Say no more often.

It has been awhile since I have blogged, I was away for part of September and well I was busy with other things and getting ready for my trip. I have been blessed to work on a writing project as a co-author for a book called "Dear Stress, I'm breaking up with you." by Ky-Lee Hanson and many other contributors. When I was writing my chapter I had so many ideas rush through my mind it was hard to narrow it down so I touched on a few topics about how to organize your life.
One area I touch on is saying no more often. I believe when we say no more often to things that are not aligned with our core values and ultimate goals we create time for other adventures to enter our lives.

A mentor of mine taught me an amazing couple of sentences to learn how to say no with never having to use the word no. When someone asks you to do something it usually never has to be answered right then and there, so the brilliant first sentence is: "I need to check my schedule, when do you need to hear back by?"
This gives me time to truly think over the situation and see if it hits some key points in my life; will it generate money for work?
Will it help my family in anyway?
Will it contribute to my community?
Does this match up with my values and goals? If you can say yes to most of these questions it is a good idea to go further and ask yourself; Do I have enough time to dedicate to this?
Will it interfere with other commitments I have?
Is there anything else I need to know about this before I make a final decision?

Once you have come to a decision you can always let the person know by or before the date they needed to hear back by and say, the second brilliant sentence; "I am sorry but at this time it is not a good fit for me." Once again a clear message but never using the word no.

If you fear saying no there are some things we need to look at: why? is it fear of commitment? fear of letting someone down? being seen as a rude person? Fear of confrontation? all these fears will keep us saying yes when every fibre of our being is screaming NO. Let's look at this in reality, when we are in fear we make poor choices. Let's look at fear of confrontation or letting someone down: If someone were to say no to you how would you react? Maybe be a bit disappointed but move on to the next person who you feel would be a good fit, feel a bit sad but you move through the feeling. So I ask you why would others react any different than you would? We create unrealistic scenarios in our heads of how others will react and it keeps us saying yes and we will continue to waste time on things that do not match with our goals and values. If we say yes to everyone we will be too booked to be open to new adventures that we actually want to do.

My challenge to you is to no more often, you deserve to be spending time on things that inspire you and will help you toward where you want to be.

Let me know how it went for you!

Let's get organized for school.

It is a couple weeks away for the kids to go back to school, it is important to have the household organized to make life easier for the whole family. I will list a few ideas that any household can incorporate to make school life more functional for when your kids are coming and going.

1.  Have a clear and designated area for the kids backpacks, shoes and coats. This will allow them to know where to put their stuff for when they get home and know where everything is in the morning to go to school. Each should have a hook for coat and snow pants, a basket for gloves, hats and scarves and a place to hang/put their backpacks.

2.  Have a family message centre, usually in the kitchen. This is the place that has a calendar for everyone's activities and appointments, A place to leave messages for one another. A place to hold all papers coming into the house: mail, permission slips, homework/agenda's to be signed etc. Each person should have their own folder/mail box/cubby-hole, how ever you set it up.

3.  Create an area that is designated for homework time, usually right after school. Most use the kitchen or dining room table. In this area have stock of most needed items: pens, paper, pencils, markers, scissors, coloured paper, glue stick and so forth. Kids usually have projects to work on and need these supplies. Keep them in a basket in a cupboard or in the dining hutch cupboard,

4. Have routines; a morning, after school and night one. In the morning make it routine for the kids to check that all their papers from the command centre are in their backpacks for school and all homework is checked. Give kids their lunches right before you are heading out to school or to the bus. Kids will go to their designated area to put on outer ware and be ready to head out. When the kids come home empty their backpacks, set the kids up in the homework area, get them a healthy snack and start on homework. As they are doing homework empty their thermal cases and clean out containers. Go through the kids agendas and sign any papers that are needed to be signed. Put any future papers with information on them into that child's spot in the command centre. At night be sure all backpacks are put in the designated area with outwear and make the kids lunches for the next day.

What fun tips can you share so families are ready for this school year?
Thanks for stopping by :)

10 ways to organize your life using a shoe box.

We may think that we need pretty and expensive solutions to get organized, this is not the case. I will share 10 ways to use a show box to get organized. You can always decorate your shoe box if you want it to look pretty.

1.  Use it in your underwear drawer, fold your underwear and file them in the shoe box. Easy to see and keeps your drawer organized. Use one for socks and bras as well.

2.  Keep old photos in it. File photos neatly and use index cards to sort photos into sections. Easy to find and easy to store.

3.  Store in ziploc bags, buttons, thread, needles (like with like) etc. and keep bags in shoe box as a sewing/repair kit.

4.  You can store the smaller bits of your children's toy collection; each lego set, doll accessories, and so forth.

5.  Use shoe boxes to create an art centre. Each box can hold craft supplies; paints, markers, glue, sparkles, scrap paper etc.

6.  You can make holes along the long side of a shoe box and keep ribbon on the inside and feed each ribbon through a hole; easy to access and see.

7.  You can use the top of a shoe box and decoupage it to your liking and hang as wall art. Then use the bottom part as a small art shelf. Paint or decoupage the interior and exterior and hang on wall.

8.  A shoe box is perfect for housing all your nail polish, cotton swabs and remover. A mani/pedi box at your finger tips. Or use the lid upside down and house your supplies so you can see them and access easily.

9.  Shoe boxes are a great size to use to store toiletries in. Use to store your overflow in the linen closet or use them under the sink to store like with like. Makes things easy to find and easy to take out and access.

10.  Make a recharge centre. Store a multi-outlet extension cord inside the box. Make holes along the long side of the box for charging cords to fit through. You can charge phones, ipods, tablets etc without the sight of those messy cords.

I hope this has inspired you to get organized and to not spend a fortune on solutions to do it. We all wear shoes so it is a no brainer to repurpose our boxes.

Thanks for stopping by.

How to create TIME...

We all wish there were more hours in the day to get everything done. The truth is we need to use our time wisely and efficiently. Here is a 4 step guide to creating TIME;

T - To do list
I - Itemize list into priority
M - Map out how long each task will take and schedule it into your calendar
E - Execute on a daily basis

We all love to make to do lists, I know I love checking off what I have done. It gives a sense of accomplishment and control over life. To do lists are only effective if they are actually scheduled into your calendar. If they are just on a list only a few get done, the easy and fun ones usually. I use to have list after list, moving items from one list to the next and some things just never got done. I forgot to actual carve out time for them in my daily schedule.

If you use the above 4 step process: TIME, you will see your to do lists get done. Life happens and not everything on our schedule can get done but if something occurs and we do not get something done make sure you reschedule it as soon as possible. If not it will not get done.

Hope this inspires you to transfer your to do list to your schedules!!!

FILES...

Most of us have a filing cabinet, drawer or other solution to hold files. In today's society we need to keep a paper trail for taxes, the household and for business. I suggest you have one central area to hold all your files, both personal and business related. I have a 5 step system to help keep files up to date: FILES.

F = Filter through your old files to toss what you no longer need and to take stock of the files you have.
I = Introduce new papers to files.
L = Label new files when needed and be as specific as possible. This will make it easier to find and to know where papers belong when filing.
E = Establish a system that makes sense to you. It can be alphabetical, by subjects and grouping, colour coded etc. This system is for you and only you so make sure it is the easiest one for you to find what you are looking for.
S = Six months do the above 4 steps: FILE

A couple other tips when filing; Put your labels/tabs all in one row. This makes it easier to find a file as your eye is only looking in one straight line not diagonally to find the file you want. Use different coloured hanging files for business and personal. This will keep them separated and easier to distinguish which is which.

I hope you found this helpful, if so feel free to comment below. Thanks for stopping by.

Why we use solutions for organizing.

Many people think using solutions, baskets, bins, trays etc, to organize is a waste of money, I will tell you why this is untrue. There are several reasons to use solutions and here are a few of them:

Solutions help us keep a certain number of specific items at once, it is a measuring stick to how many we should have of a particular item. For example a magazine rack only holds so many magazines, if you have more than what it holds it is time to pare down. If you have a basket for blankets you can only hold that many blankets, see how solutions are a gage to how much stuff you should have.

When you use solutions you can choose from a variety of styles, colours, materials and patterns. Solutions can help create a certain looking decor in a room. Using the same colour palette in solutions as other accents makes a room feel co-ordinated and pulled together.

Most people have trouble knowing where to put their items. Using solutions helps create homes for your items and makes it easier to tidy up. If you know where everything goes it is a quick job to return all your items to their proper homes.

Using clear solutions allows you to see what is inside. This is helpful for food, clothing, tools, batteries, art supplies etc. This will allow you to take a quick glance at how much you have of an item and it makes it easier to find items.

Some solutions are the opposite of using clear bins they help hide away items you do not want out in the open. Shoes, wardrobe accessories, spare change, etc. are items most people do not want out in clear view, there are several solutions to use to keep items out of sight.

Hope this helps you understand the world of solutions and why organizers love using them!

Manage your time, manage your life.

A main part of a professional organizers job is to create solutions that will support their clients in creating a user friendly and time efficient space. If one can organize their time better they can manage their lives better. Here are some examples of how to manage your time through solutions, thus creating a serene and functional space:

1.  Filing sytems can make your life either very stressful or very calm. One must find the right filing system for them, we do not all think the same, therefore; there is not just one solution that fits all. Two of my favorites are the Freedom Filer and The Tickler File.

The Freedom Filer can be purchased at your local office depot and explains how to create it and has all the labels you will need. The premis for this system is that it is self purging. It is set up for short term files, long term files and annual files that will be purged in 2 years since only documents that are not needed for long term are filed in them. Files are colour coded and labelled. This system is easy to follow and will house all your files both work and personal.

The Tickler File sytem looks at the month and year in files. It is set up so you can file items that you know are needed in a few days or weeks, even months from now. You have files lablled 1 - 31 and files labelled January to December. For example I have to do follow-up calls/emails on the 8th of June, today is May 29th. I can put my contacts business cards or other form of information for them in the file labelled 8 ( it represents June the 8th) the calendar is used for the month on hand. No files should have papers left in them once the day has come and gone. You can also put information into the 12 months of the year if you know something needs to be done in September not June, for example; back to school shopping/blog ideas etc. It is like a calendar done in files for you to stay on top of all your projects.

2.  Like with Like: in professional organizing we put like with like, ie. all gardeing supplies together in one spot, all christmas decorations in one area, all linens in one spot etc. This will make it much easier to know where everything goes and less time thinking about where can I store this til I need it. It is hard to have everything in its place in  your home at all times but knowing where each item is meant to live reduces ones stress greatly and will make tidying up a breeze. I suggest having a 10 minute tidy up time before retiring for the night, it will make for your next day to be less stressful to start it uncluttered.

3.  To Do Lists in action: it is great to make To Do Lists but if you are not scheduling them into your calendar to do them, then the odds of it getting done is very slim. Make a to do list on a daily basis in the morning, then look at your calendar and schedule them in, even if it is a 2 minute item schedule it. Life happens and days do not unfold as we schedule them so yes not everything will get done on a daily basis but a very high percentage will. If an item does not get done that day simply reschedule it for an upcoming day. It will eventually get done.

These are just a few examples of solutions to daily time management issues. Manage your time, manage your life.

I moved but did I purge enough?

Hi there, so I shared I was moving in an earlier post and was really trying my best to walk the walk. So I purged a lot before I staged the house for viewing. and the results were great had 8 offers in 30 hours and sold it in 4 days woot woot. I am now in my new place, I downsized to a one bedroom unit. Did I purge enough on my move?

It is perfectly natural to do a second purge when unpacking. One can see if there is enough room for everthing and it puts items into perspective of how important they are. I am now unpacked and repurging items as I have less room and less need for many items.

On a second purge ask these questions:
When was the last time I used this?
When do I plan on using it next?
Do I have a place for this?
How important is this item to me?
Is it easily replaceable if ever needed?
Can I honour this item instead of storing it in a box?

The main thing to remember is items can be donated and will be used by people who will really need and cherish them.
I am almost done purging and unpacking and organizing the new place, I am loving it here.

Family Message Centre

What is the key to any good relationship? Communication. I believe every home should have a family message centre. This is a place where family members can communicate to one another about their busy schedules and to stay connected on those sometimes non-stop weeks.
Every family is different when it comes to the style and look of a message centre. I encourage you to look on pinterest for ideas and inspiration. I am including some of my favorite looks here as well.

1.  You need to have a calender, large enough to hold all of the family's appointments and events on it. You can always make a calendar from an old picture frame. The glass will act as a dry erase board. See pictures for ideas. You can also have a "look at the week" calendar that is larger and on a white board so it can easily be changed, added to and erased for the next week to be entered.

2.  You need a cork board, magnet board or a bulletin board (one with ribbon to hold paper) to hold messages. I also think it is a great place to display family photos from recent events to keep the message centre up to date with what the family has been up to lately.

3.  You will also need a place to hold important papers like permission slips, information on upcoming events and other documents you need to have on hand. You can have a spot for every family member if that works for you.

Every message centre will look unique for each family, use your own decorative touches to personalize it. Here are some examples of message centres, as you can see no way is the right way, do what works for your family and your space.

Share pictures of your message centre we would love to see them! Thanks for stopping by we appreciate it :)

Downsizing

I am going to be part of an expo on Downsizing this Saturday at Heatherdale Senior Living,
11 Lakeside Terrace unit #104 from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm. This subject is a very popular one as so many people are at the age where they need to downsize, have parents ready to downsize. Downsize either from a family home to a smaller home, to a retirement condo, a nursing home etc. There are a few things that need to be thought about before the move:

1,  What can we declutter and purge before moving. It is best to go through all areas of the home and see what can be donated, tossed and handed down to the next generations. It is sometimes very hard to get rid of items that have special meaning to us but we really cannot keep everything we have. I have a few suggestions to still keep the memories alive; make a collage of all the special pictures so that your loved one can see those memories daily, use a shadow box to make a collection of special items that can be on display in the new space, take pictures of items that have sentimental value and use them as a screen saver slide show or purchase a large digital picture frame to showcase all these memories.

2.  When deciding on what clothing to take think about what clothes are easiest to launder, it will make your life easier and if you are downsizing to a facility where they do your laundry makes for your clothing to last longer.

3.  Get specific measurments of the new space, this will help you decide which furniture will fit and where. Think about bringing multi-functional pieces; like an ottoman that has space in it for storage, and/or a table that collapses on both sides. This will allow for more space when needed.

4.  When choosing home decor items only bring the ones that bring you the most joy, makes you smile when you look at it. This will minimize how much you bring and allow for that homey feel to be reflected in the new space.

5.  It is best to think that you will need room to grow in your new space, as we all buy new things as time goes on, so try and keep 15% of the storage empty. This will allow for a decluttered space and keep the new space open to new items.

I hope this gets you thinking about the next steps in getting ready to downsize. Let us know what tips you have or what worked for you when you downsized. Thanks for stopping by!!

Back up lists...

Many things in life we need to back up on our hard drives to store for safe keeping. What we do not think about it making lists of items we use on a daily basis, just in case we lose them or they get stolen: our wallets content and glove box content.

If our wallet was lost or stolen we could easily look back on old bills to see what our credit card numbers are and what our debit card numbers are but would it not be more effective to have a list already made up, just in case.

Take your wallet, heck while we are there lets declutter too! Take everything out and put like with like. Do you need to hold onto old receipts, file them away or toss them. Do you use all those points cards? if not toss them.

Now you can make a written list or one on your computer. Record each card, its number, exp. date and cv number on the back (3 digits by signature). Do the same with points cards and your health card. Most of these cards have the number to call right on them, add these too. Get all of your other important pieces of identification that you do not, should not, keep in your wallet; SIN card, Passport, birth certificate and so forth and do the same.












Let's not forget what we keep in our glove boxes; insurance cards, a copy of our ownership and other vechicle documents. Add these to your list.

Title the document so it is easy to find and keep it in a folder you will remember to find it again.
If you are making a physical list keep it in a filing cabinet in a file labeled important numbers.

This will save you much time when having to call and report all these items stolen or lost.