In visiting other exhibitors at the National Home Show, I have been very impressed with the quality of storage solutions available to home owners. In my mind I have chosen new clothes storage several times over in each of the styles available from each of the closet manufacturers.
It brings to mind, however, the difference in organizing styles the all of us have. Some of us are folders; others are tossers and droppers. Some of us like things quiet and all the same in storage styles which others, less visual by nature, don’t even notice if one container is a different colour to the next.
If you are looking at storage systems for your clothes, try and figure out what your style is. Match up your new system to that style. There are no rules that say clothes have to be folder when put away. With my own two children, I’m happy if the clothes just end up in the drawers at all. Sliding baskets are great for the tosser and droppers so that they can toss and drop into the basket to their hearts content. Open storage is great for those of us who don’t like to have to hunt for the right drawer for each object.
So make your life a little easier and match up your storage with your organizing style.
Archive for February 2009
I’m staying on the limited real estate theme today. With a small desk/work space, it is more important than ever to ensure all your work tools – pens, rulers, paper, drafting tools, memory keys – are as contained as possible. When small items have a home to be returned to, they are less likely to wander around your work space.
The containers for these items could be anything at all that works for you. If you are using vertical storage space, you will want something the fits on the space and is easy to get to. If the work space is in the open and subject to the public eye, you may choose decorative containers. If you have only yourself working in the space, why not use a clear container to help you locate what is inside.
If you are a tosser and dropper, and not likely to open a lid to put something away, then use open storage like bins, open boxes, baskets or a similar item. Once again, make sure the items you use on a regular basis are at your finger tips and the items you use occasionally are not sitting in prime real estate!
Is your desk too small for the stuff that sits on top of it? Are you feeling cramped and penned in by hot files, current files, your computer and just the mere presence of your coffee cup?
Whenever possible, move to vertical storage and even a vertical desk. what? Put my desk on the wall?
Pretty much, that’s it. consider placing shelving units above your desk or, if space does not permit, even to one side of your desk. Then set up the items off your desk onto the shelves. Those things you use daily will be closest to you while the occasional items can sit on the shelves farther away.
Do you find that clothes end up on the floor regardless of how hard you try to keep them contained in their proper homes?
Take a close look at your dressing area, no matter how small or how big. Are your clothes all contained within the one area? Do you have to go from one side of the room to the other just to find all the pieces of clothing you need for the day?
The farther apart your clothing pieces are stored, the more likely they are to end up on a horizontal surface (bed, floor etc) while you are either dressing or undressing.
Try and get all your clothing storage in one area together, from now on referred to as your dressing area. It can be anything from 9 square feet (3 metres squared) to a room unto itself. It may be just a designated side of your bedroom – probably the side with the clothes closet. Get all your clothes in there and they are less likely to end up on the floor.
Organizing photos on your computer can be a challenge. Many people handle the challenge by using photo management software. If you use such software, here is a tip for labelling your photos.
Computers don’t read or count. They recognized yes or no. When labeling your files, the computer will automatically try and sort either alphabetically or numerically depending on the symbols you have chosen (letters or numbers). If you want a file sorted by it’s name in a date order use a number to represent the date. Use “0” placeholder for single digit months i.e. Jan to Sept otherwise your computer will put October first in the list.
Date sorting is often the easiest and most intuitive sorting method for photos. Depending on your volume of photos, set up a file for each year and then for each month within the year. Use the above number method to label the months. Now you can sort your photos by whichever label you choose within the months.
Enough about organizing paper, I can hear you shouting.
OK, let’s get a grip on all those files on your desktop.
Computers don’t read or count. They recognized yes or no. When labeling your files, the computer will automatically try and sort either alphabetically or numerically depending on the symbols you have chosen (letters or numbers). If you want a file sorted by it’s name in a date order use a number to represent the date. Use “0” placeholder for single digit months i.e. Jan to Sept otherwise your computer will put October first in the list.
While there is no doubt, many of us print as little as possible, sort only what we can’t avoid and file what is left over, paper seems determined to be here for a long time. As a result, paper files are still an organizational structure that must be managed.
Here is a tip to limit the number of file folders that end up in the recycling. When labelling the folders, use a file label to write on. They are readily available from most stationary or business supply stores like Grand and Toy or Staples. If you put the file name right on the label, when that file is finished, the file folder can easily be reused by simply putting a new file label over the old one.
The Toronto Chapter of Professional Organizers in Canada has a booth at this year’s National Home Show. If you are in the area, drop by and check us out in Exhibitor section B, booth 3009.
Backsliding is a term used by professional organizers to describe a client’s return to previous behaviour or habits that led to disorganization. Many, if not most, of my clients experience backsliding to some degree several times over the course of our work together. While not necessary, it is frequently experienced by many people as they try and get more control over the space, time and “stuff” in their lives.
You will know if you are backsliding. Horizontal services are filling up again with clutter. An area in your home or office that had been kept organized is starting to be disorganized. Perhaps you find yourself late for appointments more often after some time of prompt, timely arrival.
To handle backsliding, start by staving off the guilt. Admit you’ve had a backslide and get on with your life. We can give guilt about 30 seconds and then move forward.
Second, see if you can identify which behaviours you have returned to. Were you clearing the top of your desk each evening and have now stopped? Were you clearing the floor of your bedroom each evening and have now stopped?
Thirdly, see if you can identify why the behaviours have returned. It takes about 28 consistent repetitions to instill a new habit. Perhaps your 28 events were interrupted by illness, extra projects at work, a sick child or parent or an unexpected loss.
Four, practice the behaviour you would like to instill again. Try daily repetition at the same time of day.
Finally, give yourself a huge pat on the back and celebrate your success!
What’s dancing on your computer desktop? Virtual clutter can be just as bad as the stuff kicking around the floor of your office.
Do you habitually leave documents sitting on your desktop so that you can find them easily the next time you want to work with them?It’s not a bad idea – until there are so many files or shortcuts on your desktop that you can’t find any of them. That’s right; just like the top of your physical desk.
Don’t panic, the solution can be relatively simple. Set up folders as hot files on your desktop to house the material you are currently working on just like the hot files on your desk. Keep them specific and time limited. When the project is over or completed, purge the folders and move them off your desktop. By then there will be other files that need to be moved into hot files.
