Happy New Year!

Photo by Morgan Sessions

There's something about the new year that makes me want to clear things out. I spent the weekend looking for things to donate or throw away. It feels liberating to lighten the household load, to let someone else enjoy the stuff that we don’t use or need.

Living with empty space might seem strange at first, but you get used to it. Then it feels strange to have lots of extra stuff around. I’m not advocating getting rid of everything; trust me, we still have plenty.

Letting go of things helps you realize that you have what you need.

By the way, January is Get Organized Month. It’s a good time to take action on your organizing projects.
 Does this time of year make you want to unload excess?

Organized by Marcie^TM: Save time and money by letting go of what you don't need and finding room for what you value
Follow me on twitter, facebook and pinterest

And if you like what you've read, share it using the links below!

Happy New Year!

Photo by Morgan Sessions

There's something about the new year that makes me want to clear things out. I spent the weekend looking for things to donate or throw away. It feels liberating to lighten the household load, to let someone else enjoy the stuff that we don’t use or need.

Living with empty space might seem strange at first, but you get used to it. Then it feels strange to have lots of extra stuff around. I’m not advocating getting rid of everything; trust me, we still have plenty.

Letting go of things helps you realize that you have what you need.

By the way, January is Get Organized Month. It’s a good time to take action on your organizing projects.
 Does this time of year make you want to unload excess?

Organized by Marcie^TM: Save time and money by letting go of what you don't need and finding room for what you value
Follow me on twitter, facebook and pinterest

And if you like what you've read, share it using the links below!

Reader Question: Getting Started

Photo by creativedoxfoto

Seeing all of the information about Get Organized Month, a reader stated that she really wants to work on reducing her clutter, but doesn’t know how to start.

I hear the same concern every week from people who are overwhelmed by all the decisions they have to make.

My answer always is the same: Just start.

It doesn’t matter which room you start in or what type of clutter you start with; the important thing is to do something. Once you make the first move, you’ll feel better. You’ll gain confidence and be more motivated to continue.

If you’ve ever tried to change a habit (lose weight, quit smoking, start exercising, etc.), you know that starting is the hardest part.

Don’t spend a lot of time thinking and planning – that just increases the agony. If you feel like you need a guide, here are a few ways to start your decluttering process:

·        Start with the worst thing

·        Start with the easiest thing

·        Start with the fastest thing

·        Start with the hardest thing

Start small. Take one step today. You don’t have to create a magazine-perfect space; just put away five things that are out of place or spend five minutes sorting one drawer or one pile of paper. You can do this!

How do you motivate yourself to get started on a project?

Organized by Marcie^TM: Save time and money by letting go of what you don't need and finding room for what you value
Follow me on twitter , facebook and pinterest
And if you like what you've read, share it using the links below!

Reader Question: Getting Started

Photo by creativedoxfoto

Seeing all of the information about Get Organized Month, a reader stated that she really wants to work on reducing her clutter, but doesn’t know how to start.

I hear the same concern every week from people who are overwhelmed by all the decisions they have to make.

My answer always is the same: Just start.

It doesn’t matter which room you start in or what type of clutter you start with; the important thing is to do something. Once you make the first move, you’ll feel better. You’ll gain confidence and be more motivated to continue.

If you’ve ever tried to change a habit (lose weight, quit smoking, start exercising, etc.), you know that starting is the hardest part.

Don’t spend a lot of time thinking and planning – that just increases the agony. If you feel like you need a guide, here are a few ways to start your decluttering process:

·        Start with the worst thing

·        Start with the easiest thing

·        Start with the fastest thing

·        Start with the hardest thing

Start small. Take one step today. You don’t have to create a magazine-perfect space; just put away five things that are out of place or spend five minutes sorting one drawer or one pile of paper. You can do this!

How do you motivate yourself to get started on a project?

Organized by Marcie^TM: Save time and money by letting go of what you don't need and finding room for what you value
Follow me on twitter , facebook and pinterest
And if you like what you've read, share it using the links below!

Quote: Be Decisive

“Take time to deliberate; but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in.” - Napoleon Bonaparte

As Get Organized Month comes to an end, move an organizing project forward. Think, plan, then have at it. If you don’t like the results, you can always do something different.

Go for it!

Which project do you want to take on now? Click on Post a Comment, below, and tell us.

Organized by MarcieTM: Save time and money by letting go of what you don't need and finding room for what you value

Follow me on twitter and facebook

And if you like what you've read, share it using the links below!

Quote: Be Decisive

“Take time to deliberate; but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in.” - Napoleon Bonaparte

As Get Organized Month comes to an end, move an organizing project forward. Think, plan, then have at it. If you don’t like the results, you can always do something different.

Go for it!

Which project do you want to take on now? Click on Post a Comment, below, and tell us.

Organized by MarcieTM: Save time and money by letting go of what you don't need and finding room for what you value

Follow me on twitter and facebook

And if you like what you've read, share it using the links below!

Clean Up Your Computer

As Get Organized Month comes to an end, consider your computer. While you might not have considered organizing your computer, you could be more productive if you were able to find what you need, electronically, without searching.

How many emails do you have in your inbox right now? Can you guess, without looking? If you aren’t able to quickly scan what’s in there, it may be time to clean out your inbox.

Marsha Egan of Inbox Detox  declared the last week in January as Clean Out Your Inbox Week. It’s a good time to create some decision points about keeping email. How long will you keep email in your inbox? What if you need to refer back to back to information in an email – do you have a filing system set up? Do you want to archive messages you’ve responded to?

January also is National Clean Up Your Computer Month, sponsored by LOPSA. After you set up your inbox for productive use, make sure you’re using folders to contain digital documents that you need to access. Set aside some time once a week to go through folders, delete outdated or redundant material and consolidate folders that have similar information.

Whether you can’t get a good night’s sleep unless you end the day at Inbox Zero or you’re someone who just deletes all your email once a year because you can’t deal with it, spend a little time regularly sorting through your electronic documents and you’ll save a lot of time and frustration in the long run.

Do you have a digital-maintenance habit? Click on Post a Comment, below, and tell us.

Organized by MarcieTM: Save time and money by letting go of what you don't need and finding room for what you value
Follow me on twitter and facebook  
And if you like what you've read, share it using the links below!

Clean Up Your Computer

As Get Organized Month comes to an end, consider your computer. While you might not have considered organizing your computer, you could be more productive if you were able to find what you need, electronically, without searching.

How many emails do you have in your inbox right now? Can you guess, without looking? If you aren’t able to quickly scan what’s in there, it may be time to clean out your inbox.

Marsha Egan of Inbox Detox  declared the last week in January as Clean Out Your Inbox Week. It’s a good time to create some decision points about keeping email. How long will you keep email in your inbox? What if you need to refer back to back to information in an email – do you have a filing system set up? Do you want to archive messages you’ve responded to?

January also is National Clean Up Your Computer Month, sponsored by LOPSA. After you set up your inbox for productive use, make sure you’re using folders to contain digital documents that you need to access. Set aside some time once a week to go through folders, delete outdated or redundant material and consolidate folders that have similar information.

Whether you can’t get a good night’s sleep unless you end the day at Inbox Zero or you’re someone who just deletes all your email once a year because you can’t deal with it, spend a little time regularly sorting through your electronic documents and you’ll save a lot of time and frustration in the long run.

Do you have a digital-maintenance habit? Click on Post a Comment, below, and tell us.

Organized by MarcieTM: Save time and money by letting go of what you don't need and finding room for what you value
Follow me on twitter and facebook  
And if you like what you've read, share it using the links below!

Get Organized Month 2013

It's January, which means it’s Get Organized Month, sponsored by the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO). During GO Month NAPO professional organizers members help individuals and businesses bring time management, organization, storage solutions and productivity into their lives.

I was delighted to present a paperwork management class to the group at Our House, where young men train for careers in the building trades. In addition to carpentry skills, they are provided job-readiness training. Anyone who works knows that paperwork can overwhelm you if you don’t have a system for managing it.

Teaching people organizing skills is one of the best parts of my job and working with motivated students makes it even better. You can learn more about Our House here.  

Find more Get Organizing Month events on the NAPO website.

Organized by MarcieTM: Save time and money by letting go of what you don't need and finding room for what you value
Follow me on twitter  and facebook  
And if you like what you've read, share it using the links below!

Get Organized Month 2013

It's January, which means it’s Get Organized Month, sponsored by the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO). During GO Month NAPO professional organizers members help individuals and businesses bring time management, organization, storage solutions and productivity into their lives.

I was delighted to present a paperwork management class to the group at Our House, where young men train for careers in the building trades. In addition to carpentry skills, they are provided job-readiness training. Anyone who works knows that paperwork can overwhelm you if you don’t have a system for managing it.

Teaching people organizing skills is one of the best parts of my job and working with motivated students makes it even better. You can learn more about Our House here.  

Find more Get Organizing Month events on the NAPO website.

Organized by MarcieTM: Save time and money by letting go of what you don't need and finding room for what you value
Follow me on twitter  and facebook  
And if you like what you've read, share it using the links below!