in the oven to have them all done at the same time.  For example: 
    1. (4 hours prior) Bake Ham
    2. (90 minutes prior) Bake sweet and regular potatoes (or mash them)
    3. (75 minutes prior) Assemble and bake corn casserole
    4. (half hour prior, take out ham to make room) Bake biscuits
    5. (Last half hour) Steam and assemble vegetable, assemble salad, set table

     What are you doing for Christmas Dinner?  And what can you do ahead of time to make things go more smoothly?  Use menu planning to make a great Christmas Dinner for your guests, while allowing you a chance to get out of the kitchen to enjoy them!  Merry Christmas!

Even Rock Stars have To-Do lists

In December 2011, when this article was originally published, one of John Lennon’s To-Do lists went up for auction.  To paraphrase, it listed “buy different marmalade”, “talk to [famous person] regarding a certain book”, “talk to the cable guy”, etc. 

I liked thinking about the universality of To-Do lists.  We all have stuff to do, even when we’re rich and famous.  Of course, John Lennon’s list was given to his assistant to complete, but I still like thinking about it. 

     My regular To-Do list is lengthy, but add in Christmas tasks and my head reels!  So, use these tips to make progress this busy week, short of hiring an assistant! 

  1. Write everything down.  Don’t assume you will remember later. 
    • If I am really busy, nothing derails me faster than my own brain.  If I waste time on indecision or whirling thoughts, or I fear I forgot something, I am not acting on those necessary To-Dos. 
    • I use technology, but sometimes I still like to write things down on paper.  As I go through my morning routine, get the kids ready or do the dishes, I jot literally every thought that occurs to me down.  This morning’s list reads 1. Tina, 2. Bob, 3. Jenny, 4. Joe Re: his mom, 5. re-print music list for mass, and 6. peanut butter cups.
    • The first 4 are emails I need to send, the 5th is a quick task, and the 6th is something that I need to put on my grocery list.   I write thoughts down so I can continue what I am doing without distraction.  Then when I am ready to get to real business, I use my list to see what I need to do.
  2. Break big tasks into little steps:
    • Every task represents an action or a list of actions.  For example, “Bake cookies” really means find recipes, check cabinets, make grocery list, go shopping, clean off kitchen counter and then bake cookies. 
    • Some of those smaller steps can be done between bigger ones, like clean off the counter when you do the dishes in the morning, check recipes while the kids do their homework, check cabinets while making dinner, make grocery list on the train to work, etc. 
  3. Maintain focus:
    • Once you have determined a reasonable list for the day, stick with it.  For example, “inventory baking supplies and add needed things to grocery list” can end up as “spend 7 hours emptying all the cabinets, make a really big mess, get overwhelmed and either throw away too much or stuff it all back in the cabinets”.  Oh, and never making the grocery list.
    • So refer back to the list regularly to make sure you’re on track.  Applaud yourself for small victories, and move on to the next task.
    • Try setting a timer and powering through as many of the little tasks as possible in say, 20 minutes.
  4. Make a January list:
    • While putting away laundry the other day, I was frustrated at the state of my tween’s t-shirt drawer.  I need to go through the shirts, and purge a bunch.  BUT NOT TODAY!
    • So that’s on the January list, along with “purge and pack the decorations” “tidy up the crawl space” and “organize the furnace room”.  All are important, but none are vitally important today or even this month, so they don’t deserve my attention right now.
  5. Take care of yourself.  Eat to fuel your body and mind before action.  Try to get enough rest (though speaking with a friend last week about our To Do lists, we both said “Sleep is overrated!!).  Seriously though, you can’t do anything if you get too tired or run-down. 
  6. Keep it fun:  stop for a pumpkin spice latte, sing along loudly to Christmas carols in the car, ride the grocery cart back to your car.  These are the holidays, after all!  Enjoy!

Want to see John Lennon’s list?  Click here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/nov/28/john-lennon-to-do-list

Also of note, during the same NPR broadcast where I heard about John Lennon’s To-Do list, Johnny Cash’s To-Do list: was also mentioned:  http://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/lists-of-note

How Can You NOT Menu Plan?

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A woman next to me at the grocery last week admired my organized list.  I mentioned how we always post a list on the refrigerator so we can note when we run out of something, and how the list is handy when it comes to menu planning.  Which naturally led to “Menu planning?  What is that?”  I’ve menu planned for so long, I honestly don’t recall how Not to menu plan.  It is so easy, essential and helpful, I don’t know folks survive without it, especially during this busy time of year!

So, make a calendar of this week and note any special events or scheduling issues.  Then think about what food you have on hand and what you want for dinner this week.   For example,

  • Sunday:  Dinner with friends, take a side dish
  • Monday: home day, Make Soup
  • Tuesday: volleyball game, left-overs
  • Wednesday: Taco!
  • Thursday: Home early, grill chicken
  • Friday: tournament / scouts, Pizza?
  • Saturday: Party

Why should you menu plan this time of year?

Save money and make space.  Menu planning helps you use what you have and make room in the cabinets or freezer for baking or party food.  Make space, buy less, waste less!  Once you make your plan, you may find you don’t need to go shopping!

    1. Plan your leftovers.  I’m home today and have time to make soup, so I am turning a frozen turkey carcass into turkey noodle soup by dinner (hmmmm, I think I can say I have never used the word “carcass” in a blog before!).
    2. Sunday I’ll make a ham, then dice the leftovers for chef salad and a carbonara pasta sauce next week.  I also made extra cheese sauce the other day, to be used on pasta one day next week when we are really busy!

Save time.

    1. Don’t go to the grocery unless you have to!
    2. I can put a roast, soup or stew in the crock pot at 7 am, ignore it all day, and still have dinner ready at 5 pm.  I typically have more food prep time in the morning than I do after school, so this works out well for us.  But making dinner at 7 am requires a plan!
    3. Plan your prep:  I have a great tray that makes it easy to bring veggies and dip to holiday parties.   I peel and cut lots of veggies all at once, then use them for 3 or 4 parties, plus in recipes at home.  And now my sons are old enough to help with the washing and peeling!

Provide good nutrition and peace of mind.

    1. When the weather turns colder and the schedules heat up, we all tend to catch colds.  Good nutrition helps us stay well and keep our energy up for holiday fun and activities.  We eat better and better-for-us food with menu planning.
    2. My oldest son thanked me recently for NOT relying on fast food to feed him and his brothers, even when we’re busy (I was floored, right?!).  He and I agree that fast food is convenient, but we are not used to the grease and carbs and don’t particularly like the taste.

So, as I finished this, I got up and put the diced-last-week carrots, celery and onions in my soup pot. Now I’ll edit it, send it for publication, and get cracking on cleaning out my fridge and freezer and putting together the rest of my menu plan.  Give yourself the gift of time and menu and a little sanity, and give menu planning a try this week!

How About “Cookie Tuesday”?

Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday.  May I suggest “Cookie Tuesday”?  It’s time to bake!

     First things first, check your recipes.  Pull out your favorites, and maybe one or two new ones.  (If you are looking for inspiration, you can purchase my friend Chef Kate’s cookbook “It’s Magic” from the Evergreen Park Public Library.) Know your limits, and be realistic.  Don’t try to make 20 different kinds, stick with what you do well,

      Ask yourself whose tradition is it anyway?  Growing up, my mom always rolled out and cookie-cuttered cookies with frosting every year.  My boys and I tried that one year, but they weren’t too interested, so we let it go.  I tried Oreo truffles, too, and while they were delicious, they were a lot of work, so I let those go, too.  Christmas Eve lemon bars are a special tradition with my oldest son, though, so they stay!

      Make Your Plan.  Do you want to bake all at once, or in bits and pieces?  We used to have a big holiday baking event over Thanksgiving weekend.  I have lovely memories of those events, but schedules have gotten more complicated.  Now I bake a few batches on the weekend, and a batch a day during dinner preparation until I’m done.  One batch at a time feels more do-able for me.  Choose for yourself!

      Check your recipes, then your supplies and dishes, too, and make your shopping list.  Buy the real stuff.  Real vanilla, real butter and actual eggs (right VH?).  For flavor and texture and gift giving, yes, it is worth it.  If something is costly to purchase or cumbersome to store, like special pans (Bundt cake, CK?) or expensive spices, borrow, swap or share from friends or family members. 

      Clear your counters.  My kitchen is small and I need to maximize my work space.  My largest counter is clear at all times, and the other ones, too, if I can manage it.   Kitchens are usually for work, not for show, and they have enough personality on their own.  Limit the canisters, decorative jars, clutter, etc. 

      Shop alone.  My kids are helpful, but they give new meaning to “impulse purchases”.  Stick with your baking supplies shopping list.  Now is not the time to stock up for the next month.  Some specialty items are expensive or hard to find, so purchase just what you need.

     For actual baking, enlist aid – my kids are great sous chefs these days.  They can dice and chop and unwrap hundreds of chocolate kisses, so I get their help and we have fun. 

     Prepare your cookies all the way to baking, but pop them in the freezer instead of the oven.  Once frozen, store them in a freezer bag, and bake as needed.  No thawing necessary, just add a minute or two to bake time. This only works if your husband is not aware of this or doesn’t eat raw dough, like mine does!  If you are shipping cookies, pack them as soon as they cool. Freeze the packaged cookies until you are ready to ship them.

     Happy Baking!  and if you have extra cookies lying around, remember the friendly organizer who gave you good tips
(gingerbread is my favorite:)!

Sleep Advice From A Recovering Insomniac

Poor sleep makes us overwhelmed, unmotivated and unfocused.  Being well rested makes good time management and organization possible.  So here is what I have learned, from an organizer’s point of view, on my journey to a good night’s sleep.

     I love to snuggle down for a good night’s sleep, especially this chilly time of year.  But sometimes good sleep eludes us, for a host of reasons.  I have never fallen asleep easily, and there have been times in my life where it has been nearly impossible.  My hubby kindly observed that I am a stickler for good sleep habits in my kids because I don’t want them to suffer from insomnia like I did, and he’s right.  I encourage good sleep habits in all of us, to help my kids now and later in life.

Tidy up your bedroom for better sleep:

     The National Sleep Foundation tells us that people who make their beds daily are more likely to sleep well every night, and 71 percent of us sleep better in a fresh-smelling bedroom.  In addition, a cluttered room reminds us of unfinished tasks, whereas a calm and uncluttered room helps us relax.  Closing closet doors and dresser drawers further soothes us.

     We sleep best in a cool-not-cold, dark (no bright alarm clocks!), and quiet (but not too quiet, I like a little white noise) room.  Limit the use of your bedroom to sleep and relaxation.  No distractions.  No computer, no TV (yes, really), no treadmill or workout equipment, no unfinished work or unfolded laundry.   Sleep and relaxation, That’s It!

Good Sleep Hygiene:

     Go to bed and get up the same time every day.  I won’t tell you to get your full 8 hours, since some adults need less and some need even more.  Adjust your bedtime and wake time to where you fall asleep when you go to bed, and awake rested, sometimes without the alarm clock.  And try to stay close to your target bedtime and wake time even on weekends and vacations.

Put your brain to rest: 

     A favorite tip to clients and friends is to keep a notebook and pen (I have a pen that lights up!) at the bedside to jot down stray thoughts for the next day.  Anxiety and a cluttered mind can interfere with falling asleep.

Organize Your Home for Better Rest:

     You will be spending lots of time indoors soon, so make your home cozy and soothing for the colder nights ahead: 

  • Assemble cozy blankets and candles in the rooms where you spend your evenings.
  • Set up a tray for tea and hot chocolate-making in the kitchen, to make it easier for you to have a soothing hot beverage (this is one of my kids’ favorite parts of colder weather!).
  • Turn down the lights in the evening, to remind your body it is time to sleep.  Strategically place lamps to light your rooms, turn off the bright overhead lights!

 Sweet dreams!

Got Kids? or a Spouse? Organize Together!

     This Article is dedicated to 3 friends, L., K. & A.  I started this as an “Organize your kid’s bedroom” article in response to a request from L.  Thanks to K. and A.,  I realized today that the same suggestions I have for organizing with kids would work for organizing with other adults, too! (Perhaps your Spouse? Parent? Sibling? Who knows?!)

     I also tried something new this week, posting visuals on my Pinterest page, so click here for more inspiration!  http://pinterest.com/colleencpo/kid-s-storage-ideas/

So, friends, here are your answers!

  1. Organize WITH your loved one, to get their input, their cooperation and to transfer organizing skills.  Yes, it may take longer, but they need to know where things belong, and to learn how to organize for themselves.  However, and you don’t need to tell them this, keep in mind the few things you may come back for and dispose of permanently, after the fact.
  2. Recognize your differences.
    1. We see trash, they see treasure.  We’re both right.  But you can’t just throw away their treasure. 
    2. You and your loved one may have different learning styles.  You are both right, but may have different ideas.  Respect both. 
    3. Our children and loved ones are constantly evolving, as are their interests and their stuff.  What is important now may need to move to make way for other things in 6 months or a year.   (Another friend called it “keeping it lean” to describe the clutter control in her daughter’s very small room.  She keeps only what is for current interests and purges the rest!) 
  3. Start with the easy stuff: dirty clothes, dirty dishes (though these shouldn’t be in there in the first place!!).  And start small. If the whole room is overwhelming to both of you, plan on tackling just the dresser or closet or bookshelves today.  Conquer that, then move on to the next area.  Set a timer, and you both get to take a break when the timer goes off.  Then back to work!
  4. Always have a destination in mind for items to purge.  Options include elsewhere in your home, give to family, donate to charity or local non-profits like the Library or sell (Game Crazy or Play It Again Sports).
    1. Discussing respect and taking care of stuff, one of my cub scouts said he “recycles some of his toys this time of year to make room for new things and to help the kids who don’t have any toys.  So sweet, and so true!
  5. Keep the process objective and unemotional.  Try “I read an article / Mrs. Klimczak / my Professional Organizer suggested we spend some time organizing the bedroom.  We can make some space by clearing out outgrown summer clothes, off season clothes and sport equipment, etc.  This makes room for new items you’ll get for Christmas.”  (Sounds better than what we want to say, “Ugh, that’s it!  We’re throwing everything out!”)
  6. Show your loved one the benefits of being organized.  Just last week, I taught organizing to 45 elementary students.  During the class, we talked a lot about the benefits of organizing.  
    1. For example, “Cleaning out your closet and drawers of clothes you don’t wear makes it easier to find your favorites / get dressed in the morning / get to practice on time. “
    2. Or “When we organize our hobby stuff, like baseball cards or jewelry making supplies, we make sure not to lose or break them.  Then we can find what we need when we need it.”
    3. Or “You really love your Nintendo DS / cell phone / IPod / Ninjago figures (I have sons).  Let’s create a spot for them so you can always find them.”
  7. Every Kid’s room should have:
    1. High shelves for display of childhood treasures, trophies, etc.
    2. Low shelves for books and toys, low so they can reach them and put things away.
    3. A dresser they can access, safely open and close all drawers.
    4. Closet space for hanging clothes.  We hang school clothes in the closet on hangers.  High closet shelf storage is great for off-season clothes, childhood treasures in clear, well labeled boxes.
    5. Lots and lots of hooks (like command hooks) for hats, accessories, medals, belts, etc., hung low for easy access.  Your children may be vertically challenged, so their storage solutions should be down on their level!
    6. Under bed storage for bedding, small toys in bins, off-season clothes, etc.

Organizing can be fun, and it is always useful!  Organize with your family members to make your home more livable, and teach each other a few things while you are at it!