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My guest blogger this month is Melissa Knowles a passionate writer and expert in de-cluttering sentimental items. With a background in psychology and a love for preserving memories, she combines her knowledge to help readers cherish their past without the chaos. When not writing, Melissa enjoys hiking and capturing the beauty of nature through her photography.
Often, organizing sentimental items presents a unique challenge. These treasures, rich with personal history and emotions, can quickly accumulate, leading to a cluttered space that overshadows their proper value. The key lies in striking a balance between holding onto those precious memories and maintaining a tidy, peaceful living area. We will address this issue, guiding you through practical strategies to preserve memories without clutter. Whether you’re dealing with a box full of old photographs, heirlooms passed down through generations, or souvenirs from travels, we’ll provide insights on managing these items thoughtfully.
Understanding sentimental value
What makes an item sentimental varies considerably from person to person. It could be a family antique, a trip souvenir, or a simple note, each carrying its own story and emotional weight. These items connect us to memories of important people or events, making them invaluable. The emotional attachment to these keepsakes is deep-rooted, often evoking a sense of nostalgia, joy, pain or comfort. However, objectively evaluating their sentimental value is crucial to avoid clutter. It involves asking yourself hard questions about each item’s significance and role. Does it bring joy or merely take up space? Is its emotional significance still powerful, or has it faded over time? How many items do you need to remember the event or person? Are there other ways to keep the memory alive without holding onto a physical item? Do these items hold you in the past and letting go of them will help you to move forward with your life? Answering these questions can help distinguish between valuable keepsakes and mere clutter, enabling a healthier, more organized living space.
The art of selective keeping
The art of selective keeping is about making conscious choices on what to hold onto and what to release. Being selective ensures that each kept item truly resonates with personal significance, creating a decluttered and organized space. Here’s how you can determine what’s worth keeping:
- Emotional Connection: Does the item evoke positive emotions? Keep those that bring joy or comfort.
- Uniqueness: Prioritize items that cannot be replaced or replicated, like handmade gifts or family heirlooms.
- Usage: Consider if the item is something you use or enjoy regularly. Practicality can be a form of sentimentality.
- Condition: Keep items in good condition, as damaged goods often contribute to clutter.
Creative display options
Creatively displaying sentimental items can transform them from clutter to charming decor elements. These treasures can add a personal touch to your living space, telling your unique story. Create a themed gallery wall where photos, souvenirs, and artworks can narrate a cohesive story. Shadow boxes are another excellent option, perfect for showcasing smaller items with depth and protection.
Incorporating keepsakes into functional decor is both artistic and practical. A vintage quilt, for example, could serve as a striking wall hanging or a cozy throw. Similarly, you can use heirloom dishes for special occasions or display them in a glass cabinet, adding elegance and history to your dining area. Lastly, arranging items in groups of three or five can create a balanced, visually appealing display. This method, known as the ‘Rule of Odds,’ suggests that an odd number of items are more effective at capturing attention and adding visual interest.
Create a small personal area in your home office, bedroom or kitchen to display a few times on a shelf and wall that represent the memories that are most precious in your life. As you work in that space these memories will help you to reflect on the past and bring a sense of gratitude that your life is full of wonderful things and experiences motivating you to become the person you want to be. As you grow and your life evolves change the items that are on display. Life is not static.
Digitize to declutter
Digital preservation saves space, protects from degradation, and allows easy sharing. Here’s a guide to digitizing photos and documents:
- Select the Right Equipment: Use a scanner or a high-quality camera to capture clear images of your items.
- Organize Before Scanning: Sort items by categories, like dates or events, for more manageable digital filing.
- Scan at High Resolution: Ensure scanned images are high quality to preserve details. Use a resolution of 300 dpi (dots per inch).
- Edit and Enhance: Use photo editing software to adjust brightness, contrast, or remove blemishes.
For digital storage, consider virtual organizers and these tools:
- Cloud Storage Services: Options like Google Drive, Dropbox, or iCloud offer secure and accessible storage solutions.
- Online Photo Services: Websites like Flickr or SmugMug provide dedicated photo storage with organizing features.
- Document Management Software: Ideal for organizing digital copies of important documents, with added features like tagging and search functions.
Themed memory boxes
Memory boxes are a delightful and organized way to preserve special memories. They are containers where you can store various keepsakes relating to a particular theme, event, person, or period. Organizing events like weddings, vacations, or significant birthdays allows you to group related items, creating a concentrated snapshot of that time. Yearly boxes are another option. They are a time capsule for all the notable happenings and small joys each year.
For proper storage and labelling of these boxes:
- Choose the Right Box: Opt for durable boxes. To truly protect the contents from damage, quality materials can help. If you live in a cold area like Toronto, you don’t want precious things to get damaged due to the changing weather. Doing this will make buying packing supplies in Toronto a good investment.
- Keep Them Accessible but Safe: Store the boxes in a dry, cool place where you can easily reach them.
- Document the Contents: Make a list of what’s inside each box, especially those containing numerous or small items
The power of repurposing
Repurposing sentimental items is a creative way to preserve memories without clutter. This approach allows us to honour the past while adapting to current needs and spaces. For instance, a beloved but worn dress can find new life as a stylish cushion cover, adding a personal touch to your home decor. Similarly, old concert t-shirts, often tucked away in drawers, can be transformed into a unique quilt, combining nostalgia with everyday usefulness.
Other examples include:
- Turning old letters or recipes into framed artwork for your kitchen or living area.
- Repurposing children’s artwork into coasters or magnets, keeping their creativity on display.
- Converting a collection of travel postcards into a collage for a coffee table or a wall hanging.
Find a balance between preserving these items’ sentimental value and adapting them into practical, usable objects.
Preserve memories without clutter by sharing and donating
Sharing sentimental items with family and friends can be a touching experience, strengthening bonds and preserving unique memories while creating an organized home at the same time. It’s about passing on a piece of history and personal story, allowing others to cherish and add to the legacy of these items. For example, giving a cherished book to a friend who loves reading or passing down a vintage jewelry piece to a family member can extend the life and stories of these items. Donating items, especially those with historical or educational value, is another fulfilling option. Museums, schools, or historical societies often welcome items that contribute to their collections and educational programs.
Conclusion
This guide has provided actionable tips on how to preserve memories without clutter. We explored the essence of sentimental value, the art of selective keeping, and creative ways to display cherished items. The core message is clear: preserving memories does not require a compromise on living in a clutter-free space. It’s about making thoughtful decisions that honour your past and current lifestyle. With these strategies, you will transform your home into a space that beautifully reflects your memories and keeps them alive without clutter.
Share in the comments how you decide which sentimental items to keep and which ones to pass along.
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 – 10 minutes
In the fast-paced world we live in today, productivity is often seen as the ultimate goal. We find ourselves constantly adding more tasks, more goals, and more responsibilities to our lives. The never-ending to-do lists seem to grow longer with each passing day, leaving us overwhelmed and burnt out. In response to this, a new concept, the “Stop Doing” list is written about in books and blogs. This blog post will explore the concept of “Stop Doing” lists, why they’re essential, and how they can revolutionize the way you approach productivity.
What is a “Stop Doing” List?
A “Stop Doing” list is precisely what it sounds like – a list of tasks, habits/behaviours, or activities that you commit to stop doing. A “Stop Doing” list shifts the focus to what you should be eliminating from your life. It’s a deliberate and mindful approach to declutter your schedule, mind, and life from non-essential or unproductive activities. It might contain things you are currently doing that you thought would help you achieve a goal but are not having any effect.
Why a “Stop Doing” List Matters
1. Reclaim Your Time:
One of the most significant advantages of creating a “Stop Doing” list is the ability to reclaim precious time. By identifying and eliminating tasks that don’t contribute to your goals or well-being, you free up time to invest in activities that truly matter.
2. Reduce Decision Fatigue:
Every decision we make, no matter how small, consumes mental energy. A “Stop Doing” list helps streamline your choices by removing unnecessary options, making it easier to focus on what truly matters.
3. Prioritize What Matters Most:
With a “Stop Doing” list, you can gain clarity on your priorities. It forces you to evaluate your commitments and align them with your goals and values, allowing you to focus on the activities that bring the most significant impact.
4. Combat Overwhelm and Burnout:
Overcommitting to tasks and responsibilities can lead to burnout and stress. A “Stop Doing” list helps you establish boundaries, ensuring you have the time and energy to recharge and stay motivated.
Creating Your “Stop Doing” List
Now that you understand why a “Stop Doing” list is essential, let’s discuss how to create one. There are many types of Stop Doing lists. Decide on the focus of your list: productivity, happiness, wellness etc.
1. Self-Assessment:
Begin by taking a critical look at your current commitments, habits, and activities. Ask yourself what truly adds value to your life, aligns with your goals, and brings you joy.
2. Identify Time-Wasters:
Pinpoint tasks or habits that are time-wasters or offer diminishing returns. These could be excessive social media use, attending unproductive meetings, or engaging in activities that no longer serve your goals.
3. Set Clear Boundaries:
Establish boundaries to protect your time and energy. Say “no” to new commitments or activities that don’t align with your priorities.
4. Consistent Review:
Most importantly your “Stop Doing” list isn’t set in stone. Regularly review and update it as your goals and priorities evolve. Make it a habit to assess what can be eliminated or delegated.
5. Example of a Happiness Stop Doing List
- STOP talking to toxic people.
- STOP regretting things. …
- STOP procrastinating. …
- STOP putting everyone else first. …
- STOP expecting people to change. …
- STOP spending so much money. …
- STOP settling.
6. What’s one thing we should never Stop Doing?
Never stop being willing to make mistakes. Try new ideas, activities and habits. Mistakes help you to learn.
In a world where busyness is valued, a “Stop Doing” list is a powerful tool to regain control of your time, reduce stress, and boost your overall productivity. It allows you to focus on what truly matters, eliminate distractions, and create space for personal and professional growth. Take time today to create your “Stop Doing” list and experience the transformative impact it can have on your life. Remember, sometimes the path to greater productivity lies not in doing more but in doing less of what doesn’t serve you.
What would be on your Stop Doing list?
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
My guest blogger is Sophia Perry from Arizona Moving Professional
Before we dive in, let’s take a moment to reflect on why decluttering your home is so important. For starters, cluttered living spaces can have a negative impact on your mental health, causing feelings of anxiety and being overwhelmed. On the other hand, a tidy home can promote feelings of calm, relaxation, and happiness. A clutter-free space can also increase your productivity and creativity, making it easier to focus on the things that matter most to you. It’s a fantastic feeling to purge unwanted items and create a clean and organized space. However, maintaining that momentum and preventing clutter from creeping back in is the real challenge. Don’t worry! Whether you’re a decluttering pro or just starting, this guide will provide practical tips and expert advice on maintaining momentum after decluttering your home to help you keep your home clutter-free. Let’s get started!
#1 Set boundaries for what enters your home
The first step in maintaining a decluttered home is to set boundaries for the items you allow into your space. When shopping or accepting gifts, consider whether the item will add value to your life or just take up space. Creating a rule such as “one item in, one item out” can also help prevent accumulation.
Another useful strategy is to implement a waiting period before making any new purchases. If you see something you like, wait a few days before purchasing it. During this time, you can evaluate if the item is truly essential or if it’s just a passing phase. If you find that you still want the item after the waiting period, you can feel more confident that it’s a worthwhile purchase.
#2 Maintain your space daily
Keep up with daily maintenance to prevent clutter from building up. One of the biggest mistakes people make is giving up decluttering once they are finished with it. Therefore, take a few minutes each day to tidy up and put things away. This can be as simple as making your bed in the morning or quickly sweeping your living space before bed. By taking these small steps consistently, you’ll prevent clutter from accumulating and ensure that your space stays clean and organized.
Another useful strategy is to implement a system for organizing your belongings. This can include using storage bins, labels, and drawer dividers to keep everything in its place. Having designated spots for your possessions makes putting things away easier and prevents them from getting lost in the shuffle.
#3 Set aside things that are not important
There is no better way to maintain momentum after decluttering than by donating things that are not important to you. It’s easy to feel like every item in your home is essential, but in reality, some things are less necessary than others. For example, do you really need five sets of sheets for your bed, or could you make do with two? If you feel 5 sets of sheets are important find storage space for 3 sets of sheets in another area until you need them. Keeping only 2 sets of sheets in your linen closet can help prevent it from becoming cluttered again. Keep the important items easily accessible and consider how many duplicates you need to keep. Duplicates create clutter.
One way to create space for less important things is to prioritize your belongings. Think about what items you use daily versus what items you only use occasionally. Store the occasional-use items in a less accessible place, such as a high shelf or a storage closet, or rent a storage unit. This will help prevent them from taking up valuable real estate in your home.
Regularly reevaluate your possessions and donate items that no longer serve you. This can be a challenging task, but it’s essential for maintaining a clutter-free home.
#4 Set a regular cleaning schedule
Establishing a regular cleaning schedule is important for maintaining momentum after decluttering your home. This will help maintain the sense of space and organization you’ve created. By setting aside a few hours each week to clean, you can prevent clutter from accumulating and keep your home feeling fresh and tidy.
Start by creating a checklist of cleaning tasks that need to be done regularly. Assign these tasks to specific days of the week or month. Make sure to mark them on your calendar or planner so you don’t miss them. You can also enlist the help of family members or roommates to share the cleaning responsibilities. Create a chore chart and assign tasks to each person, making sure to rotate them regularly so that everyone gets a chance to do different tasks.
#5 Don’t clutter it, donate it!
Aren’t you tired of cluttering your house with things you don’t even need? Wouldn’t it be better to donate them to someone who could appreciate them? Creating a donation system is an excellent way to maintain momentum after decluttering your home. Not only will you be doing something good for others, you’ll also be reducing clutter in your home.
Set a date and time to drop off or have your donations picked up, and mark it on your calendar. This will help you stay accountable and ensure that your items don’t just sit around your home, taking up space.
#6 Embrace minimalism
Can you embrace minimalism as a way of life? Minimalism isn’t just about having fewer possessions. It’s a mindset that can help you live a more intentional and fulfilling life. By focusing on the things that truly matter to you and letting go of the rest, you’ll create more space, time, and energy for the things that bring you joy.
Embracing minimalism also means being mindful of your consumption habits. Rather than constantly buying new things, focus on using and appreciating what you already have. When you do make purchases, invest in high-quality items that will last for years rather than cheap, disposable products that will clutter up your home.
Final thoughts
Congratulations! You’ve succeeded in decluttering your home and creating a new sense of space and organization. But the work doesn’t stop there! Maintaining momentum after decluttering your home is just as big of a task. In the end, decluttering is a journey, not a destination. It’s a continuous process of letting go, simplifying, and making room for less clutter and more joy in your life. And with the tips and tricks outlined in this guide, you’ll be well on your way to maintaining momentum and enjoying the benefits of a clutter-free home.
I think Sophia Perry has created a good guide. What would you add to this guide? Leave me a comment.
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 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
Did you think virtual organizing was about using online tools and technologies to get organized? Working at a task solving your organizing dilemmas on your own by listening to videos?
Organizing can be done remotely, via video conferencing, email, phone calls, or other forms of communication with a Professional Organizer. Instead of having an organizer physically come to your location, we work virtually to get organized, set goals, manage projects, and keep track of important information.
Why is it important to work with a virtual organizer?
Some people might think if the Professional Organizer is not in your home doing the work with you why not work alone? There are many benefits to having the expertise of a Professional Organizer available remotely.
- Increased productivity: A virtual organizer can help you set goals and prioritize your tasks, which can help you get more done in less time.
- Reduced stress: Receiving advice, steps and guidance that you can use immediately to organize your home or office with the organizer online with you, will provide a sense of control and reduce feelings of overwhelm. If you run into a stumbling a block, no need to procrastinate, the virtual organizer is there to help.
- Improved time management: A virtual organizer can help you manage your time more effectively by creating schedules and routines that are tailored to your needs. Imagine having your week, month or year in front of you to manage busy times of the year, know when all your household tasks are completed each week and by whom, plan fun parties and stop double booking your commitments. While working online with you a virtual organizer can prompt you to think about items you may have forgotten or never even considered scheduling.
- Better decision making: Some people are afraid to make decisions. They fear making the wrong decision or making a decision that will hurt someone’s feelings. They may not have built their confidence that they are good at making decisions. Working with a virtual organizer gives you someone to talk with about what to keep, what to do next, and how to allocate your resources. When you’re organized, you’re better able to make informed decisions about what tasks to prioritize, what items to keep and what goals to set for the future.
- Enhanced focus: A virtual organizer can help you stay focused on your goals by providing accountability and guidance. If you start procrastinating, your online organizer will notice and keep you heading toward your goal. The accountability and guidance can be at the time you are working or during scheduled mini organizing sessions.
- Virtual: It’s a convenient and cost-effective option for people who want to get organized but can’t meet with an organizer in person. It is a good option for those who prefer a more flexible and self-directed approach to organizing. You can work on your own schedule to suit your personality and lifestyle.
Virtual organizing is the process of organizing and managing your space and time with an actual live human offering you support and knowledge. Virtual organizing is a great way to stay on top of your tasks and responsibilities and make the most of your time and resources.
How to Get Started with Virtual Organizing
Determine your goals and priorities:
Virtual organizers can virtually organize anything. Everyone’s goals are different. You may want to have a room/ space organized so it functions better. You may need help with time management, scheduling or building routines that help to get the many tasks in a home or office completed quickly and on time without expending a lot of energy thinking about them.
Establish a routine and stick to it:
Scheduling time to work on your priorities is the only way they will move forward. Why am I writing this? Talking and planning about your project are important, the work actually has to happen too. Setting time aside helps you to be accountable and prevents procrastination.
Communicate with your virtual organizer regularly:
Meeting with your virtual organizer on a regular basis will help to get the tasks completed. Meetings can take many forms, including an email, text, phone call, 30 minute mini session or longer sessions while you are working on your task. Don’t think it is a one time conversation to get information and then you are on your own to struggle through the project. Most people are more successful if they use all the services and support the virtual organizer offers.
Track your progress and make adjustments as needed:
No plan is perfect. As you move forward on your project it is important to evaluate the progress and plan. You may need to adjust the length of time you schedule for working. Some people do better with many short sessions and others like one longer one. The length of the session may vary depending on the project and not only your style. A virtual organizer can offer suggestions, encouragement and information so you continue to complete your project successfully.
Tips for Successful Virtual Organizing
Stay motivated and focused:
Your virtual organizer is not the only person who can help you stay focused and motivated. Talk to friends about what you’re doing. This will help you to keep the project at the forefront of your schedule. They will ask how it is going and you will want to give them updates on your success. Use your technology to remind you of your work schedule and goals so you continue to see the benefits you are achieving.
Keep your virtual organizer updated:
Don’t avoid your virtual organizer. We are here to help move you forward. Lots of times life gets in the way and the organizing project gets derailed. Tell the virtual organizer exactly what is going on so you can work together to make adjustments. On the other hand, celebrating together on your success is enjoyable for both parties.
Celebrate your successes:
Whether big or small it is important to recognize the success you are making in reaching your goals.
Be open to feedback and suggestions:
Feedback and suggestions are a way to have a conversation to discover what is working well and what is not. Both parties need to understand this. I always tell my clients if they can’t get something completed then we haven’t found the best process yet. As a virtual organizer, I need feedback on how to best help my clients. They may want me to push them a little harder to get something done, be more understanding about their situation, be a motivating force to help them remember why this is important to them etc.
Conclusion
Although some people may prefer physical organizing, virtual organizing offers many benefits, including increased productivity, reduced stress, improved time management, better decision-making, and enhanced focus. Give it a try. Working with a human being is easier than navigating technology on your own or interacting with a robot. Almost everyone can use some help organizing something in their life. Whatever bothers you the most, start with that task and let a virtual organizer walk you through the steps, give you the knowledge and help you be accountable so you will feel less stressed, happier and more relaxed. If you’re looking for a convenient and effective way to get organized and stay on top of your tasks and responsibilities, virtual organizing is a great option.
I think I have covered all the reasons it is fun and not scary to work with a virtual organizer. I would like to hear your thoughts.
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
Just because something brought you joy in the past doesn’t mean you should carry it forever. The possessions you keep should represent the person you are trying to become, not the person you were. Keep this in mind when you start your decluttering journey. As you start to let go of things it will become easier and easier. Here are steps to help you on your path to finding your treasures.
Planning the space
1. Decide what the goal is for the room. Is it to have a:
- Beautiful compact space
- Functional workshop
- Sense of freedom and control
- The joy of financially exchanging stuff for new experiences and pleasures.
- Clear out a parent’s home
- Make things easier for the next generation
- Streamline your lifestyle
2. Decide what you want the room to look like and be used for. Draw a floor plan and make a list of activities that happen in that space. It will help you to know what to keep.
3. Decision criteria
Set up some questions to help you with your decision making. Here are some examples:
- How many of these do I have? How many is enough?
- Does the item fit in with my values?
- Is this item current?
- Is this item really valuable?
- Will owning this help to resolve my clutter?
- What is the worst thing that can happen if I don’t have it?
- Can I borrow it from somewhere?
- Does it bring me joy?
- Do I need it?
4. How much is enough?
Look around the room and decide what percentage of stuff you need to give away so everything will fit into the room. 25% 50% 75%?
5. If you don’t schedule it, it won’t get done.
Schedule time and work when you are not rushed. Do one area, room, box or even corner of a room depending on how much stuff you have to go through and your timeline.
6. Prepare the room for working.
You will need a series of boxes, bins, bags or containers. for garbage, recycling, donations, items to go to other rooms and items to return to people.
5 Methods for decluttering the room
I’m going to go through a number of ways to sort through your items and you can decide what method works best for you. At first, decluttering is easy because you find items that you know you don’t want and just haven’t given them away yet. Then it becomes more challenging. You must chip away at identifying which items are true treasures versus those you feel guilty about giving away. Remember to reduce by the percentage you choose in your planning.
1. Have a box
The simplest way to start is to keep a box in your closet and whenever you find something you don’t need put it into the box and you can start decluttering right away.
2. Skimming
- Go to a closet/cupboard and select the best items in each that category.
- Most cupboards/closets will have more than one category.
- For example, in a kitchen, the cupboard might have baking dishes, casserole dishes, muffin tins and loaf pans. Pick the best 1 or 2 of each of these 4 categories and donate the rest.
- Continue to open each cupboard and drawer skimming the contents and selecting 1 or 2 items from each category.
3. Sort then declutter
- Go clockwise around the room sorting items into groups by function
- Do the surfaces first and then the drawers and cupboards next
- When you are done, the garbage and recycling will be collected and removed from the room
- All the items in the room will be in groups
- Each room will have different categories/groups of items. Here are some examples, books, electronics, tools, dishes, home decor, games, clothing, photos etc
Look at one category/group and apply the questions and percentage you determined in the planning stage. Start removing items.
If that method doesn’t work for you and you are keeping everything, try a different method.
4. Grouping
Keep the Best of the Best. Instead of thinking about giving things away, it might be easier to consider keeping the best.
- After you have sorted the room make sure you are keeping the best one. You need to see all of the items in one group together and keep only as many as you need or the percentage you set in the planning stage, keep the best ones.
5. Triage
- Gather all your items from one category
- Pick up the first three and remove the one you like the least.
- Pick up 3 more and remove one again
- After you have gone through the category/group you will have decluttered by 1/3
If you are sentimental
- Try taking a picture of the items so you have the memory and let go of the item.
- Find a good home for the thing you are letting go of, they are still useful, just not to you anymore.
- “Shrink it”, only keep one item from a collection instead of the entire collection, you will still have the memory
- Ask yourself, what would be best, having a number of boxes with large quantities of unsorted keepsakes or a carefully assembled box of very precious treasures?
Decluttering is about having a mindset of letting go and having less. Once you experience the joy of being unburdened from cleaning, organizing, buying, and repairing stuff you don’t need, want, use or like you’ll wonder why you didn’t start sooner. Enjoy the journey.
Did I miss anything?
If you need help to start your decluttering project work with me virtually on zoom.
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 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
Click here to learn more about working with a Professional Organizer.
Reading time – 2 minutes
Thank you for the question
“How do you recommend managing mechanical “mesmerizing” tasks like data entry that can literally put me to sleep?”
Distractions will always be around to keep you from focusing on a task. It may be boredom, people, technology, the list is endless. When you are able to actively focus on a task you get it done quickly with fewer mistakes. In the case of “mechanical mesmerizing tasks”, this means you don’t have to do it for as long. I think we all have tasks that we find difficult to concentrate on and begin to daydream.
Here are 8 suggestions
Let me know if any resonate with you.
- Use music with or without words, this may make the setting you are working in more enjoyable and help you to feel like working
- Do this task at a time of day when you are most productive and can focus well
- Break the task into smaller tasks (batches of data entry, invoicing etc) do a little each day instead of a lot all at once
- Add white noise to your working space so you are not distracted by other sounds that can draw your attention away from what you are doing
- Set a timer – agree to work until the timer goes off and then change tasks or take a break. Do this until the task is completed. Getting up and moving can really help to let you be able to go back to the task and concentrate again.
- Give yourself a reward, when it is done I can …….
- Change the place where you do the task, perhaps you need a cooler space, better lighting, an out of the way space, etc
- Make a game out of it. See how many items you can enter in 5 minutes. Repeat until the task is done.
I hope you find these suggestions helpful so you can focus and get the task done quickly.
If it takes less time because you are focused you will need to focus for less time.
In the comments share the techniques you use to help increase your focus on mundane tasks.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, coaching you virtuallythrough 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
Often times we feel pressure to give an answer quickly or make a decision fast. As a parent, I learned to say I’ll get back to you or let me think about it before giving my decision. Sometimes it was a matter of counting to 10 before speaking. You may have a number of techniques to use that help you slow down your decision making until you can get all the facts. With technology all around us, there is pressure to work quickly. Learn what the best amount of time to spend on making decisions is so your values shine through in your work and life.
This blog is written by Mayo Oshin at MayoOshin.Com. and originally appeared on MayoOshin.Com as “Why waiting is the difference between success and failure ” on October 7, 2019
Shortly after midnight on September 26, 1983, the world nearly came to an end.
A few hours earlier, Stanislav Petrov—a lieutenant colonel in the Soviet Air Defense Forces—began his shift as the duty officer at Serpukhov-15, a secret command center near Moscow where the Soviet military monitored early-warning satellites over the United States.
Petrov’s job was simple: Monitor the satellites and notify his superiors of any nuclear missile attacks against the Soviet Union.
There was no cause for alarm, up until midnight.
And then suddenly, the red sirens surrounding the command center began to scream and the word “Launch” flashed up in big red letters across the white walls above the computers.
The computers flashed images of one nuclear missile attack from the United States, with the highest possible probability.
Considering the soviet warning computer had to go through 30 levels of security checks before confirming an actual missile launch, there was little doubt that the nuclear attack was legit. 1
Fear and panic filled the command center. And with only 20 minutes to react before impact, Petrov had to make a quick decision.
3 weeks prior, the Soviets shut down a commercial airplane flown across Soviet airspace from New York, killing all 269 passengers.
Since then, tensions hit their highest point since the beginning of the Cold War, and the Soviets were obsessed with fears of an attack from the U.S.
The incidence at the command center appeared to be the confirmation of their fears.
All it took was one phone call reporting the attack to Petrov’s superiors, and the Soviet leader, Yuri Andropov, would’ve most likely pulled the trigger on a nuclear missile counterstrike on the U.S.
As Petrov later said: “I had all the data [to suggest there was an ongoing missile attack]. If I had sent my report up the chain of command, nobody would have said a word against it,” he said. 2
As the sirens screamed louder and louder, Petrov instructed his subordinates to run more tests to check whether the missile attack was real—he decided to wait until all procedures were complete.
But within a few minutes, another alarm went off and the overhead displays flashed in red with a rocket attack sign.
This time the computer system showed five nuclear missiles in quick succession headed toward the Soviet Union.
The tension in the command center was so thick that you could cut it with a knife. As Petrov noted: “The moment the third alarm went off, I started feeling like I was sitting in a hot frying pan. I broke out into a sweat. I couldn’t feel my feet.” 3
Over 200 of Petrov’s subordinates fixed their eyes on him to hear the final decision.
But Petrov didn’t react. Instead, he chose to delay his decision and gather more information.
With only a few minutes left before impact, Petrov finally picked up the phone and called his superiors to inform them that the attack was a false alarm caused by a system malfunction.
He was right. The Soviet satellites had mistaken the sun’s reflection off the clouds for a missile attack from the United States.
Petrov’s delay in taking action prevented a potential nuclear retaliation and Third World War.
Decades later, the mass media of the Western world caught wind of Petrov’s role in the Cold War, and dubbed him “The Man Who Saved the World.” 4
In a Fast World, Think Slow and Act Slower
“We never live; we are always in the expectation of living.”
—Voltaire
Everything around us is moving faster and faster, and it doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon.
We want it all and we want it now: Instant messages, fast food, same-day grocery deliveries, speed dating, quick riches, rapid business growth, and the list goes on.
Impatience is our new virtue and speed is our motto.
But the constant pressure to get things done faster and make quick decisions often leads to avoidable mistakes that cost significant time and money, stress and burnout.
A series of studies conducted by two professors from Stanford and UCLA, Jeffrey Pfeffer and Sanford E. DeVoe, found that when we think about time as money—as we often do nowadays—we work longer hours and sacrifice our leisure and social time. 5
In particular, the researchers were shocked to discover that higher salaries earned by the participants led to more time pressure to work faster and longer, more stress outside of working hours and greater impatience with results.
As Pfeffer noted: “There’s some evidence that people feel more overworked and pressed for time than ever before, which is inconsistent with most measures to date of how much people are actually working in comparison to their leisure time.” 6
The mass media promotes the idea that faster is better and successful people make quick decisions in the “blink” of an eye.
But what if taking things slow and waiting until the last minute is better for decision-making, up until a certain point?
Decisions made too quick or too slow are sub-optimal.
Is it a coincidence that exceptional entrepreneurs, athletes, and investors, like Warren Buffett, have an uncanny ability to wait and then act at the right time within their circle of competence?
Or that the greatest military generals tend to spend a good amount of time observing before taking action, and genius innovators like Albert Einstein, spend years in solitude before they discover ingenious breakthrough ideas?
The common thread amongst top performers isn’t how fast they act. It’s when they act.
And when they act is often at the point of optimal time delay, which helps them to make better decisions than everyone else and stay at the top of their game.
So, how do you figure out your optimal time delay before taking action?
The answer to this question is less of an exact science and more of a subtle art.
It varies based on the nature of the decision, your level of experience in making similar decisions and your gut feeling.
As a rule of thumb, the more deliberate practise you’ve put into making similar decisions, the shorter your optimal time delay. Because your subconscious mind has been trained so well to take action on your behalf without much thinking required.
If you’re constantly stressed out, have a track record of making avoidable mistakes and struggle with instant gratification, then it’s likely you’re too far left of your optimal time delay and need to procrastinate a bit longer before making decisions.
By delaying our actions in our everyday lives—before speaking, replying to emails, saying yes and committing, hiring a new employee, creating a new year’s resolution, and so on—we can regain clarity of what’s truly important, make better decisions and achieve our potential.
Wait
We have a tendency to beat ourselves up for putting things off until the last minute.
But more times than not, it pays to wait before making a decision.
Stanislav Petrov’s decision to delay his final decision until the last minute arguably saved the world from war and destruction.
And in our everyday lives, we can save ourselves from stress, and bad mistakes that waste valuable time and money, if we simply wait a bit longer before making decisions.
In art, it’s the “subtle” changes that make the difference between a breathtaking and uninspiring painting.
In life, however, it’s the “subtle” moments of delay that make the difference between success and failure.
Mayo Oshin writes at MayoOshin.Com, where he shares the best practical ideas based on proven science and the habits of highly successful people for stress-free productivity and improved mental performance. To get these strategies to stop procrastinating, get more things by doing less and improve your focus, join his free weekly newsletter. The internet is noisy. Want to cut through the noise of useless information and feed your brain with well-researched ideas? Join 10,000 curious minds and get your brain food by clicking subscribe
I think this article has covered everything. Are there any ideas that should be added? 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 through 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
There are many words that give the impression of good intentions. Having good intentions is not enough to get you organized. Let’s look at some words that you can remove from your vocabulary when you are setting your organizing goals to make the impossible possible.
Soon
When you say you will do something soon you have not assigned a specific deadline to the activity. As time passes you keep saying, ” I’ll do it soon”. Overcome this form of procrastination by scheduling an appointment with yourself, date and time. Setting a specific deadline for a task is one form of motivation that helps some people complete a job.
Try
You may have heard the saying, “try and try again”. It implies if you keep doing something you will get better at it. That is true. However, when people say they will try to get organized, there is no commitment to the task. After having tried they can leave the task unfinished. They tried no one helped, they tried they didn’t know how to get organized, they tried and ran out of time, they tried and they were too tired to finish. Using the word try gives you an excuse to explain the reason you were not successful at getting organized. When you are making your organizing plan be more specific. Set a goal of what you will do.
Want
The word want doesn’t help to differentiate the reason for keeping things. People want lots of things for many reasons. It might be pretty, a gift, memorabilia, affordable or belonging to you. When you are looking at your stuff develop a set of questions to help you decide if you should keep something or let it go. These questions will be different for everyone. Some questions you can ask are:
- Do you use it?
- Does it bring you joy, do you like it?
- Is it a legal or financial document, an important document?
- If you give it away what is the worst thing that can happen?
- Is it best of the best of all the ……… you have? Best purse, best casserole, best hammer, best book
- If you need it could you borrow it from someone?
You most likely want almost everything. Using the word want as decision criteria to decide what to keep and what to let go is a way of putting off the decision.
Could, Would, Should
What are the could, would and should in your organizing life? I could have decluttered before moving. I would get organized if I had time. I should have started this task much earlier. Examine what you think you should have done and compare it to what you have done. Are you satisfied with the way your home is organized? Is the “should “picture of how to organize a home someone else’s goals that you think you “should” do? Maybe the “should” voice in your head came from a parent, friend or co-worker. Look at the difference in the reality of your organized home and the should voice and decide what is really the way you want it to be. Attempting to meet other people’s expectations when they are not the same as yours leads to anger, anxiety and stress preventing you from continuing on your own path to an organized home.
Maybe
This is a very polite word. You are not taking any sides. There is no commitment to do anything. Maybe I can organize the garage on Saturday. Maybe I’ll take that course you suggested to learn how to organize. Maybe we can set a date and you can help me to get organized. Instead of thinking about your organizing situation in terms of maybe doing something to change it, be more specific about what you want to do. Remove the maybe from your sentence. It will make it a more powerful declaration of your intention. I’ll take that course you suggested. I’ll work on organizing the garage on Saturday. I’ll set a date so we can work together. Be bold if you don’t want to do something. I like the way my garage is organized it works for me. Thank you for offering to help me get organized, I like doing it on my own schedule. Choose the path that is best for you and avoid the maybe path.
Comment on what words or phrases stopping you from getting organized.
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
Do you have a home or office that is creating anxiety and a feeling of stress and overwhelm? You know you want to change the situation. With a little knowledge, help and support you could start to feel happy in your home and organized in your office. I have been offering virtual organizing sessions for 7 years, this may be the year for you to try it.
Who would use virtual organizing services?
For clients who:
- wish to do the “hands-on “organizing themselves
- are uncertain about someone coming into their home,
- want a cost-effective way to get organized
- need to manage their organizing appointments to fit a complex schedule
- need support to stay focused on the project
Why would I offer this service?
Virtual organizing allows me to:
- to provide support to you through prearranged online meetings
- I can help you no matter where you live
- I can keep working with you even if you moved away
- in addition to organizing, I can coach, teach, support and mentor you
What would a virtual organizing session look like
There are probably as many ways to do virtual organizing as there are organizers. Here are my 4 formats.
A series of mini sessions.
This format starts with a one-hour session to establish the goals you want to achieve and is followed up with 30-minute mini sessions to set steps to follow to complete the job.
Be there with you
This format is for you if you don’t like to work alone. I am with you on my computer helping you to:
- know what to do next,
- make decisions about what to keep and what to donate and
- set up organizing systems to store your stuff.
Complete Plan
This format is for people who want to work by themselves on their own schedule. After you contact me, I set up a 1-2 hour Zoom call and you show me the room you want to get organized. I develop a customized organizing plan that you implement. If you have questions we can set up a support call to:
- solve problems,
- clarify the next step,
- receive storage suggestions.
- receive donation and recycling information
- check-in with you while you are working
Develop Routines
A lot of organizing and maintaining a home, office or room is establishing routines and systems. We work together to set up step-by-step systems.
There are the A, B, C, D’s of virtual organizing
For more detailed information check Virtual Organizing Services on my website
To book a complimentary 30 minute virtual assessment use this link or contact me directly at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
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 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
Harold Taylor is a time management specialist. This article appeared in his June 2015 Taylor Time newsletter and is still true today. Contact him to get on his mailing list and receive other great information on organizing time and space. Harold Taylor Time Consultants Inc | info@taylorintime.com
Slow decision-making wastes time, as do spur-of-the-moment decisions, which usually result in costly and time-consuming mistakes. But the worst thing you can do is to procrastinate on decision-making. Napoleon Hill, the author of Think and Grow Rich, once conducted a survey of successful people and found all of them were decisive. Don’t be afraid of being wrong. We learn from our mistakes; but if we do nothing, we neither accomplish anything nor learn anything.
Delay until you have enough information, but don’t wait until you have all the information. If you have all the information, the course of action becomes a foregone conclusion: no real decision is necessary. Have the courage to make decisions with only 70% to 80% of the facts. When you have mulled over the facts and considered, the alternatives, sleep on it. Decisions are usually better after a good night’s sleep.
Spend time in proportion to the importance of the decision. For instance, don’t waste a lot of time discussing the menu for the staff Christmas party. The decision to close down an operation or expand the product line warrants a greater expenditure of that costly commodity called time. Make minor decisions quickly. If the consequence of the decision is not important, it is not worth much of your valuable time.
If the decision is yours alone to make, and you seem to get bogged down in the process and get frustrated by your lack of progress, it’s frequently faster, in the long run, to leave the problem for a short period of time. Work on some unrelated jobs for a few hours or even a few days and then tackle the problem anew. The change in pace will revitalize your thinking. But delay it only once or you will be tempted to procrastinate.
Always make short-term decisions with long-term objectives in mind. Don’t make a band-aid decision that solves the immediate problem, but results in time-consuming problems further down the road.
And above all, don’t waste time on past decisions. Instead of saying “I if only I had done such and such,” say instead, “Next time I will ..”
If you need help making decisions about what to keep and what to let go book a 30 minute chat with me.
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 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
