Tackling the Dreaded To Do List

Trying to get things done around the house, but feeling overwhelmed by your never-ending list of things-to-do?

Here’s a simple system that works.

Make a Master Task List of everything you have to, or want, to do. Don’t worry about the order right now.  You’re basically brain-dumping on paper all your To-Do’s to get the thoughts out of your head and onto paper. This exercise  creates a master laundry list of tasks.

Now, beside each task on your master list, assign a letter of priority:

A = Important / Urgent

B = Important, but Not Urgent

C = Would be nice to do

Each day, transfer no more than 4 items (3 is ideal) from the master list to your To Do List (two A Priorities, one B Priority, and one A, B or C Priority). Focus on completing only those items and forget the rest for now.  When you’ve completed the 4 items on your list, feel free to transfer 4 more items from your Master List to your To Do List.

The key to this system is that you’ve gotten all those pesky tasks that swim around in your head, onto paper. Then by moving to your To-Do list and focusing only 3-4 tasks per day, you’ve kept your list manageable and attainable, rather than setting yourself up for failure by a To Do list that not even Super-woman could accomplish.

By using this system every day, you’ll be amazed at all you can accomplish in less time and less stress!

Find this To Do list notepad at The Simplified Home.

Originally posted 2009-11-07 16:48:10. Republished by Old Post Promoter

Create an Exit Strategy and a Drop Zone

You’re running late (again) and in a panic, you’re trying to get your kids and yourself out the door to school and work. Everyone is running around frantically to find what they need to leave the house with … backpack, cel phone, address book, hat, gym shoes … Does this sound familiar?

This was the scene at our house a few years ago too. What we needed in our home, and now as a Professional Organizer, I find that most of my clients need as well, is an’ exit strategy’ and a ‘drop zone.’ This is an area where items live that need to leave the house with you, as well as where appropriate items ‘drop’ when you arrive home. Items that need consistent homes in this area are:

• A checklist for leaving the house
• List of errands to run
• Keys, cel phone, PDA
• Purse
• Backpack
• Lunch box
• Coats, boots, hats, gloves, etc.
• Briefcase, laptop
• Merchandise returns, charity drop-offs, post office run items
• Umbrella
• Dog leash
• Sports equipment / musical instruments
• Towels for wiping dirty feet
• Trash can for dropping junk mail as you enter the house

To establish your own exit strategy and drop zone, identify (make a list) all the items that are regularly brought into the house and all the items that typically need to leave the house with you each day.

Next, determine the best location (home) for these items to live, in close proximity to the door that your family typically enters and leaves the home. Often this is through the garage. In many clients’ homes, I have arranged baskets to hold cel phones, PDAs, keys. In addition, hooks as the home for backpacks, umbrellas, dog leach, keys. What has become popular in many homes is a locker system where each family member has their own “cubby” or “locker” for holding their own belongings needed. Where space and budget allow, I have often brought in a closet contractor to construct a locker/cubby system for my clients.

A helpful tool for storing hats, gloves, scarves for all family members is to add a vertical over the door shoe holder (typically used to hold shoes vertically on a closet door). The younger kids have the lower pockets, older kids the middle pockets and the adults the top pockets. This way everyone has access to their own items and they can easily be seen through the clear pockets.

With all the electronics we carry daily, it is also important to have a consistent home to charge electronics, like cel phone and PDA. There are now docking stations available for purchase that allow you to charge all your equipment in one station.

After you have identified and strategized what needs to be located in your exit / drop zone and where the best home is for these items, it is critical that you communicate your new system to all family members. When everyone knows that there is a plan, and where the home is for their belongings, they will be more likely honor that system. When there are no consistent homes for belongings, clutter ensues.

Make a “Checklist for Leaving the House” unique to your household, or purchase the “Checklist for Leaving the House” pad for sale here at: http://www.onlineorganizing.com/ProductsPage.asp?name=Checklist_For_Leaving_The_House and keep it next to the door where you exit your home. This becomes your daily checklist and reminder so you don’t have to depend on memory when you’re rushed.

The key to creating and maintaining these areas is to know what you need to store, make the space, establish consistent homes for the items, and communicate the system to all family members. Soon the stress and chaos of the morning exit and afternoon drop will be a thing of the past.

Originally posted 2008-08-19 09:48:36. Republished by Old 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

Ten Home Decor Items that Combine Flair with Functionality

When organizing your home, you typically desire an uncluttered and neat look, but you also want it to look nice.  There are so many options available that are well designed and fit into almost any décor.  There is something to fit any taste.

1.  Baskets are always a popular organizational item.  If they are wood baskets, they give a nice natural look to the room. They are handy for holding all kinds of things, from makeup to toys. I prefer square baskets without a handle. YoIf you want items to stand upright in the basket (like toiletries), look for baskets with minimal weaving on the inside bottom of the basket. Too much weaving will cause items to continually fall over. 

2.  Shoe organizers are an item no family should be without.  Who doesn’t get tired of either tripping over shoes dropped at the front door or not being able to find the mate to the kids’ shoes as you are getting ready to head out the door?  There are different styles available, from shoe racks that fit in the bottom of a closet to those that hang on the back of a door. I prefer a clear organizer that fits over a door (canvas works well too), allowing you to see shoes vertically rather than having to look under clothing racks. The canvas may look more attractive, but clear is more functional. Over the door shoe organizers can be used in the coat closet as well for storing gloves and hats. I use one there in my home ~ my gloves are stored in the highest row, oldest daughter’s are in the middle rows and youngest daughter’s are in the bottom rows.

3.  Closet organizers are becoming big business; as a matter of fact there are companies dedicated to helping you design the perfect closet organizer for your home.  They can be as simple as plastic or metal adjustable shelves, or beautiful wood cabinets that are built to fit in your closet.  They can have shelves, drawers, wire baskets, and places to hang clothes and baskets.

4.  Desktop organizers are a must-have for any home office or homework area.  In addition to the standard pencil can and paper clip holders, there are nice wood pieces that are great for sorting mail and important papers.  I use this exact desk top organizer on my desk. It holds many of the items that we often line up on our desktop, which takes up more space. Just be sure that any organizer you add to your desktop serves a specific purpose and is not just adding to desktop clutter.

5.  Clothes trees or hooks can add an old-fashioned flair to any room.  There are also more modern designs to choose from.  They can be used near an entry for guests’ coats, or in the bedrooms as a great place for kids to put their PJ’s, robes, or even a towel after a bath. Again, make sure that this home decor item is really serving a purpose and not just becoming the catch all and adding to a room’s clutter.

6.  Multi-functional furniture with drawers can be great in homes with limited space.  There are couches and beds that have drawers built into the bases that make great places to store out of season clothes or toys.  There are also coffee tables that come with built in storage. 

7.  Video and audio storage are often wonderfully crafted pieces of furniture.  They can be incorporated into a media center in the home, or used as a stand-alone piece.  Some of them are designed to look like antique pieces of furniture. 

8.  Jewelry boxes are a practical way to not only organize and protect all your precious pieces, but many are almost as beautiful to look at as your jewelry.  You can find hand-carved pieces, or boxes with inlay.  They look great on a dresser.

9.  Carts with wheels are a handy form of storage, as they can be used anywhere in the house.  Plus, if you don’t need it all the time, they can be tucked away in a closet, pantry or corner.  They can have drawers or shelves and offer additional workspace. They are great for kitchens, closets and offices.

10.  Caddies are great for things that may need to travel from room to room.  They can be nice looking buckets or baskets. There are also fabric caddies that have pockets that can be hung on the wall. These can be found in a wide variety of styles. They are great in kids’ rooms for storing small treasures. We use a caddy to store toys that the kids move around the house, and for cleaning supplies for each floor in our home. In the caddy, the supplies have a specific home, and will stay organized even when they are being transported from room to room.

No matter what your taste is in decorating, it’s pretty easy to find great accents to your home that add not only to the form, but to the function of your life.

Originally posted 2009-02-05 14:47:10. Republished by Old Post Promoter

Break the “I’ll just put this here for now” clutter habit

Much of the time, clutter around the home is caused by family members being too busy or careless to put things away after using them. Adults may say to themselves as they set purses, keys, shoes, mail or other personal items down “I’ll just put this here for now”, and pretty soon big piles and clutter results. Kids often leave out their toys, school supplies or other personal items lying around underfoot. One easy way to reduce clutter in your home is to remember to never leave a room empty-handed. You can teach this to kids too by providing them with a basket to throw things in, then carry to their rooms at the end of the day. Encourage your family to be responsible for their belongings by taking the time to put them where they go when they’re finished with them and not bring anything else out until they do.

As a professional Organizer, I’ve trained myself to do this little trick in my own home, but also when I am working in a client’s home. If I am taking items to another space to put away, I look around for an item that does not belong and I carry that item back to where I started. For example, I often see clothing and shoes laying around in cluttered homes. It’s so easy to just kick off your shoes where you light or peal off a jacket and leave it over a chair. Before long a pile has developed along with a bad habit. But leaving these items there is just delaying the inevitable and the more you succumb to this bad habit, the pile grows and creates a bigger clean up job. Instead, never leave a room empty handed. As you move around your home for various reasons, like going to the kitchen, to the restroom, to your closet to get shoes before leaving the house, pick up a misplaced item and carry it with you and drop it off during your trip. Before leaving that space, pick up another misplaced item and carry it with you and drop it off where it goes. Train yourself and your family to think this way and before you know it, you’ll have devoted time to clutter control without even realizing it! It takes minimal effort and it’s less work later on for all.

Originally posted 2008-09-23 15:23:59. Republished by Old Post Promoter