Category: Organized Family

Clutter Hot Spot: Your Tech Accessories

The challenge with this hot spot is that there isn’t always just one spot.

Sometimes the tech pieces

are

all

over

the

place!

The original inspiration for the Clutter Hot Spot series was client interactions in January. And in one week, I had 3 clients who had tech accessories stirred up into every space we were organizing!

IF we ever hope to find them again, we need to assign JUST ONE HOME for our less-often used tech accessories.

In my office, our ONE tech accessory home is a desk drawer. Right next to me as I write this article. It’s not exciting or big or complicated. It holds tech items that we might need again. In preparation for writing this article, I looked in there earlier today. The boxes for my Apple watch and airpods are in there (new-ish). Extra lightning charging cables (we buy these a few at a time), charging cubes, earphone covers, users manuals, the extra cord that came with my new monitor in its labeled bag. Also, mesh bags for corralling tech accessories when we travel. A few items I came across are now obsolete, like my last two Fitbits and their very specialized chargers, and those are all now in the basket in the garage waiting for a E-Waste collection event.

Let’s review the important parts of the story above:

  • One and ONLY ONE home for tech accessories you might need again.
  • The habit of putting tech accessories in that ONE home when we get them, and putting them back in there after we use them!
  • Labeling the accessory and what it belongs with to eliminate future questions.
  • Everyone in the house knowing where the extra tech accessories live.
  • The habit around reviewing the technology at least once in a while, to determine what tech accessories we need to keep and which ones need to move along to E-Waste recycling.
  • Making sure your E-Waste actually gets recycled. Check your local recycling resources for E-Waste recycling near you. If you’re near me, check out my recycling page for resources. (https://peaceofmindpo.com/2019/06/26/organizing-resources-to-reduce-repurpose-and-recycle/)

Look around your home and establish that ONE SPOT for your extra tech accessories, and commit to moving your tech clutter there as you find it!

Go-mugs, Water Bottles and Blender Pieces, Oh My!

Go-mugs, water bottles and blender pieces, Oh My!

(We attended my niece’s elementary school’s presentation of The Wizard of Oz over the weekend, and the title just came to me!)

I have presented hundreds of times to thousands of people in my time as a professional organizer. I know what jokes will work or not. And I can bring up common hot-spots and know which hot-spot mention will elicit a groan or exclamation.

Enter… go-mugs and water bottles, and to a lesser extent, blender bits and pieces. At a presentation last month to parents of high schoolers, the mention of go-mugs and water bottles sparked a lively discourse – “Some are so old the writing is all washed off!” or “That one leaks but it’s still here!” or “We don’t even know who that one belongs to or where it came from!”!

Organizing these items is another small but mighty project with a potentially big impact!

How To:

  • First, we open all the cabinets and drawers and pull out ALL THE PIECES! Bases, lids, accessories, sleeves, hooks, rubber gaskets, etc. Oi, all the pieces!
    • And since these are all portable beverage carriers, we also need to check in the cars, cupholders and under the seats. We need to look in all the backpacks, briefcases and sports bags by the door, too. Collect all the extras from EVERYWHERE and give them a good wash.
    • Next, we pair up all the pieces. Top with bottoms, rubber gaskets with lids, straws with squeezy bottles if you use those (we don’t), etc. Since we’re talking about blender / smoothie cup pieces too, we match up the cups that go with certain blender bases, as well.


  • Once we have the pieces all paired up, line them up on the counter (gulp). Yes, all of them.
    • Take a deep breath. Look at all of them. There are probably some that need to go.
    • Part with the easy ones – the unpaired bottoms or tops, the leaky ones, the childish ones and your youngest is now a teenager.
    • You can also send the ones that don’t belong to you back to their owners!
    • Decide how many is enough and how many are too many. I know this may be tough, but you can try these strategies:
      • Sort them by owner – I am the coffee drinker, so the portable coffee mugs might go in the Colleen pile;
      • As another example, each of us has our own Swell bottles, so I might put each of those in each person’s pile.
      • Utilize what I refer to in my presentations as Mug Math. Ask Yourself:
        • How many people in my house drink coffee? (1)
        • How many cups a day? (2) and
        • How often do we run the dishwasher? (Every day / every other day)
        • So, in theory, I need 4 mugs. OF course I have more than 4 mugs. But do I need 40? No. Same goes for go mugs / water bottles, etc.


  • After you have decided which items to keep, let’s think about how and where to keep them.
    • Hopefully the pile has gotten smaller by this point.
    • Next, we need to chose one and only one place in the kitchen for these items to live.
    • If you use these items often, choose a home near the sink for easy cleaning and filling. If you use them less often, choose a location a little farther away from the sink, as that space is always in high demand.
    • As you choose a home, remember you can adjust your cabinet shelves to accommodate tall items.
    • AND… next time you are offered a promotional water bottle at an event, Just Say No!


  • The Keys to Success for go-mugs, water bottles and blender / smoothie parts are: 1. A Consistent Home; and 2. Containers!
    • When we’ve looked at these clutter hot-spots these last few weeks, we know that we want a HOME for our stuff so we can find the stuff again.
    • Having a consistent home for our go-mugs, water bottles and blender / smoothie parts means we will find those items again! If we find a top or a bottom without its match, that’s ok. If we put all the part in the HOME, we can pair them up again. And a home keeps these items from floating around in other spaces in our kitchen, getting in the way in those other spaces.
    • We use containers like these shown, available on Amazon.com or at your local retailer. The containers corral the bits and pieces like lids and bottoms, but they also establish a limit for how many things we have / need!



Try your hand at this mini-project this week and reclaim your kitchen and storage spaces!

ADHD Awareness Month, for Yourself and For Others

October is ADHD Awareness Month, and I want to help us all be more aware!

ADHD (Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder) is a
“neurodevelopmental disorder affecting both children and adults around the globe.” (from adhdawarenessmonth.org)

In my roles as a certified professional organizer, organizing coach and
fellow human being, I interact with many people with ADHD.

And, So Do You.

My next few blog articles will help you get to know ADHD.  I hope to delve deeper, but for now, let’s work on the “Awareness” of ADHD Awareness Month.

Did you know?

·    At least 10% of the population have ADHD, and probably a much higher percentage go undiagnosed or unnoticed. In a classroom
of 20 students, at least 2 have ADHD. 

·   ADHD can run in families, but not always.

  • If you have 10 friends with ADHD, each of the 10 will show their ADHD in a different way. There is no one way that a person with ADHD will act.

  • “ADHD”, at least the “H” part, may be a misnomer as not everyone who has ADHD also has hyperactivity.  ADHD can also show up as inattention, poor focus, poor planning, and poor impulse control and emotional regulation, to list just a few symptoms.

     

  •  ADHD is diagnosed from 2.5 to 4 times more often in boys than it is in girls (https://www.healthline.com/health/adhd/adhd-symptoms-in-girls-and-boys).  HOWEVER, ADHD is spread evenly between genders.  The difference is the rate of diagnosis.  ADHD shows up differently in different people, and characteristics like being “emotional”, “daydreamy” or “flighty” can wrongly be attributed to girls just because they’re girls and not because they may have an underlying condition.

     

  • ADHD can be diagnosed at any age. ADHD is diagnosed for  children of school age, but also with the transition to high school or to college, when parental supports and involvement changes and no longer compensates for the student with ADHD.

     

     

  • In addition, ADHD was not understood when most of today’s adults were children and many adults will continue to live life undiagnosed.

     

     

  • Folks with ADHD don’t need to “just try harder”, or “apply themselves”, or have better discipline.  ADHD is caused by a chemical deficit in the brain and not by some character flaw.  Often individuals with ADHD work very hard to overcome the challenges that come with ADHD and have spent their life coming up with coping strategies.

     

     

  • Some of the challenges of ADHD can also be considered benefits. For example, a characteristic of ADHD is the ability to hyper-focus on topics that are interesting to the individual. Of course, the ability to hyper-focus is also what sometimes leads to a misdiagnosis.

     

     

  • There are tools to help individuals manage their ADHD.  There is hope. 

And I think HOPE is the most important awareness of all.  

Being Organized is Good For Your Health!

I didn’t want to scare any readers with a dramatic headline, but the opposite is true, too – clutter and disorganization can be bad for our health!

This week, in preparation for upcoming health and wellness events, I’ve been seeking statistics on the correlation between health and wellness and clutter and disorganization. And, let me tell you, they are all connected.

I have been asked many times before – Which comes first? Health problems that lead to disorganization and clutter? Or clutter and disorganization that lead to health problems? And truthfully, I don’t know the answer. OR, the answer is “It depends”, which isn’t helpful.

More important than the answer to “Which came first?” is to recognize they are related! And clearing clutter and getting more organized can help us to feel better in lots of ways, too!

Most of my articles are how-to articles, but this week, I also want to remind us all of the “Why?” as in “Why do we organize and clear clutter?”

So, first the bad news (the good is coming, I promise!): Disorganization and Clutter in our physical spaces can be dangerous to our health and well-being. Consider:

  • Did you know? Household clutter can harbor bugs, rodents, moisture, mold and dust. Being around these environmental hazards can make us all feel poorly, but especially if we have allergies or breathing issues.
  • Did you know? Clutter can make it dangerous to move around our homes and workspaces. Hazards might include narrowed pathways, teetering piles of stuff and items left on the floor for us to trip over.
  • Did you know? There is a physical weight to clutter. Overpacked purses, briefcases, backpacks and luggage take a toll on our shoulders, necks and backs.
  • Imagine a cluttered car. Now imagine having to stomp on the breaks in that car to avoid an accident. Anything in a car that is not strapped down becomes a projectile in extreme braking or the event of an accident.
  • There are physiological and psychological effects of clutter and disorganization, too. Clutter and Disorganization can exacerbate the symptoms of health challenges such as anxiety, bipolar disorder, depression, diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure, to name just a few.

Fear not, though, because there is good news, too! Getting a handle on your clutter and disorganization can help improve your health and over well-being in MANY ways! Imagine with me:

  • Clear countertops and healthy food on hand in your kitchen helping you eat the way you feel you should for good health. A study from Cornell University found that the more cluttered a person’s kitchen counter is, the less likely they are to make healthy food choices.
  • Individuals living in clean homes are generally healthier than their counterparts living in clutter, according to research conducted at Indiana University.
  • Moving easily around your home if you can clear clutter and reduce risk of tripping or falling.
  • Being greeted by comfortable and inviting spaces in your home, which reduces stress and improves mood and immunity. According to The Anxiety and Depression Association of America, depression can cause clutter, and clutter can cause people to feel tired and more depressed!
  • Getting a better night’s sleep in an un-cluttered and peaceful bedroom. The National Sleep Foundation states that people who make their beds daily are more likely to sleep well every night, and 71 percent of us sleep better in a clean, fresh-smelling bedroom.
  • Feeling better when you can consistently take your prescription medications when you can find them when you need them, get them refilled on time and remember to take them because your routines support this habit.

So, as we decide to spend time on organizing and clearing clutter this week, let’s remember all the benefits that can we can reap!

Change the Toilet Paper Roll

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I had a much more interesting (I think) article topic planned for today. It was going to be visually stunning, thought-provoking, grammatically correct, entertaining and less than 500 words (because a friend told me long ago he would stop reading my articles at the 500 word mark).

However, a much better topic popped into my head as I swapped out the empty toilet paper roll at a client’s house this morning, and now I am going to talk about toilet paper. As a metaphor for life, of course.

Luckily, I have a habit of checking things such as toilet paper levels, hand towels, etc., before I use a washroom. I immediately determined the roll would be done after I was done. And another quick check told me there was no back-up roll in the usual spot.

I could have just left it – I didn’t use 99.5% of the roll, and hey, it’s not my house, after all. But:

1. I am not a jerk;
2. I firmly believe in leaving things better than I found them whenever I can;
3. I know the solution to this problem and it’s an easy fix; and
4. I may be the next person to use that washroom, and then I would be in trouble.

So, I spent the extra 2 minutes and ran downstairs to the pantry, grabbed a 6 pack and restocked the back-up rolls and the fresh roll. I had a few extras left over and left them out for the client to probably stock other places in her home. And here, reader, is the point.

Take the few extra minute to complete the tasks, especially THE EASY ONES because there is not reason not to. And to NOT complete these easy, everyday tasks can REALLY MESS UP YOUR DAY if they are neglected.

What other tasks fall into this category? The super easily fixed problem that could have wreaked havoc on your day later?

  • Put the scissors back where you found them instead of leaving them out.
  • Recycle the empty milk jug and make a note on the grocery list.
  • Empty the trash when it is full.
  • Charge your phone, and if you see your loved one’s phone near the charger but not on the charger, plug it in.
  • Change the batteries in the remote instead of leaving the task for the next poor sap who just wants to watch TV.
  • Change the toilet paper roll, or restock the empty tissue box, etc., and re-stock the back-up once a week.
  • Refill the hand soap dispenser once a week while you’re at it, because running out of soap is a pain.
  • Get gas on your way home when you realize you need it because you absolutely will not remember to leave time for it in the morning. (Don’t argue, you know I am right.)

Do these things. Because they take no time at all and can really keep your week humming along, and NOT doing them can really trip you up.

Do them because you’re not a jerk. Because it takes very little time to leave something better than you found it. Because most problems we encounter are actually pretty easy fixes if we don’t delay. And if you can’t be all these positive things, do the easy task because you may be the one who is majorly inconvenienced later!

Downsizing and The Law of the Vital Few

In organizing, the 80/20 Rule tells us that 80% of what we need is in 20% of what we have.

Let me say that again. 80% of what we need is in 20% of what we have. We use 20% of our stuff all the time. And the other 80% of our stuff, not nearly so much.

The 80 / 20 Rule comes up in almost every presentation I give! Just like “Filing is For Retrieval, Not For Storage”, which we looked at a few weeks ago, I bring up The 80 / 20 Rule, also known as the Pareto Principle, all the time as a guide to help us clear clutter.

In the last month, I discovered that the 80/20 Rule is also called The Law of the Vital Few, and though I didn’t think I could love the concept more, I LOVE this idea, of “the Vital Few”.

The next leap from “the Vital Few” is to realize that we can “Let One Represent Many”.

Let me say that again. “Let One Represent Many”.

And then let me explain:

One of my roles as an organizer is to work beside my client as they review their belongings with the intention of purging some items to help focus on others. We often end up walking down memory lane as we review items, though I have to be careful to not let the reminiscing get in the way of forward progress.

What often amazes me is the 400 items a client has kept that “remind” them of a certain time or event, like a large box of memorabilia from a favorite trip 20 years ago.  And then we admire the framed photo on the wall from that same trip.

Perhaps we’re working through a very full clothing closet, where a client has kept all the suits she ever wore for her professional life even though she is now retired or not required to wear suits.

Why do we need the box of memorabilia to remind us of a trip that we are reminded of every day? The answer is, We Do Not.

And do we need a closet full of clothes we don’t wear to remind us of our professional achievements? We do not.

So, if it is time to make clear clutter or downsize or just live lighter, consider

  • The Pareto Principle tells us that 80% of what we need is in 20% of what we have.
  • So, we need to focus most on our Vital Few – that 20% that we use all the time – and make sure that is easily accessed and well maintained.
  • We can look more critically at the 80% of our stuff that we use less often, and let some of it GO!

Moving forward:

  • Allow time for reminiscing. It is often that time to reminisce that people crave, the memory of connection or fun or achievement, and not the items themselves that people need.
  • Remind yourself that letting go or paring down of items does not diminish our love for a person or event. Letting go is about the stuff and not the memory. It’s making the decision to eliminate much of the clutter to be able to focus on these fewer but wonderful items you choose to keep.
  • Maintenance is required! Boxes of memorabilia need an annual check-in, or a cognition at the outset that souvenirs are meant to be enjoyed and shared, or just not acquired.
  • A tip: Since I used trip memorabilia as an example: When I travel, I don’t buy many souvenirs anymore.  I will purchase consumables – jams and jellies are a favorite, and we have a family tradition of fridge magnets! – but not too many t-shirts or shot glasses or themed ANYTHING. I would rather have photos or really useful items for my home that I may see regularly, rather than keepsakes that will end up in a box.
  • Turn your treasures into something useful. A good friend and client was very close to her aunt. When the aunt passed, my friend received many boxes of her aunt’s keepsakes. My client didn’t have room to store or display everything, but she “let one represent many” and had her aunt’s silver thimble collection professionally mounted and displayed in a shadow box to hang on her wall.

Finally, if you want to know more about the 80/20 Rule, a.k.a., the Pareto Principle, a.k.a., The Law of the Vital Few, check out these resources:

Enough But Not Too Much

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We traveled last week.

It was lovely.  We went to Michigan and relaxed at a house on a lake. 

The lake life is quieter and simple, especially this time of year.  We did manage to visit a nearby beach town for lunch one day (outdoors), and dipped our toes in Lake Michigan (it was 80 degrees that day!).  I also got to see my parents and one of my brothers, with masks and social distance of course, for the first time in a very long time. Hooray! But mostly we relaxed.

What I want to talk about is the variety of choices we make every day. ALL OF THE DECISIONS!

I was reminded how much of a relief it is, at times, to just have fewer choices, fewer decisions.

For example, we did a grocery run and bought we needed for 4 1/2 days, and not much more. 

At the lake house, there are things to do but … fewer than at home or during the summer.

I was reminded, as I packed for travel: we decide on what we will need, based on our plans and habits and routines and the weather, for a finite amount of time and  pack only those things (and maybe a few extra!). Getting ready is easier.  Decisions were made when I packed, so day to day I choose between jeans or a skort, sandals or sneakers.  Easy.

Simple.  Straightforward. Easier decisions, less mental clutter.

Enough but not too much. This is what being organized represents for me. What clearing clutter means to me.

I have been struggling today with a whole lot of mental clutter and the feeling of overwhelm.  Some of this can be attributed to what my friend and I call “Re-Entry”, those few days after you get home from a trip. And let’s face it – after the last year, we are out of practice with travel and the tasks around coming-home!  But I also recognized that life has been much simpler this last week. That I enjoyed the simpler schedule and fewer decisions (and sleeping in and enjoying time off, of course). 

I needed the reminder that I need Enough but not too much. Of EVERYTHING!

I’d like to learn from this awareness, for myself. I know these lessons. We probably all do. But we still need reminders and that’s how I will use this awareness. So…

I will gladly embrace my daily routines that keep my wellness and home and business humming along, taking time-wasting decision making out of my brain!

I will stop trying to complicate my days with many new ideas all at once!

I will look at fewer choices on how to spend my time and be more purposeful and intentional with my choice.

I will step back and pay attention to those instances in my days when I need to make choices. I will refer to the short list of focus areas where I want to and need to spend my time, and stick with just those when time or attention seem short.

Let’s stick with enough, but not too much.

Where can you go with that mantra this week? Cutting out time commitments, errands, clutter, wardrobe choices, visual stimuli? What can go, to simplify your day or week?

Kitchen Hacks We Plan to Keep

The topic of “The Changes we made during the Pandemic that we would like to keep (or not)” has been coming up a lot lately. For example, going to school via Zoom may NOT be something we want to keep. But having a Zoom happy hour with my college roommates who live far away is AWESOME and something we plan to keep! We can dig a little deeper into this topic, if you’d like, email me if you’re interested.

For Today, though, I’m excited to share these kitchen adjustments we instituted this time last year that will definitely stay!

  1. We (almost) eliminated paper towels and paper napkins.
    Since paper products were difficult to find I bought extra microfiber cloths on Amazon.com, and we got in the habit of using the cloths instead of paper towels and napkins. The photo shows the pile of clean cloths on the right and the basket for dirty ones on the left. We still have a roll of paper towels in the kitchen for raw meat juices but one roll lasts a long time!




2. We have a tray to corral all the sink stuff.
A year ago, we got in the daily habit of spraying down all the kitchen surfaces with an anti-bacterial spray. A spray bottle joined the other items on the small silver tray (Amazon.com) that already lived by the sink. In the picture, you can see the spray, along with lotion, hand soap and dish soap all in one compact place! (And you may notice all 4 products are from Melaleuca! If you want more info, I can connect you with my friend!)






3. I came up with a way to protect my family members’ drinking glasses (and clear clutter). Soooo… when there are lots of people living / working / going to school in my house, the counter can get cluttered with items including drinking glasses set aside by family members to use later. And, well, I may or may not have a habit of just sweeping dishes into the dishwasher, regardless of if the beverage is only half-consumed or not.

In the interest of protecting my family’s beverages, I purchased these personalized coasters (click here for my friend’s FB page of personalized items to purchase), not to force my family into anything, but to protect their drinks from my cleaning! (And they’re really good about using them!)




4. I adjusted our cabinet shelves around our new habits.
We ate. Oh, goodness, did we eat. Constantly. Suddenly all 5 of us were in our house, eating every meal at home instead of the school cafeteria or downtown at the office.

All 5. Every meal.

One of my first organizing projects was to tweak our cabinets and adjust around new habits. I cooked A LOT more, so I inventoried our pantry items and adjusted the shelf heights to accommodate a snack shelf and a can shelf.

My family was more excited about the snack shelf – just the right height for bags of chips laid on their side, easily accessible and regularly stocked.

I was more excited about the can shelf. All the cans now live on the bottom shelf where the short person (me) can easily find things. I adjusted the shelf above the cans to an inch above the tallest can which made space on the upper shelves for the snacks. Easy peasy.

5. We also have a candy basket now. Because, well, why not have a candy basket? At first, we tried to ration the candy so we didn’t eat it so quickly and then we gave up. I feel less guilty because it’s not a big basket. And sometimes you just need some M&Ms. You just do.

And we have new habits that will stay, too.

  • We run the dishwasher every night, and empty it every morning (mostly). This has been a game changer.
  • We are strategic with our take-out. We have some great local restaurants, and we’ve made a point to order from a different local restaurant a couple times a month.
  • We now order groceries on-line (woot woot!). I had always wanted to order groceries on-line but hadn’t gotten around to it. And then we were told to stay home and not go to groceries and I found the time! I go a little more often now than I did last year, but I will happily continue on-line grocery shopping with delivery.
  • Family dinners and more scratch cooking, of course, but those are topics for another article!

Anything new you would like to try in your kitchen? I’d love to hear about it!

Organizing Projects Don’t Stay Done (sorry)

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This may be difficult to read, but our organizing efforts do not always stay done. (I know, sorry about that). It’s true, though. We can do the work, work the organizing process, and LOVE the outcomes. However …

Sometimes… things slowly creep back out from their storage spaces and don’t get put back away. Or we acquire a new item but don’t dedicate a new home for that item so it lingers on the counter or in the middle of the bedroom floor, etc.

This time last year- well, we all know what we were doing this time last year. Here in Chicago, this was our last non-shelter-in-place week (not EVEN going to call it normal) before things closed down for a bit. I was agonizing over how to properly but safely celebrate my husband’s birthday, my son’s college campus was closing up until August, and trying to figure out how to pivot my business if I couldn’t actually see people in person. Well, you remember. We all have our stories.

The point, though, is that many of us responded to Shelter In Place with a flurry of organizing projects. And I LOVE THAT, of course!

However… Organizing Projects don’t stay done.  It may be time to tweak the areas you organized in a flurry a year ago.

This week, I challenge you to check in on the organizational status of areas in your home, and add some maintenance to your project list for Spring. For Example:

Kitchen:

I offered my “An Organized Kitchen” presentation last week which inspired me to take a look in my own cabinets.

Pretty, right?

I checked the dish cabinets and made sure things still made sense in there.

I checked the food cabinets, looked at expiration dates, tossed out a few stale items, made my menu for the week with what we have already and assembled a bag of food for a local food drive.

I ordered a new tea pot and a replacement blade for my blender, too.

Maintenance is quicker and easier than organizing, AND it is essential.

Clothing closets:

I know MANY of us organized clothes and closets for ourselves and our family members last Spring. I always feel the itch to review my clothes this time of year as the season changes. But if you do not always get the organizing itch, let this be your reminder – time to check in on your closets. Try things on, swap out heavy Winter items for Spring, look critically at things too old / stained / big / small and purge the things that don’t make the cut.

Be objective, friends – those lounge pants and hoodies you or your kids have been wearing for a year now? Umm, just saying, it might be time to let them go…

Linen Closets / Hall Closets / other small storage spaces :

I am lumping these storage spaces together as only YOU know how you use your storage spaces. When we attacked the linen closet or coat closet last March, we were reacting, getting by, making do. Look more critically at your small storage spaces this week and make sure they’re still doing their jobs. The process remains the same –

  • sort what is there,
  • purge what can go,
  • assign a home and containerize what you’re keeping, and
  • maintain the work as you live in your home
  • (process per Julie Morgenstern, Organizing from the Inside Out)

The good news? You may have done this project in the last 12 months, so you just need to catch up instead of starting all over.

Clearing clutter in these spaces: I offered this tip last year and here it is again – linen closets or bathroom storage? Corral your toiletries and use up all the partial bottles or travel sizes for the next few weeks, then recycle!

And cleaning supplies? OK, if you were a clorox wipe, bleach or paper towel collector (no judgement here), you may still have a stockpile of such items cluttering up your spaces. Take a couple of deep breaths and start using some of your stock to clear clutter and make room for more living.

Outdoor Spaces:

Last summer was definitely the summer of the backyard oasis.

Many of us worked on gardening, our garages and our outdoor spaces since we couldn’t really go too many places or do too many things!

Now is the time to sweep out that garage again, put the things away that have wandered out of storage over the winter and start dreaming again of warmer and sunnier days in our outdoor spaces. And maybe, just maybe, we get to include more friends this year!

Sooo, what areas made it onto your project list this week? As I wrote this, I also thought to share my resources page with everyone again, if you have recycling or hauling or selling questions as you clear clutter, https://peaceofmindpo.com/2019/06/26/organizing-resources-to-reduce-repurpose-and-recycle/.

How to Break the “Just One More Thing” Habit

This is not what I had planned to write about this week, but readers asked for More! when I admitted in last week’s newsletter that I had and also conquered my tendency for “Just One More Thing!”.

You know, “Just One More Thing!”? As in … we need to leave in 5 minutes, of course I have time to write 3 emails, or start a load of laundry, or make one more phone call.

Perhaps you have this tendency, too? It is well intentioned. For me, I just wanted to get as much done as I could so I would wring productivity out of every last SECOND of my day. Except, this practice is not very productive and it occasionally tripped me up. It might only impact me or you, but the more complicated our schedules become, the more likely this habit is to impact others negatively as well.

20 years ago, I often fell into this flawed thinking, and this judgement error was exacerbated by the fact that I was the mother of small children. Even if I thought I had an extra 5 minutes, we all know how quickly those can pass as we assemble socks or shoes or backpacks for school. And I was also setting a bad example, pushing-pushing-pushing the deadline for leaving on-time to arrive on-time. (*You could swap out child references with co-workers in the above sentence and draw the same conclusions.)

What about leaving for work or for home or anywhere else you need to get to on time? “Just One More Thing” only works when everything else works exactly as planned. And we also all know that day-to-day life rarely works exactly as planned. There is a last minute search for keys or phone, slow elevators, traffic or bad weather, and as one thing leads to another, we find ourselves rushing around, arriving late and out of sorts.

I recognized and began to remedy my issue of “Just One More Thing” when I worked downtown and commuted on the train. If I drove, it didn’t matter if I left my office a few minutes late. I could just make it up on the drive or get home a few minutes late. No biggee. BUT… if I didn’t leave my office at 4:55 pm, I would not be on the Blue Line Platform in time to catch the EL train to the Metra station to get on the train that got me home by 6:05. Trains don’t care about “Just One More Thing”. Instead, I would have to take the next train that arrived half an hour later and made more stops. And that made a BIG difference.

WHY should you break the “Just One More Thing” Habit?

Why? Because you’re not a jerk. “Wait, Coll, how could ‘Just One More Thing’ make me a jerk?” Late for meetings, drop-offs or pick-ups? And what if you’re the one who called the meeting?! Unreliable? Missed deadlines?


Why? Because you respect yourself. Last week, a friend (you know who you are!) mentioned the words “self-sabotage” when she commented on my “Just One More Thing” admission. Ouch. Hard truth, but truth nonetheless. We have to respect our own boundaries. And we can’t expect others to respect our boundaries if we do not.

Why? Because there is value in “calm”. Or “On-time”, or reliable or consistent, or having time to say Hi to a friend or sitting in your favorite seat at the meeting because you didn’t succumb to “Just One More Thing”. (Find your why and remind yourself!)

Here’s How to Break the “Just One More Thing Habit”:

Realistic Time Estimates: Know how long tasks take. If you have 10 minutes, what can you really accomplish in that time? Two 5 minute tasks or one 10 minute task and nothing more. Nothing more than 10 minutes in 10 minutes! OR… one short task and take a few minutes for a deep breath and an early start. (I know we just talked about realistic time estimates in a recent article, but it bears repeating!)

To Do Lists: Keep a to-do list, so your tasks and ideas are reliably collected and you don’t have to worry so much about JUST ONE MORE THING before you leave the house, go to your meeting, etc. With a reliable list, you can pick up where you left off.

If you really only have 5 minutes right now, “send out the ships” to others first. My accountability partner uses the term “sending out ships” to describe those communications that require a reply or action from others.



I know my pace for work. I do not know, or presume to know, other people’s pace for work. Therefore, I try to send out requests or messages to others ASAP to give time to answer. Then I make a note of when I sent the message or request, when I need to follow up, tack on a great bit WAIT and then move that task to that future time or date. As I write about sending out ships, it feels like a matter of prioritizing, and perhaps it is. But this strategy helps me communicate more effectively and focus in on what really needs to be said or done. Which leads me to….

Prioritize. When we have limited time to complete a long list of tasks, we have to identify what has to get done right now and what can wait. Don’t get distracted by shiny things or loud requests. (Loud and shiny don’t make a task important.)

Know Your Absolute Deadline, and add time in from there. Check your traffic app for commute time, check the weather for possible storms, know your route and a few alternatives. No matter how well intentioned we are, we cannot travel back in time. (Trust me, I’ve tried.)

Give Yourself Grace, as you figure this out. For goodness sake, be as kind to you as you are to others and cut yourself some slack. Forgiving yourself ahead of time for NOT doing “Just One More Thing” is a good place to start!