Article in The Everett Herald

Clear the Clutter got some nice press today. Check out this article in the Everett Herald:

http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20081209/LIVING/712099944/1028/LIVING03#Stocks.down.Clean.up

Why being organized helps your budget

In these rough economic times, it is important to remember that being organized is also good for your pocketbook. Unorganized people tend to have the following bad economic habits:

• Overbuying – if you don’t know what you have or can’t find something, you will have to go buy another. So often I hear clients exclaim “I have been looking for that! I thought I lost it, so I bought another.” Or as we are organizing their pantry, we come across enough spaghetti to feed a small nation. They had no idea what they had so every time they went to the store, they bought more. Keep things organized and know your inventory.
• Failing to plan ahead – if you do not plan ahead, you spend your life in catch up mode. By not playing on the offensive side and looking ahead, you find yourself always struggling to keep afloat. As a result, you eat dinner out or pick up fast food more often, you buy gifts at the last minute – often paying top dollar or spending more than you planned, or maybe you have to hire people to do things for you because you realize that you just don’t have time to get things done. Plan ahead and know what is coming so you can deal with things in a calm state of mind rather than a frantic, desperate state of mind. Desperation will cost you.
• Not having organized paperwork – do you open and process your mail as it comes in or is it in a big pile, mixed up with other papers that you will get to one day? How will this cost you? In late fees or worse. If you do not process your mail immediately, you may be missing bills that are due, tickets that need to be paid, sign up fees, etc. When you do not pay these bills, you end up paying more in late fees, reinstating fees or court fees. Process your paperwork each and every day in order to keep on top of it.


Meagan Farrell, professional organizer, is the owner of Clear the Clutter organizing services. She can be reached at (360) 631-7268 or at clear_theclutter@yahoo.com. Check out her blog at http://cleartheclutterprofessionalorganizing.blogspot.com/





http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20081209/LIVING/712099944/1028/LIVING03#Stocks.down.Clean.up

Taking on too much

Clutter comes in two forms: too much stuff and too much to do. Don’t clutter your mind and calendar with more than you can handle. Set limits and learn to say “no.” Actually, you don’t even have to say “no.” Try saying, “I would love to, but my plate is full at this time.” Even if it is not what they were hoping to hear, they will appreciate your honesty.

Taking on too much stretches you thin and will impact the quality of what you do. Some warning signs of overload are forgetting details, always rushing, and not being able to do a quality job. These are all signs that you need to cut back and do a better job at less tasks.

“But if I don’t do it, no one else will!” you say? How do you know? Try setting your boundaries and not taking on the extra work. You might be surprised at who steps forward. Lots of times when one person takes on all the work, they are enabling others to sit back and rely on them. When they finally pull back and do less, new volunteers are able to step forward and spread their wings.

Meagan Farrell, professional organizer, is the owner of Clear the Clutter organizing services. She can be reached at (360) 631-7268 or at clear_theclutter@yahoo.com. Check out her blog at http://cleartheclutterprofessionalorganizing.blogspot.com/

Organization and Manners

Organization and manners aren’t two things that are often associated with one another, but they could be. Living in a state of disorganization often leads to unintended bad manners. So often people make comments like “I meant to send a thank you note, but I just forgot” or “Sorry your gift is late. I just didn’t have time to get it to you earlier.” These apologies may have come from a lack of organization and time management. So I challenge you to honestly ask yourself this question: would you rather spend the rest of your life apologizing for failing to do things or would you rather get organized??

To take this a step further, disorganization may also lead to the loss of friends or rifts with loved ones. So often people complain that they never hear from friends or that someone never acknowledged a gift they sent. If this happens frequently enough, friendships may end up falling apart or family problems may crop up. You may have had the best intentions in sending a thank you note or making a thank you call for a gift received, but just didn’t get to it because you are unorganized. However, the gift giver can’t read your mind and is left thinking that maybe you just didn’t care enough to make the effort. My Grandmother used to always say that if “you can’t make the time to properly acknowledge a gift, then why should I make the time to send one in the first place.” Again, I challenge you to make a choice today. Is being disorganized worth upsetting or hurting friends or loved ones over? You decide.

For some great time management tips or ideas for getting organized for the holidays, check out my blog at www.cleartheclutterprofessionalorganizing.blogspot.com.


Meagan Farrell, professional organizer, is the owner of Clear the Clutter organizing services. She can be reached at (360) 631-7268 or at clear_theclutter@yahoo.com. Check out her blog at http://cleartheclutterprofessionalorganizing.blogspot.com/

Realistic Organization

I recently did a presentation on the topic of basic organizing. I discussed how the best way to tackle large organizing projects is by breaking them down. The attendees gave me feedback about how relieved they were to hear that just dedicating 15 minutes a day to organizing is acceptable. As a result, I decided to reiterate an earlier point – you don’t have to completely organize your life or even your garage in one day.

Think about it this way – on those organizing shows where they completely overhaul someone’s home, they take a full weekend with a full crew of professionals doing all the heavy lifting. Most of us don’t have a full crew to do that for us. And organizing gets tiring if you try to do it for hours on end. So make it easy on yourself by breaking it down and making your goal achievable. After all, what is more inspiring then achieving your goals?

Set aside a small amount of time that is realistic to dedicate to organizing (this means don’t answer the phone, don’t get sidetracked by children, don’t answer email). Whether it is 15 minutes or two hours, make sure that it is dedicated time where you won’t be distracted. Start with a small section at a time. Pick a closet, a cupboard, a drawer or a corner of the garage. Focusing on a smaller area is less overwhelming and more realistic. Take everything out of that space and divide it into three piles: keep, throw away, or donate/sell. After everything is sorted, put the “keep” pile away in an organized manner. Immediately discard the “throw away” pile, and then either drop off donations or start the selling process of the remaining items. Don’t be tempted to put things away in the middle of this process. That can be done later, after your time is done.

Chip away at the big project. Make your goals small and realistic goals so when you achieve them, you are inspired and motivated to continue on. Congratulate yourself on a job well done! Lastly, make another appointment with yourself to do more organizing. Give yourself the gift of that dedicated time to make your life run more smoothly and be less overwhelming. Being organized is a huge stress reliever and will save you time in the long run. Go for it!



Meagan Farrell, professional organizer, is the owner of Clear the Clutter organizing services. She can be reached at (360) 631-7268 or at clear_theclutter@yahoo.com. Check out her blog at http://cleartheclutterprofessionalorganizing.blogspot.com/

Storing Stuffed Animals

Do your child’s stuffed toys multiply in the closet overnight? Are they coming out of every orifice because there is no way to really store them? If this sounds familiar, then here is a great solution! Get a bean bag chair cover - just the cover, no filling. Fill it up with all your child’s stuffed animals. Voila! The stuffed animals are contained and your child has a fun chair to read on!


Meagan Farrell, professional organizer, is the owner of Clear the Clutter organizing services. She can be reached at (360) 631-7268 or at clear_theclutter@yahoo.com. Check out her blog at http://cleartheclutterprofessionalorganizing.blogspot.com/

Clear the Clutter Featured in Root and Sprout

We are excited to be featured in the last few months' editions of Root and Sprout Magazine. Check us out at www.Rootandsprout.com.