The 12 Step Program for the Surface Abuser

I love this desk, family work center. But what a desk CAN look like

The 12 Step Program for the Surface Abuser.

1) Admit that you have a problem.

2) Ask for help with your Surface Abuse problem. (Professional organizers are everywhere!)

3) Remove ALL surfaces in your home.  (Only kidding!)

4) Realize that this will take on going maintenance to maintain.

5) Visualize what you would LIKE this space to look like.

6) Start the process with one surface.

7) Get a black trash bag for trash and a White trash bag for donate.

8) Begin the Sorting process. Clear everything off your counter and clean it first.

9) Realize that clearing your counter will lead to some organizing in other areas of your house. (this is a Good thing)

10) Decide what to do with all the papers and clutter.

11) Plan daily to clear  off anything that might have accumulated in this “hot spot” zone and place it in the folders or cubbies you created.

12) Be sure to take before and after pictures so help remind yourself how you want to keep your new clear counter.

Disclosure: The above picture is not from my home (I WISH!) It was from a Parade of Homes model that boasted like the best family organizing center ever!!  But you can find these products at The Pottery Barn.

How To Start Organizing

It is a New Year, so I am going to start off with some good basics. Some of you have seen these on here before, but it never hurts repeating valuable information.

First off – Don’t try to tackle “my whole house”. Break it down. Think about one “hot spot” that is the first thing you want to take care of.  It may be the kitchen counter, or that table when you walk in the house that everyone dumbs things on.

If you try to do too much in too short of time you will become defeated when you can’t do it and I don’t want you to give up.

Step 1 – Pick Your Zone

Step 2 – Pick Your Time (write it in on your calendar)

Step 3 – Get supplies Ready

*Black trash bags – trash   *White Trash bags – donate   * Clean bins (my favorite), but sturdy boxes will do if you have them

Step 4 – Start the Sort – Take 10 seconds per item (no more…don’t walk down memory lane, just take first thoughts)

A) Keep – You LOVE it and USE it

B) Donate – It would be Usable for someone, but it doesn’t fit or you really don’t like it, or you are not using it.

C) Store – Holiday or speciality items (skiing equip, camping equip) that you use yearly

D) Move – Items that don’t belong in that space or room. They need to be moved to another room if you are keeping them

E) Trash – Recycle if possible.

It isn’t hard once you get started.  The mind set is the biggest obstacle in most cases. Don’t think…”its too much I can’t do it” . Instead think, “Wow…I have a mess, but it will feel GREAT when I get through it.”

Peter Walsh’s Book – It’s All Too Much! Review

Is it to anyone’s surprise that I like Peter Walsh?  If you know the TV show on TLC called Clean Sweep or you watch Oprah then you know Peter Walsh.  He came to the NAPO (National Association of Professional Organizers) conference in 2008 that I attended. He was a dynamite speaker….funny and very informative too. (cue the picture I took there)

I have also been involved with him on a couple of webinars with Office Max.  Ok…now on to his book.

It’s All Too Much is very easy reading and very simple. It helps you to cut the clutter and make your life easier. Of course as all of us know…that is much easier said than done.  But Peter has some great ideas and puts things in terms that help erase the guilt of giving up things that are either “keepsakes, expensive or gifts”.  Here is a quote from his book:

“If you’re tempted to keep something because it was expensive, remember the difference between value and cost.  Value is what something is worth. You spent a lot of money on it.  To throw it away would mean admitting that the money was wasted.  Now you need to think about the cost.  What is it costing you to keep this item? How much space?  How much energy?  What about the peace of mind that comes from having a clean home full of things you use?  You once made a decision to purchase this expensive thing that you never use.  Now, if you keep it, you’ll be throwing good space after bad money.”  – from Peter Walsh’s book  It’s All Too Much.

I love this!!  I have clients all the time tell me something is too expensive and they can’t get rid of it.  E-bay is an option and a few have used it, but usually if we dont’ do something with it right then, it will continue to sit and collect more dust.

This is a good read!!  Here is the link on Amazon

Disclosure: I bought and paid for this book with my money and was not asked to write a post nor did I receive any payment for the post or the link.

Donating – Reducing Your Clutter and Helping Others

Many people have trouble letting go of things…I realize this, but I also realize that there are times that it helps to think of others and that can help you to “release” an item.

Holding on to “things” that are packed in a box in the basement, or sitting on the back of that top shelf in your family room (where you can’t even see it) and gathering dust are not helping you in any way.

Look at that item (as you dig it out of those hiding places and it sees the light of day for the first time in years) and decide:

1) Am I using it?
2) Is it making this space a better place?
3) Can I enjoy it where it is?
4) Do I like it?

If you can’t answer “yes” to all of these, then maybe it is time to pass that item onto someone who will use it, will enjoy it and likes it.

Five Steps for Organizing

Organizing a basement, room or home can be completely overwhelming. Where do you start? What do you do with everything? How much will it cost?

So often we don’t do anything because we don’t know how to do it, or it seems too “big” to do anything at all.
But to do nothing accomplishes nothing.

Step 1: Pick your target zone.
Decide what area you want to work on first. Do not say, “My whole house”. More like, “I want to work on the desk in the corner of the family room.” The hard part when you get sorting is to stick to that target zone. You can’t take something to put away into another room, because then you will see something in that room that you want to move and you will lose focus.

Step 2: Set an appointment on your calendar to start your project.
Try to give yourself at least 2 hours to start your project. Hopefully if you haven’t started too big you can finish. Take “before” pictures. When you finish and take your “after” pictures, it will help to keep you motivated to not let it get back the way it was before.

Step 3: Have your supplies ready to start.
Do not go out and buy a bunch of organizational products. You do not know what you are going to need yet. You may have it somewhere in your home. I suggest getting:
1) Black trash bags for trash
2) White trash bags for donate (so you don’t throw away your donate bags by accident)
3) Clear bins with lids or boxes
4) Labels – masking tape can do the job and a sharpie marker
5) Your sorting lists

Step 4: Make Sorting List
Get a piece of paper and a marker and write this on each one:
1) KEEP – Love it, wear it, use it, can’t live without it.
2) DONATE – Do not like it or use it, doesn’t fit, it is still in good shape and someone can use it.
3) MOVE – It doesn’t belong in this room.
4) STORE – Seasonal items, occasional use (camping, skiing equip. etc)
5) TOSS – Trash, torn, broken, missing pieces, not in any shape for anyone else.

Step 5: Start Sorting
You need to make a decision on each item in the space you are organizing. You have to make fast decisions. give yourself about 5-10 seconds for each item. Do not sit and recall memories for each thing, or start looking at old pictures. When you do that you are “personalizing” that item. The goal here is to “depersonalize” these things in order to get rid of them.

Once you get started, it will get easier and the feeling you get when you are finished with your first project will spur you on to do more.

I have posted this before, but with different pictures. This is a basic post that I will post periodically to help new readers.

Rainy Day Organizing – Maintenance

What better day to do some organizing than a rainy day?  It is pouring rain today and I look around my house and think….perfect day to organize this office a little more.  Most of my organizing is just maintenance. I have the organizational system in place….but it has to be maintained.

Keeping up on all of it can be daunting. But if you have a place for everything…or most things, then clean up is much easier and less stressful.  If you do not have a system, then when you come to that extra door stopper in the junk drawer or the extra phone extension cord…you have NO idea where to put them?  So what happens?  Nothing. And the problem grows.

Look around today (even though it may not be rainy where you live today) and pick one thing to accomplish that will make you feel better once it is done.

It may be a junk drawer, it may be the front entry way with a zillion shoes all over, it may be the kitchen desk.  But take some time today (even if it is just 1/2 hour) and start. It will feel good!

Hoarders…what is it all about?

Hoarding….What is it all About?

Did any of you watch the new show on A&E (Mondays at 10pm est).  It is called appropriately enough…”Hoarders”.
It gives the real life picture of what a hoarding house looks like….the thought process that the hoarders go through and their reasoning in why they “need” to keep their “stuff” and how they get rid of it…or do not get rid of it.  This is real life (from what I can tell) and shows the real emotions of these people. They get very anxious when people try to throw their things away if they have not made the decision themselves.

Hoarding. This is an Emotional Problem

This is an emotional problem.  There needs to be a psych. Dr. involved and helping to treat the person for the changes to stay in effect.

The picture above is a garage.  If you will notice that the boxes almost touch the garage door hardware on the ceiling….yes that is the ceiling! This is a woman I worked with last year. She is a hoarder…and knows it. She has books on organizing and is determined to get out of the mess she is in.  She has a very limited budget ….a disabled husband, and no real help.  She wants to move into a 600 sq ft house that her son (deceased) used to live in. Her house is a 4 bedroom home with basement and garage full. It would be cool for her to be on a show like that and get the physical help she needs.

But I love hearing what these people are saying….because I feel like I have heard most of it out of the mouth of my client.  They have a reason for each thing they have and have a hard time giving it up.

Hoarding is a serious emotional issue…it is not just lazy people.  Would love for you to see the Chaotic Kitten of Dehoarding Diary.  She is a hoarder who is decluttering her house and blogging on it. She has before and after photos. Love her and so proud of her.

You also might be interested in these pasts posts of mine:

What if I’m a Hoarder? What do I do?

Hoarding

Dehoarding Diary Works it Out

Walmart Remodel…in progress

The Walmart Remodel is in progress!
So what happens to a teenagers bedroom when you are in the process of remodeling, but things aren’t complete?  It becomes a nightmare!!   Read more

Remodeling A Room – The Beginning Steps

Remodeling A Room

You have decided you want to redo your teen’s bedroom? Your teen or almost teen has outgrown The Dora the Explorer or Scoobie Doo comforters and are begging you to make their room a little “older”.
Where do you begin?

Steps To Remodeling

1) Take a “Before” picture. I love before pictures…it lets you see how far you have come once you finish the project.

2) Decide on your budget. This is important BEFORE you go shopping for anything. It will determine if you are shopping at a high end store or garage sales.

3) Get some graph paper and figure out your scale. 1 square = 1 foot or 2 squares = 1 foot. Measure your room dimensions and then measure any furniture that will be staying in the room. Then you can cut out the pieces and play with different arrangements in the room.

4) Pick a theme / colors for the room. (That is the fun part!)

5) Clear out the room and clean. Paint if you are going to paint

6) After you know how your furniture is going to fit into the space, then move the new or old furniture back into the room.

7) Add your new decor and you are done.

The Sorting Process

Be sure that when you take things out of the room…you go through your sorting process.
1)Keep
2)Donate
3)Move
4)Store
5)Trash

You can be in on the announcement I made on my show if you watch my momtv show playback!
Or you can wait a couple of weeks and see it on my blog!

You can see my Before and After Remodel posts below.

Room Makeover is in Progress

Walmart Room Reveal

Office Organizing – Colors can make your office Great!

Colors are important to most of us. They can affect how you feel, how you think. You want your office to be fun to go into. Make you feel productive and happy. What colors make you feel good? What ones do you love?
If you notice in my office I have bright colors…but I didn’t paint the walls, I didn’t add expensive curtains or carpet. I got cubbies in the colors I liked and made my own “Ikea” tower with the cubby units from Target. (Love cubbies!!)
I also added pails that I found at a garage sale and the little ones from Target. I have a hot pink magnetic board on my desk (an upcoming review and giveaway by the way).
If I go into another color mode..I can change it up real easy.
But when I walk into my office it just makes me feel happy!

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