My favorite vendor had to be Aviva Goldfarb from The Six O’Clock Scramble.  Her on-line menu planning site is all about making quick, healthy meals for your family.  I do love to cook and menu planning isn’t really an issue for me, personally.  However, I have tons of clients who desperately need her service!  Not only is she delightful and energetic, her site is super useful and is a boon to anyone looking to organize their mealtimes.  She’s also got a great cookbook out called “The Six O’Clock Scramble“.

I also met Tricia Kolwicz & Tracy Butler Coe from My Blis (Best Life Information System).  Super nice, and a cool web based home and life information system at your fingertips.  Really great to meet them as the NAPO 2010 National Conference is in Columbus, OH and that is where they are based – looking forward to seeing them again next April.

I did enjoy the “bookstore” at the conference, and picked up a few new books that I’m pretty excited to read:

Erin Rooney Doland just released “Unclutter Your Life in One Week!!” and I got one hot off the presses signed by Erin.  Erin is Editor-In-Chief of Unclutterer.com.  This book is a day by day plan for purging your life of clutter and becoming more efficient and productive.  Who can’t use that?

Also looking forward to reading Julie Hall’s book, The Boomer Burden.  I often work with clients who are dealing with generations worth of stuff from books & papers to furniture & art.  They get overwhelmed separating the good stuff from the pieces that are not worth it, either from a value standpoint or an emotional one.

Finally, while in DC, I got to visit Georgetown Bagelry.  Picked up a few dozen bagels (OK – way too many but I couldn’t resist) for my family.  I twitter with Mary Beth Adler who owns the place and just had to pop in and check it out.  Super cute place and, just, YUM.

So vendors, books and bagels – what could be better?  Looking for more books to check out?  Look on my website “Readings” page.  My favorites are there and I’m continually updating as I read more.  Questions?  Shoot me an email and I’ll be happy to answer!

Julie Hall at MARCPO

working with people who are downsizing or have inherited items from family who have passed away.  Here’s the take aways:

• If a plan isn’t made ahead of time, it often falls to the families to deal with decades of stuff.  This can be a huge burden, both financially and emotionally.  Make a plan, NOW, of what happens to all of the things you own so this doesn’t happen to your family.  Working with a Professional Organizer or simply taking inventory and making decisions can make all the difference later on.
• Too often, decisions are crisis driven from seniors who are deceased or are no longer mentally capable.  Don’t let this happen – downsize early and make sure all your ducks are in a row including wills and property.
• As organizers, we can be a one stop shop for clients dealing with the stress of what to do with estates.  Most people have very busy lives, and they just don’t know what to do.  Be the resource for them, and help guide them to make the right decisions and help ease the burden.

Next up was Candita Clayton, “Putting Some Green In Your Organizing”.  Candita was delightful and full of information about using green products and making healthier and more sustainable choices for yourself, your family, your business and the planet.  Candita also has a book out:  Clean Your Home Healthy: Green Cleaning Made Easy.  Here’s the take aways:

• Bring up “green” to clients gently.  Some are very interested, and some can take offense.  If you sense resistance, back off, but bring it up to clients by showing the benefits to them and their family’s health.
• Develop a network of local green companies – seek them out and create strategic alliances with them.
• Utilize information on the web to strengthen your knowledge for yourself and clients.  Here’s some of her suggested websites:
  • treehugger.com
  • DailyGreen.com
  • IdealBite.com
  • CosmeticsDataBase.com
  • HouseholdProductsDatabase.com
  • CleanHappens.com

Finally, Lauren Halagarda with “Detox Your Inbox:  Overcoming Email Overload”.  I found this session to be particularly helpful because it’s something I struggle with daily and so do my clients, and, well, everyone I know.  I thought I was pretty good at it but I was surprised at how many tips Lauren gave that I’ve been able to implement easily that have saved me quite a bit of time.  Here they are:

• Remove yourself from mailing lists that don’t interest you anymore or are too frequent.  This sounds like a no-brainer but when I really looked at how many of these I was deleting daily, I realized how right she was.  I unsubscribed from 6-8 newsletters & flyers I was getting, and it made a huge difference.  Each day a new one arrives, and I decide right then and there to take that extra minute to unsubscribe if it really isn’t being read or used.
• Redefine the meaning of your inbox.  Look at it as a temporary location for storing incoming mail.  So many people use it as a task list or a reminder spot.  This is one I’m pretty good at but Lauren really broke it down.  Emails are one of the following:
  • project
  • calendar item
  • task
  • contact
  • archive (you need to save it but not see it regularly)
  • interaction
• There is a 5 step process for dealing with email:
  • Eliminate
  • Delegate
  • ACT (Appointment/Calendar Item, Contact, Task)
  • Extract (information into a tool)
  • Archive

I have to include one more tip which is just something I was so excited about.  If you use Outlook, you can click and DRAG an email over to the calendar, contact list or task list.  WHOA! This was relevatory for me.  Saved me a bunch of time – and super simple way to clear out my inbox easily.

Struggling with email is tough for everyone – but take control and make the decisions.  Inbox zero is an achievable goal . . .  at least once in a person’s lifetime!

So there you have it – my three sessions at MARCPO.

Next post will be about some of the vendors I met.  A few stood out as products or services my clients could actually use, plus I’ll mention a few cool places I visited while in DC including a yummy bagel place.

Anyone who knows me, knows that I continually educate myself in all areas of organizing and business so this was an opportunity to not only gain some new tidbits I could pass along to my clients, but also to see one of the icons of the Organizing world:  Julie Morgenstern.  As the keynote speaker, she was interesting, entertaining, and above all, inspiring.  If you haven’t read her classic, Organizing From The Inside Out, get it and read it now!

I have to say, I was really impressed with how well the conference ran and how welcomed I felt by the DC Chapter and everyone else who attended.  Although I shouldn’t have been surprised – after all, organizers are pretty great people for the most part, and they are, well, organized.

Me & Deb Lee at MARCPO

Part of the fun was the “tweet up” at lunch (is this a twunch?).  Those of us who tweet (you can follow me on twitter) got together and gabbed in person instead of 140 characters or less.  That’s me with Deb Lee from the DC Chapter (she’s @dallisonlee).

So, what it’s in for you?

Well, some great new info on green organizing, intriguing Outlook tips, dealing with estates and downsizing, and a newly motivated me!

The opening speaker, Krista Green, really inspired me to look at my business with a different eye.  I took four pages of notes and what really stood out was her emphasis on analyzing our businesses with pattern recognition and quantifying our work.  From a client perspective, this is extraordinary because really analyzing what I do will make organizing with clients more efficient and effective.  I’ve already been doing this but she put it into perspective and made me see the importance of this part of the process.

Krista Green at MARCPO

The tip I want to pass on is this:  When you are looking at different areas of clutter in your life, remember, it’s all the same stuff, it’s just disguised differently.  Clutter is clutter and it is dealt with the same way whether it’s cans of peas, Polly Pockets or soccer games.

Using the process of “sort”, “purge” and “containerize” that we organizers teach, you can analyze your clutter and make the changes you need to have a calmer and happier life.

Upcoming posts will give tips and ideas for you to use from the speakers I saw and heard, along with my perspectives on how you can use this information in your own life.

Playrooms can be a fabulous part of your home, but for so many people, they can quickly become a nightmare. Kids aren’t naturally inclined to put things away, and most of the time when a playroom is set up – things either are just sort of set around for kids to play with or the furniture is bought for cuteness factor rather than practicality (not that the two can’t go hand in hand).

When setting up a playroom, here’s some tips:

• Really evaluate your children and their playing preferences. Just because you think the dollhouse is adorable doesn’t mean that it actually gets played with. And if your child never touches the art easel – it’s probably not something that needs to be there.
• Really evaluate your space – it really doesn’t matter how large or small it is – it depends on how it is set up and used.
• Create zones for play and bring all items that belong in that zone to that space. For example if you have a play kitchen, all kitchen items should be in that zone.
• Make items easy to access and easy to put away. In the kitchen zone, open stacking bins are great, as is a small table, and baskets for transporting “food” and dishes. In an art zone, set up the easel, bins for paper & supplies (tall plastic drawers are great for this), drawing table, etc. in one area that has some good light.
• Label each bin, basket and zone. Use pictures if necessary. Kids “forget” really easily where things are supposed to – don’t give them any more excuses than they need!
• Make sure the space is well lit (consider recessed lights), has an open space in the middle to play, and that each zone is not overloaded with stuff.
• Do NOT be afraid to get rid of things. In my experience, most of the time, children only really play with 25-40% of their stuff. The rest? Unwanted gifts, broken things, inappropriate for their age level or interest, and those junky toys you get from birthday party goodie bags.
• Say “NO” to the mother in law who continually brings over gobs of plastic stuff or age inappropriate toys, and restrain yourself from shopping the Dollar Rack at Target. Stop going to all of the consignment sales and getting games & puzzles because they are such a great deal. Are they really a great deal if they are ruined or not used because the kids can’t find them?
• Look at the room from a kid’s perspective. Get down on the floor and see it from their eye level. Can you reach everything? Can you see clearly where it belongs? Remember, everything needs to have a home – and children really understand that when it is your playroom (and household) policy.
• Be creative with storage – think outside the box. Use pop up laundry hampers to corral stuffed animals or balls, use chalkboard & magnet paint for creativity on the walls or furniture, use cubbies & shelving in closets for storage instead of the hanging bar. Don’t get locked into what it “should” look like – as Tim Gunn says on Project Runway “Make it work”.

The main goal when organizing a playroom is to make it a space where kids can find what they want, have an appropriate place to play with it, and be able to put it back where it belongs by themselves. Give thought to what is in the space, and more thought into how to store & access the ever evolving and expanding STUFF that can take over any room.

One final note: this is not a finished product. Children are ever changing, and so are their needs and wants. Evaluate regularly – and be ruthless! Save only the special items and ditch the rest. There are plenty of people out there that will get better use of these unwanted and unused items than you are now.

Visit my Organizing Photos page on A Fresh Space to see slideshows of two recent playrooms I organized.

I recently organized a pantry with a client and she had a lot of bottles of salad dressings & marinades. A lot. She kept buying them because she couldn’t tell how many she already had, and, you know, they were on sale.

I see this often – not just in pantries but all over the house. If you can’t find something, well then, go get another. This not only wastes your money, but your time. The main goal of organizing is to be able to find what you need when you need it. This is especially true for pantries. Who wants to dig around in a bunch of bottles & cans, wondering what to make for dinner?

So here’s what you do with an out of control pantry:

1. Empty it.
2. Sort the contents by use. I usually sort in the following groups:
   • canned vegetables
   • soups and canned foods such as ravioli or tuna
   • prepackaged meals (hamburger helper, mac & cheese, etc.)
   • cereals & breakfast foods
   • condiments & sauces
   • drinks (juices, sodas, etc.)
   • baking (flour, sugar, chocolate chips, etc.)
   • staples such as corn meal, bread crumbs, shortening, etc.
   • snack foods and/or kids foods
   • other categories of foods that are particular to your household
3. Discard any items that are out of date, dented or are just not something that anyone in the household likes or will actually eat and then CLEAN the pantry!
4. Replace items in the pantry placing the most used items at body level – where they can be most easily reached, and place other items farther away that are not used as often. Group like items with like. So, in other words, all of the veggies go together and the salad dressings go together.
   Tip: If you are an avid baker, canner or other type of kitchen foodie, consider creating a cabinet or shelf just for this endeavor. I love to bake, so I have one whole cabinet that contains all of my baking supplies including the pans & muffin tins.
5. Use shelf stackers for cans and jars, and bins to corral smaller packages.
6. Consider installing a hanging storage rack on the inside of the door if possible for cans, beverages or spices such as this one.

The re-organization can be done very cost effectively. Bins are inexpensive and the stackers are available on www.stacksandstacks.com as well as at places like Target or Walmart.

Tip: I like to give the kids one shelf or large bin for snacks. Pre-package pretzels or trail mix in small bags or containers, and put in a bin with juice boxes, granola bars, boxes of raisins or whatever your kids like to eat.

Before and after images, click the thumbnails to see enlarged images.

Get this FREE special report and use the 40+ tips from experts around the country (including me!). I was asked recently to participate in a “round up” of Professional Organizing experts to come up with one favorite tip for setting priorities. Stephanie Calahan of Calahan Solutions put together this incredible report, and I’m thrilled to be a part of it.

“Priority Setting – Working On The Right Things” is now available for download. Take charge of your life – and learn from the pros!

P.S. Look for my tip on page 13!

Here’s what we did:

1. Removed everything from this space we designated as “command central” that didn’t belong there such as toys, baby wipes, food items, etc.
2. Filed papers in two portable file bins (this client didn’t have a lot of papers but the ones she did have were everywhere). One bin is for archived (older) materials that she didn’t need to access often – this one is in the back of the cabinet. The other bin is for current items – things she needed to get to quickly – this bin is in the front. Both bins are labeled both inside and out.
3. Added a small shredder sitting on the countertop and a little cubby system I got at Target. It’s cute and simple enough for her needs. In it, she has supplies to mail bills, pens, and incoming mail. The shredder is to quickly destroy any incoming mail that has personal identification.
4. Added a small garbage can under the counter to toss garbage quickly so it doesn’t pile up – it’s not in the photo but we added it to the left side. Also, the few items on the shelf are now in a labeled bin.



5. Created a routine for incoming papers and items – where each thing goes and what to do with it when it gets there.

It’s working out well so far. We’ve made a few tweaks but overall – success!

Every once in a while I get a certain type of phone call from someone who wants to hire me. The downside is that they want to hire me for someone else. Usually it’s a husband or wife, or maybe for a parent. While it is really tempting to want to hire someone to “fix” a problem – this isn’t always the best solution.

In our profession, the person we help get organized has to be really ready to “be organized.” If they aren’t, it usually just won’t take. And it’s a major struggle for everyone. Think of times when you’ve tried to help someone who maybe didn’t really want your help (a co-worker, a child, a friend) and how disastrous the consequences can be.

If you are considering hiring a Professional Organizer for another person, ask yourself these questions:

• Has this person expressed an interest in having a Professional Organizer come in and help them?
• Is this person motivated to make a change or is it something YOU want?
• Is the situation brought on by a life change such as divorce, death, marriage, a move, birth of a child, etc. or is this a chronic problem?
• What are YOUR expectations for the organizational experience?

If the person is not ready or willing to work with a PO, then it is not a good idea. If it is you , and not them, that wants the change, it is not a good idea. If it is a chronic situation that has resisted help in the past and the person is not interested in changing, it is not a good idea. If you expect the organizer to come in and wave a magic wand to “fix” someone, it is not a good idea.

However, if you want to gift the services of a Professional Organizer, here’s what can make this a terrific idea:

• The recipient has been talking about wanting to make a change and needs a professional or outside opinion. They might have been holding back due to finances, or embarrassment.
• The person is really motivated to make a change for themselves, not to please anyone else, and needs someone to help get them on their way.
• The person has had a life change that has caused a formerly organized person to become temporarily disorganized, or they are entering a new phase of their life where they need some assistance getting situated.
• You are gifting the services with no strings or expectations – just because you know the person would really appreciate and welcome the gift.

Two recent examples:

I was hired as a birthday gift for a client by her husband. Of course, the first question I asked was, “Does she want and need my help?” and the second was, “Is she on board with this?” Apparently she had been talking about wanting a PO to help her in her office and other areas for a long time but just hadn’t pulled the trigger. Our sessions have been delightful and productive, and extended beyond the time of the original certificate.

My cousin became pregnant – a first time mom in a city far away from me. My sister and I wanted to do something nice for her but she really didn’t need any more stuff. So I found a wonderful Professional Organizer in her area (turned out she lived only a few miles away from my cousin!) and we gifted my cousin with two hours of organizing services. This was a huge hit as, while my cousin is an organized person, the baby room was a whole new ball game.

Tanya Whitford of Organizing Wonders was my choice. I wanted someone with kids who had experience with new moms. She totally fit the bill and my cousin was delighted to have the help. She was able to point out time savers and tips on arranging the room to make it more functional when the baby was actually in it! This can be an awesome present to a new mom – I mean, how many onesies does one kid need? Here’s the “after” photo of her closet – how cute & functional is this!

So if you are considering hiring a Professional Organizer for someone else, STOP and ask yourself the questions. You’ll be glad you did. Nobody can change another person – they have to make the change themselves. When they are ready – so am I!

1. Have a designated lunch station. Place all kids lunch foods in one spot in the refrigerator and in one spot in the pantry. I like to use bins for this. Lunch boxes, or lunch bags, go here as well, along with any other necessities such as plastic spoons, napkins, water bottles, etc.

   This has two benefits: When you are ready to make lunch, everything is right at your fingertips AND you can easily see if you are low on anything for grocery shopping. Nothing is worse that trying to make lunch at 7AM and you are out of your son’s favorite string cheese.



2. Have a designated homework station where you can supervise and make sure homework is completed. This station should have paper, pencils, calculator or whatever your child needs to get the work done. Placing all of these items in a labeled bin or lap desk is a great way to have all of your materials in one place. Plus it’s portable. For younger children, kitchen’s tend to be the place of choice for homework. Using a cabinet or drawer for supplies is great, or having a small desk or table works as well. For older kids, a desk in their room can be properly supplied.
3. Set up an “out the door” station. This is where backpacks, coats, shoes, etc. go, preferable right by the door. If you drive kids to school, make sure that any science projects, school supplies, extra materials, etc. are already in the car the night before. I don’t recommend this for live animals or perishable materials but you get the idea.

Having everything you need all in one spot is nothing new – simply good basic organizing techniques. You can use this for any area of the home, and for any routine you have. But for kids it works really well, primarily because when stuff is scattered around, it can cause their brains to scatter around as well – and who needs more of that?

Organizing is all about making life easier to manage – and setting up stations in your home to manage school routines can make the difference between having a crazy day or a calm one. The great thing about routines and stations is that when the inevitable crisis occurs – enough is in place that you can deal with it and move on. Think about what your days look like – and find the gaps in your routines. All it may take is some thought, some planning, and some bins!

We’re heading back to school soon, and days can get chaotic. I was teaching a class about back to school organizing recently, and one of the participants said, “but it takes so much time to get organized”. Yeah, it can. But it sure pays off in the end, saving you not only time but money and frustration. So here’s some of my suggestions for back to school that, with a bit of planning, can make your school days a bit easier:

1. First, write down all of the tasks that need to be done daily or weekly that relate to school and/or kids so you can get a full visual of what you are facing. This includes brushing teeth, packing lunches, gymnastics class, etc.
2. Determine the best time of each day to accomplish each task, and create a schedule/routine. For example, if evenings are a scramble, then put homework and making lunches in the after school routine.
3. Have a family calender to track all of the activities you and your kids are involved in – and post it in a place where all can see.
4. Post tasks, and the responsible party, along with when they need to be accomplished. For example, a laminated check sheet that says “MORNING ROUTINE” with all of the tasks for each child. These are easy to make, or you can check out www.listplanit.com for some great lists of all sorts!
5. Schedule your tasks so you are not scrambling at your less than ideal time of the day. For example, I’m not a morning person, so I make sure my daughter’s homework is checked, her backpack is packed and waiting by the door, and her lunch is made and in the fridge the night before so I can get some coffee and read the paper in the morning.
6. Set tasks for the kids and give them responsibilities appropriate for their age level.
7. Follow through with your jobs and with the jobs that are the responsibilities of the kids. AND, follow through with consequences if kids do not do their jobs.

Consistency is key – if you let the kids slide on their jobs – those jobs will become yours!