Time Management

7 Ways to Use Your Calendar to Get Things Done

If you want to accomplish your tasks and goals, organize your time using a calendar system. It can be an electronic calendar on your phone, tablet, or laptop. A shareable calendar (e.g., Google Calendar) can be beneficial if you are trying to coordinate your schedule with family members. You can also choose old-fashioned paper, such … Read more

How Managing Time Can Help You Get Organized

It might seem counterintuitive but, in my experience, one of the main reasons most people struggle with disorganization is that they have trouble managing time. Here’s the thing.  You can’t really manage time; you can only use it wisely to accomplish the most important things that you need to and want to do. And if … Read more

Make Time to Achieve Your Goals

Each new year gives us yet another chance for a fresh start. Maybe now is the time to ask yourself how you can live the next year in the best possible way. What goals can you set to help you have a happy and successful year? And more importantly, how can you make time to … Read more

Are You Wasting Time on the Latest Tool?

I don’t know about you, but the more I learn about technology and tools for organizing and productivity, the more confused I become. Sometimes I feel like I’m wasting time on the latest tool. Do you have a tendency to download the newest one, try it for a few days, and then give up? I’m sure I … Read more

The Weight of Stuff

Do you find that some days your stuff weighs you down? When I have the chance to work with clients for a significant amount of time, whether that’s several days in a row or spread out over a number of months, it does feel as though their home gets lighter.  During these decluttering projects we may … Read more

A Shift in Seasonal Routines

Summer is all about relaxing your regular routine just a little. Later bedtimes and easy mornings.  BBQing, camping, swimming, boating.  Just being outdoors.  While some welcome the routines of the late summer with the return to work and school, others find the end of summer daunting at best.  As summer draws to a close, the following tips may ease … Read more

I Can’t Get Organized!

I came across an article I’ve been saving that really has nothing to do with organizing, “I won’t I won’t I won’t – you can’t make me” by Carl Duivenvorden.  However, the point he makes about the difference between “can’t” and “won’t” has everything to do with organizing. So many times clients have said to me, … Read more

Managing Your Energy

Let’s say you spend your entire day running from one meeting to the next, switching from one task to another. You’re constantly checking your phone, and not getting enough sleep on top of it all. I seem to be describing 90 percent of the people I know. So, you might be wondering why I’m even … Read more

Organizing Disagreements

Have you ever had disagreements with your partner about the level of organization (or lack thereof) in your household?  I’m guessing you have.  We all have different expectations for how tidy our home should be. These expectations can be a result of the environment in which we were raised – was it cluttered or tidy? And a result … Read more

Gift-Giving Tips

Alright, people, there is not much time left before the magic season is upon us. Gather your holiday mojo, and let’s make it happen. It occurs to me that the holiday season can be one of the most clutter-generating times of the year. I read a blog post from the Minimalists about gift-giving tips, which … Read more

Expectations for the Upcoming Holidays

December’s almost upon us.  Shopping, decorating and entertaining!  We knock ourselves out every holiday season trying to make it perfect, and then often feel empty and unfulfilled when it’s all over. What’s that all about?  Well before it all starts again this year, ask yourself, “What is it that I want from this time of … Read more

The Importance of Focus

Over a few weeks, I worked with a family on a downsizing project. It made me reflect on the importance of focus. In this situation, four siblings cleared out the family home their parents lived in for 50 years. Recently, one parent passed away, and the other can no longer live alone. The family home … Read more

Finding the Right Motivation

Yes, I know that you know that getting enough exercise and enough sleep are good for you. Why on earth do I need to bring it up again? What if you’ve been struggling with checking things off your list, moving projects forward at home and work, and generally being productive? Perhaps the latest apps, the … Read more

Tasks Expand to Fill Time – Jane Veldhoven

Summer is finally here and I’m getting really tired of working 7 days a week.  It’s so easy to get sucked into doing that especially when you run your own business. If I continue to do it summer will be over and I’ll have missed it. So, I’ve made a commitment to try to stop working on the weekends at least until the fall. Now, I have to figure out how to do that. 

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Can You Live a Good Enough Life?

I am fascinated by how the concept of ‘good enough’ relates to being organized and our many attempts to be what we perceive as ‘well organized’.  What does being organized mean to you?  Most likely not the same as it does to your spouse, your best friend or your children.  What if, instead of constantly striving to be more organized, better organized or even, heaven forbid, perfectly organized we strove for

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Planning for Success – A Few Tips

Sometimes we get to the end of a week, we wonder where the time went and why we didn’t accomplish anything significant. I often work with clients to teach them time management skills and tips for planning for success. Then, I realize I should manage my time better. Why do we put off planning? In … Read more