Are You Making These Organizing Mistakes with your Purse?

Posted on May 14, 2012 by Darla DeMorrow

What is the smallest spot most of us need to organize? Our purse or wallet. Purses are command-central-on-the-go for most women. Sometimes they are aid stations for other family members. Purses can lend their style and their function to the overall first impression we form of a person. We take these necessary accessories for granted, and we might be guilty of making these mistakes that sabotage our efforts to stay organized:

1. Too big. A purse that could be used to regularly smuggle small children causes all sorts of problems, like poor visibility and aching backs. Rooting around in the bottom of something the size of a hot air balloon is about as sexy as digging into the bottom of a large bag of popcorn. Wikipedia states Parkinson’s Law as “Storage requirements will increase to meet storage capacity.” The larger your purse gets, the more stuff you are likely to pack into it.

2. Too small. My own purse is barely bigger than an iPhone. Basically, it’s a wallet on a string. Recently I started carrying my iPad with me everywhere, but my purse is much smaller than the iPad. I’ve been coping, but I don’t have a real solution. All of my essential gear needs a home in my purse, so I may be up-sizing soon. If you find you are always leaving your gear in the wrong place because it all doesn’t fit, you may need to trade up, too.

3. Fear of commitment. Once upon a time it might have been fashionable to change purse and shoes every day, but life moves at a much faster pace these days. Still, we all know women who are always changing purses, and then stating that they left some essential item in their other purse. Why not just move everything to the new purse? Fear of commitment? What if it doesn’t work out with this new purse today? Have a go-to purse for each season, and stick with it for a couple of months, to reduce the trauma associated with changing purses too often. If you can’t be contained to just one choice per season, then spring for a PursePerfector, or one of its look-alikes, which is an internal pocket that can be moved over between purses with just one hand.

4. Lack of systems. Most purses, no matter how cute, just stink at organizing. If the interior lining is black, a low-visibility situation gets even worse. If you’re lucky, they come with one or two small pockets sewn into the interior lining. Exterior pockets will cost you extra. I swear that most purses are designed by men who don’t actually have to carry much. When it comes to well-thought out storage, there are a few standouts, including the Butler Bag and the Thirty-One Gifts line. The Butler Bag has a built-in compartment that encourages items to stand up in several compartments, instead of piling on top of each other.

If any of these purse mistakes are happening to you, give yourself permission to buy a better purse. It’s a little thing that could mean a lot in your day.

What other purse mistakes could you change to become better organized?

Posted in General, Wardrobe Management | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Suffering Post-Conference Clutter

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Barb Berman

HELP!!  I just returned from my national organization’s annual conference in Baltimore. There’s no food in the house, the laundry is piled high, and I can’t see my office floor, let alone walk in it.  Doesn’t that sound funny coming from a Professional Organizer?  I’d like to hire one of me to organize the post-conference clutter.

To prevent any trip and fall injuries, I’ve decided to follow my own five basic steps to get things under control.

  1. Sort everything.  Gather all the materials that are strewn on my desk and floor and put like with like.  For those of you who have been to conferences, you know how many goodies you bring home with you
  2. Purge what I know I don’t need or won’t ever use.  Okay, things are looking a little better.  The pile is dwindling.
  3. Containerize the new workshop materials and products.  After sorting and purging, I know what I needed to house everything.  Alas, I already have containers from one of my other de-cluttering and organizing projects.
  4. Find a home for my new items.  I am even ready to start using some of them immediately.
  5. Maintain my original system.  Put items away in places that are already designated to hold them.

I scheduled the time to organize and followed my own advice of setting SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely).  I didn’t get distracted by cleaning out a file drawer that had nothing to do with organizing my conference materials.  And, guess what?  I also had fun.  I can now begin my week organized and ready to go.

I won my clutter battle, and so can you!  As you can see, even Professional Organizers are challenged to stay organized.  How do you feel every time you walk into your office and see files all over the floor, books around the bookshelf not on it, and the top of your desk buried with papers or even those goodies you brought back from a conference?  Professional Organizers are Accountability Partners who will keep you motivated and on track, help you decide what to keep and not to keep, and develop systems and strategies for you that are easy to maintain.

Posted in Clutter, General, Home Office | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Making A Difference

Posted on April 30, 2012 by Vali Heist

I went to see The Lorax with my niece and we really enjoyed the movie, including dancing to the song at the end of the movie after everyone had left! The environmental theme revolved around saving the trees so I told my niece that I would take her to IHOP for pancakes since they are offering free tree seeds as a promo for The Lorax. I’m hoping that Universal Studios keeps with the green theme of the movie and doesn’t decide to flood the market with Lorax theme-based stuff: toys, plush animals, games, etc. However, there’s probably not much chance of that happening.

The main theme of the story however revolved around the word ‘UNLESS’. The Lorax said, “UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” At my previous employer, there were a lot of built-in opportunities to “care a whole awful lot” such as volunteering, raising funds for various charities, and hold clothing and food drives. It felt like we were making a difference in the lives of people on an almost daily basis. Now that I have my own business, I look for ways to volunteer in my own community.

My former college roommate and I spent one Saturday morning with our fellow alumni from Shippensburg University volunteering at the Reading Berks Food Bank. We packaged boxes for elderly clients of the food bank. A few months ago I spent a morning working with volunteers from Habitat for Humanity by laying a floor in one of the offices at the Blind Association in Reading. I had never laid a floor before so that was really fun!

If you are cleaning out the kitchen and pantry, donate your unexpired dry goods and canned food to the food banks in your area. If you are cleaning out the bathroom and linen closet of toiletries, make-up, linens, and personal products, donate your excess personal items to emergency shelters, women’s shelters, elderly organizations or any other agency that could use your unneeded items. Go to the website for the agencies in your area and find their wish lists for the most needed items.

Posted in Clutter, Donating, General, Home, Organizing | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Finding it Hard to Get Started on That Project?

Posted on April 23, 2012 by Ellen Faye

Everyone procrastinates sometimes.  It only becomes problematic when procrastination is the norm.  Reasons for procrastination include perfectionism, overwhelm, over-analysis, and lack of planning.  What can you do when you have a project that needs to get done?

Clear the Decks:

  • Plan ahead and get your routine and critical tasks taken care of.
  • Schedule time to work on your project.  Be sure you plan enough time to get a fair amount of the project work done. Starting and stopping is hard; it takes a lot of discipline and wastes a lot of time and energy.

Make a Plan:

  • Write down the steps of the project on Post-its – one step per Post-it.
  • Put the post-it’s in a logical order.
  • You now have a plan.

Make it Fun:

  • It’s ok to alternate fun parts with more tedious ones.
  • You don’t have to start at the beginning either – if the first step is too hard or too boring, start on another part of the project.

Get Ready:

  • Pull all related material together (start this a week or two early), when you sit down to work, you’ll have your materials at hand.

Get Set:

  • When it’s time to get down to work, do what you can to minimize interruptions:
    • close out your email and Facebook
    • Forward your phone to voicemail
    • Clear the clutter off your desk
    • Close your office door.

Go:

  • Jump in and do it:
    • Know that as hard as it is to start it’s worse if you don’t get the project done or miss your deadline.
    • Don’t worry about perfection, if you never get started, you’ll never get finished.
Posted in Challenging Disorganization, General, Goal Setting, Organizing, Procrastination, Productivity, Project Management, Time Management | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

JumpStart your Photo Organizing

Posted on April 16, 2012 by Donna Jumper

People take photos every day. Some of  those photos are for special occasions and some for no special reasons, but on a whim. Most of us have boxes of photos at home waiting for us to sort & select for albums.

Photo organizing is the “someday” project that you never quite get around to doing. Where to begin & how to begin are common questions. Then there are digital photos, in your camera, phone or sitting in your computer, waiting to be shared and enjoyed. With this modern technology, your phone becomes your camera, catching that special moment and it’s easier than ever. Life is hectic and this project just never seems to get started, let alone get completed.

Here are a few easy ways to get through the organizing process quickly and easily. If organizing your photos is something that you are willing to tackle, try out the ABCs of photo organizing, created by APPO, the Association of Personal Photo Organizers to guide you in the process.

Start with four boxes:  A, B, C & S

A is for the photos you want to put in an album. Get out those boxes & bins and get sorting. Because of digital photography, we are now taking more digital images than ever before, leaving us feeling overwhelmed. It’s best to pick a theme for your album and choose the A photos – these are the photos you want to share, print or add to a keepsake book. Perhaps in your computer, you can begin sorting them in folders, according to themes to get you started.

B is for photos that you want to store in a safe, organized way in an acid free box – not all your photos, but the ones you would not want to lose. Deciding which pictures are worth saving can be a difficult and time consuming. On your computer, look into those “now themed” folders and decide which ones you want to save, but you do not want to create an online keepsake book. Subdivide those themed folders accordingly (both A & B).

C is for photos that will be tossed, deleted or put in the trash can (C = can). This can be time consuming, especially when your photos are stored in multiple places and formats. Choose blurry, out of focus and duplicate images as the obvious ones to dispose of. Remember even if you have an out of focus photo of a loved one and that’s the only one you have, it may now be designated as an A or B instead of a C. For more difficult decisions, I go to the “S” category.

S is for photos that tell a story in your life. I usually ask my clients to share the details of the photo and what’s the story behind that photo. Set up a Story folder on your computer as well and perhaps include the story in text as a subfolder to each photo. This helps my clients to make those hard decisions and decide on which to keep and which to toss. This ensures they’ll always have the important photos that they will want to share with family & friends for generations to come.

Following these ABCs of photo organizing will help you go from overwhelmed to having a system to organize photos now and in the future.

Posted in Organizing, Photos, Storage | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Use it or Lose it!

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Naomi Cook

Ok, we’ve all heard that we should keep our bodies active in order to lose weight.  We’ve also heard that we should keep our brains stimulated so we can keep our minds sharp and therefore, remember where we left our keys!  But how does “use it or lose it” relate to clothes?  Well, I will tell you now!

Clothes are tied to sentiment, self expression and comfort, so it’s no wonder why closets can become overloaded.  Sentiment, for clothing we wore at meaningful events in our lives and also times when we were a couple sizes smaller!  Self expression, for clothing we buy to show off our different sides.  And comfort, for those days you just can’t deal with constricting buttons and zippers!  Often though, these items don’t fall into your everyday wardrobe.  Did you know that there is actually a statistic created for that?  You wear 20 percent of your clothes 80 percent of the time.  So what can you do with that 80 percent that is rarely worn?  Here are some options:

1)     Consign …for formal gowns or cocktail dresses (yes, those bridesmaid dresses too!) that you don’t know if and when you will wear again.  Interview some consignment shops and let someone else appreciate and enjoy them for their special occasions!

2)     Host a clothing swap…for friends that have been eyeing items in your closet.  Beware of taking in more than you have put out and aim to use those items in your day to day 20 percent.

3)     Donate…if there are items that you know you will never wear again (maybe they’ve fallen on the floor and got pushed to the far corner!), or haven’t worn in a year.  Give them a gentle wash and bring them to your favorite charity collection site.

But maybe you’re not wearing some clothes because they are missing buttons, have ripped seams or you are just plain tired of them.  Here are some options for these dilemmas:

1)      Head to a tailor…for items with the quality to last and take them in to repair seams.  If you are missing a button, look to the stash of buttons that come with the shirts you buy – that’s what they are there for!  I store all mine in a small decorative box.

2)     Head to a low cost retailer…for items that you’re bored with.  Look for accessories like belts and broaches that can enliven and refresh what you own.  You can follow the color trends without having to buy clothes.  Plus accessories are much smaller and easier to store!

3)     Head to an art center…for shirts that have faded or just can’t be fixed.  They make great smocks for kids!

Now, with all that done, how is your closet looking?  Have you gotten to 70/30?  60/40?

Take it one day at a time and know you are not alone!  Strive to make your closet a place that you can enjoy going to, filled with items that make you happy, are flattering, and reflect your personality.  Then go out into the world, smile, and know that you look fabulous!

Posted in Closet, Clothing, Consignment, Donating, General, Home, Organizing, Wardrobe Management | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Organize Your Job Search

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Debbie Lillard

Word on the street is the economy is improving. Well that depends on your own situation doesn’t it? Unfortunately I have had many friends who have been out of work in the last five years. Most are in their 40’s and have children. This is a major blow to the family finances and morale. In order to get through this tough time, you need faith, confidence and definitely a plan.

I’ve come up with 10 tips on what you can do to be organized about your job search.

1. CREATE A ROUTINE FOR YOURSELF – There is comfort in routines. In stressful times, if you have a routine then you don’t have to think too much, just DO. Too much time to think can lead to negative thoughts.  Keep busy & productive. Maybe even throw in time for something you’ve been meaning to do.

2. START WITH GOOD LISTS

  • Industry experience – what industries have you worked in? Where would you like to work?
  • Job experience – what specific jobs have you held? The broader the better. What jobs would you like to do? (maybe your experience here has been on a volunteer basis)
  • People Connections – who do you know who has a job you would like to do? Who is still in your industry?

3. TELL EVERYONE YOU KNOW – This is no time for shame, start networking because you never know where a good job lead will come from.

4. KEEP A NOTEBOOK with you at all times. Ideas come at the strangest moments:  while you’re driving, in the shower, before bed…write down as soon as you think of a person or company you can call.

5. USE ON-LINE SEARCH ENGINES such as: Career Builders & Monster, The Ladder (for exec jobs), other specific sites for government jobs, academia, health care, etc.

  • Set up multiple searches using key words like job titles, industries, software experience. Be inclusive rather than exclusive. [i.e. not just accounting jobs in Telecommunications Industry, but all accounting & all telecom jobs]
  • Determine if you want all the searches to come to you in one day or a few one day, a few on another. Set each specific search to hit your email once a week.
  • Browse the search engines once a week. Just look at new postings from the last 7 days. Some jobs may have missed your search criteria.
  • If there are companies where you would like to work:  search their job postings every 2 weeks.

6. KEEP CONNECTED with phone networking and face-to-face networking.  If things are slow, take an old colleague out to lunch or go to their company’s happy hour or networking event.  Go to your reunions and chat with friends on line (LinkedIn, Facebook, etc.)

7. GO THROUGH YOUR OLD STUFF – Old work stuff may jog your memory on experiences or credentials you forgot about. Old school stuff may jog your memory about a person you lost touch with. Find out what they’re doing for employment.  These files might also remind you of what you LIKE to do, and what you are good at.

8. APPLY to the jobs that interest you (10-20 a week if possible)

  • Keep a log in excel w/ columns for: search engine, job title, date, progress, names, direct emails, notes.
  • If you know the name of the company, look at their website & research what they do.
  • Adapt versions of your resume and cover letter to meet the job criteria (use specific key words because these will pass the screening process)

9. FOLLOW UP 2 weeks after applying. Call HR department or send a follow up email or letter. Check the company website for a contact name if you don’t have one.

10. AT THE INTERVIEW: Dress appropriately, bring a copy of your resume, ask for the time frame and follow up the day after with an email or thank you note.

Finally, give yourself time. Know that you are not alone. Unemployment is unfortunately common these days. If you are married, talk with your spouse about a plan B, and maybe a plan C.  Think it through: “If I don’t have a job by this date, I will go get a part time job. OR We may need to move OR I may have to change fields.” Whatever it is that you believe is your next step. You need to talk about it and plan.

Posted in Goal Setting, Time Management | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

“March Madness” and Your Next Best Play for Decluttering

Posted on March 26, 2012 by Kelly Galfand

You don’t have to be a sports fan to learn a new move or two from the NCAA basketball tournament.  This single-elimination collegiate competition held every spring is informally known as March Madness. Various rounds of the tournament have distinctive names: Sweet 16, Elite 8 and Final 4.

Accept this March Madness Challenge: mimic the tournament’s elimination process to decide what deserves a place in your life.  Think, as you cull your collection, “What’s worthy of living on my trophy shelf?”  Over the course of the next three weeks, cut any bench warmers – objects that hog space, collect dust and detract from the rest of the team.

Just as athletes work toward goals and milestones like personal bests, make your decluttering goals concrete.  For example, trim 16 items of clothing so that your clothes don’t spill over into a second closet.  Or, contain your collection of figurines to 8 that fit neatly in a cabinet.  And maybe, find the 4 essential cookbooks for your kitchen shelf.

The hardest lesson March Madness teaches is “one and done.”  The Final 4 teams play two games over three days to determine the one national champion.  Culling collections down to a single winner is unrealistic, but selecting winners based on proven criteria is a good play.  Choose from a laundry list of categories: books, clothes, vases, kids’ artwork, pantry items, electronics, just to name a few, and let these Elite 8 questions be the driving force behind refining your best team.

1. Do you use it?

2. Do you love it?

A yes to either, “Do you use it?” or “Do you love it?” garners objects a guaranteed spot on the team!

3. Has it expired?

Yes to this and it’s a definite cut from the team: food, medicine, fashion or electronics.

4. Does it fit?

5. Is it flattering?

The questions, “Does it fit?” and “Is it flattering?” though suited to clothing, are not exclusive to wardrobes.  These questions ask if things fit your lifestyle.  Sometimes entire collections represent an old hobby that is irrelevant to our current interests.  Consider how much of what you own is an honest reflection of you and the life you want to live.  If something doesn’t fit for any reason… let it go.

6. Could you easily replace it?

7. Is it still valuable to you?

8. Is it easy to maintain?

Surplus supplies can rob us of space, energy and disposable income.

Don’t stockpile if you are maxing out on space.

Sentimental items are not easily replaced and are harder to part with. When paring down nostalgic items ask yourself which piece best represents that time in your life, or best reflects that personal accomplishment.

Don’t forget to simplify.  Fewer working parts, lower maintenance costs, and a smaller footprint can be a savings on several levels.

Take your time.  Give yourself an entire month to accomplish your goal. Each week, make your ‘team cuts.’  Try out the feeling of having less on your shelf, less in your collection and less on your mind.

In the end YOU will be the winner.  The March Madness basketball tournament ends on Monday April 2.  Plan ahead for your personal victory and set a date for the end of your March Madness Challenge.  Don’t throw in the towel if the tournament ends while you’re still deciding what to keep.  Decisions take time, but if you don’t declutter on a regular basis, your organizing muscles won’t be at peak performance.  Practice will perfect your skills.

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I’m Ready to Get Organized – Let’s Start with HIS Stuff

Posted on March 19, 2012 by Sue Frost

Why is organizing so much easier when you start with someone else’s belongings?

Clients often call looking for help with several projects within their home.  As I ask questions to determine their priorities and a starting point, occasionally the client will volunteer a child’s room or their husband’s “man cave.”  I agree that we can start wherever she prefers; however, my experience tells me these choices are, um, typically the least productive.

Here’s why:

1)  It’s natural to choose another person’s area because the client (the person who called to hire me) has fewer emotional attachments to the other family member’s belongings.  Deciding to let someone else’s things go is so much quicker and easier.  Isn’t it?  Trust me when I tell you this surprise won’t be received well.

2)  Next, other members of the family may not have called in the Organizer and may not yet buy into the idea of purging and organizing.  If the client starts with his or her own belongings and shows tangible results (a beautiful, organized room or two), trust is established, and volunteers start to line up.

I’ve been welcomed into many homes and, sometimes, I can actually feel the trepidation of the innocent by-standers (husbands, life partners, and children.)  These are the people who nodded “yes” to the theory of getting organized, and a few days later, find themselves, slack-jawed, being introduced to a genuine Professional Organizer standing in their living room armed with bags for “lettings things go,” “donations,” and a box for things to “to sell.”

The by-standers may openly admit to a fear that their possessions will be the first to go (good instincts).  Some ask if I’ll put their belongings on the front lawn “like they do on TV.”  Once they learn that public humiliation isn’t part of my process, the handwringing often stops, but they still follow me around keeping a watchful eye.   And, that’s okay.  In all honesty, if the tables were turned, I would need some assurances, too.

In every home, belongings get co-mingled.  Therefore, as we move through a room, methodically organizing each area, anything that doesn’t belong to the client, and seems out of place, we put in an “ask” pile.  Later, the owner of the “ask” pile decides to keep, donate, or toss those items.  All “keepers” need to be assigned home.  The best way to select a home for each item is to store it where you use it.

You might be thinking, “Building trust is great, but where should I start?”  Excellent question!  Here’s the short answer.

The way to decide where to start is to choose the area that gives you the most “pain.”  Let’s say the person making the call is a woman.  Her “pain” might refer to the discomfort of getting dressed and going out in the morning.  Is her closet full of things that don’t fit anymore?  Is the floor littered with stray shoes? Does the space feel claustrophobic?  Are there more pieces of clothing that don’t fit than do fit?  That’s enough to make anyone feel depressed before reaching the breakfast table in the morning.  If so, this is the place to start.

If everyone is late getting off to school and work because the kitchen isn’t efficient or meal planning doesn’t work, planning is needed in this area.

If you’re disorganization costs you time and money in the office, this is where organization will change your life from day one.

If you choose the space that causes you the most “pain,” organization will provide the most relief.  Once you learn some tricks of the trade, you’ll be inspired to make every facet of your life work like a well-oiled machine.

Posted in Family, General, Home, Organizing | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

How Long Should I Keep Explanations of Benefits from Medicare and Health Insurance Companies?

Posted on March 12, 2012 by Suzanne Kuhn

As an organizer of medical and financial records for seniors and others affected by age, illness and disability, I get this question a lot.  A person with multiple medical conditions can quickly acquire cartons of paperwork from Medicare, doctors’ offices, and health insurance companies.

It’s helpful to start with what medical EOBs prove:

  • The services the doctor, hospital, or other healthcare entity has provided.
  • The amount the doctor, hospital, or other healthcare provider has billed for those services.
  • The amount the medical insurance company and/or Medicare have paid.
  • The amount for which you, the patient or insurance subscriber, are responsible.

So, medical EOBs can be useful for:

  • Creating (or re-creating) a health history for yourself or someone under your care.
  • Documenting billing errors – or even fraud.
  • Ensuring that you are receiving the full insurance benefits to which you are entitled.
  • Proving that you’ve met your annual deductible, if your health insurance policy has one.
  • Demonstrating what you have paid if you take the medical expense deduction on your annual IRS 1040 Schedule A.

Obviously, keeping medical EOBs is worthwhile for some period of time.  What to do with it all and how long to keep these records will vary with your personal situation.  Here are two sets of guidelines for medical EOB retention periods and good practices – one for people in normal health and one for people with chronic, debilitating or terminal health conditions:

Normal Health

1.  Keep medical EOBs in a file for one year.  As the bills and EOBs for a medical service come in, match related items together, and address any discrepancies you detect.  Examples might include double billing or your health insurance company overlooking the fact that you have met your deductible.

2.  If, at the end of the year, you find you have paid enough in medical bills to qualify for the medical tax deduction, file the medical EOBs with your tax documentation, and keep for seven years.

3.  If you do not qualify for the medical tax deduction, and the medical bills have been paid in full by you and all providers, and you are no longer doctoring for the condition, you can safely shred last year’s crop of medical EOBs while you’re wrapping up your taxes.

4.  If some bills are still outstanding or the patient is still receiving treatment, keep the related EOBs for another year, and repeat the process.

Serious Health Condition

1.  Keep a current file close at hand for this year’s medical EOBs.  As the bills and EOBs for a medical service come in, match related items together, and address any discrepancies you detect.

2.  At the end of the year, store all of these records in date order, keeping items you’ve matched up together, in a less prominent place.  You could use a file cabinet in another room or a cardboard file box in a dry, mildew-free storage area.  If you claimed the medical tax deduction, put a note in your tax records cross-referencing these health files.

3.  Keep these medical records according to this timeline:

a.  For five years after the serious health condition has cleared up.

b.  For seven years if you’ve claimed the medical deduction.

c.  Indefinitely, if the patient is chronically ill.

d.  Until the executor informs you that the estate is completely wrapped up, if the patient has passed away.

In both of the above situations, you can keep the medical records on paper or scanned onto a computer based on your preference.  If you keep paper files, keep them out of areas where they can get wet, e.g., a basement floor.   If you go the electronic route, be sure to back up your data reliably.

One final note:  Don’t panic if you need one or more medical EOBs or haven’t kept them according to the above guidelines.  All health insurers, including Medicare, can replace an EOB, because they store them electronically.

Posted in Document Management, Paper, Special Needs | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment