Peace of Mind Organizing

When worlds collide (in a good way)

8 September 2011

I was helping a client clear off the top of the desk in her home office. It was one of those desks where stuff gets added over the years but very little gets subtracted. I love those jobs because it’s kind of a time capsule. And, often, we find fun stuff.

As I was going through the bits of paper and notes, I came across this note, which made me smile:

I’m used to seeing notes with my name on them in my clients’ stuff, because, typically, they’ve written down my name and business name and phone number as they think about hiring a professional organizer.

But this note had my name and the title of my first book! It came out in 2000 and has been out of print for years. My client confessed that she never bought the book, but read a review and thought she might. That just tickled me.

It reminds me of another time when I was helping a client clean out her files and we came across the adoption packet she got when she adopted a dog years before from a rescue group. Nestled among the papers given her by the group was an article I’d written for Family Circle about vaccinations for pets. That made me very happy, particularly since the article advocated less frequent vaccinations, which is one of my passions.

I love my work!

The case against "Fake it 'til you make it"

5 September 2011

I was talking with another professional organizer, Aimee Krummenacher the other day and we were reflecting on how the catch phrase “fake it ‘til you make it” just doesn’t ring true for us.

We agreed that people respond to authenticity. Acting like you have experience or expertise that you don’t have may seem like a good idea when you’re first starting out. But I think it’s stressful. And it doesn’t really benefit anyone.

When you start out in a new field, it can be hard to be confident and recognize your value when you lack experience. I know I felt that conflict when I first started my organizing business, back in 2005. But I also recognized that I was not at my best when I was not being authentic. So I stopped trying to pretend I had more experience than I had and just went with honesty. At the very beginning, my organizing expertise was derived from my own experience or my experience helping friends. And that’s okay.

Of course, as time went on, I didn’t have to worry about faking experience. And certainly I’ve gained expertise through my education and training as well as experience working with clients.

Even now, sometimes I have to remind myself that it’s best to present myself as I am, not as I think people want me to be. That means:

• I let people know I’m messy
• I’m not shy about telling people about my part-time job at the International Institute
• If I backslide on habits, I admit it
• I tell folks how much I benefit from the help of other professional organizers
• I admit that sometimes I don’t always follow my own advice.

I’m honest with clients in person and I feel free to chronicle my foibles here on my blog.

For me, there’s nothing worse then being inauthentic. If I’m presenting myself authentically a potential client may discover that I’m not the best organizer for her (or him). And that’s perfectly okay. It’s much better than their feeling deceived!

Very excited: My new habits + routines workshop for Simplify 101

31 August 2011

I can barely contain my excitement: I can finally announce that I’ll be teaching a fun online workshop for Simplify 101 called Simplify Your Life with Habits + Routines! The workshop will be offered October 4 through November 1. You can sign up now and get early-bird pricing through September 8.

Simplify 101 is owned and run by the dynamic duo of Aby and Jay Garvey. In case you’re not one of Aby’s bazillion fans, I’ll tell you that they’ve been running these tremendous online workshops for several years now. The workshops consist of lessons, released weekly during the course of the workshop, as well as access to online forums where you can interact with classmates from around the world, as well as with the instructor. The lessons are offered in written as well as audio form.

I’m here to tell you that quality control is high. Aby and I have been working together for months on the lessons. (I wrote them with fabulous input from Aby.) I had the pleasure of recording all the lessons at their in-office studio (it really was kind of fun), earlier this month. And I’m very excited to participate in the forums with the students in October.

I’m also excited about the topic. If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you know that I’m all about habits and routines. They’ve made my life easier. (And I crave ease.) In this three-lesson workshop, I’ll be helping students identify good habits they already have, ones they’d like to create, and linking habits together to form simple routines. I’ll also be helping students let go of habits that are less desirable.

I’m extremely flattered because I’m the first guest instructor for a Simplify 101 workshop. In other words, I’m the first non-Aby instructor. I appreciate the faith that Aby, who’s a good friend of mine, has placed in me.

Hop on over to Aby’s website to learn more.

P.S. While you’re over there, be sure to check out Aby’s blog, Creative Organizing, which was voted Best Organizing Blog in 2010. You’ll see why.

Balance: $0.00

24 August 2011

When I started Peace of Mind Organizing in 2005, I wasn’t afraid of investing in it. Organizing is a fairly low-overhead business, but I was interested in getting lots of training and benefitting from attending educational conferences with my peers. A look at my credentials page can give you an idea of how I spent money on my business and professional development.

Trouble was, I didn’t really have the money to spend. So I accumulated credit card debt. Over the years, I ended up with three business credit cards. Once I stopped investing so heavily in the business, it was time to set my sights to paying off that debt.

I’ll never forget when my wise friend, Shannon Wilkinson advised me at the beginning of 2010 that the best way I could invest in my business (at that point in my business’s development) was to not spend money, but rather apply it to the credit card bills. That really resonated with me.

So I went to Bankrate.com and I used their credit-card debt calculator to come up with a schedule for paying off my credit cards by September 2011. I started by paying off the card with the highest interest rate first. I knew exactly how much I had to pay to each credit card each month, on top of whatever I’d put on a card that month. According to the plan, I would pay off the card with the highest interest rate first, then the next and so on.

And, glory be, I was able to stick to the schedule! I even finished a little ahead of schedule. Last week, I paid off the third (and last) credit card. It’s an indescribable feeling of achievement and relief for me.

Now that I’ve paid off the cards, the next step is to accrue some savings.

I’ve had emotional money issues all my life, so this feels nothing short of a miracle to me. If you feel like you’re in debt and you’ll never get out, please know I felt that way too. And if I can do it, so can you!

Spreading the gospel of bingo

22 August 2011

I wrote almost a month ago about how much I love the concept of using a bingo card to motivate me to do tasks that are important to do regularly but don’t have deadlines.

When I asked to do a segment on Great Day St. Louis, a morning talk show on the St. Louis CBS affiliate, I proposed doing it on bingo. That interview took place this morning and I had so much fun!

Here’s the video:

I was inspired to make my bingo board by a blog post from Jacquelyn Kittredge of e-bakery social media. Since then, I’ve been so enthusiastic about the concept that I’ve been trying to get everyone I know to try it. (And if was the subject of my August newsletter.)

In the video, that’s my actual bingo board on the magnetic bulletin board. I made the other two for the purposes of the TV segment. I was inspired to do the file-folder-style bingo board by Shannon Wilkinson of Perception Studios, who created a similar one. The foam-core bingo board was inspired by Margaret Lukens of New Leaf and Company who used foam core and Post-Its® for hers. The interviewer, Carol Daniel, liked the foam-core one so much that she asked me if she could take it home and use it with her son! (I said yes.)

One other thing I have to share is my secret weapon for looking my best on TV. I turned to my friend Geralin Thomas to advise me on what to wear on the air. She told me exactly what to wear and, since I’m not stupid, I followed her instructions to the letter. I feel so fortunate to have such a tv savvy and generous friend!

It's okay to let go of routines occasionally

19 August 2011

I’m a huge believer in the power of routines. I try to stick to the ones I’ve established religiously, since I find that sometimes it’s challenging to jump back on the bandwagon once a routine has been disrupted.

That said, I think it’s fine to mindfully not do something in a routine when circumstances dictate it. For example, I’ve been keeping up my streak of clearing my inbox (down to zero) every work day. I can probably count the number of times I haven’t done this one hand since I started the routine in January. That’s because it’s easy to maintain and very valuable.

But yesterday I was working out of the house for ten hours and once I got home I had a two hour strategic planning meeting. My mind was numb by the end of it. I probably could have handled my email, but I just wanted to get out of the office and talk to my family.

So I told myself that it was okay to walk away from the computer with 11 emails in my inbox. No harm done. I’ll catch up this evening or tomorrow.

Similarly, I was going to give myself a pass on blogging this morning, because I’m still under the gun and have to be out of the house early. (I try to blog Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.) But it occurred to me that the message of mindfully skipping routines might be beneficial to readers, so I decided to take a few minutes and write this.

If you’re going to mindfully disrupt your routine, I’d encourage you to equally mindfully get right back on it as soon as you can. Routines have the power to automate and simplify your life. Let them help you. But don’t let them burden you.

P.S. I’m giving a talk on habits and routines at the Thomas Dunn Memorials on September 28. Click on the Events tab above for more info.

Need some help with time management?

17 August 2011

Harold L. Taylor

If you live in or near St. Louis, there’s a great opportunity to learn about time management from one of the world’s experts. The St. Louis chapter of the National Association of Professional Organizers is bringing renowned time-management expert, Harold L. Taylor to St. Louis to give a public workshop.

Back in May, I blogged about how excited I am about this. I’ve been an admirer of Harold Taylor’s for twenty years.

The workshop, which is called Time Management Strategies That Will Make Your Life Easier, will be held at the Brentwood Community Center on Friday, September 23 from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm. You can read details about the workshop on NAPO St. Louis website. (Scroll to the bottom of the page.)

Here’s the best part: you can register for the half-day workshop at the early-bird rate of only $49. That’s an amazing value. To get that rate, you need to register for the event by September 1.

I’ll be there, with bells on. I hope to see you there too!