Latest Blog Posts
Why don’t I want to do it now?
Is it boring?
- Do it anyway and consider the consequence if you don’t do it.
Overwhelming?
- Break it into smaller parts and do one or several parts at a time
Do I only have small blocks of time available but want to do everything from start to finish?
- Change your mindset and make it a positive idea. Small blocks of time mean you only need to do a small amount of work
Am I tired?
- Be aware of your circadian rhythms. Each of us peaks at different hours of the day. Before and after lunch is usually a good time to catch up on mundane activities
Do I fear failure or that it won’t turn out perfectly?
- Fear of losing things,
- forgetting things
- not finishing things or
- doing the wrong thing can generate a lack of action.
How to be Successful
1. If you are easily distracted keep only one project on your desk at a time.
2. Give yourself a time span to complete a project and don’t let your mind wander from the task. Set a timer. When it goes off you change what you are doing or take a break and come back to the same task.
3. Try setting small goals and giving yourself rewards, a coffee, a walk, 15 minutes on Facebook, calling a friend etc
4. Think of how you will feel when the task is completed, pride, relief, satisfaction
There are more great ideas in a book titled “Don’t Agonize Organize Your Office” by Diane A Hatcher
Join Organizing Mind and Space to help you become intentional about getting things done.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Click here to learn more about her online course Create an Organized Home.
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Looking for a Gift of Time to give this Holiday Season?
MindoverClutter.ca has 3 hour packages designed to help with any number of tasks in the home and office. Considering purchasing an:
Gift a gift of time to someone who is busy
- Income Tax Receipt Organizing Package
- Holiday Cleanup Package
- Streamlining Your Office Package.
- Organizing for the New Year
Packages can be designed to fit the individual needs of the person receiving the gift. Purchase your introductory gift package in 2018 for $150.00. Contact julie@mindoverclutter.ca to purchase your clutter free gift of time.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She uses her love of physical activity to reduce clutter, in your home and office. She guides and supports you to manage 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 – Join my Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Click here to learn more about working with a Professional Organizer
A lovely colleague sent me this first tip. Marie Mushing runs a networking group called People in Connection
1. Make the area a showcase
See what working with a professional organizer can do for you? Professional Organizers rub out junk. Where there was once chaos and huge piles of paper, is now a showcase. Thank you Julie! Replace the junk pile with something pretty as I did, then you won’t want to pile junk on that again. Great motivation to keep the filing done!
2. Prevent drop zones from forming
If you have an empty flat surface it sometimes calls to people, “to fill me with stuff.” To prevent that area from becoming cluttered, put a large object or two in that spot. It will make the area feel full and then you won’t drop things there. With only 2 larger objects, it is easy to pick them up and dust and clean. If you use a number of smaller items it may make the area harder to clean.
3. Designate a paper collection spot
Assign a place to put papers that need to be read, filed, signed etc. Place a tray, lovely baskets, eye catching red container etc in a convenient location. Why red? Red is a high energy colour, it increases your heartrate, and your eye is drawn to red items. By using a red basket it can help to make dealing with paperwork a high priority activity. Keeping paperwork consolidated in one spot makes it easier to find and work with. When paper is all over the office or house it becomes visual clutter, causing anxiety, the release of cortisol and you feel stress. Cut the visual clutter, collect the paper in one spot, and complete the tasks.
4. Avoid the L word – later
Piles of paper will continue to build up if you leave them for later. Later will never come. Schedule time to deal with paperwork: schedule time to read, file, and reply to paperwork that generates more work. Schedule these activities according to your level of energy at different times of the day. Scheduling reading after lunch at a low energy time of the day may not be productive but scheduling filing after lunch may be perfect because it gets you up and active. Scheduling time at the beginning of each day to concentrate on work generated by email, letters, and documents might work well when you are able to focus on single tasks. Remember not to multi-task.
Schedule time for paperwork
If you’re interested in learning how colour can affect your productivity, this guide is free and you can find it here.
What tricks do you use to help you complete paperwork?
Related articles The truth about multitasking
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Click here to learn more about her online course Create an Organized Home.
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
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 exercising habits, it sometimes involves behavioral 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 rather 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.They put things back
2. They put things back
- Executives waste six weeks per year searching items
3. They write things down
- From a master list of things to do determine the priorities for the next day. This may include planning the most effect 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-mail 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 complete, 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, in person and virtually. She enjoys working with her clients to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She reduces clutter, streamlines processes and manages time to help her clients be more effective in reaching their goals. Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Twitter – https://twitter.com/Julieorganizer Facebook – http://facebook.com/mindoverclutter/
Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space https://www.facebook.com/groups/1881280812154271/
https://mindoverclutter.ca/what-does-a-professional-organizer-do/
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. They have their own page posted on the refrigerator or bulletin board.
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.
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. Beff you 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.ore they can play, watch TV or have screen time they have to complete everything on their list. If you 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.
| 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. But 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, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Click here to learn more about her online course Create an Organized Home.
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
Carolyn Shannon is my guest blogger today. Her business Venting Creatively helps people to find creative ways to shine a light on their life from a different view. She publishes a magazine called Women of Worth magazine.
Being productive leaves time for the things that are important to you
Top 10 Productivity Time Killers
Every day countless hours are wasted away due to non-productive activities. Time is money, so when distractions and procrastination set in profitability will decline. A survey conducted by OfficeTime.net has revealed 10 of the biggest time killers. The main offenders that reduce our productivity are:
1. Emails
2. Surfing the net
3. Watching TV
4. Procrastination
5. Meetings
6. Non-business conversations
7. Commuting & travel time
8. Social networking
9. Cell Phones & texting
10. Dealing with red tape
Types of Time Wasting
There are many factors that lead to procrastination. There are a few broad categories that most time wasting falls into.
1. Indecision.
Perfectionists will often struggle with indecision. Some things may never become perfect, and putting too much focus on perfection will mean too much time spent on one job. Splitting the work into smaller tasks is one way to deal with it more effectively.
2. Avoidance.
Fear of being judged can be the main cause of procrastination. It could be fear of failure or even success. Neither of these is something to be ashamed of. Success should be celebrated, and failure is the best way of learning. Think less about what others may think and more about trying your best at the task at hand.
3. Thrill Seeking.
This is when procrastination is justified because the worker likes the thrill of an approaching deadline. If this is the case it is best to move deadlines closer and set personal targets. This still gets you the thrill of working against the clock, while reducing procrastination.
How to Put an End to Time Killers
The first step to battling time killers is to understand and appreciate the amount of time that is being wasted. What is the value of all that lost time? Time wasters will directly affect your career advancement opportunities and reduce the amount of income you could have received. Tracking where your time is spent will allow for efficient time management. Don’t just rely on your memory to remember what you did during the day. Use a system so that you have a written record that can be looked over and analyzed. This could be as simple as creating a timetable on a piece of paper, or utilizing a computer program or app to record your daily activities. Cutting down on time killers is a good start, but there are other strategies that should be used to effectively manage your time:
1. Define your purpose.
You need to know exactly what you want when starting a task. Without a definite purpose, you will lose focus.
2. Smart goal setting.
Choose realistic and specific goals and targets. It should be measurable so you know when it has been completed.
3. Plan on a regular basis.
As factors change, your plan should be adjusted to reflect the reality of the situation.
To truly beat time killers you need to work on your mindset & stick to your plan for the long term.
Which type of Time Waster Are You?
1. Thrill Seekers
They feel they can procrastinate, as they enjoy the feeling of working against a deadline
Tip: constantly set and adjust deadlines so that you still get the adrenaline rush but are using your time more effectively than procrastinating
2. Avoiders
They prefer to procrastinate as a means to avoid being judged. Whether it is a success or a failure
Tip: Success is a good thing and nothing to be ashamed of. Failure is a way to learn and improve. Focus on doing the best job you can and not on what others think.
3. Indecisive people
They are often perfectionists but procrastinate to shift responsibility from themselves
Tip: Not everything has to be perfect so try to take small risks and use your intuition. Mistakes may mean you learn something new. Try to split the task up into more manageable parts.
Need help setting new patterns and mindsets this year contact me. I can work with you virtually to help you become more productive and have time for the things that are important to you.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Click here to learn more about her online course Create an Organized Home.
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
A reader sent me this link to a great article on cleaning, Alyson Voss a Freelance Writer – Lifestyle. I hope you enjoy these tips on how to keep your house clean.
In the day-to-day hustle and bustle, keeping the house clean can seem about as likely as winning the lottery—but it doesn’t have to consume hours of your daily time. Aside from the occasional in-depth cleaning sessions, you can stay on top of daily dirt and grime in just 30 minutes a day (or less!). With just a little organization and pre-planning, you’ll breeze through basic cleaning tasks in no time.
Follow this checklist to get your home in tip-top shape in just 30 minutes.
Set the stage
- Conquer clutter: Keep random objects out of your way by assigning each family member a “collection station” (use a large laundry basket or unused trash can) for corralling things that don’t have a home. Everyone is responsible for emptying their stations once they’re full.
- Gather your weapons: Use a cleaning caddy to bring your main supplies from room to room as you clean. Stock it with Lysol Disinfectant Spray, disinfecting wipes, cleaning cloths, and any other necessities. If your home has multiple levels, create one full caddy for each.
- Map out your route: Systematic patterns can shave serious time off your cleaning. One recommended method is to start each room at the top, to the left of the doorway, and move clockwise and down. Use a logical room-to-room path with no backtracking to save even more time.
Start your engines
- Focus, grasshopper: When you’re ready to start speed-cleaning, focus on the task at hand by putting down the phone and turning off the television. If you can’t stand the silence or need motivation, tune into your favorite radio station or kick up your most energetic iPod playlist.
- Skip the little things: Give yourself permission to ignore tedious, time-consuming tasks that don’t need to be performed daily. Extend tasks like dusting off knick-knacks, scouring spice racks, rearranging shelves, and wiping down window treatments to once a month.
- Wipe away germs: Instead of breaking out the spray and scrubber for every surface, use Lysol disinfecting wipes to quickly clean frequently touched or trafficked surfaces that are already relatively clean. You’ll save time, and you can give these areas a proper weekly cleaning with Lysol Disinfectant Spray to maintain pristine conditions.
- Banish the broom: If you vacuum carpets but sweep hard flooring, save time and energy by leaving the broom in the closet and vacuuming everything. It’s just as effective, and eliminates one bulky tool. Invest in a 50-foot extension cord, and you can vacuum room to room without unplugging and re-plugging.
- Finish with a refreshing scent: As a final touch for each room, use an air freshener. Your home will look and smell amazing.
The more often you follow your speed-cleaning checklist, the easier and faster it will be. You’ll save hours of time, and the dirt, germs, and odours won’t have a fighting chance.
Need help getting your home organized so it is easier to clean. Contact Mind over Clutter to help simplify things to make cleaning easier.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, in person and virtually. She enjoys working with her clients to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She reduces clutter, streamlines processes and manages time to help her clients be more effective in reaching their goals. Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Carolyn Shannon is my guest blogger today. Her business Venting Creatively helps people find creative ways to shine a light on their lives from a different view. She publishes Women of Worth magazine.
Top 10 Productivity Time Killers
Every day countless hours are wasted away due to non-productive activities. Time is money, so when distractions and procrastination set in profitability will decline. A survey conducted by OfficeTime.net has revealed 10 of the biggest time killers. The main offenders that reduce our productivity are:
1. Emails
How much time do you spend surfing the web?
2. Surfing the net
3. Watching TV
4. Procrastination
5. Meetings
6. Non-business conversations
7. Commuting & travel time
8. Social networking
9. Cell Phones & texting
10. Dealing with red tape
Types of Time Wasting
There are many factors that lead to procrastination. There are a few broad categories that most time wasting falls into.
1. Indecision. Perfectionists will often struggle with indecision. Some things may never become perfect, and putting too much focus on perfection will mean too much time spent on one job. Splitting the work into smaller tasks is one way to deal with it more effectively.
2. Avoidance. Fear of being judged can be the main cause of procrastination. It could be fear of failure or even success. Neither of these is something to be ashamed of. Success should be celebrated, and failure is the best way of learning. Think less about what others may think and more about trying your best at the task at hand.
3. Thrill Seeking. This is when procrastination is justified because the worker likes the thrill of an approaching deadline. If this is the case it is best to move deadlines closer and set personal targets. This still gets you the thrill of working against the clock, while reducing procrastination.
Time flies
How to Put an End to Time Killers
The first step to battling time killers is to understand and appreciate the amount of time that is being wasted. What is the value of all that lost time? Time wasters will directly affect your career advancement opportunities and reduce the amount of income you could have received. Tracking where your time is spent will allow for efficient time management. Don’t just rely on your memory to remember what you did during the day. Use a system so that you have a written record that can be looked over and analyzed. This could be as simple as creating a timetable on a piece of paper or utilizing a computer program or app to record your daily activities. Cutting down on time killers is a good start, but there are other strategies that should be used to effectively manage your time:
1. Define your purpose. You need to know exactly what you want when starting a task. Without a definite purpose, you will lose focus.
2. Smart goal setting. Choose realistic and specific goals and targets. It should be measurable so you know when it has been completed.
3. Plan on a regular basis. As factors change, your plan should be adjusted to reflect the reality of the situation.
To truly beat time killers you need to work on your mindset & stick to your plan for the long-term.
Which type of Time Waster Are You?
1. Thrill Seekers feel they can procrastinate, as they enjoy the feeling of working against a deadline
Tip: constantly set and adjust deadlines so that you still get the adrenaline rush but are using your time more effectively than procrastinating
2. Avoiders prefer to procrastinate as a means to avoid being judged. Whether it is a success or a failure
Tip: Success is a good thing and nothing to be ashamed of. Failure is a way to learn and improve. Focus on doing the best job you can and not on what others think.
3. Indecisive people are often perfectionists but procrastinate to shift responsibility from themselves
Tip: Not everything has to be perfect so try to take small risks and use your intuition. Mistakes may mean you learn something new. Try to split the task up into more manageable parts.
Need help managing your time effectively contact Mind over Clutter. Julie can work with you in person or virtually to help streamline your processes and routines.
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Click here to learn more about her online course Create an Organized Home.
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
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 or stop you in the hall and give you information also take time away from important tasks to be completed. 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 and supported by management. You may be surprised how much you can get done in one hour with no 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.
ulie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Click here to learn more about her online course Create an Organized Home.
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
People have tried to find electronic solutions for most things that used to be done by paper. However, would a paper To-Do list work better for you than an electronic one? Here is a thought provoking blog post on the topic. Which ever system works best for you, you must check your list. People will make lists but not look at them. Use a system that keeps your to-do list in your mind.
Why the Old-School Paper To-Do List Is Superior as a Productivity Tool (& How to Make It Work for You in Under 5 Minutes)
Julie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
Click here to learn more about her online course Create an Organized Home.
Twitter – Facebook – Facebook group Organizing Mind and Space
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