Organize 365 Podcast

Listen to all of the transformational interviews at organize365.com/wednesday-podcasts On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized! Today, I am sharing my conversation with Jill M. She lives in IL with her husband and 2 kids. She recently completed her Master's Degree and is now starting her own business. I hope you enjoy her story and find her as inspiring as I do! I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday. For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links: Organize 365 The Sunday Basket® 100 Day Home Organization Program ALL ACCESS Workboxes Paper Organizing Retreats I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

These weeks between October 1st and Thanksgiving are typically the most productive weeks of the year. I want to help you make October super productive by helping you declutter. I want to give you tasks you can complete in 15 minutes a day so you can declutter some different areas of your life. I am focusing on decluttering only, not on organizing or productivity. When decluttering, the way to make it easier, faster, and more effective is to create rules for your items. Rules free us! With rules, you will make quicker decisions and reduce your decision fatigue. You don't need to stop and consider each item's value or importance, you will refer to your rule and rapidly decide to keep or toss. This week, we are focusing on decluttering the file cabinet. The Paper Solution launched in August of 2020, and I am hearing from many of you how helpful that book is in getting your paper under control. For the fall, I want to help you declutter and reduce the amount of paper you are managing (and will later organize). When it comes to paper, you need rules. There are different kinds of papers - I think of papers as being parts of different categories. First, all actionable paper belongs in your Sunday Basket®. For the podcast today, I am focusing on decluttering your archive (sometimes called reference) papers. When you make your rules, you need to answer two questions: What will I save? (or what will I toss/not save)? How long will I keep this category of paper? In the podcast, I share examples of the rules I use in my own life for my own paper for several different categories: Manuals & warranties Phone books Kids' school papers Pets Home decor paperwork Automobiles I do not always keep papers, and I'll explain why I now discard many papers in these categories. If you sort through 3-5 folders from your file cabinet each day, it will typically take around 15 minutes. Focus on identifying what you want or need to keep, and toss the rest (of course, shred sensitive private information). Most people are able to reduce their saved paper by 50-80% when decluttering this way.

Listen to all of the Transformational Podcasts at organize365.com/wednesday-podcasts This week, we are back to our traditional transformational podcast. On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized! Today, I am sharing my conversation with Audrey N. She just started her 2nd round of the 100 Day Program. She is married, works part time outside the home, and is a parent. I hope you enjoy her story and find her as inspiring as I do! Audrey recommends the meal planning app Plan to Eat (no affiliate). I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday. For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links: Organize 365 The Sunday Basket® 100 Day Home Organization Program ALL ACCESS Workboxes Paper Organizing Retreats I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

These weeks between October 1st and Thanksgiving are typically the most productive weeks of the year. You will get to see your productivity skyrocket and your 2020 goals come to fruition. Once the holidays come, you will turn your focus to social events and making memories, so I want to talk with you about how COVID may be a Golden Window for you. Some of you have been barely surviving this pandemic. And, that's perfectly reasonable. I am not asking you to do more, but I want to share some short, actionable podcasts that can help you cultivate a mindset so you are prepared for when you can deep dive into organization and productivity. A Golden Window is a time in your life where you have an unusual period of energy, drive, and focus to take back your life and get organized. Are you in a period of your life where you are reevaluating your life? Have you stopped to think about how you use your time, where you live, your job situation, or your home? Everything has changed - for all of us. For a Golden Window, you are ready for the change. If you are merely reacting and surviving, you may not have the extra time, energy, and motivation that a Golden Window brings. If you are not in a Golden Window, do not worry. Keep going and give yourself grace. Your turn will come. If you are in a Golden Window (Podcast 242), I want to help you analyze and plan for this opportunity. If you are entering a Golden Window, I want to help you end 2020 strong, and to start thinking about how you can use this opportunity to look ahead 5-10 years and begin making the changes towards that future. Listen in as I help you figure out what you want to start and how to take the first step.

This week, we are back to our traditional transformational podcast. On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized! Today, I am sharing my conversation with Kerstin H. She lives in Germany with her husband and foster daughter. She started with a Sunday Basket® and has found much more peace in life and control of her time. I hope you enjoy her story and find her as inspiring as I do! I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday. For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links: Organize 365 The Sunday Basket® 100 Day Home Organization Program ALL ACCESS Workboxes Paper Organizing Retreats I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

As we continue to explore our interim normal from COVID-19, I want to share some insights on the economy and how we are changing the way we use our homes. I am not an economist or a real estate expert, but I am a questioner and I want to share my own personal thoughts about how we continue to adapt to these extraordinary (unprecedented) times we are in. We are in the middle of a transition in technology, working from home, social media, and how we are living in our current reality. As I have shared before, my study of different generations has shown that history is cyclical and we move from one end of a particular pendulum to the other, and then we come back again. The Stuff We Keep In the 1980's we were at the height of consumerism and stuff. Near 2020, many people were very minimalist. In the next few years, I expect that people are not going to declutter as much. We have now faced supply chain issues, shortages, and have learned we cannot always go shopping for (or even order delivery) of the things we want right now. Our families are also changing. More people are living at home, indefinitely. While young adults used to go out and begin living independently, the health and economic issues are meaning more are living at home for longer periods. This also changes the amount and type of stuff we are keeping in our homes. Economic Changes Retail stores are going bankrupt. The economy was shifting prior to the pandemic, but COVID creased a condensed timeline. While businesses usually change at a much slower pace than individuals or families, they are now being forced to adapt more quickly, and not all will be successful. Supply chain issues are also a real thing, and will likely continue for a while. For people who traditionally stockpiled things, you may not have access to the same quantity as before. You may not have space to store extras while you are also housing additional people in your home. Your ability to afford to shop and plan ahead may also be altered. Living at Home If you decluttered something and are regretting letting it go, because your "just in case" actually came true, give yourself grace. There is no benefit to blame or anger at this unpredictable global health crisis. If you have not used something in the last 6 months, I want you to really consider letting it go and allowing it to bless someone else. As we head into our first Fall and Winter seasons in this pandemic, I want you to think about what you will need to get through this season. What items do you want to be sure you have for this season? What do you need to change or adapt in how your physical home is functioning? What do you want to have at home? What can you afford? What do you have space to store? How will you adapt your holiday plans for social distancing and public health? How will you make your home feel like home for all who are living there? IDS At Organize 365, we use the Traction model for our business operating system. One component is that we IDS problems and issues. We identify, discuss, and solve challenges as a team. I share some fun examples in the podcast - so be sure to listen in for an insider peek at some recent decisions we made.

The COVID-19 Pandemic has taken away our ability to go with the flow. We are living in a snow globe where our city, job, government, and public health are continually shaken up and we are chasing around. So many people are sharing that life feels so hard right now. There is no flow. The pandemic has stopped our hustle, bustle, and flow. Most of us have lived through hard times like this before, and humanity has definitely survived times of uncertainty and upheaval similar to what we are facing now. In the podcast, I share about how we have survived and have the lessons from other times in history when our lives were similarly out of control. However, catastrophic events do not impact everyone equally. Depending on your location, family, job, and other factors, you may be experiencing a lot or a little bit of life disruption. Today, I want to talk with you about how to find your flow again - even though it will be different than it was before COVID-19. First, if you are not a natural flow generator, find and follow good leaders. Second, get started. Let go of perfection. Release the need to do it all. But, actually taking action and moving your body will produce much better results than thinking about what you want to do. Third, I really want you to work on your schedules and routines. These basic steps will get you moving in the morning and can keep you moving throughout the day. When you clean up - you know the drill - pick up trash, clothes, and food in that order. Start simple, and just get started. I also share how my morning, afternoon, and evening routines have helped me to continue to be engaged in my life and make progress during the pandemic. It is typical to be less productive than you were before the stay at home events, but using routines will help you to transition to the next part of the day and keep the momentum going. I share suggestions for setting up your routines and share my own inside the podcast. For links to the items Lisa is using, please go to the show notes page on the website.

This week our Wednesday podcast is my conversation with my absolute, most favorite author - Laura Vanderkam! We discuss many things she writes about in her new book, The New Corner Office. We talk about all things working from home - how to manage time, organize your workday, still be productive, and get energized to get things done. Laura is also analytical so we talk about different ways to apply routines, rituals, transition time, separation, and habits so we can find success in this interim normal as many continue to stay safe at home.

Listen here: organize365.com/podcast/interim-normal We are living in the middle of a global health pandemic during COVID-19. The middle of any kind of change or transition is messy!!! As we go through the middle, we can end up feel trapped - we cannot go back, but we are not yet to the place we want to be. I want to help you make sense of this pandemic and disruption we are all facing. I want to share my analysis of what is going on in society, our homes, and our responses to this uncertainty we have all been living with since at least March of 2020. I am hearing from many of you that you are facing anxiety, depression, and feelings of loss. Every single person on Earth has had plans derailed this year. So - what do we do about the messy middle? We are certainly not yet to the "new normal" that will come someday, but we do have to begin to function more effectively and make some progress in life. We are all struggling to make sense of our current reality and to figure out how to function in a new world. We cannot live our pajama day, Netflix, and quarantine cocktail life while we wait for the end. We must work our way through this messy middle. I want to walk with you, provide inspiration, and help you to survive (and maybe thrive) in this unexpected life event. I cannot fix everything going on, but I can help you to find your bearings so you can get some traction while we all stumble through this middle place together. Listen in as I talk to you about how to analyze and adapt for: School (in person or from home) Vacations & Fun Work Adult Children Thinking Time Schedules & Routines Cash Flow & Money Just as getting organized begins with your mindset, so does getting yourself and your loved ones through this time. I am here as your teacher, your coach, and your friend. You are not alone in this journey, and I will walk along side you and continue to share and inspire. Furthermore, if you are struggling with mental health during this time, that is a true, real, and vital medical need. Please seek medical attention for your medical needs. Please reach out to your health care team and ask for help. If you want to hear more about the time I struggled with depression, you can listen to that podcast here. However, I am not a medical professional, and I cannot provide medical assistance.

I am so excited to share with you a short excerpt from The Paper Solution audiobook! My publisher has allowed me to share this reading from the book with you all. I hope that you are making progress on your home papers and getting them organized, but if you find this helpful, be sure to pick up your own copy of The Paper Solution. Order your copy here!