Clutter Conversions

Clear the Computer Clutter Now!

Now is the time to clear the computer clutter.  Take a look at your desktop.  Delete old files you have sitting there taking up space or move them to a file within your computer system.  Email.... you should not have any emails sitting in your inbox unless you have not read them yet or you use it as a storage place for emails that need action. Technically you should create a folder for emails that need an action but some people only have a few action oriented emails, so it is alright if you have less than 10.  At the end of the day you should have no more than 10 emails sitting in your inbox.

Clear out the "sent" box! That is a box we often forget about but its contents take up a lot of storage space on our computers.  If you sent an email to another person or client and it was important, copy the email and move it to a file within your filing system in your computer.

Do not forget to clear out the recycle bin occasionally also.

I use yahoo mail and can clear out my boxes by clicking on the "select all" tab and then "delete" and it only deletes those on that page, not my entire box.  Start from the oldest page and work towards the most recent.

While you are at it, take a look at all the items you have stored under "documents".  Are any of them duplicated or no longer needed?

Become friends with the "delete" button and don't forget to "backup" your files regularly!

Get Rid of the "I don't have time" mentality!

This is the time of year I hear so many people say, "I want to go on a trip or I want to get rid of of all the stuff in my spare room but I just do not have the time!"  If you do not plan time for it, it will most likely not happen.  No matter what it is you want to do.

Schedule time to do the things you want to do in your planner.  Some of my clients that use their cell phones for scheduling often leave out the little things and do not put it in their schedule.  If you want to do something, no matter how little or much time it takes, mark it in your schedule.  My clients do not think to put things like, running to the grocery store or some alone time in their schedule and then they are surprised when it does not happen.

We all only get 24 hours in a day!  Use it wisely!  Make a list of things you want to do (goals) in the next three months.  Under each item, list the things that need to be done to reach that goal.  Then go through your planner and start scheduling time to do each thing on your list that is going to get you to your goal.

Word of Caution!  Do not schedule more than 50% of your time in your schedule because you must leave unaccounted time for unexpected things to pop up.

 

 

Why do people dread the Holidays?

I find that many people dread the holiday season for many reasons but the most common one is due to having too much stuff to get done and the cost.

I am writing this now because now is the time that you should start preparing for Thanksgiving and Christmas. 

Here are four quick tips but many, many more will be offered in my "Get Organized for the Holidays" class.

1) Create a Christmas shopping list in January. The list should contain the name of people you know you will want to buy things for at Christmas and an idea of what you may want to give them.  Start purchasing items in January and shop throughout the year.

2) Learn to say "NO".  You can not possible attend everything everyone invites you to and you can not do everything all by yourself.

3) Make time for your self!

4) Prepare this year for next year.

 

To register for this class log onto www.clutterconversions.com under classes and seminars.

Why is this task or project not getting done?

     Most of us have a task or project we want to do but keep putting it off.  If you are a business, it may be that you want to organize your desk, files or storage area.  If your project is at home, you may be putting off painting a room, cleaning out the garage or planting a garden. 
Below are a few reasons that may be stopping you from getting the task or project completed.

• Do not know where to start - generally start with the area that is closest to you on your right and work yourself around the space.

• Overwhelmed - break it down into smaller tasks. Use timers to help you work for short periods of time.
  

• ^{No Plan - answer these questions: what items are needed, who do I need to help me, how much money do I need, what tools is needed and how much time can I spend on it? Once you have answered these questions, mark it on your calendar to do it.}
  

• Do not know how to do the project - research the project or ask a professional for assistance or guidance.

• What to do with items no longer needed - before you begin, figure out how you are going to deal with the trash, where are you going to take donations or how are you going to get items back to the original owners?  Again, you can research local nonprofit organizations or ask a professional.

• Fear - I may not do it perfectly or I may fail to finish or meet someone's approval.  There is no such thing as perfection! If you follow the plan, you will finish. Finally, your approval is all that matters.  What matters most is that you are happy with the process and end results

     Once you have all these questions answered and a written plan, your stress will be decreased and beginning, implementing and completing your task or project will be a huge success!

New Years Resolutions

New Years Resolutions

Your very first New Years Resolution should be “I want to simplify my life so I can enjoy what is truly important to me.”  In order to simplify your life, you need to take a good, long, hard look at the things you have been doing in the past and decide if they represent your most important goals and values.  If they do not, then you need to stop doing them.  You have been wasting valuable time and energy!  Decide what you most important goals and values are (only 5-7), list them on a piece of paper and underneath each one, list the actions you need to take to achieve or reinforce your goals and values.  This list is what should fill your calendar.  These five to seven goals should be your New Years Resolutions!!

The first thing to do is create a plan!  Be specific when you describe your resolutions and make them measurable.  A New Years Resolution is just a starting point.  It should be a year-round project comprised of many small steps.  Break down large goals into smaller ones with time frames established.  Find alternatives to a behavior that you want to change, and make this part of your resolution plan.  Remain flexible, things change constantly and you must be able to adapt to be successful. The second thing is to be realistic!!  Setting a New Years Resolution that is unrealistic will set you up for failure immediately.  Remember that "effective" time management will give you the time needed to achieve your goal.  You will feel proud and successful, as well as, be a healthier and happier person!  An important component to having a successful resolution is to make yourself accountable!  Tell anyone and everyone what your resolution is because most people do not want to look like failures.

Finally and most importantly, make New Years Resolutions that are truly important to you and NOT what you think you ought to do or what others expect of you.

This is the weekend before Thanksgiving....What should I be doing??

You should already have your plans mapped out in your planner for the week. Cook your ham 24 hours early.
Roll dressing balls which can be refrigerated prior to cooking.
Prep potatoes and refrigerate them in a pan of salt water
Make desserts in advance. Many can be frozen up to a week. 
Check for items you can cook the evening before, refrigerate, and then warm up in the oven about an hour before you are ready to serve.
You may be able to set the table the night before or early in the morning.

My Mornings Are Exhausting...Before I Even Get to Work!

You feel as if you have just ran a marathon and you are not even out the door yet to go to work!

Well, you are not alone!  It is a extremely common problem facing most of us on a daily basis due to the fact the most people do not have a clear reality of how long it actually takes to do a task.

For example: I had a client who had a full time job from 8 a.m.-4 p.m .  She was the stress-out mother of two elementary school aged children, a boy and a girl. When we met for her organization planning session, she described her weekday morning routine.

I get up at 6 a.m., go downstairs and turn the coffee on. I turn around and go back upstairs so I can wake up my husband.  I go back downstairs again. Then I start making the kids lunches, straighten up the den, and grab my coffee. Now I trudge back upstairs  and pick out clothes for my husband.  Did I mention that I am usually ironing his clothes at this point?  Now I can finally get ready for work from about 6:30-6:50 a.m.  Between 6:50 to 7:30 a.m. I focus on getting the kids up and dressed for school. After getting them downstairs, they get a bowl of cereal while I load their backpacks.  We head out the door at 7:30 a.m.  I'm exhausted every morning.  I don't know how much longer I can keep this up without going bonkers.

"How would you like your mornings to run?" I ask.

She said that she would relish having 10 minutes of quiet time.  Enjoying a cup of coffee would be a luxury.  It would be a miracle not having to rush getting herself, husband, and children ready for the day.   Eating breakfast?  Now she eats a breakfast bar on the run.  Would it be possible to eat at the breakfast table every morning?

Your "In A Snap" Solution: Knowing how many tasks are in a project and how long each task takes. Step One: I had her write down every single task that she did in the morning.  Beside each task, she had to write how long she thought it took to do it.  Next she added up the total time for all her morning tasks. Her first list did not include every single task because she still kept lumping things together.  She combined her shower time with dressing, hair drying, and make-up time.  I had her break out her list in detail.  She added each individual task. Step Two: I then asked her to write down a new list.  For the next 4 days she was to write down how long it actually took her to do each task.  She quickly realized that she was trying to do way too much in the time she allotted herself. Step Three: I sat down with her.  It was time for making a few tough decisions. With gentle coaching, we walked through the process of deciding what she could do the night before : Straightening the den, packing the kids lunches, preparing their backpacks and sitting them beside the door, having the kids help her pick out their own clothes, and setting the timer on the coffee maker.  Then I asked her what could she delegate to someone else (her husband).  He could wake himself up, pick out his own clothes, and make sure they were pressed.  This allowed her husband to lend a hand with the morning routine. Step Four: After giving her new routine a test run for just one week, she was de-stressed! She was thrilled, her kids were less moody, and her husband was able to lend a helping hand. The morale to our organization story: Are you setting the stage each morning for a positive day or a rushed, stressed out day?  Let Clutter Conversions in control..Organized Living in a Snap!

Get Organized for the Holidays

Column by Kathryn McMillan

This is the time of year that everyone should be enjoying time with family and loved ones, and that includes you!

Yes! You can have dinner parties and enjoy your guests! You can make time to go to the mall and enjoy your shopping without rushing! You can enjoy decorating your home without the stress or spending too much money!

How? Follow these tips and enjoy the holidays!

   

1. Say “NO.” Be realistic about what you can and cannot do. There are only 24 hrs in a day!

   

2. Create a Plan. What do you want to do during the holiday season? What do you want to accomplish? What is your goal? Is it preparing a Thanksgiving meal a Christmas meal or both? Is it decorating the inside or outside of your home or both? Do you want to send Christmas cards to friends/family or business partners/employees? How many holiday parties do you want to attend?

Put your plan in writing.

3. Strategize. How are you going to complete your plan? What needs to happen in order for your plan to be successful?

Example: Do you need to shop for last minute gifts, decorations, supplies or food?

Make a list and of whom you are buying presents for, what you want to get them and a budget. (In January, you should prepare a list for next Christmas of people you know you will be buying gifts for and what you think you would like to buy them; keep it in your wallet or pocket book, purchase throughout the year and mark it off as you get it. It will save you time and money during the holidays). Gift buying should be completed two weeks before the day and wrapped one week before.

Prepare your menu. Look at your menu and recipes for your party/dinner. Make a list of the items you will need to buy at the grocery store. Compare that list to the items in your cabinets before you go shopping. It will save you time, money and space.

When entertaining in your own home, you should designate two separate areas food/beverage, designate area for kids, turn down heat a couple hours before and have plastic containers ready to give leftovers. Use paper plates, cups, cutlery stacked inside a plastic cup.

4. Commit! Pull out your calendar/planner. When are you going to do what? Write it in your calendar in ink.

Schedule: time of party/meal, grocery shopping, writing/mailing out cards/invitations (three weeks before date), food preparations, decorate, wrap presents.

Prepare ahead of time:

Ask yourself: Is there any decorating I can do the day before? Is there anything I can cook or prepare the day/night before? 

For example: If you are cooking Christmas Dinner and everyone will be at your house at 1 p.m.

Here are possible advance preparations you can make:

- Cook your ham 24 hours early.

- Roll dressing balls which can be refrigerated prior to cooking.

- Prep potatoes and refrigerate them in a pan of salt water.

- Make desserts in advance.  Many can be frozen up to a week.

- Check for items you can cook the evening before, refrigerate, and then warm up in the oven about an hour before you are ready to serve.

- You may be able to set the table the night before or early in the morning.

Only buy two kinds of wrapping paper so that you can mix and match ribbon and bows with them. As much as some of us do not like to admit it, it is only paper and it is going to be torn into shreds and thrown away anyway. There will be less to have to store away for next year and you will not spend as much money buying different color ribbons and bows to match.

5. Remember, moderation is the key with gifts, food, time and money. People complain about spending too much money during the holidays or eating too much. Please remember that whatever you put on the credit card you will have to pay back, most likely with interest. When buying a gift for someone, ask yourself, is this something they need or will really use, and can I afford it? When buying gifts for your children, ask yourself, “Is there room in their space for that item?” If the answer is no, are they going to be willing to give up something to make room? Only you can answer these questions but be prepared to make storage room for everything you are buying them.

6) Keep things in order. At this time of the year it is easy to let things slide.  You can still be de-cluttering about 15 minutes every evening.  The children can continue putting their things where they belong.  Everyone can continue keeping their schedules.

7. Enjoy. Schedule time during the Holiday Season for yourself! Write it down on the calendar; then you will most likely make it happen. Make the time to do whatever it is that you enjoy. Go shopping for yourself, spend time with family or friends or enjoy a hot bubble bath.

   

8) Assess. This is the time to sit back and reevaluate the season and make adjustments for next year. Write your thoughts down on paper and keep it with your holiday card list. Remember that once you have taken the time to prepare menus and time frames, you will not have to “re-invent the wheel” next year, just make some minor adjustments.

My Mornings Are Exhausting...Before I Even Get to Work!

You feel as if you have just run a marathon and you are not even out the door yet to go to work!

Well, you are not alone!  It is a extremely common problem facing most of us on a daily basis due to the fact the most people do not have a clear reality of how long it actually takes to do a task. 

For example:  I had a client who had a full time job from 8 a.m.-4 p.m .  She was the stress-out mother of two elementary school aged children, a boy and a girl. When we met for her organization planning session, she described her weekday morning routine.

I get up at 6 a.m., go downstairs and turn the coffee on. I turn around and go back upstairs so I can wake up my husband.  I go back downstairs again. Then I start making the kids lunches, straighten up the den, and grab my coffee. Now I trudge back upstairs  and pick out clothes for my husband.  Did I mention that I am usually ironing his clothes at this point?  Now I can finally get ready for work from about 6:30-6:50 a.m.  Between 6:50 to 7:30 a.m. I focus on getting the kids up and dressed for school. After getting them downstairs, they get a bowl of cereal while I load their backpacks.  We head out the door at 7:30 a.m.  I'm exhausted every morning.  I don't know how much longer I can keep this up without going bonkers.

"How would you like your mornings to run?" I ask.

She said that she would relish having 10 minutes of quiet time.  Enjoying a cup of coffee would be a luxury.  It would be a miracle not having to rush getting herself, husband, and children ready for the day.   Eating breakfast?  Now she eats a breakfast bar on the run.  Would it be possible to eat at the breakfast table every morning?

Your "In A Snap" Solution: Knowing how many tasks are in a project and how long each task takes. 

Step One:  I had her write down every single task that she did in the morning.  Beside each task, she had to write how long she thought it took to do it.  Next she added up the total time for all her morning tasks.  Her first list did not include every single task because she still kept lumping things together.  She combined her shower time with dressing, hair drying, and make-up time.  I had her break out her list in detail.  She added each individual task. 

Step Two: I then asked her to write down a new list.  For the next 4 days she was to write down how long it actually took her to do each task.  She quickly realized that she was trying to do way too much in the time she allotted herself. 

Step Three:  I sat down with her.  It was time for making a few tough decisions. With gentle coaching, we walked through the process of deciding what she could do the night before : Straightening the den, packing the kids lunches, preparing their backpacks and sitting them beside the door, having the kids help her pick out their own clothes, and setting the timer on the coffee maker.  Then I asked her what could she delegate to someone else (her husband).  He could wake himself up, pick out his own clothes, and make sure they were pressed.  This allowed her husband to lend a hand with the morning routine.

Step Four:  After giving her new routine a test run for just one week, she was de-stressed! She was thrilled, her kids were less moody, and her husband was able to lend a helping hand. 

The morale to our organization story:  Are you setting the stage each morning for a positive day or a rushed, stressed out day?  Let Clutter Conversions in control..Organized Living in a Snap!