Organize 365 Podcast

'Tis the season to get overwhelmed with stress and give yourself a migraine and cold sweats just thinking about decorating your house for the holidays! We all love how our house looks when it is all decorated, but the task itself seems like climbing Mount Everest. We can get ourselves so worked up about how arduous the task appears. I know it feels like the biggest task of my life at times. How can we change our mindset on this? Recently, I held a "Holiday Blitz" challenge on Facebook Live, a free 5-day "get ready guide" for the holidays. To those of you who took part, I hope you found it super useful. The printables are available here and the videos are still on Facebook. During the challenge, I discussed how women have many roles that they play, and how we have different things to do all the time that leave us feeling like we are always working. The holidays are a time where there is a lot of pressure on the female head of the home. She needs to produce great food, decorations, and gift ideas, and be the host for guests, just to name a few. When it comes to decorating, we tend to put up every decoration we have because everybody loves them, right? Well, yes, but would they even notice if we didn't use EVERY decoration? Well, most likely, they wouldn't! Where to start? It was around 10 years ago that decorating my house took on this momentous feeling. I used to love it, but so many things led to a change for me. I've tried various approaches over the years to get back into the swing and take joy from festive decorating, and the approach that has worked best is a giant purge. We all have that box of decorations sitting in the basement that we no longer use. You collect all these decorations and wish you had a space, but really they are just guilt in boxes and it is okay to get rid of them. Yes, go ahead and donate them. You will not need them in the future. And you will not miss them either! That doesn't mean you can't ever add new things, just as long as they make sense to you. We bought a Christmas tree (ours have to be fake as I am allergic to real trees) around 10 years ago and, at the time, I loved it. Then Christmas tree technology really moved on and I got pre-lit tree envy, but for years couldn't justify the cost. This year though – I bought it! Or rather, them. I got a few… but they were a great addition for us, as I'll explain shortly. What next? This year, I decorated my entire house in 3-1/2 hours and I'm going to share my secrets with you. I break it down into 4 steps. Clean I always decorate on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. The kids are on holiday and I'm off work, but my husband isn't. So he gets the gift of leaving the house looking normal and returning to it fully decorated. This year, it fell perfectly that our housecleaner was coming that same day, too. Block out time I started optimistically by blocking out the whole day, but life happened and I couldn't get started until 12:30 pm, rather than 10 am as I had originally planned. I already knew I had to be done by 6:30 pm. We had family coming in from out of state, and it was likely that my husband would finish work early. I was a little stressed at losing a couple of hours in the morning, but knew that I had to get it all squeezed in somehow. Start with the hardest part For me, the hardest part was always setting up the old tree. So I started with the smallest of the new trees. It took me no time! I was amazed. Then, I moved onto the bigger tree and assumed that would be simple, too. I shifted the furniture around and "ta-da," in 20 minutes I was done and had a beautiful big tree. Getting the new tree(s) saved me so much time and so much stress. It will alleviate so much worry for me next year. Keep going until you're done At 2-1/2 hours into it, and with the Fall decorations down, nativity scenes set up, wreaths hanging, and baby Jesus in his wooden manger, I was done. But I wasn't done. Those tree ornaments weren't going to hang themselves! I made excuses. I even hid the ornaments on the other side of the room. I so desperately wanted it to be over already. But I didn't quit. Our ornaments are separated into boxes by which tree they go on. I put the living room tree ornaments on and it was so fast and easy. By this point, I realized I had been so close to giving up and had been moaning about something so simple. I looked at what I had left and made a plan. I changed some things up and put things in new locations. Yes, I gave myself permission to change my own rule! We get so locked into tradition sometimes that we lose the sense of things. By the end, I was exhausted. So I had a coffee and took a nap in the time that I had to spare. My husband was thrilled when he got home and I was so pleased with myself that I actually got it done. Remember… You are in control. You can ask family which are their favorite decorations (do this before you put anything up so you know they actually remember it) and you can take away the pressure of having to put up all the other things that they don't mention and won't notice aren't there anyway. Ease the pressure on yourself where you can and bring back the joy of holiday decorating. To see more about my holiday decorating and whatever else I'm up to, follow me on Instagram. Happy Holidays! View the complete post here: https://organize365.com/205

I am delighted to welcome Dr. Carmen Landrau to this week's podcast episode. Carmen is a cardiologist, a professional speaker, a mom of 3 kids, and is from Puerto Rico. How Carmen balances work and home life is fascinating and her method of getting help to those in need in Puerto Rico is amazing. Those of you who listen regularly will know that I become obsessed when there is a natural disaster so I was thrilled to have Carmen on the show. Carmen and I met in California at a conference for entrepreneurs. With the help of her coach, she has developed a keynote speech helping professional women get to the next step in their careers and life. Women are multi-everything. We are busy being wives, mothers, daughters, friends, and career women. We all have the same problem and, if we want to have it all, we need to figure out how to do that. Our way of thinking is different to men and the expectations are different. Carmen helps women figure it out. The link to Puerto Rico I brought up my desperation about Puerto Rico to Carmen when we met in California. It was then that I learned Carmen's family lives in Puerto Rico and that she has given to the cause in a very tangible way. I just knew I wanted to share her story with you. Carmen and I agree that nobody will save you in life. As women, we need to get more bold with our solutions and not wait to be asked to fix something. Carmen's mom, sister, and extended family are still in Puerto Rico. They are one of the lucky few that have power, water, and food while 90% or so of the island still does not, nearly two months since the hurricane. I was incredibly naive and ignorant about Puerto Rico. I thought it was tiny like St. John Island and figured we could just move the people off the island. It is a significant population (they would have 5 electoral college votes if they were a state) and they don't want to leave. At the time we recorded the podcast episode, the official death toll was 50. However, the true statistic is more like 500 as people are dying from "natural causes" brought on by the lack of resources. Carmen is part of an amazing movement helping the people of Puerto Rico Carmen worked around the system and got medical supplies there. It all started on a Facebook group set up by a doctor in Florida who is also from Puerto Rico. Initially, it was set up for female Puerto Rican doctors to see how they could help. It has evolved to include both sexes and other professions who want to help. Word of mouth from those within the group meant that a day or so later the Baton Rouge Emergency Aid Coalition (BREAC) got in touch. They are a group of volunteer medical professionals who have stocks of medication that they have collected from other shelters used in previous natural disasters. The equipment and medication can be used elsewhere, as long as they are obtained by licensed professionals in order to maintain chain of custody. But how to get them to Puerto Rico? Amazingly, through word of mouth and social media, people offered their planes to transport it, including United Airlines. Nine planes have gone out from Houston, 20 or 30 more nationwide. All of this happened because of volunteers and people making donations. It is almost too simple... doctors in Puerto Rico send out requests to doctors in Houston, then they source it and send it. Doctors in Puerto Rico then meet the plane and distribute it to those in need. No politics or red tape makes for a smooth and efficient system. The aftermath and legacy Carmen believes that when you find yourself in the aftermath of something like a natural disaster, or something else unexpected, you need to act and get over it or your whole life goes downhill. She acknowledges that people are still trying to figure out what happened and how to cope, but that's why she is doing this. She is from Puerto Rico so she has a clear motive, but she is amazed by how many others want to help. When she asks why they do it, nobody has a specific answer. It is just the genuine goodness of their heart. That brings with it so much meaning and it is more appreciated than anything. Carmen knows it will take years to mend the damage done in Puerto Rico, but hang in there. Puerto Ricans know what they are doing and can fix this with you. They have survived this and the sky is the limit, keep moving forward. See this as an opportunity to re-invent yourself and try to make the best of it. There are many obstacles to helping in Puerto Rico, not least that it is an island nation. When the power goes out in Florida, there are trucks flooding in from other states to get things up and running. That cannot be done in this case. It is commendable that if you put a woman at the helm, things happen. When somebody is hurting, we go in there and fix it. The impact of this will be around for years, just as it will be in Texas and California and all those other sites of recent disasters. We are getting so used to the tragedy. It almost becomes a recurring news item with the lead up to it being more fully covered than the devastation and the impact itself. That is when they need us most and we need to know that they need us. Thank goodness for social media... it can be really useful. People affected can ask for exactly what they require. There is an opportunity for business owners to help There is an opportunity for business owners to help each other here. If only the effort big business put into the Olympics in Rio was put into helping Puerto Rico, right? They don't apply that to charity and they most likely won't, but smaller businesses can step up. We can also use newer technologies and update the island. We do not need to try to rebuild exactly what was there. It can be seen as a blank canvas, full of opportunities for those who seek them and take advantage of this situation to improve lives. Big business should pause for thought, too. They spend so much of their money on advertising, but the world is evolving and we don't watch TV anymore. When will they realize they would do better to find a problem, like the situation in Puerto Rico, and solve it? We, as the public, would see and appreciate that. Surely there can be no better form of advertising. So, what can you do? Get out there and ask the questions. Figure out what people need and provide it if you can. Look at your resources and connect differently. Use that to help people. It is the day after Thanksgiving here in the United States and that significance is not lost on Carmen. There is always a reason behind what happens in our lives and perhaps the reason she and I met was so I could offer this help. What goes around, comes around. So if you can help, you should. It may be you one day. Related to this, I plan to set up an initiative for 2018. As we are decluttering, think about what makes us uniquely us and how we can impact the community around us. When we did the fundraiser for Houston, it was fun and we were able to surprise people. That feels good. (We are over $8,000 – THANK YOU so much to all who have contributed!) On the podcast, Carmen encourages everyone to go to the website www.BREAC225.org. There are ways that you can donate to fundraisers and so many links to stories like Carmen's. They also have a cool way of doing things so you don't have to wonder how to help – they have an Amazon Wishlist! If you would like to find out more about Carmen, click here. View the complete post here: https://organize365.com/204

In this week's podcast episode, I talk to you about organizational energy. At the beginning of 2017, I recorded three podcast episodes in a row after I had come to the conclusion that there is a cycle to getting organized. The first step is decluttering. The second step is organization. The third step is increased productivity. I want to take some time to "unpack" what each of these steps are and understand the energy behind decluttering, getting organized, and becoming more productive. What do you tend to focus on? If you're a homeowner, you most likely tend to focus on one of these five: decluttering, organizing, being productive, cleaning, or decorating. And you'll likely subscribe to and follow people (podcasters, bloggers, authors, etc.) who have the same focus as you. For example, I'm focused primarily on organization and on having a home that is organized in a functional way. To become organized, you first need to declutter. When you have worked on organization, you then tend to start working on productivity. I focus on all three steps as I see them as interconnected, but you'll rarely hear me talk about cleaning or decorating! Let's look at what I mean by these steps… Decluttering Decluttering is the act of reviewing a space and removing what no longer needs to be there. Quite often, decluttering needs to be completed as a group/family activity. At the very least, you need input from your family members when it comes to deciding what to do with their items. Decluttering is 70-90% physical and 10-30% mental. It becomes more of a mental exercise when you are dealing with items that are of emotional significance. Organization Organization is 50% physical and 50% mental. The mental aspect of getting started. Then the physical emptying out the space. Then comes the mental decision making on what to do with items. Back to physically buying and filling containers to use. And ending in mentally evaluating and reevaluating if the organization methods you chose is the BEST for you. Back and forth between mental and physical at a rate of 50/50. Increase Productivity Productivity is 10% physical and 90% mental. Being productive is largely a decision-making activity. For example, if you decided that you wanted a new capsule wardrobe, you would spend 90% of your time working out the when, what, and how of it all. Then, the actual act of going out and buying what you want, after all the decisions have been made, would take just 10% of the overall time. Cleaning Cleaning is 100% physical. There is very little thought process involved. You know what needs to be cleaned and you, or someone else, needs to take action. The only mental aspect is often us trying to justify or avoid doing a task that just needs to be done! That is why it is the easiest item to delegate! Decorating is something that I have so little experience with, I'm not even going to attempt to explain that one! How this relates to energy cycles In today's podcast and post, I explain how energy cycles throughout the year ebb and flow and how they relate to home organization. (This post is a long one and this email is long enough! Read the whole post here.) but I will post the energy you are feeling right now... October - December At this time of year, we start planning for the holidays. Thanks to those of you who took part in my holiday blitz this past week! Your focus is back to cleaning again. You want to clean before Thanksgiving and before you start putting those Christmas decorations up. The energy that is coming in the last 6-7 weeks of the year will come in waves. The energy will not be constant. The waves will come and you should ride them and not push them off. It's harder to resist than to actually go and do what you want to do. For example, you'll get an urge to go clean a room, declutter the kids' rooms, decorate, etc. Whatever it may be, you will find you have these urges. I recommend just acting on them. December 22nd It seems funny for me to be so specific with a date, but on December 22nd my blog traffic will double (like it has done for the past few years)! I've realized that most of us start organizing on December 22nd. It's when the kids are home for the holidays. Extended family start to arrive, if you are at home on the holidays. You are done with your holiday shopping, wrapping, etc. Most of the cleaning is done. You have time off work (with most jobs). It's winter so you don't want to be spending too much time outside. You will start to think about a home organization project that you could undertake. Family are around to help with decluttering. The focus is more decluttering than organizing at this time. From December 22nd to January 1st, the decluttering energy turns into an organizational energy. The 100 Day Home Organization Program I open enrollment for my 100 Day Home Organization Program at certain times of the year for a reason. The timing is well thought through and I base it on the cycles and energies that I've discussed in this week's podcast episode. I'm pleased to let you know that the 100 Day Home Organization Program has just opened again (November 10-14). Click here to register. If you join now, you'll start receiving the daily emails right away and you'll get the new and improved planner. Remember, the 100 Day Home Organization Program is not just for Christmas, it's a lifetime membership! You can do the program again and again until your life has transformed. My goal is for you to live an organized life so you can spend your time doing what you love and pursuing your life purpose. What a great gift that would be, at Christmas or any time of year! View the complete post here: https://organize365.com/202

This week's podcast episode is number 200. 200 episodes. Can you believe it?! As if that wasn't exciting enough, last week the Organize 365 podcast surpassed 2 million downloads! Thanks to each and every one of you who have listened to my podcast and who have supported me with Organize 365. I thought a lot about what to cover on my 200th episode and decided that I wanted to talk about paper, one of my favorite topics. Also, this week I have a few special announcements to make… all of them related to paper! I'm launching a second podcast – The Sunday Basket® Podcast In January 2018, I'm going to launch a second podcast called The Sunday Basket® Podcast. Recently, I've been wanting to talk more and more about paper organizing, but I know that not everyone wants to hear about it. So I decided to create a separate podcast where I can talk about paper organizing to my heart's content for anyone who wants to listen. By having a separate podcast all about paper organization, I can focus the Organize 365 Podcast on my philosophy for home organization, mindset, other fun organizational predicaments, and productivity. Every generation handles paper differently Every generation looks at organization differently, and as such, they handle their paper differently. When we understand our generation, we develop an understanding of how we handle paper. Here's an example of how we handle paper differently. The majority of people today do not use checkbooks anymore. However, I spend 30-40 minutes a week balancing my checkbook and reconciling our household transactions. I can't comprehend how other people don't do this! As a Gen X person, I was brought up with paper. On the other hand, Millennials will tell me that they do not have any paper. It is not a "thing" for them at all. What is a checkbook?! The paper tsunami is coming The majority of paper is with the Silent Generation and the Baby Boomers. These generations set up filing cabinets. They did not have computers so paper ruled. Today, we tend to continue with the filing cabinets, but our habits have changed... rather, our filing cabinets have become a habit and not a resource. We have all sorts of paper that we file away, but if we want to look something up, we don't go to our paper files, we look things up online! Realistically, 80% of the paper in our filing cabinets right now should be recycled or shredded. The issue is that none of us want to shred all of that paper. But neither do Baby Boomers or the Silent Generation. One of these days someone is going to have to go through all of this paper. Even if you don't do this with your own files, you may end up doing it for your parents and your grandparents. All of these files need to be sorted through, because while 80% of it most likely can be shredded, the other 20% is very important. For example, it could be an important part of your family history, or even lead to cold, hard cash. I have found both when sorting through my family paperwork! I helped a client with her paperwork when her husband passed away and there were multiple 6-figure investments hidden in the piles of paperwork that, thankfully, we discovered. This happens more than you can imagine. Almost always, when circumstances lead to you having to sell your parents' home, paper is the one thing that gets boxed up to deal with "later." Your parents' generation has likely lived in their home for decades, and therefore, there is SO much to sort through. Paper always seems to be the thing that can be boxed up. The issue is that "later" can become decades. This can result in generations of paperwork boxed up in people's basements. After all, who has time to sort through it all? I'm writing a new book about paper organization! I'm so excited to share with you that I'm writing a book on paper organization. My book will help you handle the paper tsunami that is is coming – the tsunami consists of your own paperwork, plus your parents' paperwork, and your grandparents' paperwork. We don't need filing cabinets anymore. I call files little paper graveyards! We need all of our information digital and scanned. My book will take you from the Sunday Basket® to online digital scanning. My goal is to provide the road map that people need to help them tackle their paper and NOT keep it out of sight and out of mind in the basement anymore! With all the natural disasters that have been happening lately, I am more inspired than ever to help people get their paper digitalized so that it's always available to them. There is a paper tsunami coming… and we need to be ready! Please take the household paper survey I would like to find out more about the paper in your house. I would love it if you would take my household paper survey. It will only take you 5 minutes to complete. The link to it is on the Organize365.com homepage. Sunday Basket® Workshops If you want to get started with sorting your paper, please consider signing up for a virtual SundayBasket® Workshop with me. I love delivering the virtual workshops. They are so much fun and I guarantee you will find it really helpful. Learn more here. Or maybe you would prefer an in-person Sunday Basket® Workshop delivered by a SundayBasket® Workshop Licensee. That would be amazing! Click here to find your nearest in-person workshop provider. Or maybe you're interested in becoming a Sunday Basket® Workshop Licensed Provider! Registration is always open. Click here to learn more. Creating a Schedule Printable Finally, for the past couple of months, I have focused on productivity, looking at goal setting and routines. Many of you downloaded my Creating A Schedule printables. I hope you found them useful. If you haven't downloaded it yet, what are you waiting for?! One final note... In the podcast, you'll hear me mention adding a new front page to the printable that lists the 5 podcasts related to it... why you need a morning routine, afternoon and evening routine, how to plan your week, and how to set goals. Well, I didn't do that after all so I've just linked to them here. Now that's productive! Have a great week, and don't forget to take the paper organizing survey! View the complete post here: https://organize365.com/200

Did you know that I have a condo? In this podcast episode, I share all about how I have preserved my sanity in my teenage years, 20s, 30s, and 40s by having my own condo. Putting yourself first I hope that by sharing how I use my condo, and how it's evolved over time, will help give you the permission that you need to put yourself first. I tend to talk about productivity in the fall because it's a naturally productive time. It's often a time when people set their goals and intentions for the next 12 months – certainly, I do. Many people have been in touch with me regarding my recent podcast episodes on time management and productivity, and they have told me that they struggle with applying many of the concepts themselves because they are people pleasers (and with this, I can't help but feel a little like that must mean that I appear not to be). The funny thing is, I've ALWAYS been a people pleaser. It's something that has been with me my whole life. It's only in recent years that I've started to learn how to put myself first. It has been really hard to do and has taken a lot of careful thought and proactivity on my behalf. I have often thought that if I put myself first and share this with people, they will think that I am selfish, that I don't care about others, or that I'm spoiled. I'm sure I'm not alone in thinking this. A little history about my condo When I was young, I lived in a neighborhood without many children to play with my own age. I was not athletic so that ruled me out of pretty much all extra-curricular activities. So I spent my time playing "teacher" with my younger sister and "training" how to be a babysitter. I also helped my mom with her business, a direct sales clothing company. I created a game to play with my sister called "Big Friend." My sister and I pretended to be 16, our bikes were cars, our kitchen was a café, and our bedrooms were our apartments. I LOVED my bedroom! When I got punished by my parents, I'd get sent to my room – which was never a punishment in my eyes! I would spend lots of time in there, and would love to reorganize and redecorate it. My love of the private space and sanctuary of my bedroom continued into college in my dorm room, then on to when I lived in a shared house. Even when Greg and I moved to the spacious house that we still live in today, I've always spent most of my time in one part of the house. When my children developed separation anxiety at night, I stayed upstairs because they wanted me on the same floor as them. Since I'm always looking at ways to be productive, I worked in my bedroom until they fell asleep. Because of this, I had started spending the whole evening upstairs – especially when Tivo was invented! So when the kids go to bed, I stay upstairs, hang out in my bedroom, watch TV, take a bath…. I just spend a lot of time in there. It's cozy and warm. I have a TV, my office, and food in my bedroom. I break all of the bedroom rules. In fact, I have a fully functioning office in my bedroom – it's the Organize 365 headquarters! Even though my kids are teenagers now, one of them still prefers that we're on the same level in the house. Therefore, I still spend most of my evenings upstairs in my bedroom. It's nice to have a private space just for you The whole point of getting organized is to help you find the time to do the things in life that you want to do. When you do the 100 Day Home Organization Program, you will find that there is a clear method to the organizational approach that you're taken through. It starts in the kitchen, which is where the majority of people spend their time in the home. The kitchen is most important for your family. Next is the master bedroom and closet. They are most important for your soul! This is where you get dressed, where you sleep, where you regenerate yourself. It's all about you (and a little about your spouse, of course!). The rest of the house is for your family, but the bedroom is about you. It's your condo! My house is an apartment building I like that our house is like our own apartment building. Downstairs, the kitchen is like the café which is where we socialize and catch up. Upstairs, we all have the privacy of our own apartments. Our apartments are decorated to our own taste and style. So in the same way that I encourage my kids to think of their bedroom as a mini-apartment, I treat my bedroom just the same. The key is to have a space that is all yours I know your bedroom isn't all yours, but honestly, 99% of the time your spouse really doesn't care what you do with the bedroom (if your spouse is anything like mine). If they do, focus on your half of the bedroom! Use an imaginary piece of tape to divide it, if need be. Do you put yourself first? If you are feeling like you have to take care of your kids, your job, your spouse, your house, and you are at the end of the list... I want you to move yourself up to the top of the list. I'm not suggesting you do this all the time or even every day. But how about for just an hour a week? I would love for you to pencil in an hour that is just for you on your calendar. In addition, why not do an organizational task this week just on your stuff, on your area and no one else's. When you get yourself organized, your family follows suit. There is an energy that comes from that positive place. For me, when I want to have "me time," I take great comfort hanging out in my condo! View the complete post here: https://organize365.com/199

On the podcast this week, I talk about goal setting. Goal setting is one of my favorite things. I may even like it more than organizing! The kind of goals that I love to set are BHAG – which stands for big, hairy, audacious goals. To put this into context, when I was 16 my goals were: to be a stay-at-home mom, home-school my kids, and grow all my own food, own a business AND be the President of the United States! I have always had really high expectations for myself and others around me. When I was graduating from college, I was told I had "unrealistic expectations." I think it's fair to say that I do often have unrealistic expectations. I usually don't achieve my goals in the time frame that I originally set. But that is because they are so big that they require extra time, resources, and personal development in order to achieve them. But I DO achieve them! Examples Of Big Goals That I Have Achieved In summer 2016, one of my big goals was to create an Amazon number 1 bestseller by the fall… and I did! (The Mindset of Organization). Then in the spring, I published my second book, How ADHD Affects Home Organization , within 90 days. It also became an Amazon number 1 bestseller, sold over 5,000 copies and is currently featured as an Amazon book of the month. I exceeded my own big, hairy, audacious goal! I remember when I announced in May 2016 that I wanted to get published by August 2016, some concerned Organized 365 readers thought that I was setting myself up for a fall. I received emails saying "Do you think you've bitten off more than you can chew?," and "Are you sure you can publish a quality book that fast?" The fact is, we're not used to people setting and achieving really, really big goals. Entrepreneurs are well known for chasing the elusive goal. And as soon as they get close to the goal, they extend it and make it bigger. I sure can relate to that! Introducing Good, Better, And Best Goals I was listening to James Wedmore's podcast recently and he discussed this idea of good, better, and best goals. The basic idea is that the goal you want to achieve has 3 levels – a good goal, a better goal, and a best goal. Good, Better, And Best Goals In Home Organization I think this concept of good, better, and best goals relates to home organization as well. I'm a functional organizer and not a "picture-perfect, Pinterest home" organizer. What I'll be teaching you is to set expectations that reach a good and better goal, but not necessarily a best goal. Let me explain. You could say that to declutter a space would be a good goal. A better goal is to functionally organize that space after it is decluttered. The best goal would be for the room to be really well designed, have been designed by an interior designer, and have brand new containers that all match! A laundry example would be as follows – Good... clean laundry. Better... clean and put away. Best... clean, put away, and organized. In my 100 Day Home Organization Program, I have often said that it takes 3 times going through a space to really get it organized. Really, what we are doing there is getting to good, to better, then to best. I talk through some more examples of good, better, and best goals on the podcast, ranging from organizing paper, to setting weight goals, to how far you got with creating a plan from last week's podcast episode. Don't Get Too Attached To The Outcome Of Goals Sometimes when we set goals, we get very attached to what an outcome will look like. This may be based on what has happened in the past, the results of others, or just an ideal that we carry around. I would urge you not to get too attached to exactly what the outcome will look like. Because it may well be that you achieve a goal without even really realizing it. I would love for you to consider the following in goal setting: 1. When you are setting a goal, think of what would be a good, better, or best goal. Good means this has to happen. If this doesn't happen, then I didn't meet this goal. Better is what I really want to happen, what I'm striving for. Best is if the sun, moon, and stars aligned and all your big goals are met! 2. Do not get attached to the outcome of the goal. Sometimes, our goals can be achieved in ways that we didn't envision. Good luck at setting your good, better, and best goals! I'd love to hear how far you get with them over in my Facebook Group. If you'd like to join, click here. View the complete post here: https://organize365.com/198

On the podcast this week, I talk about time management and productivity. I've finally figured out what is missing for women on this topic! Everyone needs a schedule. You need a plan and you need to proactively tell yourself what you should be doing. Because if you don't, you will just end up sidetracked and distracted. I haven't talked about time management and productivity very much in the past. That is because I think that you need to get physically organized first before you can get mentally organized. This is a little different from what you're used to hearing me say. I do think that change happens in your mind first and then in your physical reality – as far as getting physically organized and decluttered. But when it comes to productivity and time management, we're at a whole new level. Now we are visualizing what change will look like and mentally making the changes. That is why I want to make this physical for you. I have created some AMAZING printables that I'm so happy to share with you. You can download them here and they go with this week's podcast episode and next week's episode as well. They also go with episodes 192 and 193 on routines. Making changes to our time management and how we manage our schedule does not happen overnight. I have devised 4 steps for creating a plan for time management. Steps 1 & 2: Morning and Afternoon & Evening Routines I recently created two podcast episodes on my morning routine and my afternoon and evening routines. Thank you for all the feedback that I've received on these episodes – I loved recording them and they've been really well received. Many people talk about morning and evening routines, but for me my afternoon routine is my most important routine right now (between 2-5pm – after my productive work) . In this week's podcast episode, I talk you through exactly what I want you to do to creat your routines and my worksheet will help you formulate one – just add ONE new thing into your morning, afternoon and evening routine. Step 3: Work out all of the roles that you are responsible for in the household This step is going to overwhelm you! I take you through the task of working out how many roles you are responsible for when it comes to running your household. There are A LOT of roles and you will be surprised how many relate to you. For example, healthcare coordinator, taxi driver, vacation planner, etc. On the worksheet, you are then asked to work out all of your 'to-dos' for each role. You may find this difficult, but give it your best shot! To put this into context – a couple years ago, I completed a time study for me and Greg. We discovered we were spending 36 hours a week on household and childcare related tasks. Step 4: Planning your time and creating a schedule In this final step on my worksheet, you actually plan your time. You create a schedule. The focus is on being PRODUCTIVE. When you plan your time in advance (right down to the minutes), you will find that you have more minutes. Yes, you get more time back in your day! I can work with you on this task, if you'd like. I love helping people plan their schedules in order to be more productive. Just click here to book a coaching call with me. You NEED a schedule – especially if you work from home. Whether you are an entrepreneur, a work-from-home employee, a stay-at-home mom, or you have any other role that requires you to work from home, you NEED to have a schedule. I consider "work" as your life purpose. That is how I define work. This could be paid or unpaid (i.e., stay-at-home mom). Whatever your work is, it's your life purpose. Time is so valuable and you can never get it back so you need to work out a schedule that ensures you do not fritter away your time. Share your new schedules in the Organize 365 Facebook Group! View the complete post here: https://organize365.com/197

On the podcast this week, I introduce you to a rule that I impose upon myself that I call the "24 Hour Rule." The 24 Hour Rule is going to free you up from all the things that you might do, should do, could do, or want to do someday. Instead, it'll teach you to focus on today. Warning: Please listen to the full podcast episode! You may think at first that the 24 hour rule is a little crazy, but by the end I hope I've convinced you to give it a try. A Bit Of Background The 24 Hour Rule is something that I developed for myself after I'd been doing the SundayBasket™ for a few years. Why? Well, I found that a couple of items in my Sunday Basket™ stayed every week! This goes against the rule of the Sunday Basket™, that you empty the Sunday Basket™ completely on Sunday. Then you hold up every single item – every piece of paper, mail, slash pocket – and you ask yourself, "Can this wait until next Sunday?" If it can, then it goes right back into the Sunday Basket™. At the end of your time working on your Sunday Basket™, you have identified the items that need to be acted on before next Sunday. All the rest can wait. I Started To Drown In My WOW Ideas I'm an ideas person. Ideas come to me all the time and I get so excited. I'm a WOW person and not a HOW person – I usually leave the details to someone else. I love to write down my ideas or print them off and then put them in my Sunday Basket™. I realized that all of these WOW ideas were the items in my Sunday Basket™ that were staying each week. I was just accumulating a lot of ideas, but not necessarily implementing them. In other words, I was drowning in my own ideas and becoming overwhelmed. I had to stop stockpiling all of my should/could/someday ideas in a physical location because it was wasting my time instead of inspiring me. To overcome this problem, I created the 24 Hour Rule. The 24 Hour Rule Explained My 24-hour rule is pretty simple. When I find a great idea, I ask myself, "Can I do this within 24 hours?" Now, of course, there are many things that you can't implement fully in 24 hours, but here's another way to look at this… We all have times when we come up with a juicy idea that we dive right into and end up spending 2 hours (sometimes even more!) on the internet researching our idea. Do you agree? Most likely, you didn't have those 2 hours when you first got your idea, but you made time within 24 hours to flesh it out. Then you decided if it was worth pursuing now, later, or not at all. My point is that, if an idea is that good and it moves you that much, then you will take immediate action on it. All of the other someday ideas can be disregarded right now. Don't write them down or print them off. Just let them be. As soon as I adapted the 24 Hour Rule, I found that if I really wanted to do something awesome for my business, my home, or my family, I could almost always start to take action within 24 hours. A Recent Example Where I Applied The 24 Hour Rule A recent example of my coming up with an idea and applying it within 24 hours is the fundraising appeal that I am currently running for Avondale House in Houston, Texas. I was completely glued to the news on Hurricane Harvey – reading and watching everything about it on my phone. I felt so bad for those affected that I thought there must something I can do to help. That's when I came up with the idea of fundraising for Avondale House. You can read all about it and contribute here. Great news, we've raised over $2,000 at the time of recording this podcast! Thank you so much to everyone for contributing. Now you see that the idea of helping out with Hurricane Harvey relief was so important to me that if I had waited, I would never have taken action. Your To-Do List Is Never-Ending The reality is that as soon as you knock things off your to-do list, other things come onto it. That is why it's a to-do list, and not a to-done list – it's never going to end! As soon as you come to terms with your to-do list, it will give you greater perspective on organizing your to-dos, prioritizing, and a more realistic view of life. There is only so much you can do in your day and I really, really want you to be able to use some of your free time for whatever you want to do. This is why a key piece of advice that I have for you is to only have 3 big things – or what I callrocks – that you want to accomplish each day. Keep things realistic and don't constantly chase the impossible. I'm going to cover this concept in more detail in future podcast episodes so stay tuned. The Sunday Basket™ Most things come back to the Sunday Basket™ because I truly love the Sunday Basket™. The Sunday Basket™ takes time to set up and get used to using. But when you've been implementing the Sunday Basket™ for 2 months, I'm going to bet that you find you have a lot more time back in your week. That time comes from no longer looking for paper items and trying to remember things, and from being more organized. It's amazing how much time you spend just with switching tasks. Did you know you can spend up to 20 minutes switching tasks and recovering from getting distracted? That's a lot of time! And that's why, I always encourage you to put your big ideas in your Sunday Basket™. But let's take it a step further and always apply the 24 Hour Rule to each and every one of those ideas. I suggest that when you review your ideas every week, you should assess whether you will act on it in 24 hours. If not, throw it away or review it again in 100 days. I challenge you today… What is something that you have on your someday list that you can eliminate? I challenge you to get rid of it – go ahead and lighten your load! Now, is that big idea you have right now actionable within 24 hours? Then, I encourage you to start pursuing it now! Are you interested in knowing more about the Sunday Basket™? You can join attend a virtual class here or join the Sunday Basket™ Workshop Licensing Program by clicking here! View the complete post here: https://organize365.com/196

On the podcast this week, I'm thrilled to introduce you to Wendy Zanders. Wendy is a successful professional organizer and her story fascinates me. She has done things in almost the exact opposite order to how I'd normally recommend, but it has worked well and I couldn't be happier for her. Her story just goes to show that there are many different routes to success and we must all follow the path that feels right for us. Wendy discovered me when she was suffering from depression Wendy found me and the Organize 365 blog and podcast during the most depressing time of her life. Her family had suffered the loss of a dear family member and she was really struggling. She actually connected with me when she heard me share my depression story, as her experiences felt so similar to mine. Wendy shares on the podcast how she joined my Jumpstart Professional Organizer Program (a one-time offering this past summer). The program was for people wanting to start a professional organizer business. She then joined my Sunday Basket™ Workshop Licensing Program, and later she joined my 100 Day Home Organization Program. This is pretty much the exact opposite order that you would expect! A little more about Wendy Wendy is 35, lives in Frederick, Maryland, and she has a husband, a 4 year old daughter, a 10 year old son, and a new business. She is in between the accumulation and survival phases of life. Her life is pretty busy, with non-stop family commitments, business commitments, and church commitments. Wendy and her husband both work full-time, and they very much divide and conquer when it comes to running the family and household. Earlier this year, Wendy decided that she wanted to get a part-time job on the weekend to help build up the family emergency fund. She was given the advice to find something she loves to do and then do it as a business. Like me, Wendy LOVES being organized and helping others get organized. Becoming a professional organizer seemed like the perfect choice! Wendy and I first spoke in May of this year. After asking me plenty of great questions, she decided to join my Jumpstart Professional Organizer Program. Thankfully, her husband was behind her 100%, something that is always a huge help for the women who take my program. Wendy is also a member of my Professional Organizers Think Tank Facebook Group. She explains on the podcast how being a member of the group really took things to another level for her, being able to connect with other like-minded professional organizers on the same journey as her has been invaluable. She works on her professional organization business on Friday nights and Saturday. Wendy had a goal to earn back the program fee within 7 months and she did so within 3 months! Becoming a professional organizer despite having ADD Wendy shares on the podcast that she has attention deficit disorder, something that you wouldn't always associate with a professional organizer. Wendy was not diagnosed with ADD until later in life. It was actually the point at which her son was being tested for ADHD that she realized she had many of the symptoms herself. Wendy becoming a successful professional organizer... with ADD... really does mean that if you have a passion to do something, then go out there and do it! Marketing can be the biggest challenge One of Wendy's key strengths is marketing her business. Being a professional organizer means meeting and connecting with many people. Therefore, marketing efforts that lead to the most results are often those conducted in person. Wendy is a superstar when it comes to marketing her business and on the podcast she shares the many ways that she's doing this. Become a Sunday Basket™ Workshop Licensed Provider Would you like to become a Sunday Basket™ Workshop licensee like Wendy? Would you like to help people in your local area get their paperwork organized? This is a first step before joining my mentoring program for professional organizers. My Sunday Basket™ Workshop Licensing Program is now open and I'd love for you to join. Registration closes next Tuesday, September 26th. Please click here to find out more. If you want to join the licensing program, but it's not right for you at this time, you can put yourself on the (no obligation) wait list for next time. Finally (because I'm so excited about it!), I want to share that Wendy and I are both going toBizChix Live in October which is going to be AMAZING. If you want to learn more about the event please, click here. Happy Paper Organizing! View the complete post here: https://organize365.com/195