Serving Eastern Pennsylvania, Central and Southern New Jersey, and Delaware
Serving Eastern Pennsylvania, Central and Southern New Jersey, and Delaware
Dear Husband,
You know I love you very much. You know I want us and our family to be happy. I treasure you in my life, and I want us to always be able to work out our differences and support each other.
Unfortunately, we always seem to have the same disagreement over clutter. You are very lucky to know how to organize and to keep everything organized. I, on the other hand, struggle with this daily. Sometimes, it becomes totally overwhelming, and I don’t even know where to begin. I know you have my best interests at heart when you say you will help me, but regrettably, we end up fighting and getting nothing done.
I have tried for years to do this on my own, and I know you think I should be able to do so. As you can see, I have not been very successful at this. This is not a reflection on you, and I am hoping you will understand that I need help. It is very hard for me to admit this, but I’ve decided the time has finally come for me to ask for help from a professional organizer. The professional organizer will:
Believe me, I love every gift you have given me through the years, but the one gift I would love is for you to support me in my need for organizing help. Thank you SO much.
Love you always,
Wife
_____
The letter you just read is very real. It is from the heart and expresses a real need, and a real struggle. While this example is from a wife to her husband, husbands can explain to their wives, parents to their children, a child to their parent.
We all need help with things in our lives. Professional organizers can offer the assistance needed in this area. It doesn’t matter the size of the project. What matters is that you’ve heard what the person is saying to you. For example, a nurse practitioner client of mine is very overwhelmed with the disorganization in her home. In fact, she has taken naps after our sessions. I explained to her that removing a splinter for me is like having major surgery. Of course, I know that it isn’t, but to her, removing a splinter is nothing, but for me, it is more than nothing.
What can you do to listen to and honor your spouse’s, partner’s, parent’s, child’s, friend’s, etc. request?
Click on the title above to learn more about the featured author.
While I don’t personally know enough about college basketball teams to predict who will win this year’s March Madness Tournament, I do follow the excitement as my family creates detailed brackets and fans bet on their top picks.
In my play book, we are all winners when we follow organizing rules inspired by the concept:
The less you stress…the more freedom you gain.
The less you buy…the more financial resources you maintain.
Make your own play and create MORE in your life with these tips:
M – More clarity in your priorities gives you more time and space for life.
A – Anyone can become organized when you structure your time.
R – Review your next day’s schedule the night before to eliminate surprises.
C – Carve out time daily for exercise, nutrition and sleep.
H – Handle any task that will take less than 2 minutes – now!
M – Make physical AND mental space in your life.
A – Add breathing room into your schedule for delays and transitions.
D – Delegating is a skill worth learning – develop a team mentality.
N – NAPO.net is your go-to for help if some rules seem beyond your reach.
E – Easy access is your goal for anything you use on a daily basis.
S – Simplify one area of your life today.
S – Stay focused on priorities for big playoffs…I mean big PAY-offs 🙂
Do you enjoy spending an afternoon crafting (otherwise lovingly known to me and my friends as a Crafternoon)?
Do your materials and supplies seem to multiply like Gremlins?
Do you buy more supplies because you can’t find the ones that you already have?
Do you dread clean up time because you don’t know where to put things? Or do you avoid it all together?
The good news is that as an artist, no matter what medium you work with or how messy you can get, you have a natural love of color. Using this to your advantage is one way of helping you to set up an organized system that will work for you, and one that you will also end up loving. Continue on and see how you can teach your creative brain to love order.
Using Color to Organize
For artists who work with mosaics (my craft of choice!), jewelry, fabric and yarn, this is a great method for organizing. Artists are visual beings and the tendency is to want to see everything in front of you. Organizing by color helps to curb the need to dump everything onto your work surface, by just choosing what color you need at the time and knowing the rest of the colors are just a quick glance away.
Using Categories to Organize
For artists who paint and draw, this may be the best method for you. All colors need to be exposed to you when you work, but you can organize by medium. Acrylics, oils, charcoal, colored pencils and pastels should be kept separate. By keeping this organizational system, you can easily keep track of what’s running low. More good news is that by taking care of your materials in this way (which can be expensive, right?) you can prolong their life and avoid having to buy replacements for colors that have gone missing. Imagine being in a creative zone, only to find that you are missing what you need. Ugh!
So now that we have discussed the different ways to organize, it’s time to find storage options that will work best for you. You can think outside of the box, and you don’t need to go for the expensive predictable storage options at craft stores like Michaels. As both an organizer and an artist, my passion lies in helping people get organized and finding creative storage solutions on the cheap.
If you work with a lot of different colors and categories, a smart solution is a good old fashioned clear plastic bin. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes, yet offer the uniformity that makes for building a visually pleasing and calming organizational space. Found almost anywhere, and less expensive when bought in bulk, these beauties let you appreciate and enjoy what you have. If you are using color to organize, then let the color be the label for you. If you are using categories, create fun labels by painting ‘Acrylic Paints’ in acrylic, ‘Pastels’ in pastel, and so on, and then laminate them with an easy laminating kit that you can do at home.
Want to know how I organize my mosaics? Yes, I store some in clear plastic bins, but I also store some in a mosaic tiled dresser that I made! Yes, that’s it in the picture!
Click on the title above to learn more about the featured author.
Our new clients often tell us they feel overwhelmed by their clutter and don’t know where to begin. Starting someplace – anyplace – is the best option. Take baby steps and focus on what you’ve accomplished rather than what yet has to be done.
There is no “right place” to start, as we are all different. Select an area that doesn’t intimidate you. Your initial objective is to get the momentum going!
Here are some tips to help you start the process:
Start small – Your medicine cabinet is a great place to begin. Many items have expiration dates so those decisions are easy to make. The space is small, so the project may take only 20 minutes. As an added benefit, if you begin to feel overwhelmed when you tackle other projects, you can go back to the cabinet and re-experience the joy of being organized.
Start with a hotspot – Often, there is an area of your home that drives you crazy. For example, the unopened mail has piled up on the kitchen counter and is sliding toward to stove… or you haven’t seen the top of your dining room table in years, and company is coming. You are highly motivated to get the “monkey off your back” to regain a sense of order. Remove what doesn’t belong in the space and sort similar items together into containers as you go.
Start with what you haven’t used in years – Has your spare room become a dumping ground? This might be an easy place for you to start because you know for a fact that much of the contents hasn’t been used in years… or decades!
Once you’ve made the decision on where to begin, here are some tips to ease the process:
Limit your decluttering time – Don’t bite off more than you can chew in one session. Decision making can be draining, so determine the amount of time that works with your energy – two, three or four hours.
Make appointments with yourself – It’s easy to have good intentions but harder to do the actual work. Dedicate time to declutter by noting it on your calendar. Chances are better that you’ll keep the appointment. How does three hours every other Saturday morning sound to you?
Be kind to yourself – There is often shame associated with clutter. It took you years to accumulate, and it won’t disappear in one session. Don’t judge yourself. Keep your focus on your goal of finding what you need quickly and having a space that is harmonious and energizing.
Let us know how you start – we’d love to hear about it!
Click on the title above to learn more about the featured author.
It’s a new year. You want to be your best self. Get organized. Lose weight. Exercise. These are some of the most popular resolutions (goals) year after year. Here’s a reality check: They are all great ideas but they are NOT goals.
Why? Because they are too vague. How can you know if you’ve achieved them? What do you want to organize? How much weight do you want to lose? Do what for exercise? What’s the timeframe?
To be successful, remember this SMART acronym when creating goals.
S – Specific: Who, what, when, where, why
M – Measurable: Track progress and outcome
A – Achievable: Able to be accomplished
R – Realistic: Goal and timeframe work for you
T – Time-bound: Timeframe to start and, if applicable, end
Here are examples of SMART goals.
See the difference? On February 1st, if the bedroom is organized, you’ve lost five pounds or you’ve been walking two miles, four times a week, you’ve accomplished your goal! Conversely, if you haven’t met your goal, don’t give up. Just start anew.
Write down your goals. Schedule blocks of time in your calendar to work on them and honor those appointments as you would if they were with someone else. Close your eyes and imagine achieving your goal. Give yourself little rewards along the way.
Most important is motivation. Without it, you’re unlikely to succeed. If you’re not motivated on your own to organize your bedroom and it’s something you really want to do, find a photo of your dream bedroom and post it so you can see it every day. Think about how it would feel to actually live in this room. If you need help, ask a friend, family member, or professional organizer.
Have an organized 2016!
As we wind down the year, ’tis the season for celebrations. Unfortunately, feeling overwhelmed may be an unwelcome tradition for many of us. Last minute shopping, traffic back-ups, and the rush to decorate can make this time anything but joyous.
There’s a lot to do and think about. But help (SOS) is on its way! By incorporating organizing and productivity solutions, you can focus on what really matters – the joy and merriment of the holidays.
Streamlining and Sourcing-Out are two ways to increase productivity and manage responsibilities, including holiday traditions. Write down the tasks you need and/or want to accomplish and think about ways in which you can make things more efficient and still effective. Consider these potential tasks:
DECORATING
HOSTING
GIFT SHOPPING
Less to think about and do means more time staying in the present. And staying in the present is the best gift you can give yourself.
