The time has come: Annual Band Aid Season!  This is when our kids are outside on the bikes, walking exotic trails, climbing trees and generally putting themselves in harm’s way.  When harm happens you want to be able to access your feel better supplies (read: first aid kit) as quickly as possible.  So in honor of Band Aid Season, let’s organize our medicine cabinets.

Location, Location, Location!
Once our grandparents kept everything in the little box behind the mirror in the bathroom but modern culture maintains the kitchen is the most convenient place.  I recommend medications taken orally be kept in the kitchen – where food-grade cleaning is consistent.  External-only type of items can be kept in the bathroom.  I have found that this is the easiest way to prevent accidentally taking something that shouldn’t be.  (don’t ask!)

Also, if you have a very large or multilevel home, keep a kit upstairs and down.  The benefit of this is twofold.  First, what you need will always be nearby and, second, if you run out in one kit you can borrow from the other in a pinch.

Stock it up!
Know what you need and make sure you have it.  Create a list of items that should always live in your care kit.  This would include things like anti-itch cream, antibiotic ointment, Band Aids, etc.  Keep your kit in a clear plastic container and tape or glue your list to the lid.  I like to write such lists on pretty scrapbook type paper just to make myself happy.  Be sure to label your kit.

Medications can be kept in a basket without a lid – imagine struggling with a lid when experiencing a migraine.  Label your baskets by type: Cold & Allergy, Vitamins & Supplements, Stomach & Digestive, and Prescription Medications.  These can be kept in a drawer or cabinet, whichever is most convenient.  If you have small children it is helpful to keep a dosage chart for regularly administered medications.  Type it up and make it look nice so that everyone (including your spouse) can read it.

Be Diligent!
Regularly check your stock levels and expiration dates.  You might not die from taking expired Benadryl, but you might.  Seriously, medications lose their efficacy over time and what is the point of taking Advil if it won’t help the headache?  Check weekly for low quantities and monthly for expired items.   Don’t forget your sun block, it expires very quickly!

Have a Neat summer!

Jennifer Snyder, CPOÒ
Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts
www.neatasapin.net

If you were to Stop and think about your daily life, would you say that you are deliberate in your actions?  Notice, I did not say Intentions, actions are our focus for right this minute.  Right this minute, I am being deliberate about writing this little bit of wisdom while my husband thinks I should come look at the dinner he is cooking.  You might call it prioritizing but I am deliberately ignoring him to write.  Now, on with the show…

I have a busy life and if I don’t pay attention to what I am doing, I will live my entire personal life on auto-pilot.  Sound familiar?  I will get in the car and end up going to HEB instead of Target or end up driving home when I was trying to go someplace else.  When this happens, I am not being deliberate in my life.  I can also come home and work on my computer for hours until I look up and see that it is 11:00 and no one in my house has had showers or dinner.  I recently got so lost in my life that I (the Professional Organizer) threw away 4 prescriptions that had just been filled.  This was my wake-up call!

Throughout this painful and terribly inconvenient learning process, I realize that so many of my clients end up with messes and clutter through lack of being deliberate in what they do with their things – and their time.  I encourage you to make one small change and be deliberate about it.  If your one small change is shredding the junk mail as it arrives, then do it – every day!  If your one small change is to put your shoes in the closet or make your bed each day, then do it – every day!

They say it takes 21 days to make a habit but I prefer 90 just to make sure it sticks and sticks well!  Have you ever tried to drink more water (if you say no, you are lying!) and it worked for a few weeks or a month and then you back to sodas?  I am the same way and have to be deliberate about drinking water before something with some flavor.

This is something we all struggle with but a 90-day change challenge is what we need, along with a buddy to hold us accountable.  Having said that, I am implementing a Clutter Buddy Program, which is a virtual Clutter Buddy or email pal that can work together to support and encourage one another.  If you are interested in the Clutter Buddy program, please send an email to jennifer@neatasapin.nt with Clutter Buddy in the Subject line.

Have a Neat day!

Jennifer Snyder, CPO
Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts
www.neatasapin.net
Facebook & Pinterest: Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts
Twitter: @neatasapin

The sun is shining, a light breeze is blowing, the world is awakening from a deep cold slumber.  We want to get out and move around; see and be seen.  It is Yard Sale Season.  Since my friends and readers know better than to further junk up their homes by acquiring more junk at a yard sale, we are going to get rid of our wanted things at our own.

I would like to go on record here saying that I strongly prefer donating unwanted items to charity because things get out of your space much faster and with less time and energy commitment.  Some financially dedicated folks still want to get something back for their original investment.  If you happen to be one of such people, at least do it right and I am going to tell you how.

Step 1:

Gather your merchandise.  You can’t have a sale with nothing to sell.  This in itself should take several weeks if done properly.  Set up an inconspicuous holding area for such items.  Leave no door unopened, no cabinet is safe, and no box unopened.  If all that you have to offer are baby items or clothing, consider consigning or selling online.  You will do much better.  Yard Salers typically want Stuff!

Step 2:

Get the word out.  Advertise your sale.  In this step you will want a little more than a black pen on white poster board nailed to the telephone pole at the corner.  You want in the newspapers, free circulars, online with Facebook and Craigslist.  Print flyer and circulars.  This is going to cost some money so if you aren’t of the mindset of spending money to make money then ditch the project now and donate to charity.

Keep in mind that you want your wording to be concise and succinct and your flyers to be eye-catching and interesting.  In this case the creative bird gets the worm.

Step 3:

Tag your wares.  As nice as it would be to pile all the DVDs or toys on one table with a sign indicating the price, this isn’t really a good idea, especially if the DVDs and toys are at different price points.  Each item should be clearly marked with the price. I agree completely regarding the laborious nature of this task so I will remind you that this was your idea.  I tried to steer you otherwise.  You’ve come this far, do it right. Keep your prices simple: $5, $1, or in 25Ȼ increments.

Step 4:

Prepare your shop.  The day before your sale is to commence, go to the bank and get about $50 in change.  Tidy up your yard and get a clear idea of how you will set up.  Your patrons will arrive early (in the middle of the night, if you ask me) so the less you have to do that morning the better off you will be.

Step 5:

Be a master merchandiser.  Put like items together regardless of price.  Remember step 3?  Blankets are handy because you have hundreds of them but tables are better.  What your patrons see is something you respect at an incredibly reasonable price.  A blanket on the ground, not so much.  If you have the ability to purchase a long roll of plastic tablecloth I would recommend it.  You will make more money if your things look more appealing.  Small details can make a several hundred dollar difference for you.  Clothing should be displayed on hangers or strung up on a makeshift clothesline.

Step 6:

Ready set go!  About 30 minutes before your scheduled open time make sure you have had at least three cups of coffee and set up shop.  Patrons will arrive early…really early.  Make deals but don’t give away the farm.  Save the last day for the real deal making and the last hour for the OMG Get It Out Of Here pricing.

During the sale the more friendly you are the more you will sell.  Don’t ask me why nice people sell more, they just do.  This will also make the time go more quickly and be more pleasurable.

Keep your money close and remember to have all electronic devices and gadgets plugged in for demonstration.

With this you are ready to go!  If you must Yard Sale, let’s get that clutter out of here!  Just remember not to spend your hard earned cash on more stuff that you will have to sell next Spring.

Have a Neat day!

Jennifer Snyder
Certified Professional Organizer
Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts
www.neatasapin.net

So now that I have sold you on taking time for yourself, where in the world does that time come from?  Let me say first, and foremost, that we never ever sacrifice sleep for Me-Time.  Now, if you lay awake in bed for three hours before actually rising, we might be able to make better use of said time, but do not stay up late just to have time to yourself.

A schedule (even a loose one) is going to help free up some time in your day.  If you were to make a list of all the things that should be done in a day and group them together either by location or like items.  “Errands” is erroneous.  Be specific: pick up prescriptions, take dog to groomer, return library books, etc.  This will help you better manage your mileage and therefore reduce windshield time.  Imagine efficiently running errands then having ½ an hour before picking up the kids to sit at Starbucks with a good book and a latte.  This is not only a reasonable goal but very attainable as well.

Now, when creating your schedule, only schedule 50% of your time.  That’s right!  Only ½ of all potentially fillable daily minutes should be.  Use the remaining 50% for unexpected possibilities.  Could you imagine how much better our lives would be if our doctor’s office did this?!  No offense, MD’s, we love you!

The 50% also provides some vital recovery time.  When rushing from one meeting or appointment to the next we lose a lot of information from lack of processing time.  I would recommend a ½ hour recovery period between appointments.  This would include time for a healthy snack, potty break, and travel time.

Most important is remember to take it slowly.  Rome wasn’t built in a day and you eat an elephant one bite at a time.  Start by being conscious of your current schedule and try to implement some of these changes into your routine as you add new ToDos.  You can download Time Journals from Google or I can send you mine.  If you want mine, simply send an email to jennifer@neatasapin.net or my message on Facebook or Twitter.  Information is power…take the power back from your calendar!

Have a NEAT day!

Jennifer Snyder, CPOÒ
Chief Executive Organizer
Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts
www.neatasapin.net
Facebook & Pinterest: Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts
Twitter: @Neatasapin

We all know (or should) that clutter is simply delayed decision making.  Almost everyone can relate to this in terms of their closets.  They become filled with clothes that we are undecided about…are we going to lose weight to get back into them, are we ever going to find the perfect top to wear with that skirt bought on sale, are we ever going to wear those shoes enough so they are comfortable?  I could go on and on.  Our closets are important; don’t get me wrong, but where the decision dilemmas matter most is in regards to our papers.

And so it is with paper… Counters, desks, file cabinets, and storage facilities fill up with paper because we’re unwilling to make the time or decision to toss, shred, recycle, or digitize.

In reality, however, the problem is really not the paper. The problem is what the paper represents. Paper represents our intentions, our dreams, and our fears—our past, present and future. It’s often very easy to help someone else clean up their paper, but very difficult to clean up our own, because we don’t want to face our own emotions.

In the meantime, if you struggle with paper, sort into the following categories

1. Action required
2. Pay
3. File
4. Decide Later
5. Trash/Recycle

This time of year it might be prudent to also include a Tax file.  These few files (or piles) will help take the sting out of your paper situation.

Paper is harmless in itself, the only power it has over you is what you give it.

Have a Neat day!
Jennifer Snyder, CPOÒ
Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts
www.neatasapin.net

Consider your laundry or mud room (or space).  Stand in the doorway (or entrance) then look up, what do you see?  The ceiling is not the correct answer, not that far up.  Is there space up there, lonely and sad?  Boy could you use that space!  If you have high & difficult to reach cabinets, you can store small infrequently used appliances that could free up much needed storage in the kitchen.  Kids’ artwork archives or even hubby’s college memorabilia can easily be stored in such a place.  No cabinets?  Empty wall space is a treasure trove of storage just waiting to be found.

You can opt for something with doors but regular ole shelving works too.  Depending on what you are storing, a set of hooks may be the best option.  Remember, if you have doors, it opens up the option of concealing your clutter.  Clutter, whether you see it or not, is still clutter!  Should you opt for open shelving (read: without doors) be sure to utilize containers for small items to eliminate an area of organized clutter or cluttered organization.  Either way is frustrating!

Purchasing storage bins is the first step many people take in the process of getting better organized.  This can be a big mistake if not carefully thought through.  Stuffing stuff in bins, without careful consideration and planning only gives you boxed up clutter.  Remember cluttered organization before?  My recommendation is to refrain from purchasing anything until you have a plan for the pieces.

Here are some simple steps to maximizing your unused space, outlined in bullet points so you can cut them out and tape to the fridge:

• Identify your empty vertical spaces
• Determine what would be a good use for such a space
• How do you want to use it?  How will you REALLY use it?
• Measure your space then measure your stuff.
• Purchase necessary organizing supplies based on measurements and uses.
• Install
• Take pictures and brag to your friends on Facebook!

It’s that easy! Don’t forget to label the containers with your handy-dandy label maker!

Have a Neat day!

Jennifer Snyder, CPOÒ
Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts
www.neatasapin.net
Facebook & Pinterest: Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts
Twitter: @neatasapin

February was a very exciting month for Neat as a Pin.  After four years of officing out of my home and spending large chunks of time at Starbucks, I now have an office!  I was approached by a long-time friend and talented photographer, Marlo Collins, about setting up an office in her Gallery.  At first an office wasn’t even on my radar yet the longer I thought about it the better it sounded. 

A tiny space but perfect for me is now dedicated to Neat as a Pin in the 25th Street Gallery.  There are some amazing businesses in there with me in addition to Marlo.  Caryn Brown of Digital Media Butterfly, Jordan Browning Wedding Consultant and massage therapist, Susan Ryals among a few others I have yet to meet.  It is an amazing restored 100-year old home and is open by appointment only.  If you would like to visit the Gallery, please let me know as I would love to show it off!

As part of moving into my little office, and by little I mean that your closet is likely bigger, I was faced with the question of form or function first?  I chose both!  Since it is such a small space, everything has a place and there is no room for unnecessary clutter.  (Decorations are a necessity, in case you were wondering.)  I struggled with where to put the ottoman and do I need a table, but in the end, I just do what works. 
Having had this opportunity I have a few recommendations for you when getting settled in.  Before buying everything you want for a space, start with just the necessities, see how they feel.  You can then add additional items one at a time based on your priorities until it feels just right.  It doesn’t have to feel just right at first, it is a process – and one that is very worthwhile. 

Also, consider large, furniture-like things in your space.  Do you use them or are they just a place to put stuff?  If it just a place to put stuff think about the stuff…is it absolutely necessary?  Resist turning your valuable storage space into a warehouse.  Keep what you use and love and move out the rest.  I mean it!  Even your stapler should make you happy!  Mine does, it is covered with pink bling!  (Thanks Mav)

Becoming aware of what you have is the first step to the awakening process of your habits.  I would love to show off my little office and how I maximize my tiny space for incredible efficiency. 

The Gallery at 25th is also a beautiful event space.  In fact, on March 25th and April 1st, Salley Schmid LMFT and I will be hosting our second round of Unchain Yourself from Clutter seminars in there.  These are completely free although space is very limited. 

Finally, thank YOU for being a part of the success of Neat as a Pin!  If it weren’t for amazing people in our community supporting and encouraging us we would be able to do the amazing work we do.  This is best place in the whole world to be.

Have a Neat day!
Jennifer

PS: Don’t forget to follow our blog Neat as a Pin at wordpress.com or you can get there through our website www.neatasapin.net and follow us on Facebook: Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts. 

One of my favorite things is to be and work in an organized space.  It is peaceful, quiet, and can inspire amazing amounts of creativity.  Clutter makes noise and can be a real distraction to not only your physical effectiveness but your mental effectiveness as well.

Each of us see being “organized” differently and are in different stages along the path to what we uniquely consider Neat as a Pin.  That being said, regardless of your goal in organizing or how far along you are to reaching that goal, there are some very basic strategies that are the foundation of organizing.  It doesn’t matter if you are a Hoarder or the spouse of a gentleman that wants his half of the room to resemble is bachelor pad.  Still not convinced, try it!

Ready, set, here we go!

Sort

Place like with like and this is not the time to get technical.  I’m talking clothes with clothes and paper with paper (regardless of what is printed on it).  You will get your OCD fix later.  This is also the time to forego neatness.  You actually have to make a bigger mess to get the original mess in order.  Trust me.  You can do this by making piles or using plastic containers.  I only recommend purchasing plastic containers for this event if you are 100% certain you will be able to use them later.  Please do not buy them for your sort with the intention of returning them.  Not cool.

Process and Purge

Once you are sorted, it is time to give careful consideration to whether or not the sorted items still belong in your space.  Get rid of anything that is broken, defective, stained beyond your cleaning capacity or chewed up by the puppy.  Go ahead, toss it.  It will be ok.  Donate any items that are in good shape but that you haven’t used in a while.  Be realistic here.  If it has more dust than the coffee table, you aren’t using it.  The exception is that if it has true sentimental value, in which case it should go to long-term storage.   Otherwise, toodles!

Assign a home

Assign a home…this might be the most difficult step for most people.   Once you have processed and purged, you can see what is left.  Think about who will be using the items (small children?  guests?), where they will be used (laundry room?  garage?), and how often they will be used (daily, weekly, yearly).  Assign homes to items one at a time trying to keep the big picture in mind.  If you assign a home to, say candles, and you have too many for the space it may be necessary to return to the Process & Purge step again specifically for candles.

Purchase

This is a very important and precarious step that should only be used if absolutely necessary and never-ever done prior to the other steps.  This is where you purchase baskets, bins, shelves, buckets, etc. to store your items in.  Take caution here…if you have a cabinet for your candles, put only the votives and/or plates in a basket.  Trying to put everything in every cupboard in a basket will waste a lot of space.  Determine what is more important, baskets or volume?  Also, buy only what you need.  Excess organizing tools are clutter too.

Keeping Up

Once everything has a home, thinks must return to those homes.  Think of it as invisible magnets trying to suck the items back to where they belong.  This is the number one most important step of the entire process as lack of maintenance will simply result in more of what you just cleaned up.  If it takes less than 60-seconds to put something away, don’t delay and do right away!

As simple as these steps seem, I would caution you against trying to tackle your entire home all at once.  Doing so will result in frustration and disappointment.  Getting organized is about feeling good and rejuvenated.  One small area can make you feel fantastic.  Give it a try!

Have a Neat day!

Jennifer Snyder, CPOÒ
Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts
Website: www.neatasapin.net
Facebook & Pinterest: Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts
Twitter: @Neatasapin