The Clutter Diet Blog

NAPO Conference Fun Stuff

I am here learning more about the latest in the organizing industry at the NAPO conference in Minneapolis, and I have seen some GREAT fun things here!  My favorite product so far: Intelliscanner, which allows you to create a home inventory or library using a little keychain scanner.  So fun!  You can scan anything with a barcode, or even use provided barcode stickers.  If you have a wine collection, for example, it will scan the existing wine barcode and automatically plug in the information about the wine into the system.  If you have books or CDs or DVDs, it will automatically get that information too!

Also I like the Zip-Bins from Neat-Oh. They are a great way to store collections of kids' toys, such as Barbies and trucks, etc.  They are cute and fun and very well-designed.

More later!  Enjoy!

Can You Be TOO Organized?

Being a Professional Organizer, people constantly ask me if my house is "perfect." Well, it certainly is not, but it's generally free from clutter the majority of the time and things tend to function very well.  It does not look like a magazine photo!

There is such a thing as being TOO organized, and striving for perfection is not realistic-- even "neatness" is not always the best solution.  We do live in our homes-- they are not museums.

Read the article "Can You Be TOO Organized?" that I just wrote as a regular weekly contributor to Lifehack.org (just named one of the top 50 productivity blogs!).

I am attending the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) conference this week in Minneapolis, so I look forward to telling you about new products and methodologies to help you get organized!

Where is Your Laundry Bottleneck?

When we are organizing clients' homes, a lot of clutter is related to laundry-- dirty laundry clutter on the floor, piles of laundry waiting to be washed or folded, and folded laundry waiting to be put away.  Laundry clutter is a HUGE problem for many families!  I was just explaining this to my children today as they complained about having to put their clothes away-- if there is one step in the process that is stopped, it bottlenecks the rest of the steps. 

Here is our Laundry Cycle diagram that shows clearly all of the steps of the laundry process.  Click the picture for a larger image.

Most people have never thought about this much before, and maybe you don't need to.  But if you have any of the laundry clutter I have described, give some thought to which steps in your process are bottlenecked and what you can do about them.  Is it an ownership problem (identifying whose responsibility to do it)?  Is it an infrastructure problem (not a good place or right equipment to do it)?  Or is it an execution problem (not doing it when you're supposed to-- like kids leaving clothes on the floor)?

Ultimately, the goal is to have clean clothes in your closet to wear when you want them.  Use this illustration to discuss the process with family members if you wish, and get some help to make the bottlenecks disappear!

Five Common Working-At-Home Problems-- Solved!

Getting organized and working effectively in a home office is challenging.  There are many great benefits to working from home, but even if you are super-organized, you may still have these difficulties:

• Noise and privacy problems
• Need for multiple people to have access to your home
• Blurring of the lines between work and personal life
• Family members messing up your workspace
• Not having someone to receive deliveries when you're out

To provide some solutions for these issues, you may enjoy reading this article that I wrote for lifehack.org, a site that helps you do everything better and more efficiently.

If you are considering a work-at-home arrangement, you might also like this other article featured on Lifehack about the pros & cons of working from home (I did not write this one). 

What are your working from home challenges?  What have you done to address these, and where are you stuck? 

National TV Turnoff Week, April 23-29, 2007

As Professional Organizers, people often complain to us that they do not have time to get organized.  Yet, according to Nielson figures from 2006, the average American spends 4 hours and 35 minutes per day watching television!  That is over 32 hours a week!

Imagine the clutter you could conquer, the hobbies you could pursue, the quality time you could have with your children-- if you were to experiment with watching less TV.  Monday, April 23rd, starts National TV Turnoff Week (see www.tvturnoff.org for lots of great information).

Our Clutter Diet weekly organizing plans are designed like a menu, with a Main Dish, two Side Dishes, a Sensible Snack, and a Dessert reward.  We recommend spending one hour and 30 minutes each week focusing on organizing these certain planned areas of your home.  That is just 3 short TV shows.  Even if you just TiVo'd everything for later, that would save you a lot of time in commercials alone-- certainly enough to do this amount of organizing!

What would YOU do with 4 extra hours per week?  How many times have you wished for this time for yourself?  Make a note to yourself of at least 3 things you would love to do instead of watching television, and take action toward making those things happen.  Click here for a fact sheet that includes some suggestions on how to make it easier to wean off the beckoning screen.  Talk to your family this week about the idea of less TV and give it a try!

Spring Cleaning Time

As a Professional Organizer, many people ask me to write and speak about "Spring Cleaning."  As a rule, organizers deal with clutter, not really with dirt... but I am happy to help with some advice on how to use your springtime inspiration to declutter and streamline your home!

I just wrote an article for ModernSage.com that has some Spring Cleaning organizing suggestions-- click here to read the article. 

Happy Spring!

Take My Stuff... Please!

Ever dreamed of just walking away from all of the clutter?  This woman in Minnesota is selling virtually everything she owns on eBay.  She has a reserve price of $2000 set as a minimum for everything, which includes a futon, record albums, and pretty much everything but her dog and cat.

As she says in the article, "I've been schlepping this stuff across the country for more than 20 years. I'm tired of thinking: 'Oh my God, what if it breaks in the next move?' Who cares? I think it will almost be scary how liberating it will be."

You don't have to be this extreme, but you too can get liberation by just making decisions about your own "Stuff."  You should use and love what you have-- it should not "own you." 

I'll Spin You For It

"Whose turn is it to do the dishes?"  "I took out the trash last time!"  Getting your home organized definitely involves having morning and evening routines, as we often discuss with our Clutter Diet members.  Yesterday I was in a bookstore and ran across something that completely solves these little squabbles and gets the family organized with their chores-- and rewards.

It's called Spintastik by Jennifer Nolan, and it's a book similar to the "Klutz" series of craft books which has an actual large, colorful spinner built into the cover.  It comes with pie-wedge-shaped stickers that you use to customize the spinner with chores and rewards for your family's needs.

It makes the spinner the "bad guy" instead of mom or dad saying which chores have to be done.  I love this idea!  I noticed that you can get them used on Amazon for as little as $6.00 or so when I looked it up, so for that price, you certainly can't go wrong giving it a try.

Win the chores lottery!

Cheap Storage Containers!

Many people may not know that clutter can be contained very inexpensively in the new BIG Ziploc bags that came out in the last few years.  You may not be able to find them at your grocery store, but a home improvement center or discount store will probably carry them.  You can organize linens and other larger items and keep them free of dust and pests, without having to purchase a more expensive, hard plastic container that may take up a lot of unnecessary space.

Here is a list of ideas they provide on their website of things you can store in these big bags:

• Linens and pillows
• Jackets
• Blankets
• Seasonal clothing
• Holiday decorations
• Sports equipment
• Sleeping bags 
• Books and photo albums
• School supplies
• Office supplies
• Craft supplies
• Beach/pool items
• Gift wrapping
• Halloween costumes 
• Toys/stuffed animals
• Baby clothes
• Camping equipment

I love the idea of also using these for packing when you travel, at least the smaller sizes.  Here are the sizes they have-- and I have also seen 2 gallon sizes in the grocery store that are a good size for many uses as well:

Large 1.25 ft. x 1.25 ft., 5 per box
Xtra Large 2 ft. x 1.7 ft., 4 per box
XXtra Large 2 ft. x 2.7 ft., 3 per box

Go crazy!  You could zip up almost anything in these bags!  They cost roughly a couple of dollars apiece, so they are very affordable.

You Should Probably Be Decisive, I Think

When I speak I always tell my audiences that if they could remember just one thing about getting organized, they should remember this:  BE DECISIVE.

Clutter, whether it's on your desk or on your kitchen table, almost always represents decisions that have not been made.  Have you ever heard yourself say, "I will put it here FOR NOW?"  Well, that is another decision you are putting off for later.  Should you throw it away?  Where should you put it?  Do you need to keep it at all? 

How long does it take you to pick out a box of cereal at the grocery store, or a movie at the video store?  Do you deliberate over things like what shoes to wear or what to order at a restaurant?  Do people grow impatient and complain about your indecisiveness? 

Usually indecisiveness is based in fear, since it often means you are afraid of making "The Wrong Choice."  What is the worst thing that could happen?  Make a decision this week to work on your decisiveness.  You'll be better organized and save time for other things.  I think.  I am pretty sure.