Productive & Organized Home

Organizing While You Are There

  Opportunities exist each day to either clear away a small amount of clutter or maintain an existing space. Taking these small opportunities to organize a little at a time reduces the need to spend hours later “getting organized.” I call it organizing “While You Are There.”

The easiest way to see how this works is with files. No one likes to clean out an entire drawer full of files (myself included), but it doesn’t hurt much to clean out one or two. The next time you pull out a file, look through the entire file. Shred or discard any duplicate, outdated, or no longer relevant information. If you have more time, tackle a few of the surrounding files. This should only take five minutes or so.

The idea is to clear out items that are not used, liked, or needed as you naturally come in contact with them. Follow me through the office and house to see how this works:

• office desk drawers – What supplies do you regularly use? Discard or donate what you don’t. Store the rest in a separate box.

• book shelves – Do the titles on the shelf reflect your current interests and lifestyle? Donate a few books (especially those old college textbooks!).

• kitchen drawers and cabinets - Are you holding onto unused cooking and baking items or food? Donate what you can to your favorite charity.

• junk / utility drawer - Can any items be better used in another room or stored with other like items? Put them there.

• family / living room – Old magazines? Outgrown or broken toys or games? Recycle and donate. No one misses what isn’t used.

• linen closet – Mismatched or old towels? Keep the best. Toss, donate, or store a few as rags in the garage.

• bedroom – Items (like paperwork and kids’ toys) that are not conducive to sleep and relaxation should be returned to their proper homes.

• closet – There’s a reason you, your spouse, or your child hasn’t worn X, Y, or Z. Donate it to someone who will.

• bathroom – Do you really use all those toiletries?


Remember, the idea is to clear out unused or unneeded items while you are already there. Does this take a lot of extra time? No, the time is already there. You just haven’t noticed it yet.

You have a few minutes when you are:

o waiting (in the car, in a line, or for _______ to get ready)

o taking a break between tasks

o looking for something

o putting something away (especially a new item)

This week look around. Is there a small area or two that you could organize while you are there? Do you have a few extra moments to look through that drawer or cabinet? You’d be surprised what a difference small steps over time can make in your home and office.

Take some time this month to clear out a few spaces while you are there. You’ll be glad you did.

© Renee Ursem, 2010

Helping Others Get Organized

 People often ask how to get their kids, spouse, friend, roommate, or parent organized. They are often frustrated by others’ clutter and may have given “helpful” advice: “If you would just get organized…”

Just One New Habit

          Each year brings the possibility of change. Even though we can make changes at any point in the year, each January we start out the year with a list of good intentions.

Yet, months later, most of our well-laid plans for change have been set aside. We try to make too many big changes in a short amount of time. We get a good start, life interrupts, and we throw up our hands: “I give up! I just can’t __________!”

Instead of taking on a huge self-improvement program, develop just one of the following habits to become more organized:

• Deal with mail each day. Whether it’s email or snail mail, at least 50% of it is junk. Open the mail, toss the envelopes and inserts, and move the important information to the appropriate place. Don’t make a shredding pile; shred as you go. With email, delete things you know you won’t read. Better yet, opt out of subscriptions and mailing lists. Mail is a task if you take care of it daily. Don’t make it a project.

• At the end of the day, make sure your toys are put away. Don’t start the day with a mess. Your brain (whether consciously or unconsciously) slows down because clutter is overwhelming. It’s okay to make messes during the day (you should see my office!), but things need to be put away by the end of each day.

• Never leave a room empty-handed. Put things away throughout the day. When going to the kitchen for a (healthy!) snack, put that receipt in your office. On the way to the car, drop the used magazines in the recycling bin. Teach your kids to do this. It will make clean-up easier later.

• Don’t put empty milk cartons back in the refrigerator. Like the careless teenager, we come across things we no longer like, need, or use, and we just put them back! This year designate a bag or box for donation. The next time you try on the pants that have never fit right, let them go. You won’t miss them. This principle also works in the kitchen (food and cooking items), office (pens, outdated supplies), and children’s rooms (toys, clothes, craft/sports items). When the bag is full, take it to your favorite charity.

• A few nice things are better than a whole house (or office) full of “just okay.” Quality is always better than quantity. Let go of the décor that doesn’t reflect who you are or the appliances you never use. Donate the books you don’t read (or the video tapes). Surround yourself only with items you truly like (or love) and use.

• Flat surfaces are not for storage. Yes, I know you think you need to leave it out to remember it, but does that really work? Usually people end up piling more things around the item, ignoring it. Leaving items out does not get tasks accomplished. Note the task in your planner, then put the item in a place that makes sense. Flat surfaces are areas for work, places to display a few special items, or simply places to rest your eyes. Stop piling things there.

So, are you ready to be more organized this year? Develop one of these habits for the next few weeks. Once it becomes a habit, add another. Remember, you are learning a new skill, so expect it to take some time. It will get easier. Celebrate your successes, and let me know how things are going. I’d love to cheer you on.

Get organized this year with one new habit. You’ll be glad you did.

© Renee Ursem, 2010

Summer Vacation...Reduce the Stress and Have Some Fun.

Today was the last day of school for my kids.  Summer break has officially begun!  Some parents see this as great family fun time while others dread this time of the year.  How about you?  There are a few tricks that can help make this time of the year fun for all.

How to make Organizing Fun for the whole Family!

Does the thought of organizing make you want to scream? Do you procrastinate when it comes to getting organized because you feel it is too overwhelming?

Organizing does not have to be a chore there are ways to make it into something fun that you and your family actually might enjoy!

Here are some tips.  

Why are we keeping oversized and out of season items in easy to reach places?!

As organizers, we often see items stored in a home that could have a different resting spot.  Today, organizer Annette Reyman shares her thoughts on the topic. 

I don’t know about you, but I can think of 2 reasons right off the bat why it doesn't make sense to keep over-sized and out of season items in easy to reach places.

TLC's Jon and Kate Plus 8 Hire a Professional Organizer

Delegate?  Ditch?  Keep?  Donate?  Dust Bunnies?  No?  Maybe?  We're excited to know that Jon and Kate have hired a real-life Professional Organizer!

There are some that love and watch this show and keep track of the children as if Jon and Kate are their family members.  There are equally as many people that are tired of the drama and do everything they can to stay away from this TLC show family.  However, I was reading my colleague, John Trosko's blog today and came across his post announcing the organization focus on the show and had to check in to see what was going on.

Recycle Your Encyclopedias and Other Reference Books

Carla (a reader from S. Florida) wrote us the following inquiry:

"Back when my kids were young we purchased a set of beautiful encyclopedias.  They really are nice.  Color photos and gold leafing... 

Anyway, our kids are grown and have moved out of the house and these beautiful books take up 4 feet of space in my office.

I have tried to get rid of them in many ways:

Cool Do-It-Yourself Projects with IKEA Hacks

Are you a closet DIYer?  Do you like to make things for your home or office?  If you are like me, you may like to "hack" things more than make them from scratch. 

What is a hack? A "hack" is when you take something and make it into something else. 

What is IKEA? The store IKEA is a world-wide company that offers a "wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them."  Their designs are very utilitarian most of the time, but high quality in workmanship.

So, an IKEA Hack takes IKEA products and modifies them for form, function or design to work for what the user needs in their space.  If this is of interest to you, check out the blog IKEA Hacker.  IKEA Hacker shows you how to transform IKEA stuff and takes hacks from all across the globe to feature.  Check out the link below for great ideas.

http://ikeahacker.blogspot.com/search/label/storage

Thanks!! to @lisamurphyTO, @chrissychrzan and @tinkugallery for sharing this site!

Hug Your Kids Today!

About a month ago I wrote about how you could start getting ready for this day.  How did you do? Those we love now are precious.  Take the moment you would normally spend reading this post and go hug your kids!  Here is their theme song to hug play too.

36 Tips for Productivity in the Home

Do you ever feel like this guy?  So many things to do that you can't even see what is right in front of your face??

Well, Simple Mom posted a great article that is a fast read and includes 36 Tips for Productivity in the Home.

I enjoyed a number of them, but I especially liked point number 28.

Success Stories!!

"Prepare yourself for something wonderful to happen. When you do, it always will."
— Shad Helmstetter

Every once in a while we like to share success stories from our readers, workshop participants or clients.  Recently we received a letter from R.M. from Morton Illinois.  R.M. was struggling with the belongings of her daughters and a basement space that was not functioning as she would like. 

Organizing WGCY Radio Recording

Last March I had the pleasure of spending some time with Jim Killian, News Director for WGCY radio.  He was fabulous.  It was really easy to talk with him and he made me feel at ease. (Thanks Jim!)  To make things even better, Jim provided the recording of our conversation for me to share.

DeCluttering Your Old Board Games

Scott Foster, from Overlooked Treasure, has a number of ideas on how to use eBay to sell those items that are collecting dust in your home.  Today he talked about a number of board games that sell quite well on eBay providing they have the pieces to play the game!  Remember, never try to sell a game that does not have all of its pieces.  Check out Scott's post by clicking on the trackback link in this post.  Also, leave a comment at the bottom with ways you have used ebay to de-clutter your home!