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Scheduling helps everyone to understand what needs to be done and when it needs to be completed.
Weekly Agenda Page
I like to develop a weekly agenda page for each child in the family. When they are young, they have their own page posted on the refrigerator or bulletin board. Once they have phones they can keep their schedule on their phone and give you access.
Record all Weekly Activities – School, Home and Extra Curricular
At the beginning of each week, I record all their activities, music lessons, group activities, sports, etc. I also record their special activities at school so they remember to bring library looks, physical education clothing, and musical instruments. It also includes any chores that they have to do around the house. If you prepare it on the computer, many things don’t change from week to week, you can print up the agendas weekly.
Record Additional Activities for the Week – Test, Projects, Parties
The children will add to the page, tests and projects that have been assigned at school. Start this habit for them when they are young, it teaches them how to organize their time. You will be helping to instill in them a habit that will last them a lifetime. They can play, watch TV or have screen time when they have completed everything on their list.
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
| Library books | Physical education | Class trip | violin | |
| Practice piano | Girl Guides | Collect garbage | Skating | Birthday Party at Susie’s |
| Set table | Empty dishwasher |
Paper or an AppI like paper because I can see everyone’s week at a glance without switching between screens and accounts. If you enjoy technology because you can access information from anywhere at any time try Choice Works for scheduling your children’s activities. It allows you to select activities and list them by picture for non-reading children or in words.
Timeboxed Schedule Maker
Thanks to Whisper Wels for sending me this link for their schedule maker to create your own timeboxed schedule.
Time management is about finding a system that works for you and your children to make life easier. Please leave a comment about agendas, systems and apps that you use.
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
Reading time – 3 minutes
Here are some tips for holiday planning to make a H A P P Y season.
Holiday Decorating
You may be feeling overwhelmed or disorganized by the number of items on display in your house. Try putting the non-seasonal items away to reduce the number of items on display.
Think about decorating with fewer items but larger size items. This means there are fewer items to pack and unpack which will reduce the amount of time you need to prepare your home.
Take advantage of using linens to cover tables or end tables and seasonal pillowcases to cover throw cushions to decorate couches. They may be less bulky to store and cover a larger area making your home seem completely decorated while taking less time to get the job done.
Use items that self-destruct so you don’t need to pack them away, flowers, paper towels, and tissue boxes all give your house a festival spirit but don’t need to be packed away and stored.
When you go through your decorations part with the ones you no longer need early in the month so thrift stores have an opportunity to sell them and so they don’t need to store them until next year. Some stores don’t take holiday décor in January and then you will be stuck storing them for another year.
What tips do you have for a H.A.P.P.Y holiday season? Share on XAccept Help
Acknowledge that you are feeling overwhelmed and stressed and when people offer to do things say yes. We all love to help people so let people feel good about themselves by allowing them to help you.
Parties may be larger again this year. It is a good time to try a new way of doing things. Allow people to help clean up dishes on their way out the door. Be ready for it. Have a place to put cutlery to soak. Have a container for compost. Put glasses or coffee mugs directly into the dishwasher.
You may need to accept help with setting up a hybrid party. Put one of those “youngsters” in charge.
Planning is important
Use a to-do list. Divide your to-do list into to pick up, to e-mail, to call, to buy then you can plan your day and route to get things done and not be driving back and forth all over town. The trick here is to look at the list and use it not just make it.
Keep your plans from year to year, record your menu, grocery list quantities and timelines. Each year you can reuse, revise and update the plan. This year’s plan may need a lot of updating from the previous years.
People and relationships are the reason for the season
Some people like to send cards in December. I keep my cards and addresses and stamps together. When I am going somewhere where I will be waiting I pick up the supplies and take them along and write my cards. I have done it in many places including my van. I usually leave replies to someone who has sent me a long letter until January.
Use your spare moments to write cards
You may want to send e-cards. Jacquie Lawson is the site I use. If you want to automate the card-sending operation there is a company called Send Out Cards. You can attach a gift to the card.
Gift-giving may be an area where you are developing a system. Have you thought about Clutter-free gift giving?
Consider the idea of a gift that self-destructs. See my post on Clutter Free Gift Giving .
Yes you can
Being organized is more about an attitude than how something looks. It is not about having the perfect home, party or gift. It is doing the best you can with the time and resources that you have. The only way to get better at organizing is to practice. It is a skill that can be learned and with practice, it becomes easier and easier. This year’s challenge may be technology. Ask for help and practice ahead of time. You might want to play Yahtzee at your gathering. Try using these 2 sites.
Score sheet http://www.playonlinedicegames.com/scoresheet/yahtzee
Dice roller https://www.elversonpuzzle.com/yahtzee-dice-roller.html
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. 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
There are many considerations when trying to purchase the perfect present. Sometimes the person has everything. Some people may feel that they have enough stuff and they don’t want to have to decide how to store more items. Some people feel that they need to keep everything they are given whether they need it or like it or can use it. They are afraid of hurting the giver’s feelings. It may feel like an impossible mission. Consider the idea of a gift that self destructs.
Give tickets to an event
Sporting, theatre, art gallery exhibits, or musical events. Most of these types of events have virtual or live performances. Give them tickets so it won’t be a gift card that they file or lose. Most performances will allow tickets to be exchanged for a different date. You can support your local community by purchasing tickets to a little theatre production, or concert. Give them the gift of entertainment.
Rent a sports venue
It can be an hour of ice time, indoor soccer, indoor tennis, indoor pickleball and indoor golf. This type of gift usually gets people together to socialize and be active. It is a gift of physical and emotional health.
Give an experience as a gift then there is nothing to store Share on XLessons
You can give lessons to a person. Art lessons, wine tasting, golfing, home improvement, music, craft, beading, the ideas are limitless. Many lessons are delivered virtually and in person. Goggle _______lessons. You fill in the blank It can be one lesson or a group of lessons. You can do it as a group or a person can do it solo. Give the gift of a new experience.
Food
Give a gift of a meal, prepared by you for them on a mutually agreed date. You may want to give them a batch of muffins every month or whatever their favourite food is. People enjoy receiving homemade Christmas cookies or a fruit plate. You can go online and search COOKIES in a Jar. The recipient of the cookie mix adds water or milk and bakes the cookies. Give the gift of sharing your time with others.
A Service
Someone may enjoy being relieved of performing a tedious job. Arrange for a cleaning service, car detailing, professional organizer, snow removal, and lawn care. Give them the gift of time for themselves.
Charities
There are many charities that can benefit from donations. Select a charity and make a donation in the name of the person. Look at one aspect of the person’s life and try to find a charity that represents their interests. Give them the gift of generosity.
Give the gift of Fun
One year we rented a hot tub for a week. Another year I bought rocket kits for everyone, we built the kits and shot off the rockets. Easy enough to do with social distancing.
Give the gift of memories
This year may be the perfect time to collect family photos and make a calendar. There are many online sites you can use to make the calendar. At the end of the year, you can let it go and make a new one. Give them the gift that keeps on giving.
Here are a few gifts that are clutter-free, personal and thoughtful and the ideas are endless. Don’t let time stop you from creatively finding the gift you want to give.
Share your idea in the comments
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtually on 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 help you 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
So you want to get organized?
Achieving order in your life doesn’t mean being perfect. That’s not realistic. Getting organized is not an event; it’s a process that happens over time. Like changing your eating or exercise habits, it sometimes involves behavioural changes and routines.
Perfectionism
Is being unrealistic by spending so much time on a task that it deprives other important tasks of sufficient time.
Excellence
Is doing the best job you can with the time and resources at your disposal.
What is organization?
Being organized has less to do with the way an environment looks than how effectively it functions. If a person can find what they need when they need it, feels unencumbered in achieving his or her goals, and is happy in his or her space, then that person is well organized.
Myth #1 Organization is a born talent.
- Organization is a skill. If the right resources or support are available it is easy to learn.
Myth #2: It’s impossible to stay organized.
- Organizing is sustainable, if systems are built around the way the person thinks and designed to grow and adapt to new information.
The 7 Habits of Very Organized People
1. They have a place for everything
- 25% of business documents are misplaced and will never be located so those documents must be recreated.
2. They put things back
- Executives waste six weeks per year searching for items.
3. They write things down
- Make a master list of things to do to determine the priorities for the next day. This may include planning the most effective routine to use to accomplish the tasks, the route driven to see a client or considering high and low energy cycles in the day and planning tasks accordingly.
4. They don’t allow papers/e-mails to pile up.
- The average worker sends and receives over 190 messages each day. Approximately 60 e-mails can be processed each hour. Learn how to use e-mail effectively in order to limit the number of e-mails received and sent each day.
5. They don’t procrastinate
- Procrastinating causes people to spend more time and energy on avoiding the task than completing it. Once it is accomplished it is out of sight and out of mind.
6. They set goals and assign deadlines
- Schedule a time for each task in the project to be completed, so deadlines can be met easily.
7. They only keep what they use and enjoy.
- Clutter is usually the “extra” that is kept on hand just in case it is needed. About 20% of items are used 80% of the time, so 80% of items are hardly used at all. Find the important 20% and let go of the unimportant 80%.
- They have a place for everything
- They put things back
- They write things down
- They don’t allow papers/e-mails to pile up.
- They don’t procrastinate
- They set goals and assign deadlines
- They only keep what they use and enjoy.
If you need help getting organized contact me for a virtual consultation
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
With many people working from home, it is important to have time when you’re not interrupted. Make sure to have a sign or signal that indicates you are unavailable.
Many people realize that multitasking is not the best way to get work completed. However, they experience many small interruptions in their day, e-mail, texting and phone calls that take away from concentrating on a project.
These small tasks, added together, use up your work day.
“Drive by” conversations, when colleagues stop by your desk, stop you in the hall or a family member bursts into your office and gives you information also take time away from completing important tasks. As well the information may be forgotten or lost.
Being interrupted by colleagues stopping to chat can cost you a lot of valuable time.
Some offices have designated a specific time of the day for working on projects. It is an interruption-free time to concentrate on work during which employees can’t send or answer emails, texts, phone calls, attend meetings, etc. Each office is different so the designated time may be office-wide or scheduled into each person’s work day, week, or month individually. It is important that this time and format are respected by your colleagues, family and supported by management. You may be surprised how much you can get done in one hour without interruptions and your full concentration on one task at a time.
How do you plan on scheduling interruption free time? Let me know in the comments.
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
Are you stuck in a mindset of “lack”?
Do you sometimes feel that you will never get ahead? That life is holding you back. I feel that way some days when I am working in my business. There can be a number of stumbling blocks to becoming successful. Some we may not have any control over. One of the biggest stumbling blocks can be our own attitude.
Overcoming a mindset of lack and embracing abundance requires adopting new habits. Here are some steps you can take to cultivate an abundance mindset.
Your beliefs
Start by becoming aware of any negative beliefs you have about abundance and wealth. Sometimes you may think “Money is scarce,” “I’ll never have enough,”. Interestingly you may think that “rich people are greedy” and so you do things so you won’t become rich. Think about your beliefs and make sure they are positive and empowering ones so you can create wealth and abundance in all areas of your life.
Feel gratitude
Gratitude is one way to shift your mindset. Acknowledge and appreciate the things you already have in your life, no matter how small they may seem. Make a habit of expressing gratitude for your experiences in supporting loved ones, your health, or any opportunities that come your way.
Show generosity
In my Organizing Mind and Space Facebook group, we did a random acts of kindness challenge. Show your generosity by doing something unexpected for someone. Here are some ideas for you.
When you give without expecting anything in return, you reinforce the belief that there is always enough to share. This creates a positive abundance cycle of giving and receiving.
Take action
An abundance mindset alone is not enough; it must be paired with action. Take steps toward your goals, whether it’s investing in your education, starting a business, or seeking new opportunities. Don’t be afraid to take calculated risks and step out of your comfort zone. I was once told that even if you fall on your face you are still moving forward. Use your mistakes to learn new things and create new opportunities for yourself. Taking action alone can be difficult. Surround yourself with people who support and uplift you.
These are 4 steps you can take to change a mindset of lack, not having enough, wanting more and not sure how to move forward. A mindset of abundance helps you to see your future in a way that brings a sense of fulfillment, accomplishment and excitement into many areas of your life.
In the comments let me know how you overcome those feelings that you can’t achieve something that you want to accomplish.
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 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. Julie can coach you to break-free of the physical or emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Sometimes when we are organizing we make the organization look like art. We organize books by the colour of their spine, hang baskets on a wall in an interesting pattern or use brightly coloured baskets to hold exercise equipment. Let’s look at the reverse of this idea. Can artwork help you get organized?
This piece of artwork provides storage opportunities.
I attended the National Home Show in Toronto Canada a few years ago. I saw this great piece of artwork. If you have a small home this artwork is dual purpose. It can be used to hold CDs, video games and equipment, and books. Plants would look lovely on this tree especially ivy or other hanging plants that would give it “leaves”. It would be fun to decorate it for any season or special event.
Here is a creative use of a sign. This piece of artwork has hooks added to it to organize cycling gear. When the cycling gear is removed you have a lovely picture on your wall.
Let me know about artwork in your home that helps you stay organized.
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
People have preconceived ideas about what it means to be organized. Being organized means you can find what you are looking for in a reasonable amount of time. The myths about being organized are what stop people from moving forward and organizing their lives. Here is the fallacy in 5 myths.
Myth 1 Organizing is a born talent
Organization is a skill. You can learn techniques to apply to your situation to get you organized. If you have the right resources and support it is easy. Hire a Professional Organizer, read books, watch Youtube and you can learn the steps. Some tasks at home can be simplified so they are not so overwhelming and time-consuming. Here is one small example about meal planning.
- Pick your menu for the week
- From the menu make your shopping list
- Now you don’t need to decide what to make each morning or evening and you can take out of the freezer the items you need for later in the day.
- After you have done this for a number of weeks or months you can start recycling your plan. This makes it even easier as you just pull up an already completed menu plan.
Myth 2 – Organized space is neat, tidy, minimal and boring.
Everything needs to have a space, a home, so you know where to put it back. Some people are visual and will have things displayed other people like things stored behind doors. Organized spaces should reflect your personality and lifestyle. If you can’t enjoy the space then you won’t take care of it.
Myth 3 – Getting organized is an overwhelming, hopeless chore
No matter what you’re organizing, no matter how daunting the task or how huge the backlog is, getting organized boils down to developing a predictable process that you can reproduce. You follow your process and organize the current things you are using and then each time you’re organizing, work for a little time on the backlog. Divide the job into smaller tasks, organize one cupboard, one drawer, one table or one closet. Eventually, the entire room will be organized one small step at a time.
Develop processes that work for you, so you can stay organized.
Myth 4 – It’s impossible to stay organized
Organizing is sustainable if your system is built around the way you think and designed to grow and adapt with you. Here are some tips:
- If it only takes 30 seconds, do it right away if not add it to your to-do list
- Most unorganized people don’t notice things are in the “wrong place.” Look and do a mental check to see if everything has been returned to its assigned space.
- Use spare minutes wisely. Have a list of small tasks that can be completed quickly when you are waiting for meetings, appointments, trains, planes, children, and elderly parents.
- Use your lists to record: things to do, to call, to e-mail and errands. Check the list don’t just write it down.
Myth 5 Organizing is a non-productive use of your time
You can’t afford to not be organized. A national survey conducted by Professional Organizers in Canada indicates 91% of disorganized Canadians feel that disorganization negatively impacts their lives – with a large focus on feelings of stress, frustration and even failure. According to a study by a Boston marketing firm, the average American loses 55 minutes a day, roughly 12 weeks a year, looking for things they know they own but can’t find.
Did I miss any organizing myths? Share your favourite myth in the comments.
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 physical activity to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and 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. 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
It is that time of year when your young adult moves back home or the summer. You might think of them as your kid. They might think of themselves as an adult now that they have been living on their own for a year. Each of you has changed over the year and so has your relationship. Here are some tips on avoiding the conflict that might happen.
Expectations
It is a big change in lifestyle when students move home for the summer, for the students and the parents. Sometimes students think
What are your expectations?
- It will be just like before I left
- I will have the same responsibilities as I did living away from home
- I am on vacation for 4 months
- and so on…
Sometimes parents think
- they have lived on their own so they should have no problem contributing around the home without being asked
- now I have someone to help with all the work
- things have changed and we do things differently now
- and so on…
Each party in this living situation has different expectations so make a contract with each other so it is clear what the expectations are. My daughter presented me with some rules when she moved back home for a few months. She asked me to look at them and see if they were suitable and to add any rules. It made things very easy and simple because there were fewer misunderstandings.
Your contract/ agreement might cover the following ideas.
May I have the car?
Car
- Who pays for gas?
- When can they use it?
- Do they have to ask to use the car or can they just take it?
Food/ Groceries
- Who buys the groceries?
- Who pays for the groceries?
- Do you buy everything on the list?
- Do you buy only the things you need from the list when you go shopping?
Cooking
- Who cooks?
- Who plans the meals?
- Do you cook for everyone or only yourself?
What needs to be cleaned?
Kitchen
- Who cleans up the kitchen?
- What needs to be cleaned, floors counters, stove, sink?
- Who does the dishes?
- Who empties the dishwasher?
Schedule
- Do you record your activities in a specific place, electronic or paper?
- Do you need to tell where you are going and when you will be back?
- Are there any activities you are expected to attend?
Your young adult may feel like you are trying to “keep tabs” on their activities. They have not had curfews and anyone to report to in a year. Explain that you want to know when to expect them back for safety reasons. If they don’t return when they are expected then it is time to start worrying and start looking for them.
Laundry
- Who is responsible for laundry?
- May they use the supplies at home or do they purchase their own supplies?
Cleaning
- Who does the cleaning, is it a shared task?
This checklist of ideas makes it seem like working out an agreement will be a lot of work. The agreement only needs to cover areas that cause conflict, tension or have changed since the student last lived with you.
Our agreement looked like this:
Food
Make a contract/agreement with everyone in the family to reduce stress and misunderstandings
- Buy groceries: give Mom the bill, buy everything on the list
- Weekday meals: First one home cooks, Mom will try to plan the meals for the week
Car
- Mom will pay for gas
Kitchen:
- Clean and wipe counters and island and stove
- No dishes in the sink or on the counter put them in the dishwasher before going to bed
Schedule:
- Record your evening activities and times when you won’t be home for supper on the calendar
- Politely and conversational let us know where you are going and when you plan on returning. This is for safety reasons, if you don’t return we need to know where and when to start looking for you
2 weeks ago I wrote about Moving a Student Back Home
Tell me what items you put on your contract in the comments below.
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 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
People ask me, “Do I have a disease?” and I usually say, “NO, you have a M.E.S.S”. When your life becomes disorganized it is usually caused by one of four situations. If you are feeling overwhelmed, try looking at your M.E.S.S. this way.
Shelves make storing items easier
M – Mechanical
Clutter can be caused because you don’t have the right type of storage. It is a mechanical problem.
- A drawer may be broken,
- There aren’t any shelves to put things on
- There aren’t any closets
- Your containers are too small or too big or you don’t have any
Solutions to a mechanical problem are simple. Look at what you want to store in the room. Decide if you are a visual person and would like things stored on shelves where you can see everything. Maybe being able to see everything bothers you, it is visual clutter to you. You would want to store things in cupboards or drawers.
The next step is to decide what type of containers you need to hold your stuff. Some people like to have clear containers other people like to use colour coded ones and still other people like them all to match. Whatever type you like make sure they will fit on the shelf or in the cupboard or drawer and hold the items you are storing. Buy the containers after you know what is going to be stored in the room. Make sure it fits into your budget.
Samsill Pop,n Store Container
E. Emotional
- Some people are very sentimental and find it difficult to let go of things. Try to remember that it is the relationship that you have with the person that is important not the item they gave you.
- Depression makes it hard to have enough energy to make decisions and organize your items
- Anxiety can clutter your mind so you find it difficult to make decisions
The solution to this situation is more complicated. You need to discover your relationship with your S.T.U.F.F. You need to recognize that you have Simply too much and take steps towards realizing that. Next, Take Time to set your goals concerning reducing what you have. The U is for Underlying causes. Examine what makes it difficult to let go of things. F is for how you Feel about having stuff. Do you feel comforted by having things around you or do you feel overwhelmed by too much? The last F is for how you Feel about having less. Does the thought of having less make you afraid or does it feel like you have space to breathe? I can help you with this process book a chat with me.
S. Situational
There are things that happen in your life that can put you into a state of chaos temporarily
- Having a baby
- Moving
- Divorce
- Seasonal Celebrations – Halloween, Christmas. Passover,
- The end of school or the beginning of a year
- Renovations
The solution to these situations is to remember it is a temporary situation. When things get busy ask for help.
S. Systems
If you have systems in place for getting things done then the work becomes easier because you don’t have to think about how to do it, who will do it, and when it gets done. Develop systems for
- laundry
- meal planning and grocery shopping
- collecting the garbage and getting to the curb or dumpster
- gift-giving
- feeding the pets
- doing homework
The solution for this situation is to spend some time planning. Setting up routines doesn’t make you a boring person. It is the opposite. You end up with more time to be creative and do things you enjoy.
You probably don’t have a disease that is causing you to be disorganized just a mechanical, emotional, situational or systematic problem that is contributing to your temporary disorganization. Determine which is the main cause of your disorganization and your problems can be solved so you have a great S.P.A.C.E.
Which situation causes you the most problems?
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
