Organizing Small Spaces – 7 Tips for Engaging and Functional Entryways

Last week I discussed organizing the bathroom. This installment of my Organizing Small Spaces series addresses organizing your home’s entryway.

First impressions are important, and your entry way is the first thing to greet you and your guests. It needs to be both inviting and functional by providing a spot to drop your keys, bags, and coats when you arrive home. But if it’s not organized, it’s easy for this small space to become cluttered and unused, causing frustration as you’re trying to get out the door. Follow these tips to create a useful, beautiful entryway.

• DECIDE WHAT SHOULD RESIDE IN THE ENTRYWAY – Ideally, the entryway should be a spot for coats and other outerwear, umbrellas, daily-used backpacks, purses, briefcases, cel-phone, laptop, and totes – anything you need access to as you leave your home.
• EVALUATE YOUR CURRENT STASH OF THESE ITEMS – Pare down your coat and tote bag collections. Toss broken umbrellas, gloves without mates, and boots that don’t fit. I often see entry closets and mudrooms overrun by tote bags. How many tote bags can you use at any given time. A few is all that you need. It’s time for the rest to go! Your goal here is to keep only those things you frequently use.
• REMOVE EVERYTHING ELSE – Don’t let your entryway become a catch-all for things you don’t know what to do with. (This is not the spot for the turkey roasting pan!) Sort, toss or donate things that you really don’t use or need, and assign new spots elsewhere in your home for the must-keeps.

• MAKE GOOD USE OF YOUR SPACE – Most entryways have a closet. Reevaluate its set-up. If it has a single rod across the top, could you raise it a bit and add a second rod below, doubling your hanging space. Could shelves be added above the rod or run across the depth of the closet? This makes use of storage space in the top of the closet that is often wasted. Could you add a tiered shoe rack on the floor? Or an over the door coat rack or shoe holder? I use these often to store gloves, hats and scarves. Maximize every inch of the space! While you’re at it, invest in sturdy wooden hangers so your coats hang neatly. I love to use the inside of the door to hang an over the door shoe holder to hold gloves, scarves, and hats.

• USE CONTAINERS TO CONTAIN CLUTTER – This not only makes for a neat
  

  28 Qt Clear Plastic Container

  look, but it will also help you quickly find what you need. Label baskets or containers on the shelves for out-the-door items, such as umbrellas, mittens, hats, and dog leaches.  If, due to space constraints, you must keep other types of items inthis closet as well, be sure to categorize and containerize them, labeling as you go. I use 28 quart clear containers and smaller.

• CONSIDER SPACE OUTSIDE THE CLOSET – This is especially necessary if you don’t have a closet or if it’s very small. For example, a coat rack or set of wall-mounted hooks in the entryway will work wonders if you’re short on closet space. Likewise, a pretty urn can hold umbrellas, a bench with storage under the seat can hold outerwear, and a wicker basket on the floor can hold shoes. By simply declaring a “home” and containing these items, you’ll instantly take your entryway from messy to marvelous.

• SET UP AN OUT-THE-DOOR LAUNCHING PAD – Dedicate one basket near the door for items that need to leave the house, such as library books, DVDs to be returned, dry cleaning to be dropped off, and things to be delivered to family or friends. A charging station for all the electronics is a great addition to your launching pad. That’s where I keep ours, where I charge my cel phone, camera battery and Blue Tooth.

Originally posted 2010-06-17 18:53:33. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

NAPO-NC Responds to Quality of Life Study with Four Success Strategies

In the spirit of GO MONTH (Get Organized) I had to share the results of this recent study on Quality of Life as it relates to organization.

Triangle – RALEIGH, NC. – In a recent survey conducted by the National Association of Professional Organizers, 96% of respondents stated that they could gain more time at home if they were better organized, and a surprising 91% claimed the same in their professional lives. In fact, 71% went so far as to state that the quality of their lives would improve if they were more organized.

Clearly these numbers indicate why so many people make “getting organized” a New Year’s resolution. For those planning to tackle their personal or professional organization in 2011, the North Carolina chapter of the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO-NC) offers the following strategies:

1. Be specific. Lori Bruhns, President of NAPO-NC, suggests that “’Getting organized’ is too vague for someone to actually tackle. Instead, we encourage people to specify ways in which they would like to become more organized, such as ‘I’d like to streamline my morning routine’ or ‘I want to leave work with a cleared desktop.’”

2. Take baby steps. NAPO-NC Treasurer Tracey Gritz, notes that “Sometimes a job seems insurmountable. Taken all at once, it may be. But, if you stop and list out all of the small steps that it takes to get to the end, you suddenly have series of very do-able tasks that will lead to the successful completion of your goal.”

3. Reward yourself. “Take the time to play a board game with your family, go out for coffee with a friend, invite people over to celebrate, or take a long bath to reflect how far you have come in the space,” states Stefanie Watkins, NAPO-NC’s Vice President.

4. Enlist support. Karen Krasner, Director of Community Relations for NAPO-NC, recommends “telling a friend or family member what you hope to accomplish and when you plan to finish. Ask them to keep you accountable by checking in with you periodically to see how it’s going.”

If you are one of the 96% of people who believe they could save time at home by being more organized, implement the above strategies and contact me! I can help with a one-on-one organizational assessment of your home or office and provide hands-on help to clear the clutter and simplify your life.  Call or e-mail: 317-867-1540 or jnusbaum (at) simplifiedspaces (dot) net.

Originally posted 2011-01-13 08:30:45. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Angie’s List Article about Janet ~ Resolve to Rid Yourself of Clutter to Expand Use of Valuable Space

The following is an article written by Angie Hicks, founder of Angie’s List, where I was interviewed. The article appeared in the Indianapolis Star, Home and Garden section on 12/26/09. I’m reprinting the article on my blog for the great tips it offers.

Find reliable contractors and doctors when you join Angie’s List today –
Use promo code LOCAL to save 15%.

********************

By Angie Hicks (Founder of Angie’s List)

About this time each year, professional organizer Janet Nusbaum sees an uptick in business. “Folks start to set new goals for the year, and getting organized is always in the top 10,” said Nusbaum. Owner of Simplified Spaces in Carmel. “They have an influx of new stuff that comes in during the holiday. Often, when I get the call, they’re feeling very overwhelmed, and they’re reaching out for some solutions.

The new year represents a fresh start and a chance to purge the old, unnecessary items in your life to free up valuable space and reduce clutter. Organizing a home office, garage or basement can be a family project that you do yourself or one in which you hire a professional like Nusbaum.

“The first step is to define what the purpose is of that space,” Nusbaum said. “If you see conflicting stuff there that doesn’t meet the purpose of that space, it needs to leave, pose of that space, it needs to leave, so all you have in that space are things that meet your vision for what you want to do (there).”

Some other things to consider before beginning a reorganization project:

• Make a list of the tasks you want to accomplish and prioritize by putting the tasks most important to you at the top of the list.
• Start small and allot an hour or two dedicated to one area to avoid becoming overwhelmed.
• Buy to replace, not to add.
• If it doesn’t fit or it’s out of fashion, donate it. If you’re reorganizing your wardrobe closet, hang pants long ways, rather than fold, which takes up twice the space. Use stacking hangers that can hold multiple garments. Organize your closets by color or by type.
• Keep only what is necessary to accommodate your family’s needs. Keep in mind that round containers take up more space than square containers.
• Purchase several large plastic storage bins with lids. Organize items according to their use and label the bins accordingly.

Nusbaum also recommends storing items closest to their point of use. “If your coffee maker is on the kitchen counter, it’s more efficient to store everything relating to making that cup of coffee right together,” she said. It saves you steps.”

Carmel resident and a Simplified Spaces client, Julie Bowen, is a self-proclaimed “neat freak” who has hired Janet to organize her home, garage and basement. Organizers can also help organize bills and other paperwork that often gets lost in the shuffle.

Bowen keeps systems in place so she, her husband and two children know where to find things when they need to put up and where they are when they need to use them.

“Our home is easier to maintain because everything has a home, Bowen said.

Fritz Klooz, owner of Innovative Garages in Avon said his company can maximize garage space with overhead storage, cabinets and grid wall systems and pulley systems.  “The idea is to get everything up off the floor of the garage so you can power wash your garage or sweep your floor a lot easier, Klooz said.

You don’t have to throw away and create additional waste when you purge. An environmentally savvy organizer will look to recycle whenever possible. Also, donations to authorized charities can be used as a tax deduction.

Angie Hicks is an Indianapolis resident and founder of Angie’s List, a national provider of consumer ratings in more than 500 categories of service.

(Because they wrote this great article about my business, I’m returning the favor by passing on their 15% coupon code)

Find reliable contractors and doctors when you join Angie’s List today – Use promo code LOCAL to save 15%.

Originally posted 2010-05-07 12:26:54. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

10 Critical Tips for Clearing Office Clutter

Having trouble finding your desk amidst the clutter? Follow these easy steps, consistently, and you’ll experience greater focus and productivity as a result.

1. Define the purpose of each space in your office and be sure that everyone who shares the space understands how it is to be used.

2. Keep only high-use items on your desktop – computer, telephone, project files, good lighting, notepaper, stapler, To Do list, calendar/planner, and only what you are working on right now.

3. Use vertical space around your desk effectively – put photos and calendars on your wall, not on your desktop.

4. Organize supplies in a desk drawer organizer or supply drawer within “fingertip reach” of your desk chair.

5. Place a wastebasket, recycling bin, and/or shredder where you process your mail.

6. Trim the F.A.T. – File, Act, Toss. Professional Organizer, Barbara Hemphill tells us that the only choices we have for dealing with paper is to File it, Act on it, or Toss it.

7. Create zones in your workspace for incoming and outgoing paper, filing and a work surface. Resist co-mingling each zone.

8. Create an Action File System and place all “action required” items in the system. The Action File System works in-conjunction with your calendar. Simplified Spaces can help you implement this system in your office or home. CLICK HERE to learn more about our system.

9. File non-action required papers in an accessible “reference file system” CLICK HERE to learn more about the HomeFile System, a great reference file system we recommend.

10. Schedule office clean-up/organizing on your calendar, or you will always lean toward a competing priority. Face it … most of us would prefer to do about anything else than to spend a day organizing their office or home.

Being clear about what activities you want to perform in your workspace and where, having clear surfaces in which to work, and the tools you need to perform those activities in easy access, will significantly improve what you’re able to accomplish in a day. In the process, you’ll reduce your stress level and free up time and energy for what matters most. This is a preview from our upcoming booklet “The Simplified Office – A Complete Guide to Clear Office Clutter for Good!

Originally posted 2008-11-25 19:22:46. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Organize Your Recipes

I found this great article from a fellow organizer on a topic I haven’t written about before – organizing recipes. I like Evie’s ideas, so I wanted to share them with you.

So, what do you do with all of these clippings, or perhaps you have recipes written out on scraps of paper you got from a friend or coworker sharing her favorite recipe? Here is my current system, and I must say, it is working really well for me. Maybe it will work for you too.

Get an accordion file folder and label each pocket into categories as you would your recipe box. Here is a suggested category list:

• Appetizers and Snacks
• Beef
• Beverages
• Breads & Muffins
• Cakes & Squares
• Cookies & Desserts
• Casseroles & Pasta
• Fish & Pork
• Misc. (Pickles, Sauces, Breakfasts, etc.)
• Poultry
• Salads & Vegetables
• Soups & Stews

Get a large recipe box for your cards. I found this two-drawer holder which is perfect. I use the top drawer only for “my” recipes and family recipes. Any that are in my mother’s handwriting have been laminated to protect them.

The lower drawer is for recipes I have made from TV shows, magazines, or from friends that are “keepers.”

This system works so well, that it doesn’t take long to find my recipe, it is only in one of three places:

• Recipe Cards
• Cookbooks
• Accordion Folder

If I had a larger home, I would love to designate a whole drawer with file folders to recipes, but since I have a small house, this system works really well. The accordion folder fits in the cupboard beside my cookbooks.

The system is: once I make a recipe from a cookbook or a magazine, and it is a “ten,” then I write it onto a recipe card. The cards are proven, tried and true.

Let me know what you use to organize your recipes. I am always looking for new systems and ways to improve.

Elvie Look is an Entrepreneur, Expert Organizer, Cook and Seamstress. She provides organizing solutions, tips, menus and recipes at http://www.elviesessentials.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Elvie_Look

Originally posted 2011-03-19 12:07:24. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Let Go and Lighten Up in the New Year!

If you’ve ever said, “I’d get rid of this, if only I knew where to take it…” If this is your situation — you’re ready to let go of some belongings, but you want them to go to appropriate and worthy new homes — then I have some ideas.

But if you begin to waffle before you let go, remember that just because you paid good money for something, it might come in handy someday, someone gave it to you, or it’s beautiful or useful, doesn’t mean that it’s beautiful or useful for you right now. Pass on what you no longer need, use, or love to someone who will appreciate and use it now.

Recycle what you can…

In addition to the usual newspaper, plastics, metal, and glass that you can recycle through your city’s residential program, find out about the other special facilities that may be available to you.

These services and facilities (there might be several separate locations for various recyclables) may surprise — and delight! — you with what they accept: anything from scrap metal, copper pipe, and aluminum siding to phone books, computers, foam packing peanuts, and printer cartridges. Old paints and varnishes, poisons, aerosols, motor oil, and all manner of other icky and toxic stuff may also find a safe home if you do a little research. To dispose of cell phones and rechargeable batteries, check out Call2Recycle.

…and throw out what you must.

Let’s face it: there are some things that are so awful that they can’t even be recycled, so pitch ‘em and don’t look back. For large amounts of stuff to dump, think about coordinating a group of neighbors to share the cost of renting what becomes a “community dumpster.” Then have fun filling it up!

How about a trade?

Hold a swap party! Get a group together to exchange clothes, toys, CDs, tools, or craft materials; or check out Swapstyle.com, an international, online, virtual swap party.

Donating feels great!

It’s also easy, and it puts items into the hands of those who will benefit greatly from them.

* Friends and relatives are good folks to start with, especially if you have exceptional stuff, sentimental items, or family heirlooms that shouldn’t be tossed or donated to just any old place. You can feel good knowing that the people you’ve selected to receive these special items will love them as much as you do. (Just make sure that they really do want your cast-offs so that you aren’t creating a clutter problem for them.)

* Groups you belong to — a faith community, school group, club, or sports team — may hold rummage sales where you can share your abundance and benefit a group you care about at the same time.

* Charities such as Goodwill, the Salvation Army, St. Vincent de Paul, and Easter Seals accept donations of many things; plus, they may even pick up your discards right from your house. And listen up, all you sewing fans: Goodwill and St. Vincent de Paul also accept fabric scraps.

* Other charities have specific “wish list” needs that you may be able to fulfill with things you’d like to get rid of anyway. Try contacting the United Way to see if any of their member organizations have such needs.

* Excess Access keeps useful stuff out of landfills and links donors with charities.

* Childcare centers, preschools, grade schools, camps, or after-school programs may enjoy your extra toys and art/craft materials, while libraries, nursing homes, or hospitals may welcome your books, CDs, magazines, videos, and DVDs. Children’s groups may also like your fancy “dress-up clothes.”

* High school, college, and community theater groups may love your old bridesmaid or prom dresses, dance-recital and Halloween costumes, and antique furniture or period housewares to use as set dcor or props.

* Speaking of bridesmaid and prom dresses, investigate the Glass Slipper Project, a Chicago-based organization that provides disadvantaged teens with prom dresses.

* And how about your wedding gown? The nuptial police really will not come after you if you donate it (or sell or consign it, for that matter), and the Making Memories Breast Cancer Foundation’s Brides against Breast Cancer program even makes it easy.

* Do you have excess building materials? Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore accepts usable cabinets, lumber, windows, hardware, fixtures, lights, flooring, and more, while Rebuilding Together, a nonprofit group that repairs the homes of low-income families, is looking for your extra tools.

* Women’s and children’s clothing and shoes, as well as toys, may find a welcome home at a women’s domestic-abuse shelter, while men’s clothing will benefit men in homeless shelters. Consider also Dress for Success, a national group that assists low-income women looking for work.

* The Lions Club or New Eyes for the Needy will take your old eyeglasses.

* There are food pantries in most communities that feed an ever-growing population of citizens without enough to eat, and they’d welcome your monetary or nonperishable-food donations.

Giving things away can also take other forms…

* Check out the Freecycle Network, a national movement with (many!) local groups that connect those who want to give away their stuff for free with those who want to take it off their hands.

* Or put together a Circulation Celebration: On a specified day, people take anything they no longer want to a central location, and anyone who wants it can take it, with no money exchanged at all. It’s truly intended to just move things around — no profit motive at all.

* If nothing else, set something out to the curb with a big “FREE! TAKE ME!” sign on it. I’ll bet it walks.

Maybe you’d like some cash for your goods?

Garage sales — especially ones with several families or a whole neighborhood participating — are a time-honored method, but there are others:

* Sell your general merchandise and collectibles — just about anything, really — through eBay, the huge, sell-it-yourself, online auction site. If you’re a little low tech or strapped for time, work with a service that sells your possessions online and then ships them for you for a commission or fee.

* There’s also Craigslist, a free, giant, online version of a local newspaper’s classified ads.

* If antiques are your bag, consult an antiques mall about selling your wares for a fee or commission.

* Take your books, CDs, videos, DVDs, and video games to resale stores that buy them outright.

* Clothes, shoes, and accessories may fetch a fine price at resale shops that either buy them outright or pay you a commission after they sell. Most accept women’s clothing, but some also sell — or even specialize in — children’s, teens’, men’s, or vintage clothing; household and decorative items; and furniture. These may also be the right places to take dance-recital costumes and Halloween costumes prior to Halloween.

* Likewise, there are consignment and resale shops that deal solely in musical instruments, toys and other children’s goods, and sports equipment — great for selling and buying, since the kiddos keep growing!

But what if you have painful or sentimental things — love letters from a failed relationship, or your child’s first dinosaur diorama — that aren’t exactly the kinds of things you’d donate or sell?

* First be very certain that you’re ready to say goodbye. Visualize yourself letting go of the item and see how it feels. If you feel liberated and wonderful, go ahead. If you feel regretful and sad, wait awhile and try visualizing the release later.

* If you’re not ready to let go, perhaps put these items in one big box so that they’re not scattered all over, ready to emotionally ambush you every time you see them. You can even inject a little humor to help you detach by labeling the box something like My Big, Bad Box of Horrible, Awful, Icky, Very Sad Things.

* If/when you are ready to let go, take some pictures if they’ll help you to release your mental hold on the objects. The photos will spark your memories, so you may not need to keep the physical objects themselves.

* Create a little ceremony, or share a story about the item with someone close to you, to send it off with the dignity and respect that it deserves as an important, although perhaps bittersweet, part of your past.

* And lastly, this suggestion may strike you as a little “out there” — or perhaps as just right: have a “ritual burn.” Take your painful souvenirs, alone, to a quiet place where you can safely burn them. As you prepare and light a fire, think about what they mean to you. Place them into the fire, watch the flames and smoke curling up, and feel your emotional burden lifting, liberating you from these painful connections.

Sending your belongings to worthy recipients — with dignity and respect — can help you to feel good about letting go of them. Here’s to lightening up and moving on in 2011!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paula_Apfelbach

Originally posted 2011-02-05 18:02:21. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Let Your “Launching Pad” Do The Work, And Always Have What You Need When You Arrive Where You’re Going

“Launching pads” are among my favorite organizing tools because if you work with them, they work with you — and save your bacon time and time again.

To see how they could work for you, let’s first imagine a scenario: Picture yourself and the others in your household walking through the door that you normally use when you enter your home. It’s dinner time. Everyone’s been gone since the morning, and they’re loaded down like pack animals with all the accoutrements of their respective days.

Before you can even think about breaking the leftovers-for-dinner-again news to them, backpacks, briefcases, purses, groceries, wallets, diaper bags, dry cleaning, gym clothes, shoes, hockey sticks, keys, coats, glasses, school books, the dog’s leash, the dog, spare change, more shoes, purchases, the receipts those purchases generated, the newspaper, did I mention shoes?, the mail, and all manner of other burly, surly, and sundry items hit the floor, tables, chairs, benches, counter tops, and pretty much every other available horizontal surface that’s within 10 feet of the door. What’s a person who’s striving for organizational nirvana to do?!

Well, I fear that you can’t beat ‘em, so you might as well join ‘em: for the best results in clearing this kind of clutter, I suggest that you work with, rather than against, their natural tendencies and acquired habits.

Your secret solution just might be launching pads: they’re the places to put everything that’s coming or going, now or in the near future.

To start, think of where you and your loved ones tend to dump their daily loads, and then put something in those spots to catch the loads — preferably one receptacle for each person. It could be a table, shelf, basket, box, bin, bucket, bench, milk crate, tote, tray, rug, carpet square, chair, chest, cart, stand, taboret, row of hooks, designated closet shelf, authorized section of kitchen counter top, or any other thing you can think of that marks the place where you “launch” yourself when you leave, and where you deposit your stuff when you “re-enter your atmosphere.”

After that, inform your housemates that they now have predictable, logical, and safe places to leave their belongings until the next time they leave the house. (And then encourage compliance!)

In addition to allowing your launching pads to provide safe harbor for shoes, hats, and coats (preferably on hooks, vs. hangers — it’s easier); bags, purses, and backpacks of all stripes and types; homework, gym shoes, lunches, and musical instruments; and the large gear (whether that’s football padding, a monster load of library books to return, an outgoing basket of dry cleaning, or a baby carriage)… take it one step further.

Place a container at each person’s launching pad to corral the small, but important pieces of life: wallets, cell phones, keys, glasses, sunglasses, pens, jewelry, spare change, lunch money, school ID cards, and the inevitable (and sometimes icky) detritus that resides in pockets. This container could be a bowl, basket, jar, box, dish, mug, or cup, but like the launching pad itself, it provides safe harbor for the little things that count — and as a result, you truly (and literally) won’t need to “sweat the small stuff” anymore.

But wait — there’s more! If you really begin to groove on your launching pads, you can even set up tiny offices, teeny first-aid stations, and miniscule beauty parlors by adding a box or storage unit that holds some paper, a pen, a few paperclips, a roll of tape, and a small pair of scissors; some band-aids, tissues, and anti-bacterial cream; or a comb, mirror, and lipstick. You could also put a wastebasket and recycling bin there so that when you arrive with the mail, you can open, sort, toss, recycle, and retain some of it before it gets any farther into the house. The mail job is handled!

And, for advanced users who’ve become experts at trusting their launching pads (they really won’t let you down if you use them all the time), they can even function as a kind of communication device: the kiddos can leave permission slips that need to be signed, for example, at Mom’s or Dad’s launching pad; and the adults can, in turn, put those signed slips right back whence they came, all in plenty of time to make the school bus. These might also be the places where you put phone messages, honey-do lists, and any other notes that you want to leave for family members.

Now, begin to make great use of your new launching pads. Start placing everything you’ll need when you leave tomorrow at your launching pad space today or tonight. This might include items that your tickler file rendered for tomorrow, theater tickets, a camera, an umbrella, returns to make (with receipts, to be sure), a grocery list and coupons, checks to deposit at the bank, movies to return, or your outgoing mail. Add things as they occur to you throughout the day and evening, rather than assuming that you’ll remember them in the hectic morning hours. (Trust me on that one.)

If you can’t put a physical object there — tomorrow’s lunch yogurt that needs refrigerating, or the giant volcano science project that’s still drying in the basement from its fifth layer of paper mâché — leave a “place holder” note instead to remind yourself to grab it when you go.

You can also think a little more long term with a launching pad by viewing it as a “pending place” as well. Put items there that you won’t need tomorrow, but will need next week or next month: library books due back in two weeks, a birthday package to mail to Aunt Heloise next Friday, or an article to give to a friend when you see her on the first Wednesday of the month at your book club meeting. These things aren’t lost this way — they’re stored safely, in a logical place, ready for your future use. Just be sure to put a note in your planner or tickler file to remind yourself to take them along on the appointed day.

With any luck — and some well-placed coaching from you — the rest of your family will begin to gather things that they’ll need tomorrow or in the near future and place them at their individual launching pads. Then, in the morning — or two weeks from now — they’ll have what they need, when they need it, without the usual last-minute mad dashes hither, thither, and yon.

Household members will also know exactly where to put things when they arrive home so that those possessions don’t wander all over and wreak havoc on the rest of the house. And perhaps best of all, they’ll start to see the beauty of your wisdom, to appreciate the improved way of life that has arrived with the advent of the launching pads, and to acknowledge you as the domestic superhero that you truly are.

There really isn’t a down side to using launching pads, other than the fact that it may take a little while for everyone to form good, solid habits about using them. But humor me and give them a try.

If you use launching pads as purposeful, intentional — and the only — places where incoming and outgoing stuff belongs; if you do not allow them to become random dumping grounds; and if you behave this way every day, very soon your launching pads will dramatically reduce those times when you can’t find your keys, glasses, the tennis racket you need for your grudge match, and the report you’re just certain you were reading in bed last night that needs to go back to the office.

Believe in the power of launching pads!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paula_Apfelbach

Originally posted 2010-11-27 21:49:33. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Finally Get Organized in 2010 with a Declutter Challenge

One of the most interesting Declutter Challenges that I have come across is one called the “2010 in 2010 Declutter Challenge”. The concept is easy, and the results are huge! You simply choose one way to make the challenge work for you, and during the year 2010, declutter away! Keep track on a calendar and look forward to a having a much more organized home by the end of the year!

The first idea to get rid of 2010 ITEMS. Big items, small items, multiple part items, items from your garage, items stuffed into your attic, items that you can’t recall who gave them to you, items of which you have too many, items you never use or read any more.  If you are worried that you won’t be able to get rid of 2010 items, don’t forget that “get rid of” doesn’t have to only mean “throw away”. USE UP that huge supply of shampoo in your bathroom storage cupboard instead of buying new product! USE UP that overload of detergent, or that bulk purchase of canned tomatoes! As long as you are REDUCING YOUR CLUTTER item by item, you are succeeding in your challenge!

The second idea is to commit to decluttering for 2010 minutes in 2010! If you do the math, you will discover that it’s only about 45 minutes per week! Less than 10 minutes per day… which is not much at all, is it? 10 minutes of commercials well spent? 10 minutes of waiting for your ride to come? Have a small declutter project for the week, set the timer at 45 minutes, and simply declutter your way down to zero each week!

A third idea is to declutter 2,010 pounds of “stuff”! I know it sounds like a lot, and it is. However, this Declutter Challenge may be perfectly suited for those who have excess furniture taking up space that they would love to get back, stacks of heavy catalogues or magazines stashed in the basement, or a garage piled high with who-knows-what. Purchase or borrow a basic scale, or ask the weight at the dump where you drop off your big load. Decluttering 2,010 pounds from your house in the year 2010 will no doubt give you a lot more space, and get rid of a lot of unnecessary clutter!

If you take the 2010 in 2010 Declutter Challenge in any of the forms suggested, or if you adjust it to suit your own particular needs, you will take a huge leap towards your desired clutter-free state. Enjoy your challenge and get clutter free!

Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?The-2010-in-2010-Declutter-Challenge&id=3588705] The 2010 in 2010 Declutter Challenge

Originally posted 2010-01-28 12:51:33. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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