Spring is here which may put you in the mood for some spring cleaning and organizing. In order to keep the enthusiasm up and not overwhelm yourself, remember this: 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/
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Your unwanted clutter could help save a life.
The icing on the cake with organizing is being able to find a really good *new* home for items that someone is getting rid of. I have the pleasure of knowing the owner of Heaps of Handbags, Carrie Gendron. Heaps of Handbags takes donated hang bags and cleans them up to re-sell. The proceeds of the sales go to fight human trafficking. Not only are you clearing your cluttered closet by getting rid of the handbags you don’t really use, but by donating them to Heaps of Handbags, you are reusing items and helping to stop this heinous act of cruelty. To learn more about Carrie’s business or to donate bags, check out her website at www.heapsofhandbags.vpweb.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/
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/
Monday, February 6, 2012
Free Shredding!
Staples is offering free shredding this month only! You can just drop off up to 5lbs. of documents at any Staples and they will have your items shredded by Iron Mountain.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Organizing your email inbox
I have had many people tell me lately that they have hundreds of emails in their inbox. Does this sound familiar? If so, here are some ways to organize your email inbox quickly and easily. Your inbox should only contain emails that haven’t been read or require immediate action and response. All other emails should be either deleted or saved in a folder.
Like your filing cabinet, you should have 5-6 broad category folders in your inbox. If you make too many, you will forget where you put things, so keep them general like household, vacation, school, soccer, etc. Once you have these folders set up, you need to store emails accordingly. When I say store, I don’t mean every email you get. Only keep that which has pertinent info. And if you have a series of emails going back and forth with someone, only keep the last one since you can just scroll down to read the entire conversation.
Once you have your inbox cleared out, get in the practice of keeping it that way. When new email comes through, read it and delete what you can. Respond to the rest and move what you can to the appropriate folder. If the email requires something immediate like an RSVP or information returned, let the email sit in the inbox until you can get it done.
Keeping your inbox cleaned out will help you to avoid losing emails, forgetting to respond to emails and keep you from having to search through hundreds to emails to find what you are looking for.
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/
Like your filing cabinet, you should have 5-6 broad category folders in your inbox. If you make too many, you will forget where you put things, so keep them general like household, vacation, school, soccer, etc. Once you have these folders set up, you need to store emails accordingly. When I say store, I don’t mean every email you get. Only keep that which has pertinent info. And if you have a series of emails going back and forth with someone, only keep the last one since you can just scroll down to read the entire conversation.
Once you have your inbox cleared out, get in the practice of keeping it that way. When new email comes through, read it and delete what you can. Respond to the rest and move what you can to the appropriate folder. If the email requires something immediate like an RSVP or information returned, let the email sit in the inbox until you can get it done.
Keeping your inbox cleaned out will help you to avoid losing emails, forgetting to respond to emails and keep you from having to search through hundreds to emails to find what you are looking for.
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/
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Weather the storm in your pantry
I keep hearing about snow storms blanketing the country at this time of year, followed by news of packed stores full of people trying to stock up before the storm hits. The truth is that 90% of Americans (okay, I made that number up, but I am sure it is close) have enough food in their pantry to feed them for a good week without missing a calorie. So here is my advice: avoid the crowds at the store and just take inventory of your pantry. Get creative and put together some meal ideas using what you already own. Save money, time and stress by simply shopping in your own home's inventory. Enjoy the season!
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Guard the Castle Gates....even through the holidays.
The holidays are a wonderful time to give and receive, but don’t let your guard down. Remember to guard the castle gates, even during this wonderful time of year. Guard the gates against what and whose castle are you talking about, you ask? Your home is your castle and you must remember to guard it against unwanted clutter. Unfortunately the holidays are a time when things tend to find their way in.
Yes, gifts should be appreciated no matter what they are as we all know they come from the heart. But if it is something you really can’t use, already have or flat out don’t like, this does not mean you need to keep it. After the gifts are open, don’t hesitate to make a pile of that which you can’t use or don’t need. If you can return it or exchange it, put it right in the car so you can take care of that next time you are close to the store in question. If you can’t do that, add it to your donation pile. Doing this immediately keeps these items from finding a comfortable place in your home where you forget about it until it is part of a larger clutter problem.
Feeling bad about doing this? Consider that you are paying the gift forward. By donating the item or giving it to someone who can really use it, you are sharing the love. In these difficult economic times, donations can make a huge difference in someone else’s life. Unclutter your life while adding light to someone else’s.
Getting rid of a gift does not mean that you appreciate it any less. In fact, do not forget to write a nice thank you note even if you don’t plan to keep the gift. But don’t keep something just because your Aunt gave it to you and the guilt is overwhelming. I am sure said Aunt did not intend to add to your guilt and pile of stuff. Givers want to add joy to the recipient’s life. Clutter and stress do not equal joy. So guard your door and keep the clutter out.
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/
Yes, gifts should be appreciated no matter what they are as we all know they come from the heart. But if it is something you really can’t use, already have or flat out don’t like, this does not mean you need to keep it. After the gifts are open, don’t hesitate to make a pile of that which you can’t use or don’t need. If you can return it or exchange it, put it right in the car so you can take care of that next time you are close to the store in question. If you can’t do that, add it to your donation pile. Doing this immediately keeps these items from finding a comfortable place in your home where you forget about it until it is part of a larger clutter problem.
Feeling bad about doing this? Consider that you are paying the gift forward. By donating the item or giving it to someone who can really use it, you are sharing the love. In these difficult economic times, donations can make a huge difference in someone else’s life. Unclutter your life while adding light to someone else’s.
Getting rid of a gift does not mean that you appreciate it any less. In fact, do not forget to write a nice thank you note even if you don’t plan to keep the gift. But don’t keep something just because your Aunt gave it to you and the guilt is overwhelming. I am sure said Aunt did not intend to add to your guilt and pile of stuff. Givers want to add joy to the recipient’s life. Clutter and stress do not equal joy. So guard your door and keep the clutter out.
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/
Friday, December 2, 2011
Last minute holiday shopping tips
Are you starting to stress out about holiday shopping? Wondering how you will get it all done? Here are some tips to help you manage the process.
• Make a list of those you need to shop for. Jot down any ideas you may have for them as well.
• If your list is really long, try to pare it down. Is there anyone you can mutually agree NOT to exchange gifts with? Maybe your family can do a name draw for the adults. Or maybe you can agree to go out for a fun dinner with a friend rather than exchanging gifts.
• Map out your shopping. Start with what you can buy online. The more you can do online the better and right now, most retailers are offering free shipping!! For the stores you need to hit, make a plan of attack. Maybe you need to hit Wal Mart and there is one right by your office. Make a plan to get an early start and go there before work next week. Determine which stores you can stop by during your regular routine and then set aside time to do the rest. Plan your driving route so you aren’t running all over and wasting precious time.
• Consider gift cards. Shipping is really expensive and it requires trips to the post office. Think about who you can buy gift cards for and look for those cards at your grocery store next time you are there. All you have to deal is put them in a card and send them off. Easy! Also consider www.giftcertificates.com where you can email gift certificates to loved one.
• Plan better for next year. Keep your holiday shopping list with you all year. It is much easier to find the perfect gift when you aren’t desperately searching for it. Give yourself all year to find it.
Happy Holidays!
• Make a list of those you need to shop for. Jot down any ideas you may have for them as well.
• If your list is really long, try to pare it down. Is there anyone you can mutually agree NOT to exchange gifts with? Maybe your family can do a name draw for the adults. Or maybe you can agree to go out for a fun dinner with a friend rather than exchanging gifts.
• Map out your shopping. Start with what you can buy online. The more you can do online the better and right now, most retailers are offering free shipping!! For the stores you need to hit, make a plan of attack. Maybe you need to hit Wal Mart and there is one right by your office. Make a plan to get an early start and go there before work next week. Determine which stores you can stop by during your regular routine and then set aside time to do the rest. Plan your driving route so you aren’t running all over and wasting precious time.
• Consider gift cards. Shipping is really expensive and it requires trips to the post office. Think about who you can buy gift cards for and look for those cards at your grocery store next time you are there. All you have to deal is put them in a card and send them off. Easy! Also consider www.giftcertificates.com where you can email gift certificates to loved one.
• Plan better for next year. Keep your holiday shopping list with you all year. It is much easier to find the perfect gift when you aren’t desperately searching for it. Give yourself all year to find it.
Happy Holidays!
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