The Moreganizer

What is Keeping You From Your Goals?

2011-02-06T18:05:00.000-08:00

I have been in an academic competition this week. I was required to consider approximately 40 questions and have a response. One of them in particular got my wheels turning because it connected so well with the clients that I help. The question? "What is your definition of success and give a recipe for it."

Some people would say that success is making a lot of money, having a good job or driving a fancy car. I don't think success is linked to material things at all. In fact, a lot of people have great jobs and drive fancy cars and even make a lot of money but they are not successful.

Success is when you achieve the measurable goal that you set for yourself.

I say "measurable" because if you have some generic goal, such as "I want to earn a lot of money", you will never really know when you get there. If you say, "I want to be earning $100,000 per year or more by the end of next year", you can tell on December 31, 2012 if you are indeed earning $100,000. You were either successful or not.

My recipe is as follows:

1. Set a measurable goal for yourself.

2. Evaluate yourself (I like to do it daily, but at least do it weekly) to see if the things that you are doing are bringing yourself closer to your goal or hindering you from getting there.

3. Make yourself stick to it when (NOT "if") obstacles come your way.

As it looks for my clients, it might go something like this:

1. I want to get this desk clean and organized by the end of next week.

2. When you evaluate yourself daily, ask yourself, "Is my watching 4 hours of television after dinner helping me to reach this goal or keeping me from working on it?"

3. When your friends call and want you to go to the movies on the night that you planned to get your files purged, just take a rain check and stick to your plan.

Set small goals for yourself to build your confidence and find ways to reward yourself. A good example would be something like this:

"I will clean out my junk drawer before I go to bed tonight."

Each time your T.V. show goes to commercial, work on the drawer. Your reward is getting to watch T.V. but you must still work towards the goal. It is a small goal and when you are successful, you will enjoy the great feeling that goes with accomplishment instead of the guilt that comes from the feeling of wasting time and getting nothing done.

Need help with setting and reaching your goals? Let's make a plan for you! Call me today and we will get started on a road map that will be easy for YOU to follow. 770.510.3050

Moreganizers: Taking Care of the Sick

2010-12-08T06:30:00.000-08:00

A few months ago, one of my regular clients hired me to do some organizing for a friend of hers. This woman had 2 small children and a chronically ill husband who is disabled and very sick. The came thisclose to losing their house before it was foreclosed on. They sold it and downsized to a very small rental. She was having trouble with unpacking while trying to take care of his needs, manage his meds and shuffling the kids to and fro. She needed us and we were so touched by their plight, we decided to donate 4 more hours of time to them.
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When we got there, our client told us how important it was to her husband's health to have some order in the house. Since the bathroom was one of his main areas, we decided to tackle it along with some shower curtains that needed to be hung in this older house. Here are the before and after pics:
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Bathroom Before:

Same space after:

Shower before:
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Shower after:

No, this bathroom didn't take us 4 hours. It only took 2. We spent the other 2 hours on the bedroom, attic and kitchen. We are grateful for the opportunity that we had to serve this family! If you could use the same kind of help with your project, we'd love to hear from you! Give us a call today at 770-510-3050

What can be done in an hour?

2010-12-06T18:18:00.000-08:00

I gave a presentation this morning about my organizing business. After I had finished, an audience member came up to speak with me. She inquired about hiring me to do some basement clean up of her late fathers things. I gave her my standard rate of $130 for 4 hours. She said, "What can you do in 4 hours?" Well, let me show you what I did in 1 hour last month for a client:
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Office Area Before.

Office Area After (wish you could see the cleaned up desk & files!).

Sitting Area Before

Sitting Area After

In the 4 hours that my associate and I worked at this house, we did this room, purged 8 years worth of files, took boxes up to the attic and did an entire wall bookshelf. You would be amazed at what can be accomplished in 4 hours. Let me show you how we can make a huge dent in your project. Call me today to set up your appointment: 770.510.3050

Seeking Solutions

2010-07-06T12:51:00.000-07:00

Hoarding is a psychological disorder that sparks a need to acquire and keep things - even when those things are unecessary, unsanitary, dangerous and even utterly worthless. Keeping these objects becomes more important to the hoarder than safety, an orderly life, and even their relationships. It is something that should be treated by a qualified therapist for the compulsive/obsessive portion.

When it comes time for the hoarder to start to take real action, they usually need a compassionate helper to slowly talk them through evaluating their need for the things that they might want to keep. If they aren't allowed to go at their own pace, they will surely be beack in the same boat only months down the road. Each item represents something to the hoarder and, oftentimes, a real solution needs to be found.

I once had a hoarder who hired me to help her because her daughter suffered from allergies and was not ever able to have friends over to play because the condition of the house was so bad. The first box we opened that was blocking the front door from opening all the way was full of old sawdust-stuffed animals that were moldy and very dangerous. She didn't want to part with them because they were won for her by her husband during their courtship. However, she knew that they were absolutely unhealthy for her daughter. She was torn.

After I saw how attached she was to the memories of them, I proposed a compromise: I took a photo of her husband with all of the stuffed animals that he had won for her with my digital camera. We had a print made and then tossed the animals. She still had the memories but not the danger.

When I work with hoarders, I try to always respect their space, their things and their memories. I work to find solutions to the problems that keep hoarders from living in freedom from their compulsions. If you know of a hoarder who could benefit from this type of compassionate care, please have them call me at 770-510-3050. I work in Roswell, Kennesaw, Marietta, Acworth, Smyrna and Atlanta, Georgia. Call me today and let's find real solutions!

Becoming Organized: Increments!

2010-05-30T12:33:00.000-07:00

A common topic that comes up when speaking with clients is that they don't feel like they have the time that it takes to become organized. The reason that they believe this is because they look at the big organizational picture - how long it would take to organize absolutely everything - and they know that there is no chunk of time that big in the foreseeable future. They are absolutely right!
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Even if they had that time, they still would not be able to tackle everything at once because it is mentally draining and physically taxing. Take, for example, a recent client of mine who was a hoarder. He said that the problem began because he was at work so often that when he came home, he was too tired or had too many family commitments to deal with the mess. Then, he was laid off from work for a year. In that year, the problem didn't get better at all - it got much worse! To relieve his stress, he would accumulate more things. Then, he would feel more stressed about the way his house looked and the feeling that he wouldn't even know where to begin. This just became a cycle and very soon, there were serious problems with his marriage.
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This is an extreme case to illustrate a basic point - the lack of time isn't the problem. It's the thought of doing everything at once that keeps people from doing anything at all. I am here to tell you that it all starts with doing one thing. Here is what I recommend to my clients about how to get started:
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Use a timer! An egg timer or one on your microwave or watch... it doesn't matter. Just use something with an alarm.
Choose an area that has been bothering you the most. It could be where you put your mail, the junk drawer in the kitchen or the entryway into your home that is the first place that you and everyone else will see when entering your home.
Get a trashcan for garbage, a box to put things that go somewhere else and a box for things that you would like to donate. Many people don't get rid of things that they don't need because they don't want to throw them away. Donating them helps you to know that someone will be making good use of your item, you are helping a charity and you can get a tax write-off in most cases.
Set the timer for a small increment of time, either 15 or 30 minutes.
Get to work! Start in one corner (of the drawer, closet, desk...wherever) and work your way to the opposite end. Toss trash and move anything else that doesn't belong there to the "relocate" or "donate" boxes. When the timer goes off, your chore is over.

The next time that you have 15 minutes, put the things in the "relocate" box away and when the "donate" box is full, drop it off at your charity (many offer free pick-up). I recommend that you keep these boxes handy so that you are ready for purging at any time.

To make this a habit, tell yourself that you have to do at least 15 minutes before you can watch TV or surf the web. Another variation of this is to work on an area during the commercials while watching your favorite TV shows. You can, on average, 8 minutes per 30 minute show or 16 minutes per hour long show. You do have time, you just need to take baby-steps towards a clutter-free home.

If you would like more information on organizing your home and your life, please give me a call. I work in the north metro Atlanta area (Marietta, Acworth, Woodstock, Kennesaw) and I would love to help you get started on your journey to an organized life. Please call me today at 770.510.3050 and let's make a plan!

Organizing Your Vacation

2010-05-26T13:37:00.000-07:00

Vacations should be relaxing, but very frequently are not. It's not because you don't have a wonderful destination or that you can't have fun on a limited budget. It's usually because one person is making all of the arrangements and fixing the unexpected problems that cause you to deviate from the budget. Here are some easy tips that you can use to organize your vacation:

Start with a small notebook. When you book hotel rooms or make reservations for dinner, write your contact information and confirmation numbers. This way, you'll have all of the information that you need with you.
In the same notebook, record the names and addresses of people that you might want to send postcards to. I also like to paperclip a book of stamps to that page so you don't waste your time looking for them by the beach.
Don't pack for others, but do give them a generic list of what they should pack. If you create a simple document, you can print several copies and hand them out to everyone. Add a check box so that when they put the items in the suitcase, they can check them off. This way, nobody forgets to pack a toothbrush or clean underwear. Keep the lists with you so when it's time to come home, you can go back over the lists to make sure nothing is being left behind.
Contact the newspaper to suspend delivery until you return.
If you'll be gone for more than a few days, request that your mail be held until you return.
A few days before you leave, review your vacation calendar to see what you're doing. Then, think about what items you'll need for that day. Going to the beach that day? Be sure to pack sunscreen, towels and flip-flops. Going hiking the next day? Don't forget bug spray, a camera and hiking shoes. If you think about the activities of each day and what you'll need, it will help you to not forget to pack things and force you to buy them at the expensive tourist traps where you're going.
Charge your cellphones and other electronics the night before you leave. Charge them in a very prominent place so that you don't forget to take them with you.

By following these guidelines, you can devote your vacation time to relaxation and memory-making instead of problem solving and finger-pointing. Have fun!

Seeking Peace

2010-04-30T08:01:00.000-07:00

I have never received a call from a new client who felt a sense of peace in their life. The reason that people call a professional organizer like me is because the chaos in their lives have overwhelmed them. Not always, but quite often, they are at the stage of depression over the way that things that have seemed to just "get away" from them. They always have the very best intentions, but just don't know where to start.
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I always tell them the same thing:
YOU JUST STARTED!
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When you make the decision to take action and make the call, you have just taken control of that thing that has been controlling you. It might be a disorganzied office, a non-existent filing system or a house that has been overtaken by hoarding. It doesn't really matter - you have now taken the first step in being master of your domain! People who make the call follow through and see their project to the end. And do you know what's at the end?
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Peace.

The Closet Organizer

2010-03-30T07:22:00.000-07:00

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This skit from Saturday Night Live made me giggle! When I do closets, this is NOT how I roll...

Relationship Clutter

2009-07-27T06:32:00.000-07:00

Can it really happen? Can you have relationship clutter? The answer is "YES!"

It happens to our cars, our closets, our drawers, our calendars and, in fact, our relationships! We tend to keep mental notes of things in our relationships like little brain Post-Its. We keep notes of perceived wrongs, missed anniversaries, unacknowledged gifts, and so much more. These mental notes can start to obscure our thinking and keep us from realizing why we are in relationships to begin with.

Find out if you might have a "cluttered" relationship by taking this free online quiz. Assess your results and get busy trashing those little notes that are taking up precious memory in your emotional hard drive. You're relationship will improve and you will reap the benefits for years to come.

Organize Your Time With Google

2009-05-27T01:38:00.000-07:00

I'm a HUGE fan of Google. I love their search engine, I love their free e-mail with amazing organizational tools. I love their IM feature which requires no downloads. I love their free document sharing tool. But of all the things that Google has, I must say that I love their calendar the best. Here's why:

You can share it! I am designing a calendar with my kids to keep up with their schedules. We can all log in and see our shared calendar from anywhere. We can all make changes but if I didn't want to give them that power, I could restrict them to view only!
You can give different categories a different color. For example, all of my daughter's activities might be in red, my son's might be green, etc,.
You can also sign up to get things like TV Guide or local concert calendars added onto yours.
You can have a daily agenda e-mailed to you while you sleep so that you have it waiting for you when you wake up.
Sign up for mobile access!
Sign up for all sorts of reminders!
It is totally compatible with Outlook so you can import/export from other calendars.

I love this free tool and it really helps save me time, money and headaches! I allow all of my family access to all or only certain parts of my calendar. (my kids only see their portion on my calendar while my partner can see all of it). The e-mail reminders help me get greeting cards in the mail on time and I never forget appointments! Give Google Calendar a try!

Organizing For Charity

2009-05-20T05:44:00.001-07:00

Aside from helping my paying clients, it is my very strong belief that my skills are also for the community that I live in. For that reason, I enjoy donating my skills and my time as a volunteer. Below are some of the organizations that I donate my time and skills to. Please click on the icons to go to their sites and learn about them.

1. HRC - Because I believe in eqality for everyone.

2. Chris Kids - Because I believe all kids should have a safe place to live where they can learn the living skills that they might not otherwise have an opportunity to gain.

3. Atlanta YouthPride - Because I believe all kids should feel proud of who they are and have a place where that is celebrated.

4. PFLAG - Because I envision a world where parents, friends and families can advocate for their loved ones.

How To: Organize Your Pantry

2009-05-14T07:10:00.001-07:00

It's a place that can get cluttered very quickly and cause you to spend money on food that you already have because you can't see what's there. Here is a quick "how to" guide to help you organize that pantry:

Empty the entire pantry
Clean all of the shelves and sweep the floor so
Group the items that you removed into categories that make sense to you. Put canned goods in one area, boxes in another, etc,. Then, as you see the groups as a whole, decide the space for those items. Put items that you use less frequently on high shelves. Put kid-friendly foods (snacks, etc,.) on lower shelves. You can also break items into sub-groups. For example, in your canned area, make a row for fruit, a row for beans, a row for green veggies, etc,.
If you have a variety of boxes, think about containers you can empty them into. For example, have a large plastic bin for all snacks to be in. When you buy them, put them into the snack container and toss the box.
Donate any foods that you haven't used in a year or more.
Use the floor space for heavy or bulky items such as cases of soft drinks or paper towel 12 packs.

For more info on organizing or if you don't want to do it yourself, give me a call and let me take care of it for you! 770.510.3050

The Grocery Game

2009-04-20T05:28:00.000-07:00

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A few months back, I wrote an article on organizing coupons. It is a true statement to say that being organized saves you time and money. And who couldn't use more of both?

I recently came across a wonderful resource to help with that. It's called The Grocery Game and it is an online service that helps you pair your coupons with local grocery store sales to get the most "bang for your buck". You choose the stores that you shop in and each week, you can look them up to see the best deals. Every week, there are usually items that end up being free because the store is having a sale and if you have the coupons, they can be doubled to make the item absolutely free.

If you still need help getting started, I can make a coupon caddy for you for $25 that includes your first set of coupons (in order of expiring the soonest) and teach you how to maintain it.

The Grocery Game also offers a $1.00 trial for the first month so you can see if it might be a fit for your lifestyle. If you have any question about organizing coupons or any of my services, please call me at 770.510.3050.

Make Your Own Cleaners

2009-04-13T15:14:00.000-07:00

When money is tight and store-bought cleaners are full of toxins and environmentally damaging chemicals, a good alternative is to make your own. Here are a few recipes to get you started:

If your home could use some T.L.C. and a good scrubbing, give me a call at 770.510.3050 and let me take care of that mess for you!

Improve Your Health. Organize!

2009-03-25T11:55:00.000-07:00

It IS a mental health issue....

Having disorder and chaos in your life can affect your health! The more time I spend with clients, the more I am convinced that the world would have a lot less stress and stress-related health ailments if people just learned to order their lives. Like anything else, it's a life skill and very few of us are taught it in school or at home.

I found this great video at Healthology.com's website on this very topic.

If bringing order to your home and health back into your life sound appealing to you, please call me to day and let's create a plan together. 770.510.3050

De-Cluttering Reveals Treasure!

2009-03-19T09:11:00.000-07:00

Just this week, I had an opportunity to witness 2 different clients find things that they had been looking for and had given up on as lost. They both were closet jobs - reorganizing master closets. The joy and excitement of finding those things was fun to witness and a good reminder that not being organized costs us in many ways.

When I finished at my last clients house, I took a load of things that she was donating. I made an inventory list so that she could use it for tax deductions. As I was going through her things, I found a wallet in the pocket of her robe. This was a cute little Spiderman wallet that belonged to her son. It was full of money and could buy a nice toy or two. It would have never been missed!

Do you have a room that can host a good treasure hunt? If so, call me and we'll see what we can find for you. 770.510.3050

This Shirt Cracked Me Up

2009-02-06T06:11:00.000-08:00

Quote of the Week

2009-02-04T05:59:00.000-08:00

You must not for one instant give up the effort to build new lives for yourselves.

—Daisaku Ikeda

Organized Shopping: An Economic Necessity

2009-02-03T05:27:00.000-08:00

Our economy is slowing down. Just yesterday, my best friend received a notice at work that her entire company (a global manufacturer) was slashing salaries across the board. Those receiving pay cuts are feeling lucky that they didn't get laid off.

In these lean economic times, we need to learn some basic dollar-stretching skills. These skills call for some basic, simple organization and today, I want to outline a strategy for you to follow so that you can make your money go further.

I live and work in the Atlanta area so my tips are based here, but this article will be useful and adaptable nearly everywhere.

Here is my grocery saving system:

I buy a Sunday newspaper in a 2-pack bundle. In Atlanta, you can buy the early and late editions of the Sunday paper for .50 more than just 1 of the papers. By doing so, I get twice the coupons.
I clip and file the coupons in my coupon caddy. For more info on making your own coupon caddy, CLICK HERE.
I go through the sale flyers of local grocery & drug stores. I write down what each store's great deals are.
I look in my pantry, refrigerator and freezer and see what meals I can make with what I have and with what is on sale and I create a menu for the week.
I go through my coupons and find coupons for the items on sale (to even further increase my savings) and for the items that I need. Many times, I get the store to pay me to take the items.
Armed with my list and coupons, I hit the stores. I get what is on my list and leave. I try to stick to the "perimeter" of the store where all of the fresh and less processed foods are. I also try to buy plenty of produce - fruits and veggies are always excellent, inexpensive and healthful additions to any meals.

On a side note, check with your local grocery stores to see what other deals they offer such as senior discounts, double coupons, etc,. One of my grocery stores also sells gas. When I use my frequent shopper card to buy groceries, it helps me to earn deep discounts on gas fill-ups for my car.

Another tip to remember: look at the coupons in sale flyers. If it says "Store Coupon", you can usually combine it with a manufacturer coupon and those are the best deals of all. Last week, I used a store coupon combined with a manufacturer coupon to get the store to pay me $1.50 to take the item.

For more information about saving money by being organized, give me a call at 770.510.3050 and we'll talk about how we can set you up for success!

Paper, Paper Everywhere!

2009-01-27T13:33:00.000-08:00

Just yesteday, a dear woman asked me a very common question that I felt would be good to share. I am asked this nearly each time that I am helping someone organize paper. The question is this:

How long do I keep this?

It's a good question because there isn't a standard answer that fits all paperwork. But there are some basic rules of thumb to follow that should serve as a guide to help you when it comes time to cull your paperwork. Remember, when in doubt, don't throw it out! (until you find your answer).

1. Bank Statements, Check Stubs, Tax Returns, W-2's and other paperwork that you would need for tax reasons:

7 Years

2. Bill Stubs:

2 years

3. Birth Certificates, Marriage Licenses, Legal Forms, etc,. :

They should never be discarded but kept in a very safe place, such as a safe deposit box or a firesafe.

4. Warranty Info, Owners Manuals, Product Instructions:

Keep the manuals/instructions as long as you still own the items. Toss the warranties after they have expired. If you decide to sell any of the items later on, their value goes up if they include the original paperwork.

It's a good idea to go through your files annually to see what things can be put through the shredder to make room for the new things in your file cabinet. Be sure that all documents with any personal information gets shredded to avoid identity theft and to protect your privacy.

A Quote~

2009-01-19T15:52:00.000-08:00

Life is really simple; but we
insist on making it complicated.

~Confucious

Workshop It

2009-01-14T09:14:00.000-08:00

Several years ago, I was at a homeschooling curriculum fair which offered various workshops for parents educating their children at home. One workshop in particular was a very big encouragement to me. Although I do not recall who the speaker was or even the topic of the workshop, I do remember one very clear message:

Whatever you want to be a pro at, treat yourself like one!

This applied to me as a home educator in that if I wanted to be a professional educator of my children, I needed to treat myself like one. I needed to learn to be one, act like one, have the tools of my trade and continue to educate myself as if I were a professional teacher.

In the years since that workshop, I have come to realize that this principle can apply in other areas of life as well. And because of this, someone who desires to be more organized should treat themselves as a professional organizer of their lives. This means that they should have good tools to get and stay organized, to read and learn about ways to do this and to apply what they have learned to become what they want to be.

One way that I do this is to actively seek out and attend various workshops. I not only give my own, but I attend others. I enjoy listening to people who have wisdom and insight teach what they have gleaned. I rarely retain everything that I learn but I almost always keep something that I learned to make a change for the better - either in my business or in my personal life.

Where can you find these workshops?

Join civic, religious, business or corporate groups that have regular meetings. They often feature a speaker for a fixed time during their meetings. I just found THIS ONE today that will be held at Ikea in Atlanta. I am marking my calendar and plan to attend if possible. Make a resolution to continue to educate yourself in 2009!

Organizing Your Desk

2009-01-08T05:14:00.000-08:00

FlyLady: An Organizational Fairy

2008-12-17T10:42:00.000-08:00

If I heard it once, I've heard it a hundred times:

"I need to organize but I can't start that until my house is clean."

Although you can really do both at once, some people really have to do things in a certain order. And those people sometimes get stuck on the "where do I begin?" part.

This is why I want to introduce you to www.FlyLady.net - an absolute tool of tools for your domestic needs.

This website is somewhat of an underground culture. The people who go to FlyLady are truly inspired and excited by the freedom that they've found in doing things in small increments.

FlyLady will even e-mail you reminders throughout the day to help you stay focused on the tasks at hand. You are encouraged to use a timer to keep you from doing more than 15 minutes worth of work at a time... a feature well liked by all!

FlyLady teaches you to work smarter, not harder. She tells you where to start and what to do. She introduces you to excellent resources and new friends who will support your drive to become more organized and clean.

Go check her out and let me know what you think!

K's Kitchen

2008-12-10T03:49:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I spent the day with a delightful young mother. I'll call her "K" and she hired me to help her get the kitchen organized. She, like many clients, has a young child and a busy life. She is a mother, wife, and student. She moved into a new house a little while back and just didn't get everything quite the way she wanted. She just needed a starting point. We got it done in a day and, thanks to her mad conversation skillz and fun personality, we had a great time doing it.

Here are the before/after pics:

Food Pantry Before: Food Pantry After:

Kitchen Closet Before:

Kitchen Closet After:
The "Baking Cabinet" Before:

The "Baking Cabinet" After:
Other Shots of "After":

I asked "K" to share her experience with the blogoshpere. Here is what she had to say:

"Wow, my kitchen looks so much more spacious now that the clutter is cleared. I now have a clean and clear foundation to start on to make my house a home. Shannon was an absolute pleasure to work with... would highly recommend her"

As usual, I love this job because I get to work with the best people! If I can help you with your organizing project, please give me a call at 770.510.3050!

Online Christmas Wish Lists

2008-12-01T11:21:00.000-08:00

My friends are spread out all over the country. Although the majority live in Georgia, I have friends in Virginia, Texas, Wisconsin, Maryland and California. Although we don't live near each other, we communicate weekly via e-mail or a social networking site like Facebook or MySpace.

Over the last few years, I have come to appreciate the wonders of the Internet not only for that communication, but also for the cool tools that the 'net offers. This time of year, my favorite is online wish lists!

I have 2 favorites:

KeepandShare.com has THIS online wish list that you can customize for you, your children or anyone else. Create your own look for it and then choose to keep it private for only a few people or make it public for all of your secret admirers to use.

AND....

Create your own wish list at Amazon.com by CLICKING HERE. Your friends and family all over the world can not only know what you want, but they can place an order and the item on your wish list will automatically be removed so there will be no duplicate gifts!

Attic: Sad & Neglected

2008-11-20T08:46:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, I got a call from a client who told me that she had a problem with her attic - it was in utter chaos and she needed to bring some order because she had a baby on the way. I told her that I felt like we could do it in a day and she was doubtful. But we scheduled a Monday and when I got there, we went to work. Here are some pics:

The attic was spacious but not orderly:

A cooler with a bed and empty golf bag? I don't think so.
Here is the corner "BEFORE"

And the same corner "AFTER"

One thing about my client that she loved to keep were the boxes that her items came in. If you move more than once every two years, go ahead and save them for packing purposes. If not, you don't need them! You can always get free boxes. Just look at what I drove to the recycling center (and you can't even see what's in the front of the car):

If your attic could use a good purging, give me a call today at 770.510.3050 and we'll tackle it in a day - just like this attic!

Organized Christmas

2008-11-17T15:41:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite websites for organizing is www.OrganizedHome.com. I was visiting the site today and they had so much there about Christmas, they've started a new sister site called www.OrganizedChristmas.com complete with a hoilday countdown/planner, printables and the most adorable Christmas Card list organizer HERE.

Take a minute to swing by and get inspired!

Oprah Gets on Board

2008-11-13T10:23:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, Oprah Winfrey and organizer Peter Walsh kicked off their "Clean Up Your Messy Home" campaign. They will be traveling around the country between now and May 2009 to help teach people how to clean up and organize their homes.

Keeping it simple is the key and this new program sticks to it by offering these suggestions:

Define your vision for your life and space. "Here's the deal. The vision—what is it that you want from your space? I want peace. I want focus. I want a place where my family can gather," Peter says. "That then has to be the criteria for deciding whether something stays or goes. [Ask yourself,] 'Does this item help me create that vision?' If it does, keep it. If not, it doesn't belong in your home."

Commit to 10 minutes a day. Start small and start today with the Trash Bag Tango. "Everyone in the house gets two trash bags. Fill one with trash and one with stuff that's going to [charity] or garage sale. ... Do that for 10 minutes a day," he says. "It doesn't matter how big or how small the bag is, it's just small steps."

One of my own tips: Take that stuff to a consignment store! Don't wait for a garage sale that may never come - take it to be sold today. At least you are getting it out of the house!

Save Money: Organize Coupons

2008-11-10T04:40:00.000-08:00

Many of my posts are inspired by talking to my clients and listening to their needs. It's interesting to hear so many people express the same desires for changes in their lives and today's post reflects what I hear:

"I want to use coupons but I don't think I could keep up with them and it would be too much work."
It's NOT! The small investment of time that you would spend in preparing a coupon filing system will pay for itself many times over as you use the coupons each time you shop. In fact, these organizers make excellent gifts so if you make one for yourself, consider making a second one for a friend. Here is how I do it:
1. Buy a small (5-8" long) accordion style file wallet. You can find the biggest selection at office supply stores.
2. Label the various tabs according to the types of things that you buy. Here is a list of my categories - you can use these as a basis to create your own:
-Toiletries (soap, medicine)
-Canned Goods/Meats
-Sauces/Spreads
-Cereals/Breakfast Items
-Cleaning/Household (cleaners, detergents, batteries, air fresheners)
-Baking/Dairy
-Drinks/Snacks
-Frozen
-Paper/Plastic
-Staples (bread, rice, eggs, pasta)
3. Put coupons into each category with the soonest expiration date at the front of the file and the latest expiration dates in the back. Each time you get a new coupon, you just find it's category and put it with other like expiration dates. That way, you can always see what is about to expire and use those coupons first.
A few tips:
In Atlanta, both morning and evening editions of the Sunday paper can be found sold together for .50 more than a single edition alone costs and contains twice as many coupons. It's worth the 2 extra quarters to get both issues.
Look at the sale flyers for grocery and drug stores. Most stores have their own coupons in their flyers (store coupons) that can be combines with manufacturer coupons. Walgreens drugstore has the best, in my opinion.
Find out what's on sale and look to see if you have a coupon. Stock up!
Go to coupon websites for free printable coupons. Here are a few good ones:
http://printable-coupons.blogspot.com/
http://www.couponsurfer.com/
http://www.couponmom.com/
Despite the simplicity of this system, many people don't want to tackle it. If you would like to order your own custom made coupon caddy, give me a call today at 770.510.3050 and I'll take care of everything!

Free Printables

2008-11-08T08:06:00.000-08:00

I appreciate a good deal as much as anyone, but no deal is as good as a FREE deal. I want to start featuring websites where my blog readers can get free help. Today, I wanted to share a link to a site that will save you a lot of time and money. It's called Printfree.com and it is a treasure trove of printables.

Here is a sample of what you can print at their site:

Let me know how much you love this site!

Organizing Computer Files

2008-11-05T07:47:00.000-08:00

When people think of a professional organizer, the first thought that generally enters the mind is a person who is gutting an overstuffed closet and purging those polyester leisure suits and macrame pot holders. That really is an accurate description of one aspect of my job. However, there are so many others! The one that I wanted to cover today is computers!

Computers?

Yes! Computers! They can be just as disorganized as a closet, garage or pantry. You file things in odd places or let your computer assign a temporary folder and then, you can never find it again. You need to learn to create file systems for your computer as much as you would need one for your bills, tax returns or other personal records. This is one of the many services that I offer.

If you are more of a do-it-yourselfer and would like to tackle the task of organizing your computer, visit this helpful site to learn more about how to clean it up and keep it organized. If you'd rather have your thumbnails pulled out one at a time than tackle it yourself, give me a call and let me do it for you! 770-510-3050.

Donate or Sell?

2008-10-29T05:18:00.000-07:00

When I am helping a client organize a space, we make 4 bins:

1. To move to it's home
2. Trash
3. Return to this space that we are organizing because it belongs here

and

4. Donate/Sell

Today, I want to talk about whether to donate or sell items.

Usually by the time a client calls me, they have moved beyond the point of wanting to sell their unwanted items. They've been looking at them and it has become an eyesore and a monument to their procrastination. 99% of the time, they just want for it to be gone. That is an easy solution because I just add those items to my plastic bins and cart them off to find homes such as Goodwill, foster and group homes, homeless shelters, etc,.

The small percentage of people who want to sell their unwanted items need my help, too. I instruct them to get containers to hold the sale items. We also get a dark marker and some stickers or tags and price the items as they go into the bins. After all, we are already handling them once so we might as well go ahead and price them for sale. When all is said and done, they have a ready-to-go garage sale. All they need to do is place and ad and put up signs.

Save time and only handle your things once! You'll be less stressed and you can do other things with the time that you saved from having to go through your items more than once.

The "Fun" of Cleaning Closets

2008-10-25T05:59:00.000-07:00

I was helping a client clean out her closets last week and we had so much fun. I asked her to share a story about a trophy that she came across with you blog visitors. I hope you'll enjoy the video and that it reminds you how fun going through a closet can be!

Yes, this kind of fun can be yours! Let's gut your closets today! Give me a call at 770.510.3050 and we'll get started uncovering your funny memories.

Organizing Your Money

2008-10-24T04:20:00.000-07:00

What?

Yep, it needs to be organized, too.

Why?

So you'll know how much you have, what you've been spending it on and how much you'll need to save to reach your financial goals.

Many people have heard the word "budget" but have no idea how to implement one. I can show you a simple formula to come up with a budget that works for you, no matter how much you bring home. You will learn to livin within your means and put some aside for a rainy day.

Give me a call today and let's get started on organizing your wallet! 770.510.3050

"Green" Organizing

2008-10-22T09:14:00.000-07:00

(a typical space that I organize - this was from 10/08)

When I first began my career as a professional organizer, I saw a huge potential problem for the environment: junk! Not just junk, either. But also trash bags, toxic chemicals, and construction waste.

I decided then that I would try to be as "green" as possible when helping my clients. The results are what I am the proudest of: less trash ends up in landfills, more castoffs end up in the hands of people who need and want them and my clients have a clean, organized, streamlined space.

Here are just some of the ways I work to keep Moreganizers green:

I use plastic bins instead of garbage bags to transport donated goods to charity.

I encourage my clients to recycle. Instead of throwing away old newspapers and magazines, I take them to be recycled. Often, I can recycle them in a place that will benefit an organization such as PTA or a scouting troop.

I stress charity donations instead of trash bins. I take the items to places like Goodwill, ministries and foster homes where they can be put to good use. When available, I will give my clients an itemized list with a receipt from the charity for their tax records.

When we must use bags, I try to re-use grocery store bags or use paper bags (instead of plastic).

Sometimes, people think that their broken printer must be tossed. I say, "Nonsense!" There are many people who want them to try to make repairs or use them for parts. Even used mattresses are sought after. There is an entire network of people who will, within minutes, drive to your place and pick up your cast offs. I know how to get these people to come reclaim your junk so you don't have to pay to have it hauled to the dump where it will take up valuable landfill space.

These are just a few of the ways that I try to work hard to keep our beautiful state clean and green! If you'd like help with your mess, call Moreganizers at 770-510-3050 today!

The ABC's of Organizing: Keep it Simple

2008-10-21T06:52:00.000-07:00

Yes! There is a method to the madness of organization and you can do it on your own if you have self-discipline and can honestly answer 3 simple questions:

1. Do I love it?
2. Do I need it?
3. Do I use it? (have you used it within the last year?)

If your answer is "yes" to any of these 3 questions, you can keep it! If your answer is a "no", it's time to let it go.

Tomorrow, I am going to tell you how Moreganizers is a "green" company and what we try to do to reduce, reuse & recyle.

More About Hoarding

2008-10-15T07:33:00.000-07:00

This was a great news story related to my post about hoarding last week.

If you are hoarding to any degree, give me a call and I can not only help you with the clean-up, but also to give you resources to keep yourself from falling back into the same patterns. 770.510.3050

The Psycological Issues With Hoarding

2008-10-10T11:33:00.000-07:00

Often times, I get to see the firsthand effects of people who have a problem with hoarding. They ask for help, but for me to just show up and haul their junk away will remove the junk, but not the problem. I try to make it where they will not need to ever call me again.

When I speak with my clients about why they have saved so many things, I usually get one of two standard answers.

The first answer I get might be something like "I don't want to get rid of these things because they remind me of a time when...." - which basically means they feel sentimental attachments to things very easily.

The second response usually is something along the lines of "I don't want to get rid of the things because I might need them in the future."

The first problem can be overcome by finding ways to allow a person to feel a connection to the item without having to keep it. Granted, there really are things that you should keep, so we always talk about what are the most important items and how can they be incorporated into daily life without going into storage. But usually, on smaller and less sentimental things, we find ways to compromise.

For example, one of my clients wanted to keep stuffed animals. Some were just disgusting, dirty, dusty and she hadn't seen them in years because they were at the bottom of a rats nest box in an outside storage unit. She was reluctant to toss them but knew they were in bad shape. What we decided to do was take photos of them, some with the giver (like her husband, holding a stuffed dog he had won for her at a fair while they were dating). Then, we tossed the stuffed animals out. She had the photos in a nice album but their physical presence was no longer required.

The second reason people give, because they might need something, can usually be dealt with by following a plan of logic. As soon as I group like things together and someone can see that they literally have 38 balls of twine and cannot recall the last time that they had a need for twine, they will usually see why it will be no hardship for them to let go of 37 balls of twine. Especially if that twine makes it into the hands of a charity.

One client I had wanted to save 10 years worth of TV Guides. Yes, old TV Guides. When I asked her why, she said that she had always enjoyed doing crossword puzzles and had not had time to get to them yet. Truth be told, she never would because they were in a box at the bottom of an overstuffed closet. If she did have time, she would certainly not exert the effort to go retrieve a single issue.

Our compromise? We went through each issue and tore out the crossword puzzle page. At the end of it, we tossed a big box of old magazines and she had a neat stack of crossword puzzles that she decided to keep in her nightstand drawer so she could work on them at bedtime.

If you need someone to help walk you through your issues with getting rid of things or help give you creative ideas about how to keep memories without keeping junk, please call me today. We'll talk about what you want and how we can get there. 770.510.3050

Making Money Off Your Me$$es

2008-10-02T08:31:00.000-07:00

One of the problems that some of my clients have is what to do with their unwanted junk. Usually, I take off a percentage of their fee and take the unwanted items for myself to re-sell. But occasionally, people want to resell these themselves.

Sometimes, they opt for consignment stores. But they only take new items in excellent condition. Others opt for online auctions, although the cost of shipping larger items make them difficult to sell and a hassle to send. There is also the concern about the buyer not sending payment as well as listing fees and confusing seller fees.

I think one of the best ways to get rid of unwanted items is to host a yard sale. You can attract plenty of buyers with cash in hand and the competition of other people hoving around ready to snatch items make some people grab the goods and go!

Here are some tips for a successful, profitable yard sale:

1. Clean your items well. If you smoke, wash all fabrics thoroughly to get rid of smoke odors.

2. Price items reasonably! People are looking for a bargain. If you really want to get rid of the stuff, price it at half of it's original cost or less.

3. Set up well... do not put a bunch of things in a box. Use tables or spread items on a cloth on the ground. It's a proven fact that most people will not rummage through a box full of items.

4. Have books priced uniformly. All softcovers should be one price and hardcovers another.

5. Have an outlet handy to be able to demonstrate the working condition of electronics.

6. Advertise! Not only can you place paid ads in your local papers, you can also advertise your sale for FREE on www.Craigslist.com and http://www.garagesalehunter.com/.

7. Signs! Where allowed, use plenty of directional signs. Use bright, sturdy cardboard or heavy paper. Use wide, dark markers so people can see the sign from afar. Keep it simple... day/times and address with an arrow are all that you really need.

If you'd prefer to get rid of your junk with just a simple phone call, I can pick it up and provide you with a receipt from Goodwill. Just give me a call at 770.510.3050

A "Clean" Museum

2008-09-22T08:39:00.000-07:00

Don Aslett, founder and chairman of Varsity Contractors, Inc. (a nationwide facility services provider) and expert cleaner, announced late last year that construction is underway for a 75,000 sq. ft. museum devoted entirely to our efforts over the centuries to clean up after ourselves!

This museum is being built in Pocatello, Idaho, near Idaho State University, which Aslett attended when he started cleaning houses in 1953 to earn his way through college. That little company, called the College Cleanup Team, became Varsity Contractors, which today has 5,000 employees coast to coast plus 3,000 subcontractors, and annual sales of $250 million.

“The theme, purpose, and value of the museum will be to sell the public on the value of ‘clean,’” said Aslett. “I thought, why not a museum of cleaning? What has more impact on mankind than ‘clean?’”

Why not? People naturally thrive in a clean environment. They feel better when they are in a clean and organized space. The billions of dollars that we spend each year on cleaning and organizational products each year attest to that fact.

If you are ready to see a clean and organized space, there's no need to travel to Pocatello, Idaho to this museum. You can be living in it. If you need help getting your space clean, organized or both, give me a call today!

770-510-3050

Time To Organize For the Winter

2008-09-12T06:53:00.000-07:00

Autumn is the time of year that homeowners need to begin to begin to prepare for the winter months. This can take some time so careful planning is the key to a smooth transition. Here are some things to consider:

Bring in the outdoor plants! This is a great time to transition them from outdoors to indoors. It's also a great time to trim them, re-pot and also feed them with a nice 3 month fertilizer. Be sure when you do bring them in, there is something under the pots to catch the water draining from the plants so that they do not ruin carpet or hardwood floors.
Clean patio furniture and cover your grill! If you have a place to move them out of the elements, you should be able to get a few extra seasons out of them.
Have chimneys & flues inspected and cleaned if necessary. Creosote can build up and be a fire hazard in winter months so protect your home now!
Stock up on hardwood fire wood. You can usually get it cheaper now than if you wait until the cold weather arrives. Be sure to stack your wood in a firewood hoop and not against the house where termites and pests can make their homes.
Check seals around doors and windows for air leaks. Having a tightly sealed home will keep your heating costs low and keep your home warm in the winter and cool in the summer.
Wash exterior windows. Soon, it will be too cold to do this so getting it done now will keep you seeing clearly for the duration of cold weather.
Drain and store hoses and cover outdoor spigots with an insulated cover to keep them froom freezing up during the coldest snaps.
Give the hedges a final trim to keep them looking neat throughout the winter.

For more information on winterizing and organizing for the fall & winter months, please give me a call at 770-510-3050.

Tips for Closet Organization

2008-09-04T05:08:00.000-07:00

One of the best places to start organizing is your closets! They store the thiings we use everyday and they are the places that tend to degenerate the fastest because they have doors. We can toss things in, shut the door and have a false sense of order - until the door is opened again.

A disorganized closet can cost us time and energy searching for things. A well-ordered closet can offer several perks:

1. We can see what we have

2. We can see what we need to purchase

3. We can look in a small area for what we need instead of all over the place.

4. We can feel a sense of peace that the orderly closet brings

5. We have guidelines to follow when we are putting things away.

Here are some of my favorite tips for organizing your closet:

1. Use the same type of coathanger for all of your clothes.

2. Order clothes from lightest to darkest

3. Out of season clothes should be stored in plastic bins at the top of the closet

4. Like items together (pants, shirts, coats, dresses)

If you would like an orderly closet or some other space, why not let me do it for you? Give me a call today at 770-510-3050

World's Most Cluttered House

2008-09-02T09:06:00.000-07:00

New Blog!

2008-09-02T07:59:00.000-07:00

Yes, the first post of my new blog! I hope that this blog will be a great resource for people who need more order in their lives.

Please feel free to leave comments and suggestions!

-Shannon