Wednesday’s Words of Wisdom

"Do, or do not. There is no try." 
~Yoda

Technorati Tags: Yoda,Inspriation,Wednesday’s Words of Wisdom,Try,Love life

If you are in the Jacksonville/St. Johns area and would like your home better organized, and would like the assistance of a professional organizer, e-mail juliebavi@gmail.com  You can also find me on Facebook by clicking HERE or searching for Organize With Julie.  Want to follow me on twitter? Find me @juliebavi.

What’s your clutter style? (subtitled: clutter confessions of a professional organizer)

Welcome to Fall y’all!  With the change of seasons I always get the bug to clear out more clutter.  (Gasp!  A professional Organizer admits to having clutter!  Stay with me here.)  This Fall, however, that bug is compounded by the fact that much of the summer was spent on home renovations.  It feels like we’ve packed up and moved a few times to endure new paint and TWO separate installations of flooring. 

Before we go any further, I must first familiarize you with some terms that I came to know through organizing pal, Aby Garvey of Simplify 101.  Aby has enlightened me to see clutter as a spectrum with several CLUTTER STYLES. 

• Clutter Style One: Clutter that keeps us from living our best lives by getting in our way.  Be it physical stuff or emotional baggage, it is heavy duty clutter all the same.  In this case, Aby describes the clutter as “homeless” and titles it “backlog clutter”.  I agree!  If you have more stuff than you have places to stuff your stuff, this is your clutter style.  This is the type of clutter that leaves us saying “It was on that table right there, I think.  It could be under that stack of papers.  Or it might have moved to the counter top to make room for the thing-a-ma-bob.  Pretty sure I saw it a day or two ago in this general area somewhere.”
• Clutter Style Two:  Clutter that randomly accumulates on flat surfaces.  This we call “surface clutter”.  The clutter items have a home, but they are not in their homes.  Often these seem to be nomadic pieces of clutter that never truly ever find their way back home.  Throughout the day most of us tend to have surface clutter – as we cook, do art projects, work, study, etc – you have to take items out of their homes at some point and USE them.  Also we live with others who may not be as aware of the surface clutter, so even while we try to help our belongings find their way home, they sometimes escape us and remain surface bound.  (Or maybe you’re the one who leaves them surface bound while a family member or roommate is constantly chasing after these items for you!) This is the type of clutter that leaves us saying “Has anyone seen my scissors?  They aren’t in their spot in the drawer.”
• Clutter Style Three:  Your stuff is sorted, grouped, containerized, possibly even labeled.  (How can this be a clutter style???)  Just because it appears organized, doesn’t mean that these items still have a use.  If you are holding onto things that you no longer have a need for, it is just taking up space.  These things serve no purpose in your life and you’ve probably forgotten that they are even still lurking about!  This is “organized clutter”.  This is the type of clutter that leaves us feeling righteous about not having any clutter. 

Friends, I confess to you today, that I have been hanging onto my organized clutter.  We had to unearth all of that organized clutter, previously stored in labeled boxes in out of the way places (like the rear of closets and shelves too high to conveniently reach).  And since this organized clutter has been unearthed (and thus moved into the garage where my precious car used to live) we now have to DEAL with it.  I seriously had no idea that there were three Rubbermaid bins of old dolls of mine and my mother’s in my office closet.  And why are we holding onto huge suitcases, that in 8.5 years of marriage we have yet to use?  As a matter of fact, I had not used my huge suitcase since going abroad in 1996 -- except when moving from one residence to another!  Not small items, right?  The fact that they were out of the way and “not bothering anything” was ok for awhile.  I do NOT want to have to move these things again.  It is time to let go.

Is this just a grey area of organizing that I’m introducing?  I hope not.  The clutter is there and it is real.  I hope that this spectrum definition of clutter helps you to unearth you inner clutter bug and identify your clutter style.  What’s your clutter style?  If you’re an organized clutter bug like me, what is your nemesis?  Is it childhood memorabilia or stuff from a former stage in adult life? 

Note:  Before you all accuse me of being a non-sentimental snob, I will confess that do not hold sentiment for items, that is true.  However, if YOU have a favorite old blankie or bear of sentiment to you, that is serving a purpose.  I do not begrudge you a single sentimental item (or even two).  It is comforting you to still have it; I understand that.  Even I have kept anything given to my son that was handmade.  So for those of you who knitted and quilted and sewed cute things for him, Thank you!  They are in a single memory box keeping each other company.  Having one item (or a box of items) of this sentimental nature, however, is different from suffocating yourself in memories (like a closet or attic or houseful) to the point that you can not make new memories.  We need to be able to keep moving forward and not get stuck in the past with our sentiment… or get stuck in the present with our stuff.  Friend, yes, keep Mr. Bear and love him well. 

Technorati Tags: clutter,clutter style,organizing is fun!,NAPO,sentimental journey,Fall,Thank you Aby Garvey

If you are in the Jacksonville/St. Johns area and would like your home better organized, and would like the assistance of a professional organizer, e-mail juliebavi@gmail.com  You can also find me on Facebook by clicking HERE or searching for Organize With Julie.  Want to follow me on twitter? Find me @juliebavi.

 

We’re counting down the days ‘til Christmas with ListPlanIt.com. 
89 Days to Christmas.  “Reap the Harvest” today.

~J

Wednesday’s Words of Wisdom

Don't follow your dreams; chase them.
~Richard Dumb

(…although I think this sounds pretty smart!)

 

Technorati Tags: dreams

If you are in the Jacksonville/St. Johns area and would like your home better organized, and would like the assistance of a professional organizer, e-mail juliebavi@gmail.com  You can also find me on Facebook by clicking HERE or searching for Organize With Julie.  Want to follow me on twitter? Find me @juliebavi.

How do you schedule your week?

Do you use a Planner?

Make lots of Lists?

Type it all into a Spread Sheet?  Or write it into a preprinted grid?

Does your system consist mainly of Post-Its?

Do you just describe your style as “Flying by the seat of my pants”?

Whatever it is that you have been doing, I have some input that may make your schedule a little less hectic.  (Oh wow!  That got your attention!) This is not one of those “How to squeeze 48 hours worth of stuff into a 24 hour day” thoughts.  Stick with me. 

• Make a List of EVERYTHING that goes on during the week for you and your family. 
  *Why?  #1 Because lists are so darn fun! and #2 Because it will help you see exactly what all you have to (and want to) fit into your week. 
  *What kinds of things do you put on the list?  #1 While you may not necessarily need to break down your list into such pieces as “scrub toilet” (some people do and that’s ok too!) You do want to make sure to have time allotted for cleaning.  If you know that you need to clean certain rooms on different days, then write it out specifically on your list. #2 Make sure everyone’s extracurricular activities make it on to the list.  Don’t forget your own!
• Take a look at your weekly planner.  IF YOU DON’T HAVE A WEEKLY PLANNER, DON’T GIVE UP HERE. 
• If you don’t have a planner, or if you need a working diagram, try making a simple spreadsheet.  You can use Excel or good old pen and paper.  Create a grid with each day of the week across the top and times in 60-30 min increments down the left margin.  See the table below for an example. 

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
7am
8am
9am
10am
11am
NOON
1pm
2pm
3pm
4pm
5pm
6pm
7pm
8pm
9pm
10pm

  Personally, my generic outline would look something like this…

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
7am	Work	Work	Work	Work	Work	Work
8am	Start Day	Start Day	Start Day	Start Day	Start Day	Clean Kitchen
9am	Errands	Errands	Errands	Errands	Clean	LaundryUp	Church
10am	Errands	Errands	Errands	Errands	Bathrooms	Tidy Up	Church
11am	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Church
NOON	School	School	School	School	School		Lunch
1pm	School	School	School	School	School
2pm	Work	Groceries	Vacuum	Clean fridge	Lesson Plans
3pm	Work	Groceries	Vacuum
4pm	Work	Cleaning
5pm	Work	Cleaning	CleanUp Toys
6pm	Date Night	CleanUp Toys	Youth Night	CleanUp Toys	CleanUp Toys	CleanUp Toys	CleanUp Toys
7pm	Date Night	Dinner - Bath	Youth Night	Dinner - Bath	Dinner - Bath	Dinner - Bath	Dinner - Bath
8pm	Date Night	Bed	Dinner – Bath - Bed	Bed	Bed	Bed	Bed
9pm	Work	Work	Work	Work	Work	Work	Work
10pm	Work	Work	Work	Work	Work	Work	Work

 

• Does it take me two hours to buy groceries?  No.  It also doesn’t usually take me two hours to clean our two bathrooms.  I do not believe in over-scheduling. 
• Do I really run errands 4-5 days a week?  Sometimes. 
• Why are there all those blank spaces?  I like to have the freedom to pop in a movie, go on an outing, organize a closet, have a friend over… in other words, be spontaneous.  Also THINGS HAPPEN.  If there is something I HAVE TO to during grocery time I know that it can just get done during one of the open areas later in the week.  Which brings me to a very important point:  Do Not Over Schedule.  Leave yourself some “white space” in the day.
• Is “errand” also code for “play group”?  You bet. 
• What does “Start Day” entail?  Anything from a shower to cleaning the kitchen to breakfast time to actually DOING my hair.  Whatever it takes for me to Start MY Day. 
• How flexible is this schedule?  As flexible as my family and I need it to be.  Saturdays don’t get scheduled tightly.  We often have projects going on or we decide to be spontaneous.  Sometimes I even take the opportunity to work with my lovely clients.

While Post-Its have their place (believe me, I love post-its!) and can even be useful in figuring out how to stick things into your planner or onto your weekly grid, they do have drawbacks. 

• Post-Its are easily lost.
• Most of us aren’t using them to plug things into a pre-existing schedule.  For example, finding the post it with the time of your doctor appointment won’t do you any good if you find it on the wrong day.
• Many Post-Its together to make up one week’s schedule can cause important items to get lost in the shuffle.

If you are flying by the seat of your pants, PLEASE leave a comment and let me know how that is working for ya.  I have been doing the planner/lists/spreadsheet system for at least 15 years.  I can’t imagine those of you who are such free spirits ever making it to an appointment on the right day much less the right time.  I am not putting you down.  I really do want to be enlightened because all the laws of time management are against you.

Final Note: If at all possible, keep one calendar for your whole family – home and work.  Why?  If you have multiple calendars, all events may not be recorded on all calendars.  This gives you an inaccurate picture of what you have on your agenda.  You wouldn’t want to schedule a business dinner party on the same night as Little Johnny’s biggest baseball game of the year.  You wouldn’t want to schedule a luncheon on the same day as preschool graduation.  You wouldn’t want to schedule a doctor’s appointment on your purse calendar and then schedule a home repair for the same day and time.  One calendar means that you know what is going on at all times for all family members.

Disclaimer: I know that many of you use digital devices and wonderful internet tools to help you keep track of your days and time.  I think it is wonderful and I am glad it works for you.  I am a luddite when it comes to my planners.  In order to “make things happen” in my mind, I need the tactile pen and paper.  Realize that the digital tools are usually using the grid system like the spreadsheet shown above and hopefully you can take away some useful information with you this week.

If you are in the Jacksonville/St. Johns area and would like your home better organized, and would like the assistance of a professional organizer, e-mail juliebavi@gmail.com  You can also find me on Facebook by clicking HERE or searching for Organize With Julie.  Want to follow me on twitter? Find me @juliebavi. 

 

Technorati Tags: planner,time Management,schedule,post-its are our friends,organizing is fun!,family

Wednesday’s Words of Wisdom

It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else.

~ Erma Bombeck

By the way, it is 100 days until Christmas!  A Simplified Season is on the way!! Let the countdown begin!!!

 

If you are in the Jacksonville/St. Johns area and would like your home better organized, and would like the assistance of a professional organizer, e-mail juliebavi@gmail.com  You can also find me on Facebook by clicking HERE or searching for Organize With Julie.  Want to follow me on twitter? Find me @juliebavi. 

 

Technorati Tags: Dreams

September is National Preparedness Month (NPM)

 

Now in its sixth year, National Preparedness Month (NPM) is a nationwide effort sponsored by the Ready Campaign, with support from Coalition Members across the nation. NAPO is proud to be a NPM coalition member for the fourth consecutive year.  The purpose of NPM is to encourage Americans to take simple steps to prepare for emergencies in their homes, businesses, and communities.

Check out ready.gov for more information about preparing for emergencies.  If you’re in Florida, make sure to check out the special hurricane section. 

While there is typical information that many of us may already know (make sure you have flashlights and extra batteries) there are also tidbits of info that you may not know (you need to plan for a gallon of water per person per day).  Grab a large sealable bin for all of your supplies and store it in an easily accessible place.

Get a kit.  Make a plan.  Be informed.

 

If you are in the Jacksonville/St. Johns area and would like your home better organized and would like the assistance of a professional organizer, e-mail juliebavi@gmail.com  You can also find me on Facebook by clicking HERE or searching for Organize With Julie.  Want to follow me on twitter? Find me @juliebavi. 

 

Technorati Tags: National Preparedness Month,NAPO,NPM,hurricane,organizing

The linen closet post.

A couple of weeks ago I tweeted about my linen closet… or rather, about how I fold and store the sheets within said closet.  I fold top sheet and fitter sheet flat.  Then insert those two folded sheets into the matching pillow case for that set.  If there is a second pillow case it is folded and inserted as well.  This apparently was not the part that caught my colleagues attention.  I then put the folded sheet sets into the linen closet vertically, like books on a book shelf.  If my son wants the sheets with the soccer balls I don’t have to rifle through a stack of sheets to get to them; I just reach in and grab. 

As you can see by the photo, I do have a little straightening to do.  The top shelf is all twin sheet sets.  The marshmallow on the right is the extra mattress cover.  It is “fluffy” and will not fold flat.  Any suggestions?  The lower shelf has all guest linens.  Towels are in the middle and sheet sets (again vertical) are on the right.  The basket on the left contains extra face cloths and pillow cases which sits atop a stack of seasonal hand towels.  Yes, the shelves are labeled. 

 

I hope that all makes sense now.  I put sheet sets together inside the matching pillow case and then file it vertically on the shelf, like a book.  How do you store your linens?

If you are in the Jacksonville/St. Johns area and would like your home better organized (possibly in your linen closet?), and would like the assistance of a professional organizer, e-mail juliebavi@gmail.com  You can also find me on Facebook by clicking HERE or searching for Organize With Julie.  Want to follow me on twitter? Find me @juliebavi. 

 

Technorati Tags: linen,storage,closet,sheets,organizing is fun!

 

Wednesday’s Words of Wisdom

A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault.
~John Henry Newman

 

 

Technorati Tags: Procrastination