Browse Organizing and Learning How to Organize

Are you tired of fighting with your spouse over who-does-what chore every night after work? Or has it gone farther than that and you have stopped talking about household stuff altogether in your marriage? This is a hot issue in today's fast-paced culture. We've added a lot to our lives over the past generation but many of our tasks remain the same. No matter how many interesting opportunities come along, the house still has to be cleaned, the dishes still must be done and t

"Waste Time Faster." This is a phrase on a billboard advertising high speed internet. I laugh each time I see it, but it also makes me think about how much time we do waste on the internet. Playing around online is just one of many activities we use to avoid getting things done. Of course, the things we are avoiding are usually things that may be difficult or not so pleasant. Avoidance behavior is a component of procrastination. Some causes of procrastination are task related anxiety, fear of failure, perfectionism, and lack of knowledge.

If you love books, chances are that you have numerous books and publications in your home. In most cases, this means you have them in various locations, such as on shelves, beside the bed, in the children's room, and maybe even stacked on a table or the floor. It's important to keep your books stored in an organized fashion, not only to keep them protected but also to make it easier for you to enjoy them. If your books are scattered all over your home, it's time to create a home library that you can enjoy and be proud of. Getting Started

As we prepare for the New Year, it's a sure bet that somewhere along the way you'll be thinking about goals and resolutions to get your life more organized. To help you get a jump start, I've put together a list of 51 easy and quick ways to get organized and feel more balanced today. Please don't let this number overwhelm you - you don't have to do all 51 at once! Read through the list, prioritize the ones that will give you the best benefit and tackle a handful of those to begin with.

One of the greatest challenges for busy, successful and creative people juggling several projects, talents and ideas is to live a well-balanced life. If only we could do all that is on our personal and professional 'to do' lists while simultaneously attending to our health, nurturing our important relationships and taking good care of our responsibilities.

Even in larger homes, storage space can be hard to come by. This goes double when it comes to closets, especially in the bedroom. After all, there is often only a “his” and a “hers” space, and we ask a lot of them. The average bedroom closet is supposed to store all of our work clothes, shoes and other fashion accessories. It is no wonder that the space is often an unruly mess. In this article we will discuss a few of the most popular closet organizers.

Want to create a high performance environment? My guess is that you already know many of the characteristics listed below. But, you may need some incentive to motivate yourself to create that type of space. Here you go! High performance environments are: - Comfortable and make visitors immediately feel comfortable - Places where you can be productive and accomplish your goals - Optimal for positive human interactions - Places where you want to spend time Ten characteristics

"You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give." Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet As a Professional Organizer, I’ve witnessed houses that are literally under siege from unwanted material belongings that were either formally given as gifts, or simply passed along informally from friends or relatives.

The bathroom is one area of a house that needs constant attention. Depending on the amount of people who frequent this area, a bathroom may need to be maintained on a daily basis. If your bathroom is not clean, it can be a really uncomfortable situation for everyone involved. Cleaning a bathroom is not exactly a fun time, but once the bathroom is clean, it is well worth the effort. Letting dirt and grime build up for weeks and months is a recipe for disaster. If grime builds up on your shower, tub and countertops, it can be difficult to remove and may even leave stains.

Getting your home clean and organized can sometimes be a great yet rewarding challenge. Each room in your home poses a different set of requirements, and putting all of your needs into a plan can be quite the chore. The process of cleaning your home from top to bottom can be quite fulfilling. ...

The one challenge I hear most from my clients is that they don’t have enough time in their day. However, they typically take an “all or nothing” approach to getting things done. This is unrealistic, because most of us don’t have large chunks of time available to knock out big projects in one fell swoop. A more realistic approach is to chip away at large tasks in the small bits of time we do have available (see my prior blog posting on this topic). In order to do that, we have to break projects down into smaller components first.

Every woman dreams of having that big, luxurious walk-in closet. They long for the day when they finally have all the shelves, hanger space and drawers that they could ever want. Unfortunately, for many of us that day never comes. Those of us who are forced to maneuver our wardrobes into a normal-sized closet have to make due the best we possibly can. We cram clothes and shoes into every available nook and cranny. They pile up under the bed, burst out your closet doors, and even take over other rooms of the house.

Immense possibilities await online business in the years to come as per the latest studies made by relevant sources. Well, in spite of the vast and varied facilities that the eCommerce portals enjoy, there are instances when the companies lose billions of dollars. Irrespective of what you are dealing with, you need to know the basic grammar of eCommerce trade. If you have an online store, take care not to make the following ten blunders. Poor grades of images and product des

How can I get my children to be more organized? What are some signs of hoarding in children? How can I get my spouse to follow through and clean up after completing a chore? How can I make my home office functional instead of a “clutter-catch-all?” How can I explore my dreams and organize my goals for life? These are some of the questions I am often asked…

Do you remember the most productive day of your life --- a day when all the pieces fit together perfectly, just like a jigsaw puzzle? You checked things off your to-do list in a fury, focusing on each task until it was complete, moving swiftly to the next task on your list. Ever had a day like that? If so, you’re either a masterful time manager or you were getting ready to go on vacation!nnThe most productive day in my life was just like that. I was excited and enthusia

One Saturday morning at 8:30 a.m. I was looking out my kitchen window watching a fireman dressed who was dressed in his blue uniform carrying what looked like a heavy back pack on his back walking up the steep street in front of our home. I wondered where he was going and why he would be in uniform on a Saturday morning. It was already a hot 80 degrees heading up to 98 degrees in the afte oon.

By now, you have probably heard the term "Coopetition." Coopetition is a contraction of the words cooperation and competition, meaning essentially cooperative competition. In the business world, coopetition means collaborating or partnering with your competitors in an innovative way so that both parties benefit. The most successful entrepreneurs realize early on that the old military adage, "To know your enemy, you must become your enemy ... Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer" applies just as well to the business world.

Chill out this summer and get organized with these 8 easy tips. With a little planning ahead it is a snap to organize your home for summer fun.

Setting goals is the easy part -- but sticking with them over the long run can be a major challenge! Some people think that motivation requires will-power and dedication. Actually, staying motivated is all about setting up an environment that is conducive to you accomplishing your goals. Here are ten “tricks” for giving your goals staying power past January 31st: BREAK YOUR GOALS DOWN Do you know why 90% of us don’t keep our New Year’s resolutions? Because our goals are too big and too vague.

Gone are those days when people waited for a rickshaw and booked them by waving their hands. Nowadays it is as easy as taking your smartphone out of your pocket and just swiping through an easy to go app and have your taxi booked. Booking apps are easy as well as pocket-friendly and time-saving. Now the globalization has changed the face of traveling business. In the fast span of years, taxi services have become the major transportation medium everywhere.

Spring cleaning is often thought of as a long, arduous process that forces one to spend days on end with the annoying tedium of organization and cleaning. This stereotype, however, is something of a misconception. While elaborate spring cleaning plans can take weeks, a simple, efficient and ...

The ocean is both powerful and hypnotic. When we visited Maine we watched as the beautiful white waves come crashing onto the rocks. In Delaware we watched as the waves come rushing onto the sandy beach where they calmly flattened out and slunk back out to gather speed again.

When used to its full potential, Microsoft Outlook is a powerful tool for productivity! However it can quickly become a source of stress and frustration for those who aren’t sure how to use it. This series of articles will help you increase your productivity by teaching you about organizing Microsoft Outlook.

If you are the marketing co-ordinator for any company there are many ways in which you can market your company. Using a trade show is one of the hundreds of marketing strategies companies use to promote themselves. If you are looking to exhibit at a trade show display there are many points to remember which you should take into consideration to get the best result. Leads are what trade shows generate, which is why these points are important to your success. Firstly visit a tr

One day, as I helped a client organize his home office, we came across an envelope with $3500 in cash! He had completely forgotten about this money, which could have been thrown away and lost forever. n You may not have envelopes bulging with cash lying around, but being disorganized does have ...

With proper use of storage and organization products, even the smallest space can be expanded to meet just about any need. By keeping both yourself and your surroundings organized you can expand your living space, become more productive, manage time better and even save some money. The first ...

If you’ve been following the "DeCluttering Blueprint" series, you’ve noticed the process for eliminating clutter is the same regardless of the room or space you’re working on. In short, you always begin by defining the purpose of your room and then follow-up by identifying the major categories ...

If you never seem to be able to get organized, perhaps it's because you've never taken the time to truly understand your personal priorities. All too often, people try to do things not because they have to, but because they think they should. For example, do you feel as though you have to iron every piece of laundry just because that's the way your mother always did the laundry? If so, you might be spending a good deal of your time each day on things that really don't need to be done or things that simply aren't important to you.

Does the thought of getting organized leave you overwhelmed and uncertain how to get started? The concept of kaizen can take you from that feeling of overwhelm to one of being in control and on the path towards accomplishment. Kaizen is a term that was coined in Japan as it began to rebuild itself after World War II – it’s the concept of small steps and continuous improvement. Kaizen is based on the premise that we can overcome initial resistance to change by patiently trusting that small steps will lead us to success.

When life gets busy (and when doesn’t it?) we often feel that we have to put our head down and plow full steam ahead to get as much done as possible. While it may seem counterintuitive, taking a break can actually help you accomplish more, and make life more enjoyable at the same time. Giving your mind (and body) a chance to rest can help refocus your attention and boost your energy as well as help relieve stress and sharpen your cognitive ability.

Are any of your loved ones older than 60? If so, do you know what’s happening in their lives on a day-to-day basis? You should. “People over age 60 make up only one-eighth of the U.S. population, yet they constitute one of every three scam victims,” writes Sid Kirchheimer, an advisor to ...

Let’s be honest. When it is time to start organizing your kitchen, it is fair to say we would rather have someone else do it for us. It is one of those chores we would rather not do or even think about doing. But when it comes to cooking, you certainly do yourself an injustice if your kitchen is not well organized. There is no particular time of year to clean and re-organize your kitchen. But the sooner you get started, the faster you can start enjoying your kitchen again. Some people just do not know where to start.

I was reading in the book "Don't Sweat The Small Stuff…and it's all small stuff" by Richard Carlson, PH.D. I have read the book before but not everything always sticks so I like to go back and reread as a refresher. I set as my goal to read two to three chapters a night. They are so small each ...

The final month of the year is here, and for many of us, it’s a time of wrapping things up before the new year rolls around. This year, as part of your year-end wrap-up, consider taking a few moments to revisit the systems that serve you every day, and see if you can improve them. nnClean out your paper files. Over the course of a year, most of us accumulate way more paper than we need, and much of it ends up in our file drawers. The end of the year is a great time to f

How many times have you thought or said, “I need to be more organized?” It usually comes after a moment of frustration or stress and a desire to create a different situation than the one you are currently experiencing. So where do you start? OR do you start? There’s good news and not so good news.

Do you ever wonder if you are over-tipping or under-tipping, or be tipping at all? You are not alone. Lots of people are unsure how much to tip the bell hop or the tour guide. They usually end up tipping way too much or not enough. Organize Anything has put together a handy chart of industry standards of tipping. We’ve also come up with a few ideas and suggestions on how to gracefully handle leaving a tip.

Introductio What is a Constellation? A constellation is an innovative way of diagnosing and resolving troubling issues. It draws on emotional intelligence and intuition as well as logical thought. A constellation provides insight and foresight by uncovering the hidden dynamics of a ...

In today’s economy, the last thing you need to do is spend money on items you don’t need. When clutter is reduced in a home or office, you can more easily find what you own. When people can’t find an item they know they have, they tend to throw up their hands in despair and immediately run out to buy a replacement item as they don’t have the time or effort to look for the old one. A 2004 study highlighted in Newsweek reported that Americans waste 55 minutes a day, roughly 12

Saving space by getting your shoes organized is a great way to remove the clutter around your house. At first glance, it may not seem like shoes are the root cause of clutter. But when you take the time to think about how many different types of footwear are needed for daily activities and events, you realize how challenging it can be to keep them all neat and organized. This is especially the case for people with small closets or a lack of extensive closet shelving.

A starting point for organizing any room is to identify the function of the space. What kinds of activities are going to happen there? Those activities then guide your decision-making about what to keep in the space. Bedrooms usually have three primary functions: 1. Rest 2. Changing clothes 3. Intimacy (for couples) In my work as a professional organizer, I’ve had the opportunity to see some bedrooms that include everything but the kitchen sink. How anyone could get a good

You love your home, but you don’t love clutter. A lot can pile up in little time at all. Mail, laundry, media… let’s not even think about the garage. For some, it’s tough to even think about reducing all the clutter in the home. With a little know-how, organizing your living space is a snap. Mail Dominance Mail call doesn’t have to be a disaster with the Mail Sorter Desktop. This classy, faux leather organizer brings order to messy desks. Now, envelopes, magazines, documents, pens and miscellaneous desk supplies all have a tidy home in the five-compartment organizer.

Internet marketing has evolved dramatically over the past few years. This is most evident in the world of social media marketing. For many, the process of social media advertising delivers an extremely cost effective and successful methodology for attaining one's goals. Goals, in sales, are generally defined by profit potential and that is a good thing. Why advertise if you are not going to see revenue generation as a result?rnSo, if revenue generation is the goal that you se

Women often depend heavily on what they have stored in their purse. However, there is sometimes a fine line between having everything you need in your purse and having so many things that the purse becomes heavy and uncomfortable to carry. It is also pointless to have everything in your purse if it is so disorganized that you can’t find anything.

Does the thought of de-cluttering your home, closet, a drawer or any space in your home make you uncomfortable? Perhaps you feel tired, sad or ashamed so you feel which stands in your way of de-cluttering your home. If you said yes to any of these questions perhaps you are hanging on to beliefs that just aren’t true when it comes to getting rid of clutter. I was talking with my friend who shared this story with me and I have to say we had a good laugh. We were talking about our belief systems and what beliefs we hold on to even when they are proven to be false.

At work, at home, no matter who you are or what you do -- we are all bombarded with paper. And, it’s stressful! I think that we have developed a new fear in our society -- PAPERPHOBIA -- the fear of having to deal with that stack that’s been sitting there for a week. So what do you do to regain control over your environment and your sanity?

How many times have you come home from a hard day at work, just to find another mess, waiting for you when you walk in the door? Then, you find that you have a meeting to go to, a child to take to a practice, a friends house or a meeting and absolutely 'no time' to get all of your have-to's accomplished. This is what starts the everyday cycle of stress, frustration and the inability to cope with everday life. We have goals, but never enough time to accomplish them.

A hurricane or tornado is on the way, what should you grab so that you can rebuild your life if necessary? Someone dies unexpectedly, what should they have in place to make it easier for their relatives? Many believe that a natural, weather-related, or man-made disaster won’t affect them. And after-the-fact they regret that they didn’t make any contingency plans. Even if you know that you need to have an emergency arrangement in place, the task of creating such a plan may feel daunting. Let’s see if we can break the process down into doable steps. Step #1: Establish a Plan.

Closets are areas of infinite possibility. Closets can be rearranged, re-configured or re-designated depending on what you need to use it for. You can organize your closets any way that suits your specific needs. The following 5 tips are to help you weed out the things you no longer want or ...

When I am speaking in front of a group on the topic of productivity and organization, inevitably I get this question: “I have so many tasks I need to get done that are ALL are TOP priorities. How do I figure out what to do when everything is a #1 priority? Good question. I have some good news and some bad news for you. The good news is that there is a way out of this feeling of frustration and overwhelm so that you can choose which tasks are the TRUE priority in any given moment. I call this micro-prioritizing.

Every morning, I am blissfully awakened by the sound of Canada geese, honking their way overhead, flying in the great “V” in the sky – No, wait a minute. That’s just my son waking up and sneezing and honking his way into a new day with several allergies. So what is the connection between ...