2. Give gift receipts with your gifts and toss the original receipts.

3. Reduce junk mail by registering with DMAChoice.org.

4. Throw away those small-dollar-amount cash receipts before you even get home.

5. Call the charities you no longer support and request to be removed from their mailing list.

6. Put your magazine subscriptions on a diet.

7. Scan your recipes and get rid of the sheets of paper and recipe cards.

8. Shred your medical explanation of benefit statements after you review them.

9. Throw away those investment prospectus reports if you’ve never read them then request online copies only.

10. Eliminate the other language portions of your product manuals.

While there are many ways to organize, I have found that my clients who feel disorganized handle their “stuff” in one of three ways.  These are names for the kinds of disorganization that I often encounter.

The Pilot

This person loves to “pile it” (that’s why I call them a pilot). In their home or office you will find things stacked vertically. It may be papers, books, or clothes; they may be stacked neatly or haphazardly but they are piles nonetheless. These pilots will often say that they know exactly where everything is and they’re right… it’s in a pile!  How are they comfortable organizing this way? Are they really comfortable organizing this way? The answer is yes.  In Lanna Nakone’ s book, Organizing for your Brain Type, she states that this type of person should embrace their stacking preference but limit the number of piles, save less stuff to begin with, and use clear containers.

The Flight Attendant

Visualize the flight attendant on a plane – you walk onto a plane, they have everything neat as a pin and are smiling brightly. But they have a secret place, a closet of sorts. There, all of the tools for their job are hidden away – the beverage cart, coffee carafes, garbage bins, magazines, coats, and who knows what else.  A person who organizes like a flight attendant has a neat and orderly appearance on the outside but don’t dare look in their closets, laundry room or desk drawers! In fact, many of us have been quasi flight attendants in our lives – company rings the doorbell and with one swoosh we clear the papers off the kitchen counter into a bag and throw it in the pantry. Many people become flight attendants in their attempts to organize because they never get around to actually organizing and use closets, boxes or any close-able area to stash things when they want a sense of [eace in their environment.

Crop Duster

This person has it all spread out.  Just like a little crop duster, making sure to cover every nook and cranny. Every horizontal surface is covered with dishes, papers, projects, etc.  When the crop duster person begins to think about getting organized, they are instantly overwhelmed because they do not know where to start. They are paralyzed and cannot take action. Barbara Hemphill, author of Taming the Paper Tiger at Home, says that clutter is postponed decisions.  This person just cannot make a decision about what to do with the “stuff”.

Let me give it to you straight-

If you haven’t read it by now, you are probably never going to read it. So let it go!

It’s time to start fresh and have a plan for all the reading you intend to do this year.

First, set some boundaries. How many articles, books, magazines will you let pile up to read before you actually get to reading them? Determine what is manageable. I have no more than 2 books in line to be read after I finish the book I’m currently reading. There are certainly lots more I want to read but I just keep a book list instead of buying more books and magazines to have stacked by my reading chair. (I am even moving to more ebooks now that I have my iPad.) Boundaries can also be set for the number of magazines you subscribe to. Take a look at the number of subscriptions you have now and if many of those have gone unread last year then cut back your subscriptions by 50% as a starting point.

Decide how you will contain your reading materials. Some ways to do this are with magazine holders, baskets, or dedicating a shelf on a bookcase or side table for things you plan to read next. Having a specific place that contains your reading materials is also another way to set a boundary. If the reading materials start to exceed the designated space, then some need to be purged. No guilt, just follow your own boundaries…

Avoid printing out articles or emails you find on the Internet; it’s a waste of our resources. Bookmark it and come back to it when you do have time to read it. For newsletters and random sheets of paper you have accumulated to read, create a portable ”To Read” folder.  Take it with you and sneak in some reading while waiting at the doctor’s office, while parked and waiting for kids to get out of school, while getting a pedicure or, my favorite, while sitting in the airport waiting for a flight.

If you really want to get some reading done, plan for it. Set aside time daily or weekly to read. If you are not doing this already, you may need to schedule actual time in your calendar until it becomes a habit. It’s perfectly fine to have an appointment with yourself, you know! Speaking of habits, it’s also a good idea to go through and purge your reading piles quarterly. Things that seemed like a “must read” look a whole lot different after 3 months has gone by! Re-evaluate and purge the reading materials regularly, you’ll feel so much better!

Today I am excited to have Tracey Foulkes, professional organiser (they spell is with an “s” over there) from South Africa, give you more ideas for your small space. Welcome Tracey!

Tracey Foulkes

When space is tight it’s time to get creative!

1. First things first.

Making a decision to get organised and actually getting going is half the battle won. Decide how you would like the space to look, arm yourself with refuse bags, recycle boxes and containers for things that you might choose to give-away or sell. Take the phone off the hook to avoid distraction and prepare yourself for making immediate decisions. Getting organised is a two phased process. First you need to declutter, this is the purging stage when you touch every item and decide whether you need, use or love it. If you don’t answer a resounding honest “yes” to any of these … chances are it is time for you to pass that item on. Only once you know what you are going to keep can you move on to phase two of the process: storing and maintaining.
READ MORE

Here are the 5 keys mentioned in the video above to help you organize a small space:

• Let go of the extras
• Be size conscious
• Go vertical
• Buy multifunction furniture
• Regular maintenance

Do you have a clever idea that you have implemented in a small space? If you do, please share it here!

Beginning February 28th thru March 4th , you can post your photo and link to your blog so that others can see how you successfully organized a small space.
If you would like to participate you will need to paste the code below at the top or bottom of your blog post to show you are participating in Organizing Small Spaces!
Simply copy the code below in the box and paste where you can edit the html in your blog post.

Don’t have a blog or photo to contribute? That’s okay, just leave a comment below. We’d all love to hear your ideas!

The “O” in FOCUS stands for:

Opt out of a few things

As you go through your week be on the look out for things that crowd your life but do not bring value.

My mentor, Barbara Hemphill, always said  that a productive environment is “an intentional setting in which  everything around you supports your goals and who you want to be”.  Sit with that for a minute. ….   Now look around your desk, your home, your emails and what do you find there that does not support your goals and who you want to be?  Here are a few examples of things I have found that don’t bring value to my life:

1. Subscribing to a blog feed that I never read
2. Getting an weekly email that had quotes that I never found useful
3. Magazines that I never read
4. The weekend newspaper
5. A networking group that met in the evening

This short list is an example of how, over a period of time, we fail to see the things that are not useful.  While we do not “see” them, they do add to the mental clutter of our minds.  Seeing the weekend paper, for example, stack up on the entry table makes me feel guilty for not taking the time to read it.  I also feel the neglected newspaper is a waste of natural resources if I am not using it; after all, trees were cutdown to make that newspaper.

In order to focus, we must opt out of a few things.  These things may be in the “background” of our day to day life and we may not pay much attention to them.  However, they are still in our peripheral. If we want better focus and more time in our day, we need to get rid of the unproductive things to make room for life.

So, I’m curous. What can you opt out of this week?  Post a comment here.

Still on the wardrobe topic – wouldn’t you like to have the most put together wardrobe of the season?

Are you ready to simplify your wardrobe? Here’s a formula ( and you don’t have to know algebra) for creating a wardrobe filled with possibilities. It’s called:

Capsule Theory of Wardrobing

Start with your choice of 4 bottoms ( skirts, skorts, pants, capris,etc)

Add your choice of 5 coordinating tops (tshirts, blouses, shirts)

These nine pieces, since they all coordinate, make for a total of 20 outfits combinations! But wait, there’s more….

Add one jacket and that equals a total of 40 outfits;

add another jacket and that equals a total of 60 outfits

and add one more jacket and the total combination of possible outfits equals 80 outfits!!

That means that with only 12 articles of clothing, you have 80 possible wardrobe combinations!  While I cannot illustrate the combinations for you on this blog post,  I can promise you that I saw this demonstrated live and it works!

I learned this useful technique from an image consultant, Lois Payne.  Using different pieces that coordinate enables you to have less clothing but a larger wardrobe… Brilliant! And we haven’t even talked about adding accessories..

So, is anyone willing to try this capsule wardrobe idea?  I am going to use it for my winter wardrobe this year… who’s with me?!

Today, Organize to Downsize: Preparing to Simplify Your Home, was officially and professionally published. This is my first book and I cannot tell you how excited I am! This is one of those life long goals and now I get to share it with you!

This workbook is a step by step guide for you, or anyone you know, to use whether downsizing as an empty nester, preparing to move, or simply wanting to reduce the clutter and create a harmonious home environment. You will find the answers on how to accomplish it here! The workbook starts with steps to creating your organizing plan, teaches you the principles of organization and guides you through the entire process, tackling everything from papers to possessions! Make the job of simplifying your life easier, by following a step by step strategy to help you achieve your organizing goals.

The workbook includes:

• Easy to understand steps to start your project
• Project planner & checklists
• Donation worksheets
• Tons of resources!

The workbook would make an excellent gift for that special someone! It is also available as a download e-book! Click here to purchase!

Thank you!