Well, reality sets in that we are not perfect. No matter how hard we try the results are not always “perfect”. So then we start doubting ourselves.  We feel like failures. After all, there are winners or there are losers. How you play the game doesn’t seem to matter much anymore.

Maybe it’s time to lighten up on our desire to be perfect. I was reading an essay by Pam Young ( https://www.bigtent.com/groups/innerkiddies) on the Flylady bigtent site (see below) about how she didn’t have any thank-you notes on hand so she continued to procrastinate sending one for a lovely dinner she had been to. After a month of forgetting to purchase the notes she decided to send one she had on hand even though it wasn’t a “thank-you” card. That didn’t matter because she felt much better after sending it. She lightened up on her perfectionism and in turn probably put a smile on her friend’s face.

If you want to read the whole essay you can go to the Flylady bigtent site https://www.bigtent.com/groups/flylady and sign in.  Then put Young@Heart in the search box. Next put 07/07/2010 to 07/08/2010 in the date boxes. It should bring up her essay. If anyone knows of an easier way to search for a particular essay on BigTent then please let me know. It did take a while to find this essay but it’s worth reading.

In this strive for perfectionism it’s hard to laugh at ourselves for being human. We’ve become obsessed about:

• always wanting our homes to be “magazine perfect”
• always sending the “perfect” thank-you note and sending it on time
• always cooking the gourmet meal even when our family prefers the boxed mac & cheese
• always responding to that email, twitter or facebook post right away even when there are more important things to do

These are just some of the things our perfectionism causes us to think “failure” instead of laughing at our human imperfections.

Perfectionism is the striving to reach a destination that doesn’t exist. So why even try to go there. Lighten up on yourself and start enjoying the journey. The journey should consist of:

• Sending the thank-you note on a plain piece of paper if necessary.
• Setting a timer and work a little each day at decluttering. Enjoy the process.
• Reply to that email 2 weeks, even 2 months later. Apologize and move on.
• If it’s something that needs a timely response (email, phone call, etc.) just respond the best you can. Don’t worry about what the person on the other end might think, that’s their problem.

We worry too much about making ourselves look “perfect” in other people’s eyes. If they expect us to be perfect then they have a BIG problem. If we didn’t worry so much about what others think then we just might enjoy life more. We could learn to laugh at our faults. Once we learn to laugh at ourselves we can come up with clever ways to compensate for those “imperfections”. Compensating doesn’t mean we are working to eliminate our faults. It means accepting our imperfections and working around them to achieve our goals. We will work at being the best we can be and that will be good enough.

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

If you have piles of paper clutter then you need to get my eBook, “Cut Out The Paper Clutter”. It can help you clear out the piles and organize the important papers.

http://organizebythemonth.com/CutOutThePaperClutter.html

You can read more of what’s in the books here.

Over the years I learned many ways to reduce the incoming papers. I have also learned how to keep the important papers organized. It’s taken a lot of hard work but is well worth it.

The past few months have been a real challenge for me.  Due to my mother having a stoke this past May I have had to manage not only my own papers but also my mother’s papers and finances. Although she has a computer she had not set up any of her bills to be on auto-pay. Nor had she done any online banking. These are two ways to simplify bill paying plus cut down on some of the paper clutter.

I’ve slowly been setting up auto-pay on many of the monthly bills plus paying online. That reduces the checks (paper) I have to write, reduces the envelopes (paper) I have to address, plus saves money on stamps. All these steps helps me spend less time on bill paying and more time on other things.

So check out what’s in the eBook “Cut Out The Paper Clutter“. I’ve listed the table of contents so you can see the different chapters that will have solutions for your problem areas.

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

You beat yourself up for not keeping your promise. You tell yourself you are a failure. You feel you can never get the house under control and keep it that way.

Then you get angry and decide you’re going to clean up the house once and for all and keep it that way. So you start over again with hopes, dreams, and determination to get it right this time.

Here’s a a quote to think about when you find yourself in the above situation.

“If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you always got.”

When you start over to clean up the clutter in your home for yet another time, stop and think of “why” it got this way again, not the “how”. We all the “how” – we simply did not put things away. It’s when you figure out the “why” then you can start doing something different and guess what – you’ll get different results.

1. Why didn’t things get put away?
2. Why do you keep purchasing more items? (Do you really need them? Do you buy without planning first?)
3. Why don’t you have a place or “home” for each item in your home? (Too many items? Not enough or the right kind of storage?)
4. Why don’t you have a routine to follow to keep the house cleaned up? (Never wrote out a plan? The old routine never works? )

We all have weaknesses and it’s easy to come up with excuses. We all have strengths too. Maybe you keep you desk at work clean and organized. Or your craft project is organized and ready to work on. Or maybe you’re great at organizing your childrens school parties, etc.  Take a look at what you do well no matter how large or small it may be and try to apply some of those techniques to what you are not good at.

“Have confidence that if you have done a little thing well, you can do a bigger thing well too.”  ~ Storey

“It’s not how many times you fall that matters; it’s how many times you get up.” ~ Anon

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Below are several sites with ideas on decorating bikes and/or the children. It doesn’t have to cost much. Use items you already have around the house, a few store bought craft supplies, and a whole lot of imagination and fun!

http://crafts.kaboose.com/bike-decorations.html

http://familyfun.go.com/crafts/a-star-spangled-ride-674243/

http://www.familycorner.com/family/kids/crafts/patriotic-flip-flops.shtml

http://www.womansday.com/Articles/Crafts/Stars-and-Stripes-Cap.html

Don’t forget the red, white, and blue balloons. They always make a parade fun!

If you have ideas for a parade please let me know. I’ll share them with all my readers.

Thanks,

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

Here are several websites with ideas and instructions to help you get started.

Kaboose.com has a bunch of crafts and other activities.

http://crafts.kaboose.com/holidays/july-4/

Disney Family Fun site has plenty of ideas.

http://familyfun.go.com/4th-of-july/4th-of-july-crafts/

HP Creative Studio has projects you can print on your printer.

http://www.hp.com/hho/hp_create/themes_holidays_4th_of_july.html

I will check out more sites and ideas and post them here in the next few days. If you have any fun, inexpensive, and easy projects please let me know so I can share them with all my readers. Thanks.

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

We can work on keeping our own things cleaned up but if our spouses and/or children leave things laying around we will become frustrated and discouraged. We know that begging them to help usually doesn’t work in the long run. We have to figure out how to convince them that decluttering and organizing helps everyone in the household. That is where the “selling” comes in. We have to let them know how they will benefit from getting rid of the old things and organizing what is left.

The specific benefits may different for each person but here are some basic benefits of decluttering and organizing that applies to all of us.

1. Fewer things laying around (toys, electronics, etc.) makes it easier to find and put away the ones we really use and enjoy.
2. Putting dirty clothes in the proper designated place makes it easier to keep the laundry up. That means they will have clean clothes when they need them.
3. Putting the dirty dishes in the dishwasher or washing them by hand instead of leaving them all around will allow you to use clean dishes instead of paper ones. That’s better for the environment and today’s children are learning to take pride in protecting the environment for their own future.
4. Keeping track of how much money is spent on “things” and if they are “wants” or “needs” will help save money and keep the clutter from building up around the house. I call this conscious buying and it benefits everyone.

How do you “sell” yourself and/or your family members on the benefits of decluttering and organizing? Please let me know by leaving a comment so I can share these ideas with all my readers. Thanks.

I looked through some old blog posts and found ones that may help inspire you to find the benefits for you and your family.

Wants vs Needs     http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=156

Mindfulness in the Home     http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=87

“Things” Can Be Freeloaders    http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=370

Time To Get Off Autopilot    http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=354

Mistakes As Clutter    http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=210

To a lighter load along the way.
Janice Scissors

Please pass this post along to friends and family who want to declutter and organize their lives.  When they sign up at http://cutclutterwithscissors.com, they will receive a free ebook filled with decluttering and organizing tips.



Stay Connected
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http://twitter.com/jlscissors
email:  janice@cutclutterwithscissors.com

Cut Clutter With Scissors Newsletter
Volume 2, Issue 18
May 2, 2010

It’s been awhile since I wrote a newsletter.  Sometimes life throws you a few lemons and sometimes you feel like you’ve been run over by a bulldozer.  The last four weeks have felt like the latter. My mother had surgery on May 3 that ended up with multiple complications, the most serious being a stroke. She is now on her road to a slow recovery which gives me a chance to settle into a “new” routine.

Both of my sisters live out of town so I’m the one handling most of the legal, financial, medical, and household issues. Fortunately my mother was the “born organized” one. I’m still wondering where my SHEness (sidetracked home executive aka Sidetrack Sisters & Flylady) came from.  My name is on her checking account and her Power of Attorney/Living Will was easy to find. Actually, since her stroke did not effect her memory she was able to tell me where it was.

Ironically right before her surgery I was putting the finishing touches on my new ebook, “Cut Out The Paper Clutter”. Because I’ve been following many of the ideas in the book regarding the organizing of financial papers it wasn’t too difficult to take over her bill paying and still keep my own under control. Most of my bills are on autopay and the rest are paid  with online banking.  I have spent several years using many of the tips that I share in the ebook to reduce the junk mail so it takes little time to sort my mail. I hope to have the ebook up for sale by next week.

My mother hasn’t embraced all the electronic bill paying yet but we had planned on doing it during her surgery recovery time. I will take the next few weeks to slowly get most of her bills on autopay and set up online banking. This way it will be much easier for her to handle her own bills when she gets back home from rehab.  I will also start using some of the tips/websites listed in the ebook to get her name off of the junk mail lists.  See below for a link to the blog post that list the websites.

As much as I have learned through research, first hand experience is still the greatest teacher. We all know the importance of setting up our financial papers so our spouse or children could easily take over the responsibility if necessary yet this is one area many people put off.  Clearing out the paper clutter and organizing our finances can go a long way to reduce the worry.  The stress that comes with disorganization and procrastination will get worse with age. Whether you are in your 20′s, 40′s, 60′s or older, now is the time to get rid of the paper clutter so you can free up your time and energy to spend on the more important and fun things in life.

My goal is to get back to the weekly newsletters (or as often as possible) and blog posts. Although I will be focusing a lot on paper clutter I also will share tips on traveling and garage sales. After all, it’s summer time and that’s what people do during this time of year.

If you have any questions, tips, or suggestions please reply to this email or post a comment on my current blog posts at: http://organizebythemonth.com. I’m always happy to help you with tips to declutter your home or life. I also love it when I can learn new things from you and then share it with all my readers. Thank you.

To a lighter load along the way.
Janice Scissors

Please pass this newsletter along to friends and family who want to declutter and organize their lives.  When they sign up at http://cutclutterwithscissors.com, they will receive a free ebook filled with decluttering and organizing tips.

Blog Posts

How to Declutter Junk Mail        http://organizebythemonth.com/?p=245


Stay Connected
http://cutclutterwithscissors.com
http://organizebythemonth.com  (blog)
http://twitter.com/jlscissors
email:  janice@cutclutterwithscissors.com

Over the years I have designed more specific worksheets for different kinds of projects. I have converted these into PDF’s and loaded them to my server. You can download these free worksheets and print them out. If you have any questions about them please ask me in the comment section.

Paperwork Project Worksheet

Household or Craft Project Worksheet

Weekend Projects Worksheet

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors

I plan on sharing these resources with you every Wednesday. These posts may include links to websites with lots of information and inspiration. They may be reviewing a book I have read on organizing. Please check out this blog every Weds. If you want, you can sign up on the right sidebar or here to receive new blog posts in your email.

I mentioned Marla Cilley above. She is know as Flylady. I first read about her eight years ago in an article in Woman’s Day magazine. I’ve use many of her tips and tools over the years.

Check her out at: http://www.flylady.net/

Marilyn Bohn is a Professional Organizer in Utah. She has lots of articles on her website and blog. She recently published the book, “Go Organize! Conquer Clutter In 3 Simple Steps.” You can read my review of the book here.

Check out her website and blog: http://www.marilynbohn.com/

Jacquie Ross is also a Professional Organizer. I recently met her through Twitter and now we correspond through email and phone calls. She also writes a lot of articles on organizing plus has a newsletter and ebook.

Check her out at: http://www.castawaytheclutter.com/index.html

There are so many ways to declutter and get organized. Sometimes it is trial and error until you find what works for you. Life is journey but you can lighten your load along the way.

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://Twitter.com/jlscissors (Look for my almost daily mini Cut Clutter Tips.)

This got me thinking about the graduation gifts I need to buy. Oh, and Mother’s Day is May 9th so I also have to think about what to buy my mother and mother-in-law. Usually I get them flowers (cut flower bouquet – no vase) plus take them out to brunch or dinner. Both are non-clutter gifts.

But what do I get a high school boy and a college graduating young lady? Since the boy will be staying at home while going to a local college he won’t need anything for a dorm room. His sister may be moving out of state for a job so I don’t want to give her anything she would have to worry about moving to her new home. So the best solution will be to either give them money or a gift card. This way they can use it for things they need without me adding any clutter to their young lives.

Before you buy any gift for your mother or a new graduate think about how it will affect their life in the long term.

• Will it be nice in the short run but clutter in the long run? (a cute decorative wall hanging, silly/joke items, plants or flowers in a decorative vase – how many vases does one person need?)
• Is it something that is practical and they need or will improve their life?
• Is it something that is fun but won’t add clutter? (Tickets/gift card for a concert, amusement park, theater, or restaurant)

On the Flylady site there are some good ideas for the college bound teenager. The list is about halfway down the page. Check it out.

http://www.flylady.net/pages/ClutterFreeGiftsC.asp

While we are on the subject of school it’s time to honor all the teachers that help our children reach that great day of graduation. Next Tuesday, May 4 is National Teachers Day.

“The teacher who is indeed wise does not bid you to enter the house of his wisdom but rather leads you to the threshold of your mind.”
                                                                            ~Khalil Gibran

“Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and dream which, fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone and greater strength for our nation.”
                                                                            ~John F. Kennedy

http://www.nea.org/teacherday/index.html

http://www.teacher-appreciation.info/

******

Cinco de Mayo is Wednesday, May 5

http://holidays.kaboose.com/cinco-de-mayo/

http://www.apples4theteacher.com/holidays/cinco-de-mayo/

http://www.theholidayzone.com/cinco/

******

Mother’s Day is Sunday, May 9

http://www.holidays.net/mother/

http://holidays.kaboose.com/mothers-day/

******

Janice

http://cutclutterwithscissors.com

http://twitter.com/jlscissors