Canine Capers

I take old sheets, towels and blankets to the Animal Protective Association of Missouri (APA) on behalf of my clients. The soft fabric helps make the homeless pets at the APA more comfortable. My clients feel good that the fruits of their decluttering are making a positive contribution to the world. You can also help the APA at two upcoming events.
On April 4 from 1:00 to 3:00 there is a Dog Easter Egg Hunt in Hanley Park (that's at 610 West Hanley Industrial Court in Brentwood). Registration begins at 12:15 and is $10 per dog. Be sure to keep your pup on a leash and remember the clean-up bags! I know my dog Koa is looking forward to finding some eggs and sharing treats with some canine buddies. The money raised by this event will benefit the APA and the Mid-County YMCA's youth programs.
You and your dog can work off those treats at the April 26 "The Fast and The Furriest 5K Run and 1 Mile Walk" in Tower Grove Park. Visit www.apamo.org or call 314-645-4610 for more details.

Declutter, Do Good

Hello my fellow St. Louisians, I have a challenge for you. Grab an empty box and a timer. For the next twenty minutes tour your home looking for things that you don't use but felt like it would be a "waste" to get rid of them. That french-press coffee maker that you never used - in the box. The pressure-cooker that you received as a gift - in the box. That terracotta animal that can be coated in seeds that grow - in the box. We're going to give those items a purpose. Put the box in your car and drop it off at the Fairfax House at 9401 Manchester Road (in Rock Hill) between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. on April 18 for an upcoming rummage sale.

The Rock Hill Historic Preservation Commisson is sponsoring the rummage sale that will be held on Saturday, April 25 between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. The sale money will be used to fund the restoration of the Fairfax House. Your contribution will help to preserve our local history.

The Fairfax House was built in 1841 when Rock Hill was being settled. It is on the National Register of Historic Places and the Missouri Preservation's 2008 Most Endangered Historic Places list. The house is beautiful in its simplicity but it needs a lot of work if it is to survive.

Home Centers You Can’t Live Without

Do you dump the mail on the closest horizontal surface when you walk in your home? Is your coat draped over the closest chair to the door? Do school papers migrate from the backpack to a stack on the kitchen counter? Many of the homes I visit are troubled by the same challenging transitions. Transitions can create chaos unless you have systems in place to handle them.

The “launch pad” is the answer to “where to put it?” when you walk in the door. The launch pad should have a place to catch your keys, mail, coat, and purse when you first walk through the door. Add a shredder plus a recycle can and you have a very functional spot to catch everything including the dreaded junk mail. Now you will be able to shred and recycle that junk mail immediately. The launch pad elements are so simple that finding attractive pieces will be easy.

Use a table or a short shelving unit with proportions that fit the entry space. Use the tabletop to hold a basket or a tray for the mail. A smaller tray can catch keys or attach key hooks above the table. Tuck the trash and recycle cans under the table, and you will be able to remove the junk mail from the incoming mail before it even hits the mail basket.

If you do not have a coat closet, a coat tree or a coat rack is a necessity. Actually, I’ve set up coat racks in houses with coat closets. Hooks are much easier to use than hangers so people are more inclined to use them. It’s a simple solution for children and hurried adults who hate hanging coats. Use the coat closet to hang the coats that aren’t worn on a daily basis to avoid overcrowding the coat rack.

The “communication center” is the answer to how to broadcast schedules, phone messages and important snippets of information to everyone in the family. A message center, a calendar and a family satellite file are the bones of the family communication center. Set up your communication center in a place where family members frequent and everyone can see it. The kitchen is great location because usually every member of the family is there several times a day. But a mudroom or a family room may provide the best spot for your family.

Blackboards and whiteboards are great message centers. Unlike notepads the boards don’t get lost! Make sure the board has a ledge or clip to hold your writing instrument so it’s there when you need it. I also enjoy how these boards bring out the artist in family members who like embellish them with doodles or witty observations.

It’s a testament to our complicated lives that there are so many calendar choices. If you have younger family members you will probably need some sort of physical calendar in your communication center. In order to learn about time management, children need to have the tools to do so in an accessible manner. Seeing a calendar and discussing plans and schedules help children learn how to manage time. Post your weekly menu plan on the calendar and you might just spare yourself from hearing “what’s for dinner?” over and over again.

The busy adults and teens in the family may be better served by a web-based calendar that everyone can easily access and update from any location. A web-based calendar can save a lot of phone calls of the “what are we doing on such and such a date” variety. Look for a web-based calendar that interfaces with other scheduling software, such as Outlook, so individual calendars can be merged into a composite. I like Cozi (www.cozi.com) because there are all sorts of other handy features in addition to its calendar. Google calendar is another choice. Both of these web-based calendars are password protected for security, and you can print your calendar if you need a hardcopy.

The family satellite file collects the stacks of paper that come from the children’s schools, clubs, and sport teams. Minimally a parent inbox is needed. All papers go into the parent’s inbox so the parent can review them daily (yep, daily), and take the necessary action. Some of those papers contain information that will likely be referred to in the near future by both the parent and the child – like a sports team schedule. In this case it may be useful to set up a satellite file system that is part of the communication center and is accessible to the children. The system keeps the papers handy, models organization and keeps the household’s main reference file safe from little hands. Set up a file for each child. As soon as the need for the paper is over, recycle the paper. The physical container for the satellite file should be relatively small and easy to access such as a vertical sorter, a narrow desktop file box or a set of desktop drawers that sit on a counter.

The home centers discussed here are designed to structure transition points and minimize chaos. Remember, “transition” is the operative word when it comes to these home centers. The papers and items are only meant to rest there for a short period of time so that you can transition to other things.

Got Shredding?

Mea Culpa! The shredding date is April 18 NOT March 18!

The BBB is sponsoring a shred day on Saturday, April 18 from 8 a.m. until noon. Grab that box of paper that needs to be shredded and head over to the southeast corner of the Galleria parking lot (the corner closest to highway 40). This shredding event is free!

Why shred? Identity theft is a growing problem in this country. People do and will go through your recycle bin to grab a pre-approved credit card offer or the volumes of checks that the credit card companies send us. Protect your identity and your credit rating by shredding.

The Show, The Workshop, The Logo

What a week it has been! On Presidents' Day I was a guest on Great Day St. Louis. Carol Daniels, Niecy Nash and I talked about getting the clutter out of our heads as the foundation for successful organizing. Here is the link to our segment in case you missed it: greatday
Thanks to host Carol Daniels who made me feel so at ease. It was a lot of fun. I was surprised to learn how cold a TV studio is. I was freezing! But on the other hand, I didn't have to worry about a shiny nose!

Decluttering the mind is the focus of the first class of my upcoming workshop "Letting Go and Lightening Up." I am looking forward to a wonderful workshop. The people who have enrolled so far are so interesting and have a variety of gifts to bring to the table. Want more information? See www.clearspaces.org/workshop.aspx

Another exciting development: we will be getting a new logo! Talented artist Tim Sternau has been working on a logo that captures the spiritual basis of the Clear Spaces mission: to help people live healthy lives with peace and meaning through organization. When the new logo is unveiled there will be a celebration! Look for it.

Clear Spaces Featured on KMOV

Is there mayhem in your life? Perhaps your TV can help. Denise Lee, owner of Clear Spaces, will be a guest on KMOV's Great Day St. Louis on Monday, February 16. We will discuss Denise's upcoming organizing workshop, Letting Go and Lightening Up. Joining the discussion will be the celebrity host of Clean House, Niecy Nash (www.niecynash.com). Tune in to what promises to be a fun and high energy show on KMOV channel 4 at 10 a.m. on Presidents' Day(www.kmov.com/greatday).

Hey Buddy, Want A Good Deal On Elfa?

Most of my clients know that I am a huge fan of Elfa systems for a number of reasons. Elfa is strong, attractive and - with some many components - hugely flexible. Elfa introduced a freestanding unit last year which is perfect for the renter or someone who loathes drilling into brick or stone.

January is an excellent time to buy Elfa because The Container Store offers a 30% discount. What you may not know is the 30% sale will end on Friday, February 6 BUT if you buy an Elfa system during this time you may be eligible to purchase additional Elfa components until Presidents' Day. You will need to save the coupon and receipt from the original purchase to receive the extended discount.

So if you're not sure about how much you want to get, you have a week to try out your new Elfa system before adding some other components! Like I said - flexible.

Get Organized! Part Two

Last month I wrote about strategies for engendering lasting behavioral change as a generic framework for achieving any resolution. This month we’ll look at some strategies that specifically govern physical space. Although many of the strategies that will be discussed here also apply to time management, I find that covering these two aspects of organizing separately leads to a better understanding of each of them. It’s a little like eating a meal with small bites versus big gulps. The former leads to better digestion and is an overall more pleasant experience!

Then there’s the whole subject of maintenance. Maintenance is the key to keeping your environment organized. When done well, maintenance evolves with changes in our lives. Maintenance is a big subject and also deserves separate coverage.

1) Zone areas for use. Sure, the kitchen is for cooking, the office is for working and the bedroom is for sleeping. Within each room dedicate certain areas to specific activities. For example, in your kitchen you have a food preparation area, a food storage area, a cleaning area, a baking area, and -- if your kitchen is like mine -- a homework area. The activity determines zone.
2) Everything needs a home. Items that don’t have homes end up here, end up there, and end up everywhere! Items should be stored according to the activity they support and frequency in which they are used. In other words, put items in their appropriate zone. For example, all the items that you need to pay bills can be kept together and bill paying will become a relatively easy task.
3) The frequency of use determines where in the zone an item should be stored. Map each zone with a target of concentric circles. The bull’s eye is at the main activity center. To illustrate, the bull’s eye of the kitchen’s cleaning zone is the sink. Items that are used frequently in a zone should be stored at the bull’s eye. The dish detergent and the dishrag may be kept at the sink in our example. Items that are needed often, but not everyday, can be stored in the zone that is in the next “concentric circle” of space. For example, the cabinet under the sink is in this circle of space. Infrequently used items can be stored farther away from the bull’s eye so they do not impair access to the items you use frequently – which may be the very back of the under sink cabinet.
4) Every item must pay “rent” by being useful or emotionally significant; otherwise they are “squatters.” If you don’t like an item in your environment, you will think of that dislike every time you look at it. Negative emotions exhaust your energy. Plus the disliked item distracts attention from the items you like and impairs access to useful items.
5) Label everything. By labeling a space you declare what belongs and – just as important – what does not belong. OK you don’t necessarily need to go crazy with the label maker, but at least put a mental label on things. For example, I label the dining room table as the place where we eat; therefore, the daily mail does not belong there. In this example, I would argue that the daily mail is “homeless” and needs a place of its own to be stored. Obviously, I would not slap a physical label on my dining room table. But I probably would put a physical label on a series of containers so I can distinguish the contents of one from another.
6) Functionality must come first and then consider form. An organizing tool might be really cute, but if it doesn’t work with the way you think and you live it is clutter. I do believe that it is important to find items that are aesthetically pleasing, but if you start the search at what is functional for your lifestyle it will be easier to find something that you like. Just like aesthetics, functionality is very individual.

These half-dozen rules of organizing are fairly general, and you can apply them when organizing any area. Undoubtedly there are tricks and tips that can help in specific areas, but you are now in a good position for realizing that resolution to become more organized.

Are You Ready To Get (And Stay) Organized in 2009?

Exciting News!

Join Professional Organizer and owner of Clear Spaces, Denise Lee, on Saturday, March 7 for the beginning of her 4-part series, “Letting Go and Lightening Up – In Your Mind, Your Home, Your Office and Your Life.” By combining organizing systems with life-guiding principles, Denise will help you make conscious choices about what to let go of, what to keep and where to put it. All materials, lunch, and a snack are included. Space is precious - enroll today!

KICK-OFF CLASS:
Saturday, March 7
1:30 – 4:30 P.M.

WHERE:
Wired Coffee Cafe (www.WiredCoffee.net)
3860 South Lindbergh Blvd.
0.5 mile south of Watson Rd.
Sunset Hills, MO 63127

TO ENROLL:
Call the Denise at 314-956-2282 or email Denise@clearspaces.org

For more information visit www.ClearSpaces.org or www.LettingGoandLighteningUp.com

Get Organized! Part One

Is “get organized” on your list of resolutions for the New Year? If so, you’re not alone. “Getting organized” is one of the top ten resolutions that people make every year. Maybe “getting organized” is a perennial item on your resolution list.

You’ve heard me say this before: organization is more about behavior than it is tools. Oh tools are important – the wrong tool for the job can certainly make things difficult. The right tool can make a job easier and more fun. But tools by themselves will not make you organized.

Since behavior is at the crux of organization, getting organized will take time – it is not instantaneous. Why? It takes time to change behavior. To create behavior change we need strategies that encourage that change. Those strategies provide the framework for other changes that we wish to make.

The framework is generic in that it does not specify what is being changed. So if your resolution is to “get organized,” the organizing strategies are the “what” of the change. Concentrating on a generic framework for change may strike you as a digression. But in reality, creating a framework for behavior change allows you to approach any goal with more confidence, more focus and a better chance for success.

The steps that make up the framework are summarized below. Rather than think of steps in a linear fashion – you’re finished when you have accomplished step six - look at it as a circle. Once you have accomplished step six, take your changes to the next level and go to step one again.

1) Visualize the change. Visualization provides the direction needed to make changes. I often ask clients to create a collage of pictures that represent the look and feel of the goal they are pursuing. The collage – often called a dream board – helps bring focus to a goal and make it more tangible. When it is hung in a place that the client frequents it provides a constant reminder of the what the client wants to accomplish.
2) Write down your goals and visit that list often. Written goals have a much better chance of being actualized. Writing provides a way of formalizing goals. It doesn’t matter if you write your goals in a diary, a personal planner, or a poster as long as they are in a place that you refer to frequently. Because my goals shape how I spend my time, and I manage my time with my planner, I personally feel the planner is a fantastic place to record my goals.
3) Break the goal down into smaller goals with milestones. Change takes energy. Try to change too much at the same time and you will exhaust yourself. Refer to step two. Small goals make it easier to incorporate change, and as such will increase your likelihood of success. Reasonable milestones for achieving small and large goals can “light a fire” under us to motivate us toward success.
4) Track the changes. That which we measure tends to be reinforced. Check marking a calendar, putting stars on a chart, and keeping a journal are simple and effective ways to track your behavior. Choose what works for you. A word to the wise: if you have never tracked your behavior or used a journal before, you may want to spend a few weeks just doing that. Create the habit of self-reporting before engaging in any other changes.
5) Reward progress. In the beginning frequent, small rewards will help reinforce the changes you wish to make. A small reward might be ten minutes of reading a new book or an extra cup of coffee. Over time you can decrease the frequency of small rewards. Significant rewards at established milestones will help set a certain amount of excitement and help motivate you. A significant reward might be dinner out, a new pair of shoes, or maybe a whole afternoon pursuing a hobby.
6) Ponder, not punish, the setbacks. Life is full of challenges. When things don’t go as you had hoped, analyze what led to the setback. Use the analysis to take proactive measures when faced with a similar situation in the future or to accommodate changes in your life. In your analysis make sure you acknowledge what went right as well as awry. The balance helps combat all or none thinking.

Make the framework for change part of your life, and increase the odds for accomplishing your goals and resolutions. Make this year the best year for you.

Elephants and Planning for the Holidays

When it comes to getting ready for the holidays, there are a few guidelines that will help you get what you want done in a minimum amount of time and with a minimum amount of stress. You may find these guidelines are helpful for managing all aspects of your life in addition to your holiday planning.

“If you want to eat an elephant, take one bite at a time.”

So it is with holiday planning.

1. Everything needs a home – even your notes for planning the holidays. A three-ring binder dedicated to the task is very helpful and inexpensive.
2. Break down big tasks into smaller tasks.
3. Write things down. Write things down. Oh yes, and write things down.
-Use lists when you go shopping.
-Use your calendar to record all events and to schedule time to complete tasks.
-Every day write down the most important things you should accomplish during the day.
4. Think before you act. In other words, plan.
5. On the other hand, avoid “analysis paralysis.” If you think you are prone to over-analyzing then use your timer to limit your activity. Make it a game to get as much done before the bell rings.
6. Work on your tasks every day even it is only 15 to 20 minutes a day. This workbook is a valuable tool for your holiday preparations; however, it will not make the holiday “happen for you” without your participation.
7. Acknowledge your progress, and look ahead to what is up next. Enjoy imperfection.
8. Communicate! Involve your family.
9. Allow for a margin of error. This is crucial to the graceful recovery of plans gone awry. Keep between ten and twenty percent of your time and resources (hint: money) as undedicated. If something takes longer than expected or any unexpected expense crops up, you won’t have to worry.
10. If you start to feel overwhelmed, do a brain dump.
-Take a few minutes to write down everything on your mind.
-Next to each item on your list, write down what the next action should be to take care of it.
-Decide to decide. Either schedule the needed actions, delegate them, or disregard them. Yes, it is OK to decide NOT to do something as long as you are discarding an item that is not crucial to your plan’s success.

The most important tip is to remember why we celebrate the holidays: a time to reflect on our spiritual beliefs and celebrate our families and friends. May peace and joy be with you in your celebrations.

Clear Spaces Is Poised To Transform Lives

Denise Lee, owner of Clear Spaces, LLC, is pleased to announce that she successfully completed facilitator training for the Letting Go and Lightening Up approach on October 18, 2008. Letting Go and Lightening Up is “a life-integrating approach that combines organizing techniques and tools with life-guiding principles.” The teachings are designed to empower the student to identify and clear the clutter in the mind so it is easier to decide what to let go of, what to keep and where to put it.

Letting Go and Lightening Up co-founder Annie Rohrbach blended organizing techniques with teachings from her spiritual counseling training to develop the four-part class series "Letting Go and Lightening Up--In Your Mind, Your Home, Your Office, Your Life(TM)." Since 1999 the class series has transformed the lives of hundreds of students. Annie and her daughter Carolyn, a corporate trainer, created the company Letting Go and Lightening Up in 2002. More information about Letting Go and Lightening Up (LGandLU) can be found at www.LettingGoandLighteningUp.com.

The LGandLU key teachings compliment Clear Spaces’ mission to help others live the life they want to live through better balance and organization. As a facilitator Denise is looking forward to using the LGandLU tools to help her organizing clients make better decisions about their possessions, space and time. Additionally Denise will offer LGandLU classes to the public twice a year beginning in February 2009.

It's That Time Of Year Again: Sending Out Holiday Cards

Sending out holiday cards is a big project by itself. Like any project, there are several ways you can approach it.

You can forget the cards and make a short phone call to everyone on your list (this is a great option if you have a new baby, have been sick, or have just been swamped with life).
o Make sure to use a list of whom you want to contact.
o Limit the length of your phone call so you are sure to get to everyone on your list (use a timer).
o Check people off as you call them. That way you won’t be left wondering if the call to auntie was it a figment of your imagination.

You can hire out the job: www.sendoutcards.com will send out a card with a signature to everyone on your list. Of course you will need to provide them with an electronic list of contacts.

You can send out a family newsletter – more on that later.

You can send out all the cards with a generic closing and signature.

You can write a personal note in each card. Obviously this is the most time consuming method.

If you opt to send cards yourself, get enough for everyone on your list plus ten percent more. Should you make a mistake or miscount, you will still have enough cards. And if you purchased your cards at the end of the previous year’s holiday season, the excess cards will accommodate a growth in your card list.

And remember: holiday postage stamps are available in the US by Halloween.

Now when it comes to managing your holiday card list you have three major choices. You can

-complete a paper copy of your list. Use “name”, “address”, “city”, “state”, “zip”, “sent” and “received” columns. Add a “phone number” column if you are making phone calls instead of sending cards.
-complete an electronic version of your list and use a mail merge program to create address labels.
-mark up your address book. This is a pretty simple solution. You will not have to worry about duplicate entries – which prevents writer’s cramp and saves on time.
o Use a small, red sticky dot on the address entry to mark everyone you send a card to.
o If you wish to keep track of who sends you cards you can add a green sticky dot to the address entry.

Of course we all know the biggest stumbling block to sending out cards is finding the time – especially during the already busy holiday season. Follow these tips to squeeze it in:

-Pick a week to work on writing the cards.

-Divide your card list into five parts. Every day complete one part of the list, and you will be finished in five days.

-Use a pen that is comfortable to use. Felt-tip and roller ball pens write with the least amount of effort.

-Play holiday music to set the tone, and drink hot chocolate.

-Involve the family.
o Pass the cards around round-robin style so each person can sign every card.
o Or divide up the tasks among the family members.
*One person signs and writes a note in the card.
*One person addresses the card.
*One person puts the return address label on the card.
*One person puts the stamp on and seals the envelope.

The biggest secret to getting your cards out is to work on them early – before the holiday crunch. Imagine having your cards filled out before Thanksgiving! You can then mail them when you want and enjoy the last few weeks before the holidays.

Mastering The "Big Dinner"

For many of us the holiday season provides at least one opportunity to host the “big dinner.” Follow these tips and pulling off that dinner can be easy as pie.
1) Plan the menu with dishes that can be prepared ahead of time. Minimize last-minute time in the kitchen, and maximize the time you spend with your guests.
2) Write down the menu along with the locations of the recipes. Create your shopping list. Clean out the fridge and the pantry to make room for the extra food.
3) Write down which serving dishes you will use. Match the dish with the recipe’s volume; two cups of cranberry sauce looks sparse in a two-quart bowl. Simplify things by using sticky notes to label the dishes; don’t rely on your memory.
4) Sticky notes can help you create your time-line. Jot down each and every task on individual sticky notes with the time estimate for finishing the task. Now arrange the sticky notes in order of completion. The sticky notes help you arrange and rearrange the order of the tasks until you come up with a plan that will work.
5) Consider the appliances, temperature, and pans used to prepare a dish when creating your time line. You won’t be able to bake the rolls, desert and side dish together if they all need different temperatures or the pans won’t all fit in the oven.
6) Plan your table setting. Do you have enough linens, dishes, flatware and cups? Will the food be put on a sideboard or on the table? Will you use candles (always unscented at the table)? Will guests be able to see each other over the centerpiece? Will you assign seating or will guests seat themselves? Where will you put the bar? Asking yourself these types of questions help you mentally walk-through the event, anticipating any type of problem or challenge.
Organizing the “big dinner” is similar to organizing any other project: two critical keys of success are planning and writing things down.

Shortcuts for the Busy Life

Do you need a few short cuts to help smooth out daily life? Try these tricks.

Enroll in a menu planning subscription such as www.savingdinner.com so you can skip the weekly chore of planning dinner and creating the shopping list.

How can you capture those spur-of-the moment thoughts quickly? Try Jott’s (www.jott.com) free service that translates your voice into an email. Just call Jott, say your message at the prompt and an email is sent to a destination of your choice – after you enroll of course.

Have you ever wished you had a phone book with you in the car to look up a restaurant or find a store? Use Goog411 and you can leave the phone book at home. Call 1-800-goog411 and the menu system based on voice recognition will get you to the information you need – and it’s free! Check out www.google.com for more information.

Speaking of Google, did you know Google Street-view has a library of photos of streets all over the world? It’s a great reference if you want to see what a building looks like before you drive to a new destination. Go to www.google.com’s maps and click on “street-view.”

Get Set For School

In just a few short weeks the school bells will ring in a new academic year. Now is the time to begin the transition for a pleasant start of the school year.

Routines take a while to establish so start tackling these changes first. Bedtime is probably the biggest change the family needs to make: it may take several weeks to reset your students’ internal clocks to the school schedule. Gradual transitioning allows the child to have an adequate amount of sleep during the beginning of the school year and will reduce some bedtime battles. Most elementary school students need 10 to 11 hours of sleep, while most teenagers need 8 to 9 hours of sleep nightly. Inadequate sleep leads to irritability, impaired focus, and can heighten symptoms of ADD/ADHD, if that is a concern for your family. Transitioning also allows the change-resistant child adequate time to adjust to a new schedule.

Begin the transition by setting up a 30-minute routine of pre-bedtime activities: review the next day’s agenda, pack the backpack and set it out, set out clothes for the next day, bath, pajamas, and a quiet activity – that does not include the computer, video games or TV. Use a checklist to help your child take ownership of her routine. A good pre-bedtime routine help the child slow down and prepare for sleep plus it helps set the stage for a smooth start in the morning. Gradually start the pre-bedtime routine ten to fifteen minutes earlier every few nights. It may take two weeks to adjust going to bed an hour earlier. Consistency is important is establishing the routine so make sure the adjusted bedtimes are followed during the weekends as well.

Transitioning is good for the parents as well. Usually the family’s schedule must adjust for activities associated with the new academic year. Clubs, sports, and extracurricular lessons resume. For teens the summer job may evolve in to an after school job. Is there time for homework and family activities in the schedule?
Family cohesiveness depends on the family communication and time together. Add the school and extracurricular activities to the family calendar now. Reviewing the family time commitments before the school year begins allows for adjustments to be made before those activities begin. It may be worthwhile to talk to a teacher or a parent of an older child to see what you can find out about the upcoming school load and examine the schedule in light of what you find out.

Homework is a reality of school life so insure that there is time in the schedule and a distraction-free place in which to do it. A productive workspace includes adequate lighting, adequate space to do the work, and storage for supplies and papers. Supplies and papers can be stored in a portable file box if the kitchen table does double-duty as a homework spot. For elementary school students the kitchen table may be the best place to do homework. Young students are still in need of adult help to help maintain their focus on their work. Usually by middle school students can regulate their own behavior enough to do their homework in their room.

Studies have shown that organization improves academic performance. It will be easier for your child to focus on her schoolwork if the beginning of the school year begins with anticipation and preparation. Start now to plant the seeds for success.

Organizing A Bathroom

Organizing a bathroom can be a particularly difficult challenge due to the small space and lack of storage. Many of us have experienced how disarray in the bathroom can sabotage the morning with frustration and wasted time looking for personal care items. We all know how a bad morning casts a pall on the rest of the day.

But organization can rescue you! Get out the boxes and let the fun begin. You’ll need a “throw-away” box, a “charity” box and a “keep” box. Empty out those drawers, shelves and cabinets.

Chances are your charity box will not contain as many items as it would have had we been organizing your closet. But here are a couple ideas for filling it: tattered towels and unopened, unexpired cosmetics. The Animal Protection Association and the Humane Society can use the towels to keep their four-legged guests comfortable. Women’s shelters can use cosmetics for their residents who often arrive with just the clothes they are wearing.

We have to chat about medicine and cosmetics. They are often kept way too long for reasons of frugality. Frugality is a virtue; however, ingesting drugs and using makeup beyond their expiration dates is a little like Russian roulette. Someone is going to get hurt. Dispose of expired medicine by filling the pill bottle with water and using tape to secure the cap. Remove the label if it is a prescription, and throw away the bottle. Do not flush drugs.

Cosmetics expire as well; in fact, some have very short life spans based on when they are opened. Mascara will only last two or three months. Even if you only used the mascara once during that time period, get rid of it. Once a tube of mascara is opened, its dark, moist interior becomes an incubator for growing germs. Sunscreen and anti-aging creams and lotions start losing their potency as soon as they are opened so discard these items a year after opening. The separation you see in nail polish and oil-free foundation occurs about one year after opening and is the signal to toss it. You can keep lipstick a whopping two years. Give your brain a break by using an indelible pen to write the expiration date on the bottle/case of the item when you open it.

Now let’s take a look at the cosmetic graveyard: the collection of cosmetics which seemed like a good idea at the time of purchase, but the concept just didn’t work out for you. Time will not change an unflattering color into a flattering one. By getting rid of the unflattering items you now have free space for items that work for you.

After minimizing the items in the bathroom to what is essential, store them with regard to how often you use them. Items that are used daily can be kept in a tray or small basket on the counter. The easy access will help streamline the morning, and the tray makes it easy to clean the bathroom. I saw a wire rack placed on the back of the bathroom door. Brilliant! Each shelf has a dedicated purpose – such as skin care and first aid – and everything is quickly accessible.

Consider other ways to improve access to items by eliminating the steps needed to get to them. Remove the lid to the hamper. Install hooks for the towels to eliminate folding. The arm-style toilet paper bar is much easier to load than the spring-loaded bar and may reduce the number of empty rolls encountered! Store some bathroom cleaning supplies under the sink and cleaning the bathroom will be easy. Disinfecting wipes are the ultimate in easy.

By simplifying and streamlining access to your items getting ready in the morning is easier and calmer. Plus the space is much easier to maintain and keep clean. You may find that you have enough time for that second cup of coffee in the morning.

Clear Spaces Featured on KSDK

Denise Lee, owner of Clear Spaces, and Margie Andersohn, owner of Organizational Specialists, were honored on May 8 to be part of reporter Kay Quinn's story "De-Cluttering Your Surroundings Could Help You Live A Better Life." KSDK has posted the video clip of the story on their website: www.ksdk.com. My blog will not handle the lengthy URL to the story, but if you look at KSDK's home page and scroll down to the Cover Story bar you will see the link. The story looks at how decluttering and becoming more organized helped two local women bring focus and satisfaction to their lives.

And bonus! Renowned organizer Peter Walsh from TLC's Clean Sweep and the Oprah Show was interviewed via satellite in the story as well. How cool its that! You can read more about Peter Walsh in my last blog.

Please take a moment to visit KSDK's site to see this inspirational story. Visit my site at www.clearspaces.org and let me know what you think.

NAPO’s 20th Conference

I spent the second week of April in Reno, Nevada at the annual National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) conference. I returned with both my heart and brain totally full!

To meet so many people who are dedicated to helping others lead simpler, more fulfilling lives is awe inspiring. It was especially exciting to meet some of the legacies of the organizing business, including Barbara Hemphill (author of The Paper Tiger) and Laura Leist (author of Eliminate Chaos).

Peter Walsh, renowned organizer from TLC’s Clean Sweep and the Oprah Show, delivered the opening keynote address “Organizers – Visionaries for Change.” His address expanded on one of the maxims of professional organizing: “It’s not about the stuff.” Walsh believes that organizers can help people move beyond the emotional weight of their clutter to live a life in accordance with their priorities and goals. Although organizers often work individually with people, the cumulative effect of the organizing profession has the potential to be world changing in Walsh’s estimation. It was a talk that filled my heart with joy.

Learning additional skills to deal with the clutter definitely filled my brain. I spent an entire day learning about a filing product called FreedomFiler® (www.freedomfiler.com). Seth Odam, the creator of this product, has looked at our paper stacks in a new way. He has developed a simpler way of filing that greatly reduces the maintenance. In fact, it is a self-purging system. The documentation is kept with the files – pretty much eliminating the questions: “Uh-oh where does this get filed?” and “Where did I file that paper?” I am so impressed with this product that I am in the process of becoming a certified consultant for FreedomFiler®.

As I have stated in the past, tools will not make you organized but they can simplify the process. Some of the new organizing tools that I saw at the conference were the Jakoter® Health Organizer (www.jakoter.com), the Tote Trac (www.totetrac.com), Accountable Kids® (www.accountablekids.com) and Neat Receipts™ (www.neatreceipts.com).

The Jakoter® Health Organizer is a three-ring binder system for sorting and organizing all of your health information. This product makes it much easier for you or a family member to be your health advocate. Advocacy is essential to obtaining appropriate and timely health care in a health care system that is overburdened. Jakoter® offers many other great health organizing products as well. I think this is one niche in the organizing profession that will see tremendous growth as we Baby Boomers age.

Garage organizing is not my forte, but I really liked the Tote Trac system for its simplicity and versatility. Tote Trac stores your bins on your garage ceiling or walls in such a way that they are easily accessible. It accommodates any kind of bin and it eliminates stacking (less lifting!). Each set of tracks holds three to four bins and up to 400 pounds.

Accountable Kids® is a new program for encouraging kids to do their chores, their homework, and generally develop good habits. Since I’m a mom, and I also organize children I am always on the lookout for fun and effective tools. If it’s not fun for the child it will not work. The Accountable Kids® kit comes with a pegboard, reminder cards, reward tickets, and many other tools to reward good behavior. The book and DVD included in the kit make it easy for parents to learn the program.

Neat Receipts™ actually is not new. It is a portable scanner that scans receipts, analyses them, and uses the information to interface with Quicken or QuickBooks. What is new is that it now works with Apple. Yoo-hoo! No more manual entry! Since last year the Neat Receipts company has also released Neat Business Cards™ which scans business cards, analyses them and populates your contact data base.

One of the new services premiered at the conference is Organizing Connection (www.organizingconnection.com), which offers organizing videos on demand for just about every aspect of organizing. I had my two minutes of fame when I was taped for a video on how to use a student planner. Check out the site’s basic organizing video – it’s a fun way to learn the basic steps.

There were so many wonderful events at the NAPO conference that I could not possible include them all here. I am grateful for the tools and education that NAPO provides for us. We are better organizers for them, and we are more prepared to impart positive changes that leave the world a better place.

Can Decluttering Help Me Lose Weight?

You’ve tried the Grapefruit Diet, The Kelp-Cider Vinegar-B6-Lecithin Diet, the Low-Fat Diet, the Low-Carb Diet, and about a million other diets. The results have been pretty disappointing. But recent literature suggests weight-loss may be possible by shifting your focus from what you eat -- to your clutter.

In early February Peter Walsh released his new book,Does This Clutter Make My Butt Look Fat?. Peter Walsh is a highly respected professional organizer and motivational speaker who appears on TLC’s Clean Sweep and The Oprah Winfrey Show. Does This Clutter Make My Butt Look Fat? is Walsh’s third book on organizing. In it he continues the message from his second book, It’s All Too Much: the issue with clutter is not the stuff per se, the issue is it blocks us from the life we envision. That vision not only includes the home, but our bodies as well. Walsh believes that emotional decluttering, physical decluttering and body decluttering are tied together.

Body decluttering is the subject of another book that was first released in 2005. Marla Cilley and Leanne Ely propose in Body Clutter that emotional decluttering is the premise for good self-care. Through her persona, Flylady, Marla Cilley has helped thousands of people declutter their way to a more peaceful and welcoming home. Body Clutter encourages readers to examine their lives and declutter the unhealthy habits and emotions that contribute to poor self-care and over-eating.

For Walsh, Cilley and Ely emotions are inextricably linked to clutter. Experts in hoarding behavior David Tolin, Randy O. Frost and Gail Steketee agree. Success in dealing with hoarding behaviors has a firm foundation in the success of therapy. Of course, most people are not dealing with hoarding behaviors. A few piles of papers or an over-stuffed closet may be the extent of most people’s clutter.

While emotional issues may not be the cause of the average person’s clutter, look at the language that is used to describe it: frustrating, irritating, embarrassing and overwhelming. Arguably the emotional tie that we have with our clutter can make it tougher to tackle. But when people deal with their clutter they feel good. The energy that is invested in decluttering can spill over into other areas of one’s life – including health issues.

The president of the National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization (NSGCD), Lynne Johnson, was interviewed by New York Times reporter Tara Parker-Pope for her January 1, 2008 article “A Clutter Too Deep For Mere Bins And Shelves.” Johnson acknowledged the link between decluttering and weight-loss and offered her observation that dealing with one’s clutter and dealing with one’s weight are often “…part of the same life-change decision.”

While decluttering your home may not cause you to lose weight, it is a commitment to bettering your life. I believe that when people are unburdened by clutter they find hope, and hope by its very nature is transforming. Hope can empower us to face our challenges with confidence – including the challenge of weight-loss.