by CS Team
What does organization have to do with relationships you might ask?
Why is it that “Mr. Organized” partners with “Ms. Chaos”? Think about how often you are at odds with someone in your life because of organization issues:
- Not being able to find what your boss is looking for.
- Arguing with your child about the way their room looks.
- Being accused of throwing important things away.
- Always being asked where something is.
As professional organizers we constantly witness the stress in our clients relationships over organization styles and decisions. Too often those with the ability to organize do not understand when others cannot maintain their environment. Those that are organized need to keep in mind that our research shows only 10 – 15% of the population is naturally organized. Hence, the need to be able to communicate and get help when lack of organization gets in the way.
This barrier between those who naturally know how to organize and the other 90% who don’t is why our main focus is teaching people how. The foundation for any organizing project or communication is three simple steps outlined below.
SEE IT – take a look at where you’ve been
Begin by taking a realistic look at where a lack of organization is impacting your life and relationships. Choose just one area or issue. What’s working, what’s not and why? Keep it simple. Then look at it from both sides and try to see what is at the heart of the conflict. Often our relationships serve as mirrors to look at ourselves. Once you have clarity, why not share your truth with this person or persons and then ask for them to share.
MAP IT – make a plan for where you want to go
Now that you have each shared your truth, each person can create a simple vision for what needs to change. Try asking – what is the single most important change that needs to happen? What is one action you can take? Let this be enough. It is imperative to the relationship that each person has a chance to share their vision and what is important to them.
DO IT – take the actions to make it happen
How you choose to implement your changes or DO IT will be very specific to the relationship. Some may come up with a way to do it together, while others might call in outside help, and still others will compromise on different levels.
Some examples of this are:
- A family sets up a system for incoming mail and an active paper system together.
- A mother and child call it fun time, put on music, and make a game of putting everything back in its’ home.
- A couple decides to hire a professional organizer because they would rather enjoy their time together hiking or taking dance lessons.
- A boss and assistant set up a weekly 1 hour focused time to go through all the lists and questions.
- Two friends or buddies get excited about helping each other one weekend a month with the clutter areas – We all have them you know.
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by CS Team
Cool Tools for Spring Organizing!
Get the Cool Tools to make the job easier. – Everyone knows that having the right tools is essential for getting the job done. As professional organizers, we want to share our favorites that every home (and most offices need)
- 30 banker’s boxes are the minimum for a home. We use them to sort, contain and move the piles, stage the stuff during large projects, and free our clients from the distraction of all the stuff.
- A labeler is essential. Having your containers and shelves labeled not only makes it easy to find what you need but mostly makes it easier to put things back where they belong. We recommend the Brother PTouch.
- The time timer is a brilliant tool that allows us to stay focused and “touch” time. This amazing tool comes in many sizes, can be used by all ages and has hundreds of uses. Go here to check it out
Our Resource Page has all our favorites that will help you even more!
Happy Spring Cleaning, Clearing & Organizing!
Marla & Kate
by Kate Fehr
Spring is just around the corner! Are you ready for freedom & fun?
Join us once again at the Spring Home & Garden Festival for new tips and inspiration
Here is one to inspire you now…
Tip #5. Choose containers that you LOVE for the areas and stuff you use the most!
One that we love is the Feathergrain Wood Bin from The Container Store. It’s pretty, sturdy and functional. Use it in deep cupboards as a make-shift drawer, or in closets to organize items from toiletries to office supplies. Since they are lightweight you can easily move them about the house, like for toys or art supplies.
Get the rest of our top tips from Marla who will be speaking ONLY once each day, so mark your calendars!
Friday March 6th @ 2 p.m.
Saturday March 7th @ 10 a.m.
Sunday March 8th @ 11 a.m.
Visit our Booth #2743, near the Design Stage, for Expert Tips and to enter our drawing!
You can also Purchase Discount Tickets.
Show Information:
Friday March 6th @ 12:00 p.m. through Sunday March 8th @ 6:00 p.m.
South Towne Expo Center
9575 S. State Street
Sandy, Utah 84070
Go Here for additional information and directions.
by Kate Fehr
Are you caught up in the ongoing battle of inbox clutter? Welcome to the club!
Email is absolutely one of the biggest places of stress, clutter, and loss of productivity. Below are 5 ways to tackle that craziness. And let me just say, that it definitely takes practice and consistency for them to work.
1. Process your email, do not just “check it.” – This is one of the most common areas of email time waste. When you set aside time to mindfully deal with your inbox, you’ll be surprised at how quickly you can get through things and in turn, how much time you will have for other things in your work day. Schedule the time in your day specifically for this.
2. Have a system for the incoming. To effectively process your email you’ve got to know what to do with each one. My email system is the same as my paper system. To R.A.F.T.© my email, I have a folder for each step.
R – READ: for all the emails lists I am on. I have a dedicated time each week to read through these. Once I have, I toss them or file them.
A – ACT: for the emails that need a response, or info needs to be placed on a calendar, etc. Each day I have scheduled time during the opening and closing of my work day to handle these.
F- FILE: for future reference.
T – TOSS: this is just my trash folder, but I like to stick with acronym for ease.
3. “Unsubscribe”!!! – There is a wealth of information on the internet and most of us want to read up on our fair share. Subscribing to email lists is a great way to do this…until the emails start flowing in. Be realistic about the information you truly want to receive and unsubscribe to the rest.
4. Do NOT use your inbox as your To Do List – As a former “email to do list” junkie, I cannot stress this enough. Combining your to do list with emails makes both systems less effective mostly because you get lost in between the two lands. Use your planner, a spreadsheet or an app on your phone for action items.
5. Clear out “Sent” and “Trash” folders – This is just like taking our house trash out to the curb for pick up. It’s clutter, it’s sub-conscious stress. Get it out of your email and off your mind. Depending on how often you reference your sent files will depend on how far back you want to keep things. For my line of work, I only save a month’s worth.
To reiterate some of my statements above, I learned all of these things the hard way. The honest truth is that I’m still practicing them. Even though I have the foundation and systems in place, sometimes I simply don’t follow them. The great thing is that they are implemented and therefore make it fairly quick and easy to restore homeostasis.
Please write and let me know what you do to help with the email clutter – Kate Fehr
For more information on using R.A.F.T.© for your paper, Read This Post.
R.A.F.T.©, Diane Hatcher 2000-2015
