The Clutter Diet Blog

How Organizing Your Home Saves You Money

Visions of sugarplums were just dancing in your heads, but if those visions become nightmares about the post-holiday bills coming in the mail, getting organized provides many valuable and smart opportunities to give yourself a raise in the New Year. Cha-ching! 

Who couldn't use a raise? Click here to read about six Cha-chings on the Good Housekeeping Home Style Blog.

 

 Follow me on Twitter for my Daily #ClutterTweetTip, "Like" us on Facebook, and see our weekly #ClutterVideoTip on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/clutterdiet

Seven Easy Ways to Get Organized for the New Year

One of the biggest mistakes I see people make when setting their New Year's Resolutions is "biting off more than they can chew." If you take on several big changes at once, you may set yourself up for disappointment. I have seven "tiny bites" you can take that will make a huge difference; click here to read them on the Good Housekeeping Home Style blog.

 

 Follow me on Twitter for my Daily #ClutterTweetTip, "Like" us on Facebook, and see our weekly #ClutterVideoTip on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/clutterdiet

Clutter Video Tip: How to Get Organized Each Morning & Evening

Do you feel like you need a megaphone and pom poms to get your day started and your family out the door? Do your evenings leave you feeling like you are on the bottom of an endless pyramid? You don’t have to be a cheerleader to understand the importance of a good routine. Setting up some daily routines can help you feel more in control of your time and your whole squad. Watch this video for some strategies to start and shape your own routines. Following this advice will make your days and nights less stressful and more productive. Now won’t that give you a reason to cheer?

(Click here to watch on YouTube if you can't see the embedded player. Or watch the video at http://bit.ly/TCDRoutine.)

PLEASE HELP: "LIKE"-ing, sharing, and commenting on these Clutter Video Tip videos on YouTube really helps me a lot to get the word out about the information we have to offer. If you like it, please go to YouTube and take only a few seconds to Like, Share, and/or Comment. (Tweeps can use #ClutterVideoTip hashtag for tweeting). Here is the direct link on YouTube if you'd like to comment there: Clutter Video Tip: How to Get Organized Each Morning & Evening. Thank you in advance!

 

Follow me on Twitter for my Daily #ClutterTweetTip, "Like" us on Facebook, and see our weekly #ClutterVideoTip on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/clutterdiet

If you are not reading this on www.clutterdietblog.com, in your own RSS reader, or via an Amazon Kindle subscription, this content most likely is being used without the author's permission and is violating copyright law. Please do not support these scraper sites!

Clutter Video Tip: Save Time with Smarter Calendar Scheduling

Mick Jagger understands how important it is to have time on his side. Do you? How do you get the Satisfaction of being in control of your calendar instead of being your calendar's Beast of Burden? Our lives are so hectic and busy; wouldn't it be great to know all of the details of your appointment with "Angie"? Watch this video for five strategies for being more efficient and productive with your schedule.

Try these tips and make sure you are not left Waiting on a Friend on a Ruby Tuesday. My apologies to The Rolling Stones, sometimes when you Start Me Up it's hard to stop. ;)

(Click here to watch on YouTube if you can't see the embedded player. Or watch the video at http://bit.ly/TCDCal.)

PLEASE HELP: "LIKE"-ing, sharing, and commenting on these Clutter Video Tip videos on YouTube really helps me a lot to get the word out about the information we have to offer. If you like it, please go to YouTube and take only a few seconds to Like, Share, and/or Comment. (Tweeps can use #ClutterVideoTip hashtag for tweeting). Here is the direct link on YouTube if you'd like to comment there: Clutter Video Tip: Save Time with Smarter Calendar Scheduling. Thank you in advance!

 

Follow me on Twitter for my Daily #ClutterTweetTip, "Like" us on Facebook, and see our weekly #ClutterVideoTip on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/clutterdiet

If you are not reading this on www.clutterdietblog.com, in your own RSS reader, or via an Amazon Kindle subscription, this content most likely is being used without the author's permission and is violating copyright law. Please do not support these scraper sites!

More Efficient Errands Save Fuel, Time and Stress!

Anybody want to spend less time in your car? ME! I think about this constantly. How can I get something delivered or consolidate errands or eliminate the task altogether?

Well, I got my wish last week when my car completely broke down! Having no car at the moment is making me appreciate the daily reliability of being able to run those dreaded errands. I am buying a new car right now and looking for the most fuel-efficient one I can get (probably a hybrid).

I just wrote this article for Allstate's online community called "Car Organizing Tips for Efficient Errands and Cleaner Cars," in which I shared 11 strategies for reducing your time in the car, saving gas (and money), and keeping your car cleaner in the process. I hope you enjoy the article!

Follow me on Twitter for my Daily #ClutterTweetTip, "Like" us on Facebook, and see our weekly #ClutterVideoTip on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/clutterdiet

Home Office Organizing: Where Do You Start?

  One of the most common questions I hear as a Professional Organizer is, "Where do I start with organizing my home office?" The best approach is to think in terms of SYSTEMS. Click here to read the Basic Six systems to set up on the Good Housekeeping Home Style Blog.

Follow me on Twitter for my Daily #ClutterTweetTip, "Like" us on Facebook, and see our weekly #ClutterVideoTip on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/clutterdiet

If you are not reading this on www.clutterdietblog.com, in your own RSS reader, or via an Amazon Kindle subscription, this content most likely is being used without the author's permission and is violating copyright law. Please do not support these scraper sites!

How Many of Your Dreams Have Come True?

Do you write your goals down? Why not? It's been proven and demonstrated over and over again that writing down your goals makes them much more likely to happen. And reviewing them regularly makes it even more likely!

I was just reviewing mine, and I found an old list from 2005. I was astonished at what had come true! I had forgotten that I wrote those particular things down. Some of them are too personal to share, but there were a bunch of BIG ONES that I didn't realize I had written down that long ago and I have done! Here are a few examples:

• I have skydived (yes, that's me in the photo- click it for larger view)
• I have created a significant way to give back my time and talents to a charity
• I have visited Italy (exactly the cities I wrote down)
• I've gone to many Broadway plays
• I've visited Hawaii
• I've seen a live volcano (in Costa Rica)
• I've published a book
• We landscaped the backyard

I felt incredible reading that list over! And of course, there are many that are not done, but they are well underway which is also interesting. And some of them I hadn't thought about for the whole six years, but reading them again made me realize they were worth putting back on my radar.

So over this Memorial Day weekend, find a peaceful moment and sit and write your goals down. I like to use mindmapping software to do mine, because you can pour out your thoughts more easily and rearrange them. My current goals map looks like this image I have posted here below. I have been using MindGenius Business software as long as I can remember, but I also like MindManager. These are expensive business applications, but there are other less expensive mindmapping software products... here is a list of them.

It's helpful to have a list of categories to jog your thinking-- here are the ones I like using:

• Family & Relationships
• Contribution/Legacy
• Travel
• Personal Development
• Achievements 
• Health & Fitness
• Home & Possessions
• Business/Career
• Financial

The "Home & Possessions" category is where you'll write down your organizing goals like having an organized closet, garage, kitchen, etc.! And "Personal Development" is where you'll write down how you want to learn better time management skills.  :)

Enjoy dreaming! And maybe several years later you'll have some nice surprises too when you look back at your list. Do you write down your goals? Do you have different categories or a different way of doing it? Share in the comments!

Follow me on Twitter for my Daily #ClutterTweetTip, "Like" us on Facebook, and see our weekly #ClutterVideoTip on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/clutterdiet

If you are not reading this on www.clutterdietblog.com, in your own RSS reader, or via an Amazon Kindle subscription, this content most likely is being used without the author's permission and is violating copyright law. Please do not support these scraper sites!

How to Make Time & Make Room for New Things in Life

I guess I am not normal, because I truly love sticking my hands into a beehive... I have recently taken up beekeeping after having done it as a little girl and wishing and thinking about it for 30 years. People keep asking me where I find the time! You have to make time-- and make room-- for new things.

 

In this post I wrote for Good Housekeeping's Home Style blog I ask- Why not? Life is too short, and if something brings us joy, we need to embrace it. Let me show you how!

My new bee blog is here, by the way, if you want to follow along the journey:  www.MindingYourOwnBeeswax.com  I hope you enjoy it!

Follow me on Twitter for my Daily #ClutterTweetTip, "Like" us on Facebook, and see our weekly #ClutterVideoTip on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/clutterdiet

If you are not reading this on www.clutterdietblog.com, in your own RSS reader, or via an Amazon Kindle subscription, this content most likely is being used without the author's permission and is violating copyright law. Please do not support these scraper sites!

I Can Do That... with ONE PHONE CALL!

When we are consulting with our members daily in our message boards, we sometimes find that things that they are grappling with are actually ONE PHONE CALL away from getting resolved! I am often surprised at this in my own life, too, when I have one of those days where I knock out tons of stuff on my list.

Isn't it amazing how we procrastinate things that are so simple? Here are some things I have experienced personally, I have seen with our clients, or our members have told us about:

• Home repairs. Our glass shower door wasn't closing...for months. Our handyman tried many trick-fixes that didn't work. ONE PHONE CALL: Fixed the next day for $150. Ugh, why did I wait so long? I still relish each time I take a shower and it closes properly.
• Cracked windshield. ONE PHONE CALL: Fixed the SAME day, and the guy came to my house to do it. It was only a 7 minute call to my amazing insurance company, USAA--it was so remarkable I noted the time on my phone handset.
• You've misplaced a document like a tax statement. ONE PHONE CALL: You can usually get someone to send you something via email or even fax that same day.
• You don't know how much something costs. ONE PHONE CALL: You can usually find out what you need to understand and more from calling the relevant company. If you want to get straight to a human being at large corporations, there is a list maintained online at GetHuman.com that allows you to bypass the phone menu nightmares.
• You have junk that needs hauling away and items that need to be donated. ONE PHONE CALL: You can get all of your clutter hauled away and your stuff taken to Goodwill®! This is a big wink to our partners at College Hunks Hauling... our readers/members can get $30 off their services when they mention us! You can read more information here: www.collegehunkshaulingjunk.com/clutterdiet

What could you knock out today that ONE PHONE CALL would solve? Are there nagging repairs, dental or medical appointments, or pieces of missing information that you need to get off your mind? Take a moment and get it done! Share your ONE PHONE CALL success stories in the comments!

Follow me on Twitter for my Daily #ClutterTweetTip, "Like" us on Facebook, and see our weekly #ClutterVideoTip on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/clutterdiet

If you are not reading this on www.clutterdietblog.com, in your own RSS reader, or via an Amazon Kindle subscription, this content most likely is being used without the author's permission and is violating copyright law. Please do not support these scraper sites!

Organizing Your Health: 9 Ways to Reduce Stress

Do you remember "Schoolhouse Rock?" I bet you can probably sing me a few of the songs... "Conjunction Junction, what's your function?"

I just interviewed my friend, Dr. Mache Seibel, who is the founder of HealthRock®. After being on the Harvard Medical School faculty for two decades, he is currently a professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and he writes and performs songs about health that are fun and catchy in just the same way. He even opened a show for Big Bird!

We talked about how disorganization contributes to stress and all of the ways getting organized improves your health. Here are Dr. Seibel's 9 tips to reduce stress that were shared on our recording:

1. Don't overcommit. Know your limits and don't spread yourself too thin! Overcommitments are clutter in your schedule.
2. Finish your tasks. When you leave things incomplete, you create stress trying to remember them all and juggle them until they are done. (See my related post on The Bookmark Principle.)
3. Set aside a few minutes of downtime each day. Take some deep breaths. Deep breathing is very relaxing, and you can do it with no special equipment and nobody has to even know!
4. Have sex! Experts say a healthy sex life is very important to relieving stress. (This is my favorite tip ever on the blog.)
5. Listen to music that relaxes you. Music calms the savage beast!
6. Schedule breaks in caregiving. If you are caring for small children or elderly relatives--or both-- make sure that you have some time just for yourself. Remember that you cannot serve others effectively if you are worn down and depleted.
7. Decrease clutter & get organized. Of course! Clutter represents delayed decisions and actions.
8. Get a massage. Massage is underrated in terms of the significant role it can play in your health.
9. Take mini-vacations. Reserve at least 1 day a week for rest, and every three months take a long weekend where you completely check out from your email and phone and work.

The full interview is available as a download in our member area, where we have hours of audio interviews, many of them with friends of mine in the organizing industry. Our Clutter Diet members have told us they enjoy getting motivated and learning from these interviews while they are in the car or while they are doing tasks around the house, or even while they are organizing! Members can click here to go to our audio page and download the interview. If you are not yet a member, you can check out the whole program--including this interview, all of the others, our video tutorials, and access to our team for personal advice-- for just one "Abe Lincoln," $4.95 (UPDATE July 2011: We now offer the FREE 7-Day Quickstart which includes seven days of focused guidance from me plus an additional 7 days of full access and support!). Read more about that here.

How does disorganization contribute to your stress? Share in the comments!

Follow me on Twitter for my Daily #ClutterTweetTip, "Like" us on Facebook, and see our weekly #ClutterVideoTip on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/clutterdiet

If you are not reading this on www.clutterdietblog.com, in your own RSS reader, or via an Amazon Kindle subscription, this content most likely is being used without the author's permission and is violating copyright law. Please do not support these scraper sites!