Peace of Mind Organizing

Off to San Diego!

6 April 2011

I leave this afternoon to fly to San Diego for the annual conference of the National Association of Professional Organizers. This will be my sixth NAPO conference in a row and, as always, I’m very excited.

Here’s why I think attending the conference is well worth the investment of more than a thousand dollars (for registration, airfare, hotel):

• The educational opportunities are terrific. This large conference offers a wide variety of sessions from which to choose. I had a very hard time deciding which I wanted to attend.

• The trade show is great. I love learning about new organizing products, learning more about products that aren’t new, and getting to know the people who market them.

• The networking opportunities are fantastic. I always meet new and wonderful people. And, even better, I get to see the organizers I already know and love.

• The slumber party aspect is fun. This year, I’m sharing a suite with my pals, Geralin Thomas and Margaret Lukens. Talk about a fun getaway!

• The location is beautiful. I don’t go to the conference because of the location. But it’s always nice to see palm trees.

Incidentally, on Monday I mentioned that I was on the fence about bringing my computer along so that I could keep my inbox zero streak going. I’ve decided to leave my computer at home, but use LogMeIn Ignition to access my computer remotely from my iPad and stay on top of email. I tested it this morning and I it shouldn’t be a problem. That makes me happy!

The amazing power of the chain

4 April 2011

I’ve written here before about Don’t Break the Chain as a tool for helping create daily habits. The concept is that once you do something a few days in a row (which can be aided by marking a calendar), you psychologically don’t want to break the chain and you’re motivated to do the activity again.

Right now, I have two chains going: I’m getting my email inbox down to zero messages by the end of each work day (I’ve been doing that since January 2) and I’m blogging every Monday, Wednesday and Friday (which I’ve done without fail since December 27).

Don’t Break the Chain (which I first read about in this Lifehacker post) is a little harder for a Monday/Wednesday/Friday activity, so I created a little four-column table in Pages, with the Monday date in the first column and Monday, Wednesday and Friday in the other columns. I printed it, posted it on my bulletin board and when I do the blog post, I mark an X in the appropriate M/W/F column, thus creating my chain.

Now that I have about three months of chains under my belt, the habits are pretty well ingrained and it’s not too difficult to accomplish those two tasks.

That said, both habits were put to the test this past Friday. I needed to be out of the house early and I got up a little late. So I had little time to write a blog post and even less inspiration about what to write about. (I try to plan ahead, but don’t always succeed.) Under normal circumstances, I would have just bagged it. But I didn’t want to break the chain, so I did manage to post something (not much, but something).

After having left the house early, I didn’t return home until 10:45 p.m. I had a whole day’s worth of email in my inbox and I didn’t feel like going down to my office to deal with it. I just wanted to go to bed.

I gave myself permission to break the chain. But then my dog, Kirby, asked to go out, so I had to walk by my office. While he was outside, I sat down at my computer and plowed through my email. It turned out it was a fairly light day for email, so I was able to get my inbox down to zero in less than a half hour.

The only reason I felt compelled to do that was that I didn’t want to break that chain. It has a powerful hold on me.

I’m leaving on Wednesday to go to San Diego for the NAPO conference and I don’t plan to take my computer with me. (I’ll have my iPad.) If I follow through with not taking my computer, I’ll have to break the inbox zero chain. (I download my email to my computer, rather than dealing with it on a website.) I have to admit the prospect of breaking the chain is unattractive enough that I might actually lug my computer along on the trip.

If you have a daily (or at least regular) habit you’re trying to develop, I can thoroughly recommend the Don’t Break the Chain method of motivating yourself. Go read the Lifehacker post to get a complete view of it. (The concept is credited to Jerry Seinfeld.)

How's your mail doing?

1 April 2011

I was looking back at posts from a year ago and was reminded that on April 5, 2010, I posted the results of a poll I did on the blog about how you handle your mail.

Difficulty with dealing with the snail mail that comes through the door is a recurring problem I see in my new clients. Nearly every one who has problems with paper clutter finds it exacerbated by the postal mail.

That’s why I created the Make Peace with Your Mail e-course, to help people save time and eliminate stress surrounding their mail (all in four easy lessons).

I’m going to be offering a contest related to Make Peace with Your Mail in the very near future, so please keep your eyes on this space for details. I’ll also be publicizing it on Facebook and Twitter, so feel free to use the new big icons at the top of the right sidebar to follow me in those places, if you haven’t already.

Have you done your taxes? It's not too late.

30 March 2011

I used to be a huge procrastinator when it came to taxes. Back then, I was always afraid I’d owe money and the fear of finding that out would paralyze me. Not smart, I know. But it was my emotions, not my brain, making that decision.

I’m happy to report that I haven’t filed an extension since 2007. That’s mostly because my husband took over taking care of our personal finances and all I handle is my business’s, so there’s no longer a mad rush to catch up on entering data and so forth. I am the one in our family who prepares the taxes, however. (Thank you, TurboTax.)

We filed our taxes earlier this month and we’ve already received the refunds. Looking back at the procrastination and panicky feelings that accompanied even thinking about taxes, compared to the peace I now feel about them, here’s what pops to mind:

• Since you have to do your taxes eventually, you might as well save money and do them on time.

• Filing your tax-related documents throughout the year (I use Freedom Filer to make it easy), sure beats frantically searching for them at tax time.

• Using financial software like Quicken or Quickbooks (and entering as you go throughout the year, something I’m only just now getting the hang of) takes the stress out of tax preparation.

• Not knowing that you owe the IRS money doesn’t make things any better. Better to find out just what you owe as soon as possible so you can figure out where it’s going to come from.

• Once you’ve dealt with paying the IRS, it’s smart to figure out how to avoid it next year.

• Getting an ample refund may not be smart money management (why give Uncle Sam an interest-fee loan?) but it sure is beats writing a big check on April 15!

Speaking of April 15, I wanted to make sure you’re aware that this year taxes are due on Monday, April 18. That’s because April 15 is a holiday, Emancipation Day, celebrated in Washington, D.C., and all federal and D.C. offices will be closed. Emancipation Day, usually celebrated April 16 (a Saturday this year) commemorates the signing by Abraham Lincoln on April 16, 1862 of the Compensated Emancipation Act, which freed 3100 slaves in the District of Columbia, almost nine months before the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. It was made a District holiday in 2005.

If you’re thinking about filing an extension this year, maybe you should reconsider. You still have 20 days. And if you’re like I used to be, you probably won’t start working on taxes until a couple of weeks before the new due date. Man, I do not miss that stress.

Messy does not equal disorganized

28 March 2011

I’m a messy person. And (clearly) I’m not ashamed of it. You might find it surprising that a professional organizer is messy. But that might be because you think that messy and disorganized are synonymous. Trust me, they’re not.

Messy does not equal disorganized. I may be messy, but I am organized. In other words, almost everything in my home has a place. (And it’s a well thought out place.) I just have a hard time putting stuff away with a great deal of regularity. Things have gotten better over the years, as I’ve developed new habits and routines.

We’re not talking epic messiness, but my surroundings are less orderly than you would expect an organizer’s to be. And that’s okay with me. The biggest compliment people can give my home, as far as I’m concerned, is “comfortable.” That’s what I like to think my home is.

Sometimes I’ll walk into a client’s home for the first time and see that it’s neater than mine. That used to freak me out. But what I’ve discovered is the flip side of the equation: Neat does not equal organized.

Sometimes people who loathe visual clutter will stash things away so their homes look neat. But then they can’t find anything, because things are put away in a haphazard manner without regard for organization. That’s neat but it’s not organized.

Remember, you can’t judge a book by its cover. (And we shouldn’t be judging anyway, should we?)

Find me at your health food store

25 March 2011

I was interviewed for an article that appears in the March 2011 issue of Energy Times a glossy magazine that is distributed at health food stores around the country. The article, called Organized Calm: Clearing clutter can make you more efficient, and more peaceful appears in the magazine’s “Holistic Healing” section, which somehow tickles me. If you want to pick up an issue, it’s the one with Raquel Welch on the cover.

I’m also one of the expert sources for an article on how to pack a suitcase that appeared in Vox Magazine, in Columbia, Missouri.

Incidentally, last year I created a Press Room section of my website, which lists my media appearances. I try to keep it up to date when new articles like these come along.

Have a great weekend. It’s currently snowing here in St. Louis. (Never mind that it was 73 degrees two days ago!)

SuperFocus rocks

23 March 2011

Mark Forster, my favorite time management guru, introduced a new task management system, SuperFocus, on February 7 of this year. I’ve been using it since that very day and I’m ready to weigh in on it.

If you’re a long-time reader of this blog, you know that Mark is constantly reinventing and improving his task-management systems. When he comes out with a new iteration, I usually try it, since I think so highly of him.

Before introducing SuperFocus Mark tested it extensively and reported on his discussion forum that he thought this might actually be a perfect time management system. Whoa! Those are strong words (especially from someone I think of as humble). I was definitely anxious to give it a try.

The Reader’s Digest version of my review of SuperFocus is this: It’s fantastic. Try it.

Here’s a longer version. SuperFocus is essentially a reworking of Autofocus, Mark’s task-management system that relied on your intuition to select tasks to do and also employed a very effective method of dismissing tasks. SuperFocus retains those features, but adds an improved way to handle urgent and unfinished tasks, which Autofocus didn’t do so well.

I’m not going to describe the methodology. You can read Mark’s instructions here. But I will tell you that it’s very easy to try. All you need is a ruled notebook and a pen. (A straight-edge to draw a straight line is handy too.) The instructions are free.

I do want to tell you what I love about it:

• It provides structure to my day and helps me get stuff done.
• I write everything down so I don’t have to worry about forgetting anything.
• I work through the list faster than I did with Autofocus.
• Urgent and important items aren’t lost at the end of the list.
• It’s portable. (I just put my notebook in my purse when I leave the house.)
• It’s simple, once I learned the rules.
• I don’t have to prioritize. I hate prioritizing.
• I don’t have to make new lists.

If your task-management system isn’t working for you, I urge you to give SuperFocus a try. It’s easy. It’s free. What have you got to lose?