This week has presented a very real dilemma for me personally…bathroom renovations! Not just any bathroom renovation, but emergency bathroom renovations. By emergency, I mean unplanned and chaotic. I have been telling my family that if it isn't completed soon I might have a stroke from the constant long-term high blood pressure. I have been living in chaos for a week. So in honor of my chaos, I am going to give you some ways to organize and manage a planned remodel. When a remodel is on the calendar, begin by removing the things from the area that will be needed from the space. Take into consideration that however long the project is intended to take, plan for at least twice as long. If your remodel is a kitchen, make sure that your coffee maker, microwave, and necessities are where they can be easily accessed. If such items need to be boxed up, be sure and label the box as "Necessities" or something similar. Next, systematically box up all of the other items. Think about the items as you would find them at the grocery store…if you need vinegar, it would probably be with the pickles and so on. Be sure and label the boxes. As you are loading the boxes, keep in mind that you really do not want to keep items that are not of any use to you. If you have an amazing Pampered Chef apple corer but would rather buy an apple pie than make one, consider letting it go.
A never-ending cycle of laundry is the bane of existence for many moms. Unless they are nudists, a family of five will have at least 35 pairs of underwear, 100 pairs or so of socks, 10 pairs of jeans, and about 15 shirts, to wash each week. Wash, dry, fold, wash, dry, iron, hang, wash, dry, it's as if we are trapped in an eternal black vortex of laundry hell!
You may ask yourself, "How does preventing yourself from identity theft tie into organizing?" As we already know, clutter is delayed decision making and the information overload we experience causes us to question what we do know. When we question, we wait for the most current information shows up. I have an innumerable number of clients with homes overrun by paper as they know not what to do with all of it, especially that to be disposed of. Any business entity that has access to your personal financial information are not allowed to sell it. They CAN and DO sell you name and address. If you were to open one of these envelopes you will find that you are still required to complete the application (including financial information). If they had all of the information already they wouldn't need it again. Catalog companies purchase you name and address from companies with similar customer types. The information printed in the "secret" codes only contains where your information was purchased. There is no personal information contained in them and can therefore be recycled with no concern over private information.
Back To School is big business. The United States Census Bureau reports that 77 million students will be going back to school this fall. Consequently, $7.4 billion is spent at family clothing stores during the month of August, second only to December in gross sales. The first day of school is a fashion show noting who has the best sneakers or the nicest backpack. Quite possibly the most important thing you can provide your child is a suitable place to complete homework. It can be as elaborate or simple as suits your family yet it should have a desk, computer, chair, and flat surface on which to write. Establish the homework area before school starts and stock it with a toolbox containing necessary supplies. If your student(s) did not have summer assignments, they may need some help getting back into the swing of things. Start early and gradually make bedtime more appropriate and assign some reviewing type tasks to get their brains back in the swing.
So many times I hear people tell me they do not know how to get started tackling their clutter, simply because they are overwhelmed. Our stuff can be very overwhelming when it becomes a giant mountain of homeless items. When there are so many, we fail to see the individual items and only see the large stuff monster staring us down. The truth is, we made this monster and it is easier to ignore than challenge. When things live in our space long enough, we fail to see it anymore. It is only when we focus our attention on the clutter that it causes anxiety and nightmares. So, here is the trick…take it one type of item at a time. Start with water bottles or shopping bags. Remove all of that one type of item until no more are visible. It is ok if you know in your heart that more are further down, we are only working with what we can see. Address the items removed by giving them an appropriate home. An appropriate home can be a shelf, drawer, or even the trash. Strongly resist the urge to think about something then set it down. You have foregone the entire exercise when this happens. Take care of the things removed from the pile NO QUESTIONS ASKED! There are no "save for later's" today.
Website
Twitter
Facebook