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organized closet

Organize the Closet – Lighten the Load

Posted by Carolyn on
 March 9, 2016
  ·  2 Comments

Organize the Closet? I Can’t see the Closet

organize the closet

Try the Friends, Acquaintances, Strangers game to sort through clothes.

Recently a client and I stood in front of what was supposed to be a clothes closet in her bedroom.  The door was open and the closet was full.  She was desperate to have a beautifully set up, organized closet. But in fact, we couldn’t even see inside much less organize the closet or contents.

Some serious purging and sorting was needed.

Almost all of these strategies were used.  Each strategy has its own merit.  They each work differently for different people depending on the item in question.  What works for you?

Pull Everything Out

Start by getting everything out of the closet.  While this can be an almost overwhelming task, at least you will know what is in there.  Get the clothes, purses, shoes, scarves and anything else out of hiding.

Use the Friends, Acquaintances, Strangers Game

Getting through the sorting of a full closet enroute to an organized closet can be daunting task.  Using the friends, acquaintances, strangers game can help.

Friends are the people you would have for supper.  In other words the clothes that you love, look good in, feel good in and wear often – or would wear often if you could get at them with an organized closet!

Acquaintances are the people you might chat with but aren’t very close to.  Which are the items that you thought you might like but ultimately never warmed up to?  Can they move on to a life outside of your front door? Off to donation?

Strangers are the people you just don’t know.  Or maybe the ones you knew but don’t hang out with anymore.  These are clothes that don’t fit or have gone out of style. You don’t care for them, don’t wear them.  Send them away.

Re – Consider the Gifts

We all have items in our closets that were gifts.  They were loved, liked or found amusing by someone that gave them to you.  But maybe not quite your taste.  Since they were a gift, they are yours to do as you please, right?  Consider, your mother likely didn’t expect you to keep that sweater for 4o years.  If you don’t wear it, love it, cherish it – send it off to someone who will.

Photograph the Cherished

Organize the closet

Which of your shoes are friends, acquaintances or strangers?

And then there are the items we love and don’t use; beloved items that just don’t measure up to today’s – or your – style. Take a photo. That way you have the memory without having the item take up space in your closet.

Organize the Closet

With a lighter load, its easier to hang up, fold up and generally sort everything back into the closet.  Try going through the sorting process again as items go back into the closet.  Sometimes a second round of sorting will lighten the load that much more.

Now stand back and survey the closet.  When you open the doors you ought to be greeted with friends waiting to be taken out and worn.  Items that you love, that make you feel good and that look great on you.

Home Organizing
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Organized for sports hooks for bikes

Organized for Sports – Get Hooked!

Posted by Carolyn on
 February 9, 2016
  ·  5 Comments

Staying organized for sports can be a time consuming task, whether its for your own activities or those of your children.  Some sports are heavier on the gear side, some on the logistic side.  Some like hockey require both since both teams and gear are involved.  Add in an animal, as with horse back riding, and the need for organization gets that much greater.  Your 4 – legged friend is counting on you to be, and stay, organized!

We don’t have a horse in our family but we sure have a lot of sports activity and sports gear.   Over the years there have been soccer balls and team uniforms, baseballs and bats, inline skates, hockey equipment, swim team/practice equipment, sailing gear/tools, skis and ski clothes.  As my children get older, the number of sports has decreased but the sophistication and expense of the gear has increased.  Sound familiar?

Organized ski instructor locker with hooks.

Use Hooks to stay Organized for Sports

How does a professional organizer tackle sports gear for their family?  I’m a hook person and to stay organized for  sports gear, I head first for a hook.  The advantages of hanging sports gear on a hook are many.  Here’s just a few:

  • Gets the gear off the floor and away from harm (dogs)
  • Allows it to dry and breath (swimsuits, life jackets)
  • Uses vertical space for more efficient storage (bicycles, skis, ski poles)
  • Costs very little compared to cupboards
  • Keeps the gear accessible to grab and go

Which Hook?

Depends.  I have several different types depending on the type of gear, how heavy it is, who uses it, whether off season or in season storage and whether the storage location has to change from time to time.  Here are my 3 favourites and hopefully some ideas for you to use as your own.

  • 3M Command Hooks.  These are movable without leaving marks, scratches or holes.
    Sailing bag on hook.

    An empty sailing bag stays clean, dry and out of the way on a hook.

    I use them to hang my name tag, knee brace, helmet, kids stickers, pocket reference book and keys in my ski instructor boot locker.  They can be used for judo or karate belts.  We use them for empty sailing gear bags, life jackets.

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • Vinyl-coated screw in hooks.  These are widely available across North America.  They are great for bicycles and heavier gear that involves weight. They are particularly good for items that need protection from the hook or are wet (paddles).

Hooked Bikes5kOrganized for sports hooks for bikes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • Nails. What can I say – they still make the least expensive, universal hanging device.  Nails are effective hooks.Cottagers know this better than anyone and use them for paddles, life jackets, cushions, towels and anything else that needs getting up off the dock, floor, deck or ground.

You may have your favourite sports gear hooks as well.  I`d love to know what you use.  How do you store  your favourite sports gear?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Organizing Sports Gear
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Organizing with our ears involves using what we hear to help us organize.

Organizing with our Ears – Auditory Processing Modality

Posted by Carolyn on
 October 14, 2015
  ·  No Comments
Organizing with our ears involves using what we hear to help us organize.

Organizing with our Ears – Auditory Processing Modality

Organizing with our Ears is the second in a series on organizing using one’s processing modalities.  In 2010, Denslow Brown of Coach Approach for Organizers and Organizer Coach published The Processing Modalities Guide.  This is the second of nine modalities that Denslow addresses in the guide.  Auditory processing involves what we hear.  It includes sounds around us as well as what we say.

Organizing with our Ears – Strength and Sensitivity

Like visual processing, auditory processing modality can be described on a strength continuum as weak, competent or gifted. Someone who is gifted might have perfect pitch or be able to identify sophisticated meaning from sound.  Someone who is auditorily weak does not rely primarily on their hearing to understand, learn or interface with the world (that’s me).  Organizing with our ears can also be identified as hypo or hyper sensitive.  Someone who is hypersensitive might become overwhelmed or irritated when there are too many sounds at one time such as in a crowded party room (me again).

Organizing with our Ears – Organizing Strategies

Professional organizers and those trained in processing modalities, understand that using one’s dominant processing modality to organize, increases the ability to stay organized and maintain an organized environment.  Most of us use more than one modality to interface and learn from the environment.  In fact we likely use several.  A few will be stronger, more dominant, than the others, and therefore most useful in staying organized.

If you are auditorily sensitive, many different sounds may be irritating, annoying or exhausting.  Simple, soothing sounds may be pleasing and help with focus. Try the following strategies:

  • Use soothing background music to drown out or distract your ears from a noisy room or street below your window.
  • Use pleasant background music to help you focus on a task.

If you are auditorily strong, you remember items by their sound or a sound associated with them.  Words and tones are meaningful to you.  Try these strategies to keep you organized:

  • Label file folders by names that first come to mind when you think of the contents e.g. “Family Pictures I Would Keep Forever” rather than “Family Pictures” . 
  • Use sounds on your watch to help you keep track of time.
  • Use a timed playlist on your phone or digital music player to help you keep track of time spent on a particular project or task.
  • Talk yourself through the steps of an organizing project.  Write them down and say them out loud while you work your way through each step.

If you are naturally attuned to sounds – and like to play with sounds and words – use that skill and strength to your advantage when organizing.  Next post in the series will look at the kinesthetic processing modality.

Organizing Challenges Organizing Strategies
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Keep Small Business Organized: 5 Strategies

Posted by Carolyn on
 September 23, 2015
  ·  4 Comments
5 Strategies to keep a small business organized

Stay clutter free to keep a small business organized

Is Your Small Business Organized?

We live in a changing world where small businesses must stay nimble of foot and focused on their goals.  Sometimes those imperatives seem to contradict each other.  How can we stay flexible, nimble and organized as a small business while staying focused on goals and strategies for business growth.

Its probably easier than you think.  There is, however, no room for clutter in a successful small business; no room for extra stuff, tasks or costs.  Here are 5 strategies to help keep that business clutter to a minimum and your small business organized for success.

  1. Make “clutter free” a priority for the business.  By letting employees know this is important, you set the performance expectations for your staff.
  2. Be clear how you define clutter.  Unnecessary paper is one thing but unnecessary emails is equally distracting clutter.  The same goes for unnecessary meetings.
  3. Be a role model and set the standard for your employees.  If your office is a pile of disorganized papers, your employees will believe that’s an ok standard for your business organization.
  4. Give staff the tools they need to be organized.  Include shelves for vertical storage and  immediate access to a blue box for recycling.  If you aren’t sure what is missing or why an employee is so disorganized, consider having a professional organizer conduct an assessment of the work environment. There may be more complex organizational issues that the employee is struggling with.
  5. Schedule a semi-annual clear out day. The rules for the time are simple. Everyone participates in a clear out of their work space on this day. Order lunch.
Office Organizing Organizing Challenges
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Time and hoarding behaviour are linked. Professional Organizers can help you manage too much stuff.

Time and Hoarding Behaviour

Posted by Carolyn on
 September 8, 2015
  ·  3 Comments

Time and hoarding behaviour are linked. Professional Organizers can help you manage too much stuff.There is an important and strong link between time and hoarding behaviour.

While sorting, sifting and moving a client’s boxes today, I had occasion to notice the amount of time we were spending moving – sorting – moving  – sorting and moving again.  This particular client has been suffering from hoarding behavior, a mental disorder included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders  fifth edition (DSM V).

What is Hoarding Behaviour?

Hoarding behaviour is characterized by:

  1. An urge to accumulate possessions;
  2. Feelings of anxiety when possessions get thrown away;
  3. Accumulations of items that may or may not have real-world value, (others may consider them garbage or junk):
  4. Enough accumulation of clutter that use of space is limited or prevented;
  5. Disruption if significant and important aspects of one’s life such as work, family life, social interaction and a direct result of the hoarding behaviors.

How to Time and Hoarding Behaviour Connect?

Having a lot of possessions means taking alot of time to look after those possessions.  The more stuff one has, the more time, energy and money one will spend looking after that stuff. In the case of a hoarding situation, some items are constantly being moved from one place to another and back again as they impede the use of everyday required space.  Frequently, every task in the home of an individual with hoarding behavior takes a long time while the tools are located, items are moved to clear space or even just moved out of the way.

In the care of today’s client, she realized that the stuff was preventing her from doing the things that she loved like tending the garden and playing music.  We have slowly but surely sorted and sorted out of the house items that are no longer current, useful or have a role in her current life.  She works hard to resist the urge to bring items back into her home to fill the space.  She is learning to enjoy having clear space to sit and enjoy her home.  it has been a struggle to overcome those urges but she is gradually making progress.  She can now walk freely from one end of her home to the other in a fraction of the time it used to take.  She can find certain things commonplace in an office and use the garden door to access the garden.  With the additional time, she can now tend to the garden.

We have much more sorting to do.  Eventually however, the client will have in her home those items that she needs, that contribute in a significant and meaningful way to her life.  It will take her less and less time to manage her belongings as we whittle down to the essential and beloved.  That leaves more time for the garden, the flute, the dogs and the knitting.  The flute has a home and is easy to find.  The dogs have space to run around the house.  The knitting has a home and the wool is being whittled down to just the very favorite skeins.

This client will never have the magazine perfect home.  She will however, experience less and less anxiety as she tries to manage the urge to accumulate items.  She is gradually getting used to the open spaces; as are the dogs.  Not only the spaces feel like they need to be filled, but without as much stuff, her habits using time also will change.  She is learning to take time to enjoy activities that don’t include moving alot of stuff around or moving around alot of stuff.

 

Slowly but surely.

Organizing Challenges
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Children’s Behaviour when parents exhibit Hoarding Behaviour

Posted by Carolyn on
 September 10, 2014
  ·  No Comments

A friend and colleague recently contacted me regarding behaviour she had seen in one of her contacts.  She poses an interesting question and I thought you all might be interested.

VB writes: Is Hoarding in the genes? Have you ever seen young children hoard? In a family I recently worked with, one of the children cried and was very upset when his Dad sent a couple of pieces of furniture to the curb hoping someone would pick up for free.! (The aunt is a “collector” and another aunt shows evidence of hoarding behaviour.) Dad is worried about his child. He understands not wanting to part with toys, but furniture? Any thoughts or advice for this situation?”

Here is my response: Although there is much work currently being done with children of those with hoarding behaviour,  I am not aware of any definitive research on the genetic link for hoarding behaviour. We do know, however, that individuals with chronic disorganization, of which hoarding behaviour is a subset, personify objects and have unusually high emotional attachment to objects. These charact traits I see in the children of my clients all the time.

In the absence of a psyche degree, we as organizers ought not to be trying to remove or change those traits but there are tried and true techniques for managing them so the impact of the traits is not harmful. My fear is that this child has now been emotionally impacted – which he/she will remember long after the furniture is gone – and carry forward to other objects preventing him/her from healthy separation in the future.

Try this:
1. Let the child “say good-bye” to the furniture just like they would a friend.
2. Take a picture as part of the goodbye process and create an agreement on how long the picture hangs around.
3. Help the child understand the furniture needs a new home that can use it better. It will have new life with its new family.
4. Help the child understand objects have a natural life cycle with us. We need/ desire, they come, we use/love/use up, they leave (donation/ sale/recycle/garbage), they have a new life.

I’d be interested in hearing from others on similar experiences to VB.

Organizing Challenges
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Making Fun of Road Trips

Posted by Carolyn on
 May 20, 2013
  ·  No Comments

In my part of the world, central Canada, this weekend celebrates the first of our precious, summer Long Weekends.  Victoria Day weekend is a traditional time for planting annuals, opening cottages and generally getting out and about on bikes and in cars.  So Canadians – Happy Victoria Day weekend!

If you are going to be using your car this summer for travel, whether long distance or short haul, now is a good time to organize your vehicle to ensure it is ready to hit the road when you are.  Here is a short list to get you started:

  1. Ensure your vehicle is up to date with service.  Are you up to date with all the recommended service for your vehicle, especially the safety-related items?  Have your breaks been checked and/or serviced recently?  How about the air conditioning and do your windows all work? Are all the fuses functional and lights/alerts working?  Have you checked your tire pressure lately?
  2. Fill up the windshield fluid and keep a top up bottle handy.  Keeping your windshield free of bugs, especially Friday and Sunday night driving to and from the cottage, is a safety strategy.  Ensure your field of vision is clear and clean at all times.
  3. Keep your car clean to ensure all lights are clearly visible during the day or night.  Car lights are another safety feature. With the dust and mud that often comes with cottage, off road or even highway driving, lights appear dim and are less visible.  Ensure you can be seen at all times.
  4. Ensure your vehicle ownership and current insurance are available to you while you are travelling.  Don’t make the mistake I did and end up with a $65 fine because the current insurance certificate is sitting at home in the filing cabinet.
  5. Clear the garbage and vacuum out winter debris.  Nothing says road-trip-buzz-kill faster than jumping into a car and finding yourself stepping on last February’s disposable coffee cup or the kids fish snacks in the back seat.  You could splurge on car detailing, stop by the service centre industrial vacuum or just pull out your own household vacuum and give your four-wheeled baby a good once over.
  6. Clean the inside of your windows.  Heating and air conditioning in cars often leaves a film on the inside of the windows which can impact how well you see out, especially on a summer day driving into the sun.
  7. Install a garbage box/bag or other container.  Since you’ve just cleaned out the vehicle, why not set it up to stay clean.  Keeping a garbage bag in the car will go a long way to making your regular clean-out faster and easier not to mention keeping today’s disposable coffee cup away from your feet.  Many automotive parts suppliers also carry garbage bins made especially for the rear seats.  Maybe this is the year you invest in one for your back seat crowd.
  8. Check the date on your maps and update if necessary.  Car maps are something we often take for granted – until you realize the road you are looking for wasn’t constructed when your map was printed.  If you prefer the modern GPS technology, ensure yours is updated so it can find that same road you were looking for on the old map.  Consider keeping a map in the car even if you have a GPS; technology does fail.
  9. Check your first aid kit.  Does it need replenishing?  Does it exist?  No one ever plans to need a first aid kit.  Plan to have a good one ready when your unexpected need arises.
  10. Consider travelling with a car box/supply box.  You can call this what you will and, based on your regular travel, it may be big or small.  This is where the “keep the kids busy” activities can reside along with the extra napkins, flashlight (check the batteries) candle and matches.  A strong box with a snap-shut lid will ensure the contents stay inside when not needed and stay clean while stored.  A box is also easy to take out of the car for replenishing and cleaning.

You may have other specific items to check depending on whether you use roof racks or have towing requirements.  This 10 item list will get you started and ensure your road trip is more enjoyable.

Organizing Travel
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Organizing Experiment

Posted by jennievlietstra on
 July 7, 2010
  ·  No Comments

Organizing is an on going process, one that requires revisiting drawers, closets and surfaces often to keep our organization up to date with our ever changing lives. I’ve been going through this review process with my home office. I recently made the decision to move my desk from the second floor into the basement. This involved the physical relocation of my workspace but it’s also been an opportune time to re-evaluate how I use that space.

I have a two-drawer filing cabinet that fits under my desk. When I moved downstairs I thought I would experiment and try positioning it on the right side, versus the left side where I’ve always had it. I’ve given myself a trial period to see what influences it may have on my workflow. I’ve since concluded that it’s just not working for me. Today I’m moving it back to the left! This really does make the most sense for me, as I’m left handed and therefore the files are easier to access.

It’s okay to try something, to see if it might change your workflow for the better. By trying a different layout I broke the pattern of how I had always done something. In this case I had already been following instincts that were correct. If something is not working for you, in your home organization, it may be time to try an experiment of your own. Change one thing. Move it from the right side to the left, or from a lower shelf to one at eye level. See if that one small change can make a positive impact on the way your space functions.

Office Organizing
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Downsizing Dilemmas – Auctions

Posted by Carolyn on
 June 1, 2009
  ·  No Comments

When it comes to the really big downsizing projects – from the family home to a 900 sq.ft. condo, sometimes there just aren’t enough family members or grandchildren to absorb all the pieces of furniture – loved though they may be – that have accumulated over the years. Furniture consignment stores are popping up all over cities these days in an attempt to keep some of the items in circulation, make a little money for the original owner and establish a new industry along the way.

Another alternative is to auction off your unwanted items at a local auctioneer. Many of you are familiar with the names of high end auction houses; the names we sometimes hear about when a piece of artwork is sold, such as Waddington’s or Ritchies. Do you know the names of local auctioneers in your neighbourhood or city who are familiar with the auctioning of estates, farm or recreational properties or just the accumulation of items that are no longer needed by someone?

Auction houses usually work on a percentage basis i.e. they keep a percentage of the sale price of your items after the sale and give you the balance. Some will pick up your items, usually for a fee. In some cases, if an entire home is on the auction block, the auction house will hold the auction at the home itself. In other cases, several estates or home contents (lots) will be sold off at a regular auction held by the auction house.

To find an auction house, check online for auctioneers in your area. In Ontario (Canada) you can also check with the Ontario Auctioneer Association.

Home Organizing
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Back to the Books

Posted by Carolyn on
 May 14, 2009
  ·  No Comments

Are you a “sticky note” person? You know what I mean; there are some of us who like to make notes on bits of paper to remind us of things. There are a few by the telephone to remind us to call someone, a few on the filing cabinet to remind us where to find something and a bunch all over our desk with numbers, names, notes and reminders that are so buried under the rest of the paper they are long since forgotten.

As an alternative, try carrying a small notebook around with you. Some of us prefer something small enough to fit into a handbag or women’s computer tote. Others keep copious notes and prefer the old elementary school, spiral bound, 8 1/2 X 11 note book. The size is not relevant so pick one that works for you. What matters is that the book travels everywhere with you and is available to jot down thoughts, reminders, numbers and notes. No more lost sticky notes and bits of paper all over your desk. No more stacks of paper with random notes that cause increased stress since you can’t remember where they were from.

There are some people who can translate the “keeping notes in a book” organizing strategy to a handheld organizing device. This takes discipline and the ability to read and write/type easily on a handheld. If you are one of these people, go for it and use your handheld as your notebook. Remember to back up your device regularly.

You may be surprised to find how liberating it is to have your notes and thoughts with you in your notebook when you need them!

Organizing Strategies
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