Latest Blog Posts
Listen to this Ted Talk with MC Abdominal and his Mom about the rap song they wrote and performed together. Moms aren’t prefect but they give you inspiration. Remember to remember your mom.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She enjoys working with her clients to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She reduces clutter, streamlines processes and manages time to help her clients be more effective in reaching their goals. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Organizing Challenges Unraveled – Recycling and Donating
OES Ontario Electronic Stewardship
If you are looking for locations to recycle your computers, TV, printers, fax machines, etc., this website will help you find a location near you.
Highlight Consumer/Retailers then click on Recycle your electronic
Go to the bottom of the page and type in the name of your city in Ontario and it will give you a list of locations
Books
If you have books you would like to donate, libraries and used bookstores may take them. There is a new organization that is able to put books into prisons. It is called Books to Bars. It is dedicated to promoting literacy, creativity and functionality in correctional facilities.
Clothing
Clothing can be donated to women’s shelters as well as Salvation Army, Value Village, and New Horizons Store on James St, Hamilton ON. There is a children’s store called Once Apon a Child and a teen and young adult store called Plato located at Guelph Line and Upper Middle Road, Burlington ON. They are not consignment stores. You bring in your clothes and they buy them (what they want) on the spot and give you the money right away.
Building Supplies
Habitat for Humanity Restores will take building supplies. Call ahead to see if they need the items that you wish to donate.
Antique Stores
Some antique stores will take window frames, furniture etc. I have an artist who is looking for antique items to use in her craft business.
Decore on a Dime
This store is located in Hamilton, ON and will take some stylish home furnishings on consignment.
Orange Drop
Check out this website to learn locations to drop off your corrosive, flammable, explosive and toxic items.
Single Use Batteries
Rechargeable batteries can be dropped off with your electronics but they will not take single use batteries. Try contacting your local stores to see if there is a collection depot for single use batteries.
Please go to www.mindoverclutter.ca and click on the links page for more ideas about recycling and donating good used items. If you have any questions or other great recycling and donating ideas click on the contact page, I’d love to hear from you.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Carolyn Shannon is my guest blogger today. Her business Venting Creatively helps people find creative ways to shine a light on their lives from a different view. She publishes Women of Worth magazine.
Top 10 Productivity Time Killers
Every day countless hours are wasted away due to non-productive activities. Time is money, so when distractions and procrastination set in profitability will decline. A survey conducted by OfficeTime.net has revealed 10 of the biggest time killers. The main offenders that reduce our productivity are:
1. Emails
How much time do you spend surfing the web?
2. Surfing the net
3. Watching TV
4. Procrastination
5. Meetings
6. Non-business conversations
7. Commuting & travel time
8. Social networking
9. Cell Phones & texting
10. Dealing with red tape
Types of Time Wasting
There are many factors that lead to procrastination. There are a few broad categories that most time wasting falls into.
1. Indecision. Perfectionists will often struggle with indecision. Some things may never become perfect, and putting too much focus on perfection will mean too much time spent on one job. Splitting the work into smaller tasks is one way to deal with it more effectively.
2. Avoidance. Fear of being judged can be the main cause of procrastination. It could be fear of failure or even success. Neither of these is something to be ashamed of. Success should be celebrated, and failure is the best way of learning. Think less about what others may think and more about trying your best at the task at hand.
3. Thrill Seeking. This is when procrastination is justified because the worker likes the thrill of an approaching deadline. If this is the case it is best to move deadlines closer and set personal targets. This still gets you the thrill of working against the clock, while reducing procrastination.
Time flies
How to Put an End to Time Killers
The first step to battling time killers is to understand and appreciate the amount of time that is being wasted. What is the value of all that lost time? Time wasters will directly affect your career advancement opportunities and reduce the amount of income you could have received. Tracking where your time is spent will allow for efficient time management. Don’t just rely on your memory to remember what you did during the day. Use a system so that you have a written record that can be looked over and analyzed. This could be as simple as creating a timetable on a piece of paper or utilizing a computer program or app to record your daily activities. Cutting down on time killers is a good start, but there are other strategies that should be used to effectively manage your time:
1. Define your purpose. You need to know exactly what you want when starting a task. Without a definite purpose, you will lose focus.
2. Smart goal setting. Choose realistic and specific goals and targets. It should be measurable so you know when it has been completed.
3. Plan on a regular basis. As factors change, your plan should be adjusted to reflect the reality of the situation.
To truly beat time killers you need to work on your mindset & stick to your plan for the long-term.
Which type of Time Waster Are You?
1. Thrill Seekers feel they can procrastinate, as they enjoy the feeling of working against a deadline
Tip: constantly set and adjust deadlines so that you still get the adrenaline rush but are using your time more effectively than procrastinating
2. Avoiders prefer to procrastinate as a means to avoid being judged. Whether it is a success or a failure
Tip: Success is a good thing and nothing to be ashamed of. Failure is a way to learn and improve. Focus on doing the best job you can and not on what others think.
3. Indecisive people are often perfectionists but procrastinate to shift responsibility from themselves
Tip: Not everything has to be perfect so try to take small risks and use your intuition. Mistakes may mean you learn something new. Try to split the task up into more manageable parts.
Need help managing your time effectively contact Mind over Clutter. Julie can work with you in person or virtually to help streamline your processes and routines.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Click here to learn more about her online course Create an Organized Home.
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Do you have children in your family with Legos laying all over the floor? Here is a fun organizing tool to make cleanup of toys easy and fun. Check out swoop bags.
Need help getting toys and home routines organized? Contact Mind over Clutter for a free one hour assessment virtually to get you on the road to success.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
This month I am reviewing a book to help you in downsizing yourself and probably someone else in your life. Don’t Toss my Memories in the Trash by Vickie Dellaquilia.
Guide to help downsize a loved one.
This book has very practical steps and suggestions for downsizing in many different types of situations. The person may be moving to a smaller house, an apartment, moving in with family members or to a senior’s home. In each situation, the person is losing something and must learn to adapt to a new living situation. They may need to get used to meeting new people, having less privacy, and being less independent. This book guides caregivers to avoid pitfalls that can occur.
Here are 6 tips from the book
1. Giving up the family home is like losing a loved one. When the family is gone the memories are all they have left.
2. Remember the goal is to get the parents resettled with the things they love that make them happy and comfortable. It is not about the finances of selling stuff, emotional battles over a childhood or arguments between family members.
3. Consider how much energy and time you have for the job. Children sometimes have a small window of opportunity to help and want to do it in a week when parents need to go more slowly. Get help with moving, selling items and removing junk you don’t have to do it all yourself.
4. Have a goodbye ceremony with some family and friends to say farewell to the house. Take pictures of things or videos of experiences in the home. Then start packing up
5. Take pictures of how a room is set up, and how things are on the dresser or in the bathroom. At the new place, you can replicate the situation so they can adjust more quickly.
6. Have sheets of packing paper and use them to simulate the furniture and assess what large items can be moved and where they will fit in the room. A visual representation can make decisions easier.
This book covers:
- Timelines
- How to start talking about the need to move
- How to start
- What to take
- Packing suggestions
- What to ask a mover
- Unpacking
- Adjusting to the new home
It is a great, quick, easy to read resource.
Post a comment about the best tip you have for helping someone downsize.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, in person and virtually. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of physical activity to reduce clutter, in your home and office. She guides and supports you in managing your time. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
The level of organization a person needs to be productive or less stressed or happy varies from person to person. Once you have discovered what works for you, you will be able to maintain your system. Problems arise with being organized when the system doesn’t work with how you think, your schedule, your routines or your motivation. Working with a Professional Organizer can help you establish a system that meet your needs.
Here is a video about one way to organize a home. Some of the ideas may work for you. Let me know if you tried any of the techniques in this video.
How to organize your home on a tight budget
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She enjoys working with her clients to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She reduces clutter, streamlines processes and manages time to help her clients be more effective in reaching their goals. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Make your home perfect for you.
This 6 minute video is a great look at our society and our relationship with “stuff”. It is easy to collect “stuff” but it is hard to know how to get rid of things.
http://www.uctv.tv/shows/Stuff-A-Cluttered-Life-Middle-Class-Abundance-Ep-1-24699
Need help simplifying your life and home contact Mind over Clutter to work with you virtually to help you meet your goals.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and to reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Today I am reviewing a booked written by Plum Johnson, They Left Us Everything a memoir. She is a Canadian author from Oakville, Ontario. It is an easy to read , novel style story about her experience emptying her parent’s home. Once you start reading it you become engaged in the story and can’t put the book down. It takes you on a roller coaster of emotions: sad, humorous, happy and thoughtful.
by Plum Johnson
Many people have had the experience of going through years of possessions and trying to figure out
- how to divide things between family members,
- where to donate things,
- the division of labour between family members on how the work will get completed and
- when to sell the home.
This book takes the reader through the many pitfalls and solutions that Plum and her siblings discover to solve these difficult situations.
One of my favourite parts of the book is the chapter on how they divide up their parents’ possessions between the 4 siblings . Plum has made an annotated inventory list complete with photographs, 422 items, 8 pages long. There are two categories; one for all the furnishings that have been appraised and priced and one for historical items that were considered priceless. They take turns picking things off the list until everything is gone. It is very interesting to read the how the process goes, who selects which items and why, and how competitive they can be during this process.
The book has practical suggestions but mostly it gives the reader emotional and psychological insights into the relationships that they have with their parents and that their parents have with each other. It also shows how these relationships affect how they experience dealing with their parents’ possessions. Learning from their experiences can help each of us to understand the many layers of feelings that affect each of us and our relationships with people and “stuff”
A few memorable thoughts from the book are;
- “The most valuable things come from within yourself”
- “Are you untangling the stuff in the house or untangling yourself from your parents?”
- “Gradually things in the house relinquished their hold on us.”
Post a comment about the part of the book you liked best or a tip to make clearing an estate easier.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, in person and virtually. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of physical activity to reduce clutter, in your home and office. She guides and supports you in managing your time. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Reading time – 5 minutes
My guest blogger is Ron Thiessen of Thiessen Farms . 
He has been farming all his life. As a child he worked with his dad and then took over the farm. He sells his produce at markets and has developed a Community Supported Agricultural Program (CSA) of over 200 families who buy a share of his crops and pick up their produce every week at his farm from May to October. He is located in Jordan Station, Ontario , Canada. He has written on organizing your seeds, choosing your crops and charting their progress.
Crop Planning and Choosing Seeds
Brad’s Atomic Grape Tomato
“Elongated cherries in clusters. The colour (and flavor!) is a full-blown assault on the senses – lavender and purple stripes when immature, turning to technicolor olive-green, red, and brown/blue stripes when fully ripe. Really wild! … this amazing variety a good candidate for market growers …” (from www.rareseeds.com)
When we saw this new tomato in a seed catalogue it immediately became a must grow variety for Thiessen Farms in 2017. It looks and sounds amazing!
And when we found seed for the hottest-of-hot peppers – Ghost, Carolina Reaper & Trinidad Scorpion – there was no doubt that they would be on the list too, along with Glass Gem corn, Superschmelz kohlrabi and Golden Wa Wa cabbage.
Glass Gem Corn
Superschmelz kohlrabi
-
- Golden Wa Wa cabbage
I’ll admit it. We’re suckers for a cool sounding name and a fancy description. That’s why our seed list has grown to more than 450 varieties of over 60 different vegetables and herbs. But it’s really a cheap thrill. For a few bucks we get to try something new. Sometimes it will turn out great and become a favourite. Other times it’s a disappointment and we never grow it again. But it’s always fun experimenting!
The first week in January is always seed ordering time. We pour over the seed catalogues devouring the particulars of all the vegetables, herbs & flowers, choosing the varieties we will grow in the upcoming season. The selection of seeds is overwhelming making it a delightful yet daunting task.
Here’s how we make our choices …
1. We know what we grew in previous years.
We keep a master list – a spreadsheet that names each crop and variety we grew last season, the amount of seed we have on hand, the year purchased, the company it came from, and the number of days from seeding until harvest. This gives us someplace to start. When the seeds are ordered, all this data is updated & any new varieties are added and those we will not be growing are eliminated.
2. We keep good records – an awful lot of records.
We have a chart where we record every seed we sow in the greenhouse – the date we seeded, the amount, the date the first seeds poked up through the soil, the date we transplanted them and how many, and a spot for random comments. We have more charts where we record everything that gets planted out in the fields – whether it is direct seeded or transplanted from the greenhouse, the variety, the amount, the date. Throughout the growing season we make written notes – both quick observations that we jotted down on the run and more formal evaluations of the different vegetables and how they grew, and produced, their yields, taste, plant health … Photographs are also very helpful for this and so easy to take with cellphones. We find these records invaluable and refer back to them often.
3. As commercial growers we look to our customers for information
What crops sold well and which ones did not, what caught the customers attention, what vegetables are they asking for … We have more charts. For each day at the farmers’ market we record what we brought, how much we sold, the prices and the weather for the day. There are similar charts for each Community Support Agricultural Program (CSA )pick-up. These give us a clear picture of what to grow and how much based on actual sales.
4. What would be fun and interesting to grow!
We always try to grow something new that we have not done before. Recent examples include kalettes , cauliflower artichokes and fava beans.
The seeds are arriving almost daily now
Close to 500 packets of seeds – different sized envelopes, some paper, some foil, even a cloth bag or two, and at least one larger 25 pound sack (snow peas). Add in any leftover seeds from other years, various jars of seed that I saved myself, and we end up with well over 600 different containers of seeds.That’s a lot of seed to deal with and to keep organized!
Proper storage is necessary to keep the seeds viable
Cool and dry storage being the most important conditions. We keep the seeds in our workshop in small, plastic shoe boxes. A label on the lid notes what seeds are inside. These plastic boxes are then stored in larger plastic bins all with secure lids. This keeps them dry, clean & safe from curious animals (ie cats, or even mice – in case the cats are not doing their job!).And there the seeds wait until it’s time to plant them.
What have you learned from Ron Thiessen a commercial grower that will help you to organize your garden this year?
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situations. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home and office. She guides and supports you in managing your time. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
People have tried to find electronic solutions for most things that used to be done by paper. However, would a paper To-Do list work better for you than an electronic one? Here is a thought provoking blog post on the topic. Which ever system works best for you, you must check your list. People will make lists but not look at them. Use a system that keeps your to-do list in your mind.
Why the Old-School Paper To-Do List Is Superior as a Productivity Tool (& How to Make It Work for You in Under 5 Minutes)
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Click here to learn more about her online course Create an Organized Home.
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
