Organize by the Month Blog

I find it interesting that when I am cleaning the house to have company over I notice things that are in my “blind spots” the rest of the time.  For example, I have white baseboards which of course have the tendency to show dirt.  Most of the time I don’t even notice the slight darker color on the top of them. 

I had company over for the Superbowl yesterday and while vacuuming all of the sudden the dirt on the baseboards seemed to have a spotlight shining on all their dirtiness.  Would my company notice my lack of housecleaning skills?  I couldn’t take a chance. So I got a damp rag and wiped the baseboards clean.

This happens anytime I have company over.  The problem is I don’t have company all that often so those “blind spots” have a tendency to be neglected for too long.

Of course if I followed Flylady’s zone cleaning each month the baseboards wouldn’t get so bad.  Unfortunately, after 8 years I still have a problem following some of her routines. I’m good with most of them but I’m not perfect nor do I expect to be.  I’ve learned what works for me and believe everyone needs to figure out what works best for them.  That’s why there are so many different ways to declutter and organize your home.  Sometimes you can read a suggestion and know it will work for you.  Sometimes it’s a matter of trial and error.  The key is to never give up.

Yes, I beat myself up a little for not having the house perfectly clean.  Did my friends notice?  They never said a word and I wasn’t going to bring it up. After all, they are my friends.  They weren’t about to pull out white gloves and check for dirt on the baseboards.

Maybe I should just plan on having company at least once a month.  That would help me keep those “blind spots” clean.

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Tags: Decluttering, Home, Organizing, Planning // Add Comment »

Tomorrow is “National Wear Red Day”.

It’s designated as a day to bring awareness to women and men that heart disease is the number one killer of women.  We fear breast cancer more but there is a greater survival rate with it than there is with heart disease. The campaign to make women aware of early detection of breast cancer has greatly increase the survival rate over the years. Being a breast cancer survivor myself, I appreciate the advances in detection and treatment that has made this possible. Now it’s time to bring heart disease out into the open!

Back in 1978 my father had a heart attack which he survived due to experimental treatment at a great hospital. Through his experience the whole family learned to embrace the medical community’s advise on how to prevent a future heart attack for him and for anyone in the family.  We learned how important exercise was.  We changed our diets.  We found out how heart disease can run in families and the best way to reduce our risks was to following the lifestyle changes recommended by the Heart Association.  My father never had another heart attack. Unfortunately he died 7 years later from pancreatic cancer.

Since that time my family has been aware of how to live a healthy lifestyle to prevent heart disease.  But many women still believe it is a man’s disease, not a woman’s.  This can be a deadly belief.  We have reduce the number of deaths due to breast cancer, now it’s time to reduce the number of deaths for women due to heart disease.

Lifestyle changes can reduce your risk of heart disease.  Visit your doctor and discuss what your risks are and what you can do to lower them.  You may need to take medications in addition to lifestyle changes but your life is worth it.

Becoming aware of signs of a heart attack in women is also important to know.  Many times they are very different and more subtle than the signs for men. Learn more from this government website National Heart Lung and Blood Institute.

The Tools on this site have lots of information you can download to help you reduce your risk and the risk of everyone you know. Wear RED this Friday and spread the word to your family, co-workers, neighbors, and friends on how to reduce heart disease.  You may just help save their life or your own.

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

http://cutoutthebreastcancer.wordpress.com

Tags: Calendar, Planning, health // Add Comment »

It’s a new month. It’s a new week, if you count Monday as day one. January is gone but February is here! If you didn’t get done what you wanted to last month, oh well. Don’t get down on yourself.  Start fresh this month with working towards your goals whether it’s decluttering your home, organizing papers, or building routines.

“It’s not how many times you fall down, it’s how many times you get back up.”     ~Anon

I like the quote above because it tells me that if I didn’t get done what I wanted to last month then all I have to do is to give it another try.  Of course the quote below by W.C. Fields makes me laugh about sometimes being bull headed and not quitting something when I should.

“If at first you don’t succeed, try try again. Then quit. No sense being a damn fool about it.”         — W.C. Fields (1879-1946).

Life is like that - sometimes you got to just keep trying till you succeed and sometimes it’s time to quit and try a different direction.

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

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Marilyn Bohn’s new book “Go Organize - Conquer Clutter in 3 Simple Steps” uses what she calls a ‘Lights On Organizing System’. This system helps you determine what is clutter and what is not by comparing items to light wattage.

The three simple steps are Searchlight, Spotlight, and Greenlight. There is a wattage scale on page 15 that helps you evaluate how you feel about your stuff.  If you dread going into a room because of the clutter then that space will have a very low wattage of 1-2 on a 10 point scale.  If you love everything in a particular room then that would be considered a very bright wattage of 9-10 on the scale. The goal is to have your rooms at the 7 watt level most of the time.

The first two chapters explain how to evaluate each room (Searchlight) by using the wattage scale. Then Marilyn explains how to make a plan of actions (Spotlight) to address each problem area.  After that you are ready to take those actions (Greenlight) to declutter and get organized.

The rest of the chapters go through different rooms of the home with tips, solutions, and examples of how to use the 3 steps in that specific room.  “Go Organize” gives you a different way to look at your clutter.  The more angles we can look at our stuff the easier it will be to recognize what really is clutter.

The book is available at some local bookstores or on Amazon. You can get more information by clicking the link/picture below. I highly recommend this book if you are looking for a new way to get organized.

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Tags: Decluttering, Organizing // 1 Comment »

It’s hard to believe this month is almost over. January was “National Get Organized Month”. Have you been organizing your desk, office, or home? If you’re like me it’s  takes a lot longer than one month to get organized.

I’ve been working at it for years and it’s an ongoing process. It’s like floating down a river in a raft, sometimes it is calm and sometimes you hit the rapids.  When the papers and other clutter enter your home faster than you can put them away then it’s time to take small but quick actions to help you get control.

If the paper piles on your desk or counter have been piling up with bills from the holidays, tax papers, children’s school papers, etc. then you need to take a few minutes and organize them.  You’ll feel better and more in control. Check out my article on Divide and Conquer Paper Clutter.

If you still haven’t put away the holiday decorations now would be a good time to do it. Take one room at a time or set a timer each day. Before you know it they will all be put away.

If all the new toys your children got for the holidays are still laying around everywhere it may be time to free up some shelf space for them. Go through their old toys and get rid of the ones they no longer play with.

When you hit the rapids of disorganization then think of what small actions you can take immediately to help you navigate the rough waters.  Those small actions will add up.

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Tags: Calendar, Decluttering, Home, Organizing, Paper Clutter, home office // Add Comment »

Why do we have clutter? That’s a tough question. Sometimes it’s as simple as setting up a system or routine that makes it easy for us to control the clutter.  Sometimes it’s as complicated as deep psychological reasons.  Since I am not a psychologist (although I did take about 12 hours of psychology courses in college back in the dark ages) obviously I can only help by suggesting systems, routines or simply looking at clutter from a different perspective.

So what are some of the simple hidden roots of clutter and how do you find them? Well, the best way is to play detective.

• Do you have a problem with paper clutter and lost bills? It could be because you don’t have a system set up to deal with paper.  You need a place to put your bills as soon as your receive them so they are in one place when you sit down to take care of them.  No more lost bills.
• Do clean pots and pans stay in the dish drainer because the cabinets are so full it’s a real hassle to put them away and then take them out again? The root of this clutter is either too many pans, too little cabinet space, or an inefficient and unorganized cabinet. Figure out the root cause then you can find a solution to change it.
• Is the bathroom counter filled with bottles, brushes, razors, hairdryers, etc. because the underneath cabinet is filled with old stuff? Cleaning out the old and unused items can clear up some space. If you lack storage space maybe some baskets or shelves put on the wall can corral some of the items.
• Books, DVD’s, toys, and other things are cluttering up the family room. Are there too many items? Too little storage? Inefficient storage? Rarely used items mixed in with daily used items? Again, figure out the root cause then you can find a solution.

Once you figure out the hidden roots of the clutter then you have a direction to help point you towards a solution. Clearing out the old unused items makes it easier to organize what is left. If this is hard for you to do then look inside yourself to see the hidden reason you can’t let go of things.  Once you know why then you can start working to change it.

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Tags: Decluttering, Home, Organizing, Paper Clutter, Simplicity // Add Comment »

Yesterday a large moving van went up my street. Every time I see someone moving I think about what it would be like to pack up all my belongings and move to a new home.  I’ve lived in this house for over 17 years so it’s been a long time since I went through the moving process.

It always amazes me to see how much trash the person moving has put out for their last pick-up.  Why did they wait until they moved to get rid of the broken bookcase or toys? Why do we hold onto things thinking we will fix or need them in our old homes but not in our new home?

Moving gets us in a frame of mind that helps us let go of the clutter.  It’s a new start in a new home.  We don’t want to bring the clutter with us.

We can use this frame of mind to help us get rid of the clutter in our current home even if we don’t have any plans to move.  This is what I call “Decluttering Mind Games”.

We can approach our decluttering with the idea that we are moving soon. When we pretend we are moving we can get in the right frame of mind to let go of the emotional and sometimes irrational reasons we hold onto things.

Look at each item and ask yourself: Is it worth paying money to move this item to a new home? If not, then why am I keeping it?

If it’s not worth moving and you don’t have a legitimate reason to keep it, then let it go. Don’t wait until you really are moving.  Too much clutter at that time will only make the move more stressful.

Another mind game to help you declutter is pretending a fire or disaster destroyed all your belongings.  I wrote an article called: “How To Decluttering Using A Household Inventory List”. In the article you will learn how to declutter with the “potential disaster” frame of mind plus create an inventory list for insurance purposes.  A win-win situation.

Do you play “mind games” to help you get rid of clutter? Please let me know what games you play in the comment section. Thanks.

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Tags: Decluttering, Home, Planning // 2 Comments »

Have you moved forward on your New Year’s resolution to declutter and organize your home?  It is said that very few people follow through with their resolutions.  That’s probably because they don’t have a plan in place or even know where to start.

The first place to start is to recognize and acknowledge the bad habits that got you in this mess to begin with.  Clutter and disorganization doesn’t happen overnight and all by itself.  It happens over time due to bad habits on your part.

So if the root of the problem is bad habits then the solution would be to have good habits instead.  Studies show that the best way to get rid of a bad habit is to substitute a good habit in it’s place.

An example of a bad habit that contributes to the clutter in your home would be bringing in the mail and dumping it on the kitchen counter to “go through it later”.  Later may come in a couple of days or longer. By then the pile is toppling over and in the way.  Now you feel overwhelmed by the pile and don’t know when you’ll find time to deal with it.  In your mind it will take forever so you put it off for a few more days when you may have more time. This bad habit creates a vicious cycle.

Now a good habit to substitute for the bad one would be to deal with the mail on a daily basis.  That doesn’t mean you will take care of paying the bills that day or reading the magazine before cooking dinner. What you want to do is set up a plan to organize the mail as soon as you bring it in the house.

You’ll want a file folder or basket on your desk for bills and items that need action taken right away.  You’ll want another folder or basket for items that don’t need immediate action and can wait a few days for you to look at.  You’ll also want a place to keep the reading material, maybe a basket by your favorite chair.

As soon as the mail comes in take a couple of minutes to separate it into piles according to the categories above. Have a fourth pile for trash that needs shredding.  All other junk mail can be recycled or thrown away immediately. Take another minute or two to put the piles into their proper folders or baskets.

Do this 2-5 minute routine everyday and before long you will have substituted a good habit for the bad one.  No more piles of mail cluttering up the counter!

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Tags: Decluttering, Organizing, Paper Clutter, Planning // Add Comment »

Today is the official day to clean off your desk!  If you desk is always a mess then today is a good time to start a new habit to keep you desk clean everyday of the year.

So how do you create this new habit? One babystep at a time! A good way is to take a timer and set it for 5-10 minutes at the end of the day (if you work there all day) or at the end of your bill paying/paperwork time.

File away the papers you have completed.  The ones you are still working on should be put in a folder that holds current paperwork tasks. If possible this folder should be put on a shelf, basket, or in a file drawer at your desk.  Your goal is to have the desk as cleaned off as possible for the next morning.

A cleared off desk first thing in the morning will help put you in a brighter mood instead of feeling overwhelmed.  Because you put the unfinished tasks in a folder you know exactly where to start working.  No more digging through piles of paper to find what needs to be done.

Habits take time to develop but with babysteps you can have that cleaned off desk almost everyday.  If your your desk is piled high with papers you’ll want to read my article on How to Divide and Conquer Paper Clutter first.  It will help you organize those papers so you can put them where they belong.

If your whole office is a mess then consider organizing it in zones.  This is also a way to help keep the desk cleaned off.  Having a  permanent home for the different papers will make it easier to put them away.

Do you have a tip on how to keep your desk cleaned off?  Please let me know. Thanks

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Tags: Calendar, Decluttering, Organizing, Paper Clutter, home office // Add Comment »

January is “National Get Organized Month” according to NAPO (National Association of Professional Organizers).  Starting out the new year by getting organized is a great idea.  It will set up the rest of the year to be a more productive, fun, and happy year.

The hard part is taking the responsibility to get the whole family into the idea and get their help. Do you feel like you carry the whole weight of running the household?

We all live in the house so can’t everybody help by doing their part?  Sometimes all we want is for somebody in the house to offer their help without us begging them for it.  Other times we wonder if anybody in the house has a clue how much work we do to keep the house clean. But as usual nobody helps or even has a clue.

If the above paragraph sounds like your home, this is the year to change things.  You’ll have to set the example and at some point the rest of the family will follow.  You might want to have them read the following story.  No one seems to be sure of the exact origin so the author is listed as “Unknown”.  Many families will find themselves in this story.

“This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody.  There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody’s job.  Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn’t do it.  It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.”

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Tags: Home, Organizing, Planning, Simplicity // Add Comment »