The Organized Life

What to Give Yourself This Holiday Season

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 05:55:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, November 13, 2011

While chatting with my parents on Sunday, they asked what day I'd be flying to Virginia for our Thanksgiving celebration next week, and for a moment I was baffled by their belief that the holiday would be coming so soon. But as I've been obliged to admit so many times before, they were right.

The start of the end-of-year holiday season induces in some people a wave of glee, in some a wave of nausea, and in many a wave of something between those two. Whatever your feelings about the season, I won't try to change them. What I will do, though, before things get too crazy, is to ask you to consider making real strides to keep yourself sane, solvent, organized, and as happy as possible over the next 6 weeks.

To that end, here are 5 things I hope you'll include on your list of things to give yourself in the weeks ahead.

#1: Freedom from unrealistic expectations

The expectation that you can and should turn your home into a winter extravaganza out of the pages of a magazine, or that every inch of your living space should be perfectly orderly before guests arrive, is bound to make you crazy or miserable or both, unless you happen to have nothing else to do for the next month and a half other than decorate and organize. (I'm going to guess that's not the case.) As I urge my clients throughout the year, the trick is to find your own reasonable equilibrium and aim for that, not to try to conform to other's expectations.

#2: The right to take a pass

While there may be some holiday events that require that you at least make an appearance (the office holiday party, a close neighbor's open house, Thanksgiving dessert at an important family member's home), forcing yourself to go to others that aren't particularly meaningful or appealing may leave you exhausted and resentful. Give yourself a few Get Out of Jail Free cards for those events, perhaps mailing a simple gift or note with your regrets and your wishes for the season.

#3: Permission to pass up a bargain

Supposedly good deals crop up everywhere over the next few weeks. If you find a gift that's already on your list at a particularly good price, but all means, go for it. Be wary of buying things you hadn't intended to, though--especially if you don't have a specific recipient in mind (if they're gifts) or don't have a very solid need for them (if they're for you). As is true year-round and especially so when stores encourage us to get up before dawn for "doorbuster" deals, buying things just because they seem to be bargains often means spending more than you'd planned and winding up with clutter.

#4: The gift of help

Even if your holiday preparations and celebrations aren't elaborate, chances are they involve time, effort, and energy, especially when you're also doing everything else you normally do. Don't try to be a holiday hero and tackle it all on your own. Whether you pay for help (by ordering your Thanksgiving meal from a catering company or hiring a crafty neighbor to wrap your gifts), enlist it (by having family members pitch in with food prep or pre-celebration tidying), or simply accept it when it's offered (many guests really do mean it when they ask what they can do to lend a hand), you'll save yourself time, stress, and frustration.

#5: Your own definition of "happy holidays"

Finally, tricky though this can sometimes be, do your best to define for yourself how you want to observe the season, whether that's an all-nine-yards weeks-long celebration with all the trimmings, a few small events with especially close friends and family members, or simply a week of watching cheesy holiday movies and drinking hot chocolate. By not trying to shoehorn yourself into others' ideas of what the holidays are or should be like, you'll be more likely to make it through the end of the year with less stress, less clutter, and more happiness, however you define it.

Get It Done Month, Week 2: Lessons Learned

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 03:24:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, October 9, 2011

Welcome to week 2 of Get It Done Month. (Missed the Tip from week 1? Read it here.) I'm very happy to report that I've accomplished the task I committed to last week: ordering a replacement shade for the broken one in my bedroom. What a relief to finally have that off of my shoulders! I'm ready to move on to a new project this week (more on that below).

I'm also happy to note that several readers shared with me the tasks they wanted to (and in some cases, successfully did) tackle last week. Kudos to those folks, and here's to your continued success in the weeks ahead.

What Kept Me Going
In the course of doing what it took to cross The Shade task off of my list, I was reminded of a few things that help make getting things done a lot easier. Here are those lessons learned, and how they can support you as you work on your own tasks and projects in the weeks ahead.

Done is better than perfect. At one point, I found myself wondering how closely the hue of the replacement shade I was looking at online matched the one currently hanging in my bedroom, and almost abandoned the order I was about to place out of fear that the two colors weren't close enough. (What exactly is "dove," anyway?) Then I realized the color match didn't have to be perfect: I don't spend a lot of time looking at the shades closed, and I can live with two slightly different hues. Plus, I wasn't willing to put off the task any longer in the name of perfection.
Aim small and low. Truth be told, had I made this task any more ambitious--finding and ordering curtains as well, for example--I probably wouldn't have done it, given everything else I had to attend to last week. Measuring, researching, comparing, and ordering a shade was just right: though there were several steps involved, they were straightforward, and the overall project was a small one.
Let accountability do its job. A big motivator throughout the week to finish the task I set out to do, especially in the (multiple) moments when I was tempted to do other things, was the thought that if I didn't complete it, I'd have to confess as much to all of you. Having promised to report my progress, I didn't want to have to admit that I'd fallen short.

Next Up
With task #1 crossed off my list, I'm ready to move on to a new one this week: updating the information in my PortaVault, the grab-and-go system I use for vital records, financial account details, and other info I'd want to have with me were I ever to need to leave my home in a hurry. Some of the stuff in there has grown a bit outdated, so it's time to replace it.

What task or project will you commit to this week? If you completed one last week, great! Let that feeling of accomplishment motivate you as you tackle the next one. If you're just getting started, keep the tips above in mind and remember that getting one project done is better than getting none done.

Once again, I invite you to share your successes and this week's projects on The Organized Life's Facebook page, tweet them with the hashtag #GetItDoneMonth, or leave them in a comment.

Good luck with week 2!

Welcome to Get It Done Month

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 02:28:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, October 2, 2011

Let me tell you about The Shade.

Back in--yikes--March, the cord on one of the two shades in my bedroom snapped, making it impossible to open. For the past (cough, cough) several months, then, it's been permanently drawn, waiting wearily for a replacement. Quite literally every week I vow to call the shade company and order a new one, and quite literally every week between March and now, I have not. It's time to change that.

Sometimes no matter how good our intentions or how seemingly strong our resolve or how important a task, it takes some sort of kick in the pants to get us to tackle it. As that much-needed dose of motivation for myself--and, I hope, for you, too--I'd like to officially declare October Get It Done Month, and to encourage each of us to use the next few weeks to deal with tasks and projects we've been putting off. Here's some background info on why we procrastinate, how to move beyond, and how to get started on your own accomplishments for the month.

How Hard Can It Be? Why We Put Stuff Off
Given that I've been living with a broken shade for 7 months, you'd think that replacing it would involve weaving a new one myself from the hair of a rare Himalayan animal, not picking up the phone and making a call.

What's with the procrastination? For me, it's a combination of things:

It's not a fun task.
It involves several steps (measuring the window, going through my household files to find the make and model of the shade, finding a provider, contacting them, and so on).
It's not important enough to rise to the top of my list, so it often gets pushed off altogether.
Despite the annoyance (and semi-darkness) of only being able to open one shade, I've kind of gotten used to it.

Of course, the downside of my endless delaying is not only that my bedroom doesn't look and feel the way I want it to, but also that I think about this task every single time I look at The Shade. There are plenty of other things that deserve my mental energy and attention more.

Getting Beyond Putting It Off
The best methods for overcoming procrastination and taking action on a task depend on what's behind the delay. Here's what I need to do to get myself moving, based on my reasons for stalling:

Come up with a reward for finishing the task so that while the work itself may not be fun, what comes after it will be.
Write down each of the steps involved and tackle them one at a time; it's a lot easier to think of measuring the window or finding the receipt for the shade in my file than to think of finishing this project in one fell swoop.
Enhance the importance of getting this done by reminding myself every day that finishing it means I never have to do it again.
Keep my eyes on the prize: I want my light-filled bedroom back!

How Get It Done Month Works
And, of course, one of the biggest motivators for getting this done is the fact that I'm making this commitment to all of you: by the end of this week, I will have ordered a replacement shade. I encourage--and request!--you to leave a comment and ask me how I did (and, of course, I'll share my progress in next week's Tip; for October, we'll go back to a once-a-week Tip schedule).

While you don't need to share the task you want to accomplish with hundreds of people, I invite you to take the opportunity each week this month to commit to a task or small project you've been putting off. Each week, ask yourself these questions:

What do I want to accomplish?
Why have I been putting this off?
What can I do to get beyond procrastinating on this?
What's the first step I'm going to take to get this done?

Want a boost, or want to share what you're committing to? Post it to The Organized Life Facebook page, tweet it with the hashtag #getItDoneMonth, or leave it in a comment.

I'm excited to get my stalled projects into gear (especially before the busy holiday season starts), and I hope you are, too.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have a window to measure.

Get Real to Get Organized

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 05:18:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, August 28 & September 4, 2011

As much as I love Elfa closet systems from The Container Store (and no, I'm not getting paid to say that; I adore them of my own volition), I'm chagrined by the number of clients who point to an image of an Elfa'ed space in one of the store's catalogs or on the website and say, "I want that." That tends to be a clothes closet with ten beautifully color-coordinated pieces on hangers spaced at two-inch intervals, with matching shoes and accessories neatly stored nearby.

The photos do a great job of showing off the system components (which is just what they're meant to do), but they're not intended to be exact blueprints for how any of our own closets will look with even the most fabulous system in place. Using photos like these as anything more than inspiration, general motivation, and a guide to what kind of storage setup might work for you tends to be a recipe for disappointment.

The Organizing Equivalent of Fashion Models
For the 99.99% of us who don't look like fashion models, flipping through magazines or even looking at billboards can be a harrowing experience. The same holds true of looking at images of organization: seeing absolutely perfect photos of immaculately organized spaces can make us feel instantly inadequate and can inspire negative comparisons. Wow--my pantry certainly doesn't look like that! If that's what an organized family room is meant to look like, I'm hopeless! I didn't know my hall closet was such a raging disaster.

To quote a mid-1990s infomercial, "Stop the insanity!" Being organized doesn't mean having to adhere to the immensely high standards someone else has come up with, whether we see those standards in magazines, on TV, or in others' homes and offices. It means getting real about what more organized, orderly, functional, and comfortable spaces would be like for us and then realistically working on creating those spaces, whether or not they bear any resemblance to what we see elsewhere or what anyone else considers "organized."

Go Your Own Way
I recently worked with a client I've had the chance to collaborate with on a number of projects over the years. At the start of our session, she showed me the closet in her home office, one of the spaces we had worked together to transform. As she gave me a tour of the space, pointing out the changes she'd made, she told me that, as she'd worked on organizing the closet, she had kept in mind my advice to focus above all on ensuring that it was functional and usable for her, no matter whether it looked perfect or would be up to anyone else's standards.

The result? She'd created a space that was significantly better for her than it had been, that allowed her easy access to the stuff she needed most often and ample storage for things that were more archival in nature, and that was no more organized than she needed it to be. That meant no perfectly matching boxes, no worries about the fact that some of her 3-ring binders had seen better days, and not a care in the world about what anyone else might think of how it looked. It was, in short, a space that was perfectly organized for her--and that, moreover, she'd kept that way for several months.

Get Real
As you contemplate your next organizing project, take a cue from my client: forget about perfection. Don't force yourself to aim for a space that looks like it came from a catalog when what you really need is one that's functional and useful based on how you actually live and work. Get real about what "getting organized" really means to you and you'll be far more likely not only to reach that goal, but also to keep up your success long term.

When Is It Time to Call in Help?

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 04:19:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, August 7 & 14, 2011

Despite being in the business of helping others, I'm the type of person who often finds it difficult to hand off tasks or to enlist the help of other professionals. There's just something in me that stubbornly insists on trying to be independent and tackling things on my own, even if they're boring or annoying, aren't tasks I'm good at, and take me a painfully long time.

But earlier this year, trying to do my own taxes--a complex undertaking in the best of situations, made even more convoluted by the intricacies of owning a business--finally put me over the edge, so I sent the IRS some money, filed an extension, and vowed to hire a CPA to take this weight off of my shoulders. I meet with him next Tuesday, and I can't wait. Yes, having him deal with all of my tax-related work will cost me money, and yes, if I had infinite time and patience (not to mention the desire to try to understand the tax code), I could do this work on my own, but it's time for me to wise up and acknowledge that it's best to enlist a pro.

Hey, All of This Sounds Familiar...
Here's the funny thing: I go through this logic with clients all the time. They're often convinced that they should be able to get organized on their own--after all, it's not rocket science (or the tax code)--if only they try harder or spend more time at it or just will themselves to do it.

But I remind them time and again that spinning their wheels or beating themselves up won't do them any good, and it certainly won't make them any more enthusiastic about doing what it takes to get organized in a lasting way. Why did it take me so long to apply this thinking to myself and my taxes? Both because I'm sometimes too stubborn for my own good, and because, like many of my clients, I had to reach the point at which trying to go on like I had was clearly not serving me anymore.

How Do You Know When It's Time?
When my clients email me or pick up the phone to call, they've often tried several times before to get organized on their own, to varying degrees of success, or they know right off the bat that the process will be less painful for them if they have someone there to lend a hand, whether that involves simply spending a few hours to help them get started or sticking with them every step of the way. But I never press anyone to work with me before they're ready, because I know the importance of reaching that point organically (see above!).

Generally, my clients know it's time to call in help when they don't know how or where to get started on their own, when they're tired of getting started but never really being able to finish, when they're feeling stuck, when they're overwhelmed, when they're bored, or when they've come to realize that they want to be more organized but just don't yet have the skills to make that happen solo.

If any of those reasons resonates with you, it might be time to enlist someone else to help you tackle whatever you've been avoiding or dreading, whether that's getting organized, undertaking an exercise program, or, say, finally wrangling your tax return into submission.

It's Not All or Nothing
Here's one final thing to remember about seeking assistance: it's not an all-or-nothing proposition. Find whatever balance of professional advice/assistance and do-it-yourself effort works for you.

For me, that means having all of my ducks in a row--my numbers crunched, my expense receipts organized, my past year's tax return at the ready--before I hand things off to Jason next week. For many of my clients, it means using our time together to plan, strategize, and deal with the most challenging or unexciting parts of their organizing projects and then committing to doing homework on their own to keep the progress going.

Whenever you might opt to call in help, for whatever reason, and in whatever way, I hope you'll find it as motivating and as liberating as I've found the prospect of finally enlisting someone to deal with a task I dread, and to do it far more efficiently and well than I ever could on my own. Here's to practicing what I preach, and to enjoying the same sense of accomplishment and relief that my clients do.

Take a Vacation from Organizing

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 00:23:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, late July 2011

I had the good fortune to spend the past ten days on the east coast, working for a few slivers of that time but vacationing for most of it. Having the opportunity to spend time with my friends and family doing things that aren't part of my everyday--such as visiting museums, playing at the beach with my niece, and wandering around New York City with absolutely no agenda--was the perfect way to take a temporary break from my regular tasks and responsibilities, and I came home relaxed, renewed, and ready to get back to work.

Benefits
The temporary pause that a good vacation offers always reminds me of how beneficial it can be to take similar breaks in other areas of life. It's generally much easier to stick to a healthy eating plan, for example, when it includes the flexibility to enjoy an occasional treat, and committing to an exercise routine long-term tends to feel more reasonable if it includes days in which you're allowed to do little more than kick back on the sofa.

And, of course, the "vacation" benefits apply to organizing, too: giving yourself the chance to take a complete break from organizational tasks for a set amount of time--an afternoon, a day, a week--can be a super-effective way of regaining the motivation and inspiration to keep your space and your life orderly and running smoothly on a daily basis.

Choosing Your Ideal Vacation
The best type of organizing vacation to take depends on a few factors. If you feel like you've generally got things under control, have strong maintenance habits in place, and find that it's easy to get back to a point of equilibrium after a bout of chaos, a longer break from organizing tasks (a week or so) may be the way to go. During this break, you might opt to let all of your regular habits slide (temporarily): let the mail pile up without processing it, don't worry about keeping your daily schedule in tip-top shape, and let the coffee table get buried under a mountain of books, magazines, and newspapers.

On the other hand, if you're in the midst of a larger ongoing project--decluttering your house as you prepare to downsize, say--a short "vacation" may be better, as you'll reap the benefits of a bit of downtime without losing momentum (or, worse, starting to backslide). Your vacation should include not just a temporary reprieve from your organizing work, but also a task that's pleasant and relaxing enough to be an effective antidote, such as going to a movie, losing yourself in a guilty pleasure book, or catching your favorite sports team in action--whatever renews and re-inspires you.

When to Take It
As with a regular vacation, it's worth scheduling your organizing break for a time when it won't throw you off or make it difficult to return to "real life." If you're opting for a week-long let-things-slide fest, for example, choose a week when a bit of chaos won't make you or anyone else in your household stressed, and when you have time at the tail end to do a few hours of catch-up work. (Think of it like unpacking after an actual vacation.)

Taking a pause from a larger project? Aim for a day or two somewhere in the middle (or, if it's a truly hefty undertaking, go for a few short "vacations" every few weeks); that way, you'll make some progress but won't reach the point of being so burned out that you may never want to get started again once you're done with your break.

Share Your Stories
Once you've taken a vacation from organizing, leave a comment and let me know how it went. What did you stop doing during your vacation? What did you do instead? What was the time off like?

Here's to the rejuvenating, relaxing, reinspiring benefits of taking a well-deserved break.

50 Things Challenge: Wrap-Up & Celebration

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 05:37:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, July 3 and 10, 2011

We've reached the end of the 2011 Get Rid of 50 Things Challenge. If you successfully completed the challenge and cleared out 50 (or more) unwanted, unneeded things from your life, congratulations! Even if you didn't quite get to 50, you deserve a pat on the back for making the effort to become more aware of what truly deserves space in your life, and to part with the stuff, beliefs, and limitations that don't.

As I mentioned when I introduced the Challenge this year, I, too, participated, both because I like to practice what I preach and because it was time to reconsider some of the stuff that had been lurking around my house for the past year. All told, I managed to part with 182 things, from catalogs to old cds, from excess office supplies to worn-out shoes. Here's some of what went, along with insights I gained as I weeded out.

Several small kitchen gadgets. Why was I still holding onto that 2-part mini citrus juicer, even though it never really worked well and didn't fit anything larger than a medium-sized lime? And when was the last time I pressed garlic, scooped ice cream with anything other than a soup spoon, or found myself in need of a bowl scraper? Everything in my kitchen drawers had to pass muster as being tools I actually use; those that didn't were destined for the give-away box.
File folders, report covers, business card stock, and other office supplies. Over the years, I've accumulated lots of office supplies (which I admit are my weakness!), and they've lingered because they all could potentially be useful. But I challenged myself to admit that I only use one kind of file folder, and that I'm unlikely to ever print my own business cards, and that there are only so many pens I need.
Orphaned socks, old sneakers, and miscellaneous other bits of clothing and shoes. Because my closets and dresser aren't overflowing with clothes, and I don't usually struggle to find or put things away, I tend to let the contents of those spaces go unchecked. But why was I saving single socks whose mates I hadn't seen in months, or that shirt that was so lovingly worn as to have sprouted holes along the seams? It was time to make some conscious decisions about what got to hang around.
Miscellaneous books, catalogs, and magazines. A close look through my bookshelves revealed several volumes I'd already read and was unlikely to go back to, along with a good handful that, if I were honest with myself, I wasn't likely to dive into at any point in the near future. I'd rather get these into the hands of people who will read them, so off they went. As for the catalogs and magazines, I held onto a few that felt like actual current, useful references and recycled those that didn't.
Several but-I-might-need-it! bits and pieces. Ball jars whose lids were a bit worse for the wear? Sure, potentially useful in a pinch, but I have others in better condition (and am happy to pay 50¢ a pop or so for new jars if ever I need them). How many shipping boxes did I need to make storage space for in my basement? Not nearly as many as I'd been keeping around. Old travel toiletry bottles? Those with mystery substances inside, or with lids that never quite stayed shut, hit the recycling bin.

I sometimes found it difficult to make decisions on the stuff I came across, especially those things that still seemed potentially useful (which, really, meant pretty much everything). What spurred me on, though, was the sense of accomplishment I felt as the list of stuff I was parting with grew, and as a few previously cluttered spots throughout the house started to open up. That, for me, is one of the greatest things about the 50 Things Challenge: it spurs me on to really reconsider what deserves space in my life and my home in a way that I don't always consider throughout the rest of the year.

Share Your Successes
Now I'd love to hear your successes with the Challenge. If you participated, leave a comment with a list of the things you parted with--and, if you'd like, let me know what realizations you came to as you weeded, or what you learned as you went through the Challenge.

I hope you enjoyed this year's 50 Things Challenge, and that it'll inspire you year-round to make room in your life for the things that matter most.

50 Things Challenge: Stick With It

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 05:34:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, June 12 and 19, 2011

Welcome to the last two weeks of the 2011 Get Rid of 50 Things Challenge! This home stretch can be both exhilarating and exhausting: you may find yourself inspired to make one final push, or, on the flip side, you might be ready to throw in the towel, whether you've parted with only a few things or have come within an arm's reach of the goal of 50.

The desire to give up is one I encounter frequently in the midst of organizing projects, for both my clients and myself. By this point, the excitement of making decisions on what to clear out from your life (and then actually doing it) may well have worn off, and even if you've been reaping the rewards of a less-cluttered space and a more open life, there's a chance you've gotten used to them, making them less motivational than they were when you started.

If you find your inspiration waning during these last few weeks (the Challenge ends on Sunday, June 26), here are a few ways to give it a boost and to keep yourself going.

Keep your eyes on the prize. Decluttering for the sake of decluttering is effective for some, but for most of us (myself included), there needs to be a stronger motivation behind it. Take some time this week to remind yourself of the benefits of clearing from your life whatever's unwanted and unneeded--why you took on this Challenge in the first place--and then keep those benefits at the front of your mind as you continue working.
Think marathon, not sprint. As with any organizing project, it's almost always easier and more effective to work slowly and steadily than it is to go on a decluttering binge. Challenge yourself to find 4 or 5 things each day over the next few weeks that you're ready to part with, rather than trying to scrape up 50 things at once.
Enlist a buddy. You've heard me say it many times before: like exercise, sometimes organizing is just more fun (or at least more bearable) if you don't have to do it alone. Find a supportive friend, family member, or neighbor who can help keep you on track and help keep your spirits up over the next few weeks.
Get stuff out of the house. If you've already collected things you know you're ready to part with, make it a goal this week to move them out of the house--and no, I don't mean into the garage! Bring them to a local charity, share them with friends, dump them in the recycling, or do whatever you need to do to remove them from your space so you can really see what you've accomplished.
Celebrate the progress you've already made. Finally, no matter how far along you are in the Challenge, if you've managed to clear unwanted, unneeded stuff from your life, give yourself a pat on the back--and a bottle of wine, a night at the movies, a day at the beach, or whatever else will let you mark your progress.

It's natural and normal to feel slightly (or seriously!) burned out, bored, disconnected, or overwhelmed by this point in an organizing project. If you find your motivation slipping, use the tactics above to get yourself back on track for these last two weeks of the 50 Things Challenge.

Good luck, and I look forward to hearing about your successes!

2011 50 Things Challenge: Identify Your Triggers

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 03:26:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, May 26 and June 5, 2011

Welcome to weeks 3 and 4 of the 2011 Get Rid of 50 Things Challenge. (Missed the Tip that introduced this year's Challenge? Read it here.) I've loved hearing from Tip readers who've already been inspired to identify--and get rid of--stuff that's cluttering up their lives, and I've had a great time (seriously!) finding things in my own space that I'm ready to part with.

We've got four more weeks to go (the Challenge ends on Sunday, June 26)--plenty of time to get involved, even if you haven't yet started. For the next two weeks, I have a special mini-challenge for you, and it comes with the opportunity to earn another entry in the end-of-Challenge prize drawing. (Remember, you get one entry for the first 50 things you get rid of, and another for each additional 25 things.)

The Mini-Challenge: Get to Know Your Triggers
As you sort through things to come up with at least 50 to part with, chances are you'll start to see some patterns:

Maybe you discover stuff you bought not because you wanted, needed, or even especially liked it, but because it seemed like a bargain.
Perhaps you find yourself holding onto gifts you've been given over the years because you feel guilty at the thought of passing them along.
Or it could be that there are aspirations or intentions behind your clutter that you never quite get around to fulfilling. (Those tools you've been collecting? You intend to use them someday. That shelf of classic literature? You aspire to read it all at some point.)

The mini-challenge for the next two weeks is to identify what triggers you to accumulate and hold onto stuff that winds up as clutter in your life, and then to make a solid commitment to overcome those triggers.

For example, if your trigger is holding onto stuff because you aspire to use it someday, you might commit to putting a non-negotiable "expiration date" on things: if you don't use them by that date, out they go. You might also enlist a friend or family member who can offer some tough love to help you stick with that plan and get "expired" stuff out of your space.

Here's how the mini-challenge will work: email me your answers to the two questions below by 11:59 p.m. PDT on Saturday, June 11 and you'll get an additional entry in the end-of-Challenge drawing.

My clutter trigger is:
I will commit to overcoming this trigger by:

For an extra dose of accountability, you can instead post your trigger and your commitment on The Organized Life Facebook page. In addition, be sure to visit the page over the next few weeks for more Challenge-related support and updates before the next Tip comes out.

Good Luck!
Enjoy the next few weeks of the 50 Things Challenge, and be sure to keep me posted on your progress, especially as you work through the mini-challenge. I look forward to hearing what you discover!

Introducing the 2011 50 Things Challenge!

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 31 May 2011 04:38:00 +0000

Weeks of May 15 and 22, 2011

Drumroll, please: it's that time again! Once a year for the past several years, I've challenged Tip of the Week readers to join me for my Get Rid of 50 Things Challenge, and it's time now for the 2011 version of this event. The 50 Things Challenge is a fun, structured, and motivating way to clear from your life the stuff, habits, and beliefs that are cluttering up your space and your head, and to celebrate as you let go of them.

This year's Challenge is a bit different from past years' (think bigger and better), though the core goal is still the same: to help you part with what's holding you back to make space for what really matters.

Read on for a bit of background, along with an overview of how the 2011 50 Things Challenge will work.

The Background
In 2007, I read an article in Real Simple magazine by life coach Gail Blanke in which she made a connection between the physical stuff in our lives and our emotional well-being and challenged readers to get rid of 50 things bits of clutter. Inspired, I extended that challenge to Tip readers, and then repeated the 50 Things Challenge for the next several years. (Read my original Tip introducing the Challenge back in 2007, and check out the book Gail Blanke wrote on the basis of her article.)

How It Works
The Get Rid of 50 Things Challenge spans several weeks. Over the course of those weeks, I challenge you to identify 50 things that no longer belong in your space and in your life, and to get rid of them by donating, selling, or recycling them, or by passing them along to someone you know will use and love them.

Throughout the Challenge, I offer support and motivation, along with resources for getting rid of the stuff you're ready to part with. At the end, I invite you to share with me your list of 50 things; each person who successfully completes the Challenge is entered into a drawing to win a prize.

What's New in 2011
To keep things fresh, and to up the ante a bit (because, hey, this should be challenging!), a few things will be different this year:

The Challenge will run for 6 weeks total, beginning now and ending at 11.59 PDT on Sunday, June 26.
Instead of just 50 things, I challenge you to part with at least 75 things over these weeks. Remember, a "thing" can be as large as an old sofa or as small as a single earring. Stuff you'd already be likely to get rid of, like regular household garbage or junk mail, doesn't count. What does count is anything you've been holding onto that doesn't support or add value, beauty, or enjoyment to your life as you're living it today.
For the first 50 things you get rid of, you'll gain one entry into the end-of-Challenge prize drawing. For each additional 25 things you part with, you'll get one more entry.
Throughout the Challenge, I'll be offering ways of earning more drawing entries: by donating still-usable stuff to charity, by making solid steps toward changing your habits around the stuff most likely to become clutter in your life, and more.
Prizes that'll be up for grabs at the end of the Challenge include such clutter-free goodies as a half-hour phone consultation with yours truly, one of my e-books, movie tickets, and more.

As always, I'll be participating in the Challenge as well, and will share with you my experiences, my roadblocks, and what I do to motivate myself to identify what's really important to me--and to clear out the rest.

On Your Marks, Get Set...
Ready to join the Get Rid of 50 Things Challenge? There's no need to register. Simply start identifying things in your life that no longer deserve the space they've been occupying and give them the heave-ho. As you sort and weed, keep a list of what you part with, and once you make the decision to let something go, make a solid effort to get it out of your space ASAP so you can start to enjoy the clarity and lack of clutter that will be the fruits of your labor.

I'm extra excited for this year's Challenge, and I hope you are, too. Here's to your success over these first few weeks!

Are You Ready for an Emergency--for Real?

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 17 May 2011 03:05:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, April 24 and May 1, 2011

The coverage of the recent tornadoes that tore through the southeast region of the U.S. has been both jaw-dropping and heart-wrenching. Though I'm no stranger to living in disaster-prone areas, having grown up in a hurricane zone and now residing in earthquake country, the particular damage wrought by these twisters is almost unfathomable to me.

One of the most remarkable things I read was the story of a woman who, finding debris in her front yard from towns that were hundreds of miles away from her, started a group on Facebook to post information about these objects--photos, mortgage documents, and other kinds of papers--in the hope of reuniting them with the people who'd lost them. (Read the story here.) I was struck by how far these items were carried, and it occurred to me that even those people in the tornado zone who had prepared for emergencies by gathering their important papers in one spot for grab-and-go access could potentially be powerless against the might of one of these storms.

Beyond Basic Preparation
Much of the advice about emergency preparedness focuses on creating a disaster readiness plan, having essential supplies on hand, and having easy access to the critical records you might need in the wake of an emergency--all excellent advice, and all worthy endeavors. (See below for links to some of my favorite resources for this kind of preparation.)

However, what the recent tornadoes remind us is that it's also extraordinarily important to take the extra step of ensuring that your most vital records, whether you define those as financial account records and copies of passports and birth certificates or duplicates of cherished family photos and letters, are stored somewhere other than your own home, as it just may not be possible to grab your grab-and-go kit if you're forced to flee with seconds to spare.

Here's what I recommend:

Use an online service like Evernote or Dropbox, to store digital copies of your important documents. If those documents are ever lost in a disaster, you'll still have access to the info they contain.
Send hardcopies of important documents (like insurance policies and wills) and data (such as account numbers for credit cards and bank accounts) to a trusted friend or family member who lives well beyond your local area.
Consider scanning your favorite photos and storing them online via a service like Flickr or Picasa.

The extra bit of effort involved in creating offsite storage solutions for your valuable papers will pay off hugely should you ever find yourself facing an emergency that prevents you from getting your hands on them when you need them.

And if, like me (I confess!), you could stand to brush up on emergency preparedness basics, here are some resources that can help with that.

Ready.gov, FEMA's comprehensive emergency preparedness website, with information on disaster planning for individuals and families as well as businesses.
Preparation Nation blog, written by my organizing colleague Margaret Lukens, which features info and projects designed to help you be better prepared for natural and other disasters.
Securita's Vital Records PortaVault, a grab-and-go organizer for important papers and data. (I tried the PortaVault out a few years ago and wrote a Tip about it.)

Cut Back on Info to Clear Some Head Space

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 03:01:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, April 10 and 17, 2011

From where I sit at my desk as I type this, I can see this past Sunday's newspaper loitering on the ottoman in my living room and too many magazines jostling for space in a magazine rack nearby. The Read/Review section of my desktop file sorter holds newsletters that have been waiting for perusal for...a while, let's say, and I don't even want to think about the contents of that same folder on my computer desktop.

And if that's not enough, new info comes at me each day. It's enough to make me a little crazy, especially since it sometimes feels like I'll never be caught up, no matter how much I read. Worse still, I love reading, so it's disappointing when it starts to feel like an obligation or a chore.

When we think about what causes clutter in our lives, information--magazines, newspapers, newsletters, e-mail messages, blog posts, and the like--may not spring to mind, but I've seen those types of things cause as much stress in the lives of my clients, and in my own, as physical clutter. Info comes into our lives every single day, and unless we're devoting hours and hours at a stretch to keeping on top of it, it can quickly spiral out of control.

It's time to make a change.

Here's what I'm going to do to cut back:

I'm going to sort through the contents of my magazine rack and recycle anything that's more than one issue old, whether I've read it or not.
I'm going to avoid subscribing to any new magazines.
I'm going to ruthlessly unsubscribe from any regularly delivered e-mail that I don't truly enjoy and value.
I'm going to clear out my Read/Review folders, and will think twice--and then think once more--before adding anything new to them.
I'm going to put my newspaper delivery on hold whenever my weekend schedule is such that I know I won't have at least a few leisurely hours on Sunday to read and finish the paper.

And in the spirit of cutting back on information, here's one more change in the works: starting with this one, I'll be writing my Tips not weekly but twice a month, and they'll likely be quite a bit shorter than they have in the past.

Why? Because I'm willing to bet that like me, you get a lot of e-mail, and that it's hard to keep up with all of it, especially in addition to the various other kinds of information that come into your life on a regular basis. I want these Tips to be informative and inspiring, but I don't want them to be info-clutter.

And on those weeks between Tips, you can always poke around this Tip of the Week Archive to peruse some of the more than 300 past articles I've written.

Or you can do what I plan to do: turn off the computer. Take an extra-long walk. Enjoy a glass of wine with a friend. Indulge in an afternoon nap on the sofa. Call my niece. In short, do any of the dozens of things that bring me joy but too often get pushed aside in my quest to deal with my reading pile.

Honor What You Love: Put It to Use

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 15:05:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, April 3, 2011

In an episode of Oprah on which he worked with a family to declutter their home, Professional Organizer Peter Walsh made an observation that has stuck with me for years. While sorting through items with Peter in the family's cluttered basement, the lady of the house expressed a sense of attachment to an old food processor that was buried under a jumble of other things, saying that it used to be her grandmother's and reminded her of the times the two of them had cooked together.

Peter noted that her desire to honor her grandmother's memory by holding on to the food processor was offset by the fact that the object was down in the basement, where the client never came into contact with--or even saw--it. Truly honoring something means not just keeping it, but also treating it with respect by giving it a spot of importance in your home and, where possible, putting it to use.

I'm reminded of this exchange each time a client drags something from the back of a closet, for example, and then explains to me why it's important to him, or opens the cabinet that holds his fancy china set that he loves for its beauty but is too scared ever to use for fear that it will break.

If you're not regularly using--or at the very least displaying-- the things you claim to love best or to find most meaningful, they simply become clutter, and allowing something to become clutter strips it of its specialness and its status as an object of honor and admiration.

A Challenge
So here's my challenge to you: think of something you've been keeping because it's special to you in some way, whether a fancy set of stationery, an object given to you by someone important in your life, special-occasion dishes, artwork created just for you, and so on.

Then give that thing the honor and respect it deserves by using it. Write a letter to someone on that special stationery. Use your grandmother's food processor or your favorite uncle's decanter--or at least put it on display somewhere meaningful where you'll actually see it on a regular basis. Eat dinner on your best china at least once a month, even if you're only having grilled cheese. Put that custom artwork up on the wall, or at least on the front of the fridge.

Alternately, if you don't have a need for the item in question and don't want to display it, consider honoring it by passing it along to someone who does need it, or will happily hang it on the wall, or will otherwise be thrilled to put it to good use. It's always far more respectful, in my book, to give grandma's food processor to a budding chef who might not be able to afford a new one but will happily use this one every day than to let it be clutter in the basement or the back of a cabinet.

I'd love to hear from you: how do you honor objects that are special, meaningful, or important to you? If you took me up on the challenge above, what's the special item you chose, and what did you do with it--start using it? Find a way to display it so you can see it regularly? Pass it along to someone else? Please leave a comment and share your stories.

How to Deal with Organizing Naysayers

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 14:38:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, March 27, 2011

One of the best ways to help ensure success on any organizing project is to enlist the support of a friend, family member, or other collaborator who can celebrate your progress and give you an emotional boost when you need it. Frustratingly often, though, I hear from some of my clients that they not only don't get this kind of cheerleading from the people closest to them, but that their friends and families actively criticize them or put down their attempts at organizing.

If there are organizing naysayers in your life (and I offer some tips below on how to recognize them), it's worthwhile to build up ways of dealing with them so that they don't derail your efforts. Here's how.

Naysayers 101
People who won't support you as you work to get organized tend to come in a few different forms. There are those who might try to fill you with shame about the fact that organizing is a challenge for you, or that your organization skills aren't yet what you'd like them to be. Some people, on hearing about a project you want to undertake, might not insult you or belittle you but also won't do anything to support you or lend a hand. And sometimes people will actively work against your efforts, whether by the things they say--such as "Why even bother getting organized? It won't last"--or by the things they do, such as family members who work to undo any organizing progress you make.

What's Behind Their Lack of Support?
People's unwillingness to support you as you tackle an organizing project can stem from a number of different things:

A true inability to understand how disorganization negatively impacts your life, and why you want to make a change--or, on the flip side, an inability to understand that not everyone is as naturally organized as they might be
Fear that getting organized might inspire you to make other changes in your life, such as losing weight, changing jobs, or leaving an unsatisfying relationship--changes that others worry may have negative repercussions for them
Difficulty dealing with change, even when it's positive, and even when there's very little they need to do to make it come about
An unwillingness to provide emotional support, or a fear that the organizing process may bring up difficult emotions for you that they don't feel comfortable witnessing

If you're able to get a sense of where the naysayer in your life is coming from, you'll be better equipped to deal with him or her.

Coping Strategies
How best to handle a naysayer depends in large part on what's behind their lack of support.

For those who can't understand disorganization's impact on you:Try using concrete examples, perhaps even a few that involve the naysayer, such as, "Coming home to a cluttered kitchen every day makes me really stressed, which sometimes makes me short-tempered with you when you haven't done anything wrong. I think having a more organized space would help me feel calmer, which in turn will help make our relationship stronger."
For those who don't understand why you're not naturally organized: Explain that organizing is a skill that, like any other skill (artistic talent, athleticism, a head for numbers), is innate for some people and learned for others. Tell them you haven't had the chance to learn it yet but are committed to doing just that.
For those who are worried about what other changes getting organized might inspire you to make: Respectfully acknowledge their fears and then offer some reassurance that the changes you'll be making will benefit both you and them--for example, "I know it's a bit unsettling to think that once I'm organized, I'll be inspired to find a new job, and that that would upset our family schedule. In reality, though, if I were to take on a new job that paid better, it would mean that you wouldn't have to work as much overtime."
For those who have trouble dealing with change: Let them know that you understand that transitions can be uncertain and frightening, even if they're ultimately for the best. You might even admit (assuming it's true, of course) that you're a bit nervous yourself about the changes that might come about as the result of getting organized, but that you believe the benefits of going through the process will be worth it.
For those who aren't willing or able to offer emotional support: Consider asking for some other type of help, such as dropping off things you've decided to donate to the local thrift store, lending a hand with installing a closet system or assembling a new set of shelves, or organizing papers into categories in a filing system.
For everyone: Consider "bartering" support. In exchange for a friend helping with your organizing project, you might offer a few weeks of lawn mowing, a hand with preparing meals, help with a painting project--whatever it is you're good at and your friend would appreciate. And if family members pitch in, give them the chance to ask for your help on a project that's interesting and important to them.

In some cases, despite your best efforts, naysayers will steadfastly remain naysayers, at which point your best bet is to look elsewhere for support (a long-distance friend who can cheer you on from afar, an online support group, a Professional Organizer, etc.) and to renew your commitment to getting organized in spite of others' unwillingness to help.

But before you throw in the towel, take some time to try to understand what's behind your naysayers' naysaying, and then use the techniques above to try to get them to understand why you want to make the changes you're considering, and why their support would be so important to you.

Plan a Get-It-Done Day

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 19:40:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, March 20, 2011

While I'm generally pretty good about tackling the tasks that require my time and attention, there are some notable exceptions, like those shoes that have been lingering in my front hall waiting for repair for longer than I care to admit and the art print I've been meaning to get framed for what we will just gently call a long time. These tasks tend not to get done because they're not critically important, and because they require planning and coordination it can be hard to muster in the course of a busy week.

So I'm inspired by an article by Danielle Claro in the latest issue of Real Simple, in which she details the "Unprocrastination Day" she undertook with a friend to knock off a bunch of these same kinds of tasks. What a great idea: enlist a buddy who also has stuff lurking on his or her to do list for a day of no-excuses, no-holds-barred get-it-done time.

If, like me, you'd benefit from a burst of productivity on the tasks and errands you've been putting off, here are some pointers on planning your own Unprocrastination Day.

Find a partner. While it's possible to have a solo get-it-done day, you'll almost certainly find that it's easier and much more pleasant with someone else. Look for a friend who can help keep you motivated and on track, and who has his own stuff to accomplish so that the support goes both ways.
Choose a date. If your schedule is flexible, try planning your get-it-done day on a weekday, when there will likely be fewer distractions clamoring for your attention and smaller crowds at the places you need to visit to tackle your errands. Weekday not feasible? Aim for a Saturday or Sunday that's as free as possible of other events and obligations.
Make a list. In the lead-up to your Unprocrastination Day, create a running list of all the things you'd like to take care of. For those that require help from someone else--say, getting shoes repaired or a piece of art framed--do some research before you set out so you'll be faced with as few obstacles as possible on the big day.
Deal with logistics. To keep your get-it-done day as distraction-free as it can be, aim to enlist others to take care of things like caring for kids or pets while you're out and about. Even if you're planning to spend part of the day taking care of tasks at home, it's well worth finding ways of keeping potential attention-grabbers at bay. Also, be sure you have any gear or supplies you need to get things done, whether that means a car large enough to hold the stuff you'll be schlepping around or folders and labels for setting up that filing system you've been avoiding.
Devise a plan. Just before your get-it-done day, come up with a game plan: when and where you and your friend will meet, which tasks you'll tackle first, when you'll take breaks throughout the day, and so on.
Start your day with motivation. To kick things off on an up note, consider meeting for breakfast or coffee before you begin.
Be ready to roll with the punches. As ever, your best-laid plans may be foiled by forces beyond your control. Not being able to finish every last task you set out to do doesn't mean the day is a failure. By the same token, though, don't let one hurdle (like unexpectedly discovering that a store you planned to visit is closed) derail your whole day. See if you can find an alternate way of completing the task at hand, and if not, simply move on to the next one.
Review and celebrate when you're done. Finally, at the tail end of your day, take some time to review what you've each accomplished, along with any facts you picked up throughout the day that might be helpful in the future. (Your local shoe repair guy offers pick-up and delivery for a few bucks more? Good to know!) Then enjoy a glass of wine or a dinner out as you admire how much you've wiped off of your to do list.

Letting Go of Sunk Costs

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 15:44:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, March 13, 2011

Think about the contents of your closets, drawers, cupboards, and shelves: what's lurking there not because you need it, use it, love it, or even necessarily want it, but simply because you "paid good money" for it and are therefore reluctant to get rid of it? As a recent article on LearnVest (a website with resources and information on finances and money management) explains, holding onto something-or doing an activity you don't really want to do, or-only because you spent money on it means you're getting caught up in a sunk cost.

Recognizing sunk costs, making peace with dealing with those you've already encountered, and learning how to avoid them in the future will help not only ease strain on your finances, but will also let you take a new approach to decluttering.

What Are Sunk Costs?
According to the LearnVest article, "'Sunk costs' is the economic principle that what you have spent is already gone." That is, whether you regularly wear the $200 sweater you bought or never wear it, you've still spent $200. Keeping that sweater around without ever wearing it means, as psychiatrist Robert Leahy explains, means that you're "honoring the sunk cost" of the item.

Holding onto things that represent sunk costs may make you feel like you're somehow getting your money's worth, but chances are that won't happen; instead, repeatedly encountering items on which you feel like you've wasted money will simply bring up regret about that wasted money time and again.

I see this happen with my clients on a regular basis: when we work on sorting and weeding, they'll come across stuff they've been keeping in an attempt to honor or overcome the sunk cost. What adds insult to injury is that each time they see this stuff, they feel guilt, regret, annoyance, or frustration at the money they spent on it.

Making Peace with Sunk Costs
The hard truth about sunk costs is that trying to squeeze value out of them almost always backfires. You won't feel any better about the $200 you spent on that unworn sweater by letting it loiter in your closet, taunting you each time you see it. Though it's by no means easy to cut your losses and let go of items that represent sunk costs, doing so will not only free you of clutter, but will also allow you to let go of the negative emotions that come along with expenses you regret.

The first step in making peace with sunk costs is recognizing them: What are the things you're keeping (or the activities you're allowing to remain on your calendar) only because they cost money, not because they're actually useful or appealing to you? Once you've determined your sunk costs, commit to letting go of them, whether by donating or selling them (or, in the case of events or activities, by canceling or simply avoiding them), and also to giving yourself permission to let go of any anger, guilt, shame, or remorse that go along with them.

Finally, recognize what caused the sunk costs in the first place: were they impulse buys? Things you acquired without really considering whether you wanted or needed them? Things you spent money on because you felt pressured to do so by someone else? Understanding what's behind your sunk costs will help you steer clear of similar mistakes in the future.

Avoiding More Sunk Costs
After you've let go of and made peace with your past sunk costs, focus on avoiding more of the same. Carefully consider new purchases, especially expensive ones. If your sunk costs were triggered by pressure or negative encouragement from someone else, aim to avoid allowing your purchasing decisions to be influenced by that person going forward. Did you buy sunk costs items on impulse? Try instituting a 24-hour waiting period before making non-critical purchases so you'll have the chance to approach them more clearly and rationally.

Benefits
Recognizing, making peace with, and overcoming sunk costs you've already encountered can be important steps in uncluttering your life. I often see clients who decide to part with sunk-cost stuff gain the confidence and motivation needed to clear out other unwanted stuff from their lives. They also tend to feel happier and more in control when they've gotten past the related negative emotions.

In addition, once you recognize what's behind your previous sunk costs, you'll be well positioned to avoid new ones, which will help keep future clutter at bay-not to mention help keep your finances in check.

Here's to letting go of your sunk costs and finding more fulfillment in the things and activities that deserve space and time in your life because they're useful, meaningful, and enjoyable to you, not just because they cost money.

Organizing E-mail, Part 2: Storing Messages

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 22:06:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, March 6, 2011

Last week's Tip offered advice on how to clear your e-mail Inbox of unwanted and unneeded messages. This week, we'll take a look at how to store and categorize the e-mail you've decided to keep so it's easy to find again when you need it.

Using Folders
Because e-mail doesn't have a physical presence and doesn't take up any actual space on your desktop or in file drawers, you may not think of messages as being things you'd organize into folders as you would papers and other hard-copy documents. However, using folders in your e-mail program, just as you'd do for physical files, is an easy, straightforward way to keep your Inbox from being overloaded and to store messages so that they're easy to find again.

The actual steps for creating e-mail folders vary from program to program, so it's worth referring to your program's Help for specific instructions. Here are some general pointers for setting up effective folders:

Start by getting a sense of how many--and what--folders you need. If you have only a handful of messages to store at any one time, two or three folders with general categories (say, Newsletters and Correspondence) might be plenty, while you're likely to want more--and more complex--folders if you have lots of messages to keep.
Take a look through your Inbox to brainstorm folder categories. Based on the messages that remain in your Inbox once you've sorted and weeded, jot down some rough folder categories that make sense to you. As always, when thinking about what to call a folder, ask yourself, "What word or phrase would I think of if I were looking for these messages?"
Start broad, then get more detailed. Rather than having 20 different folders, each with one or two e-mail messages, start with a few general folders, and then add new (and more specific) ones as you continue to work on storing and categorizing your e-mail messages over time.

Using Rules and Filters
Once you've created folders, you're ready to move messages to them from your Inbox. If you're dealing with a big chunk of mail, you may want to use rules and filters to make this process easier. In essence, rules and filters let you specify what should happen with e-mail messages that meet certain criteria. For example, if you've set up a folder for newsletters and want to save past Tips of the Week to it, you can create a rule indicating that any messages from my Tips e-mail address should be moved to your newsletters folder. Once you set up that rule, your e-mail program will automatically find and move messages from this address.

You can also create rules and filters for new or incoming e-mail so that messages from certain senders are automatically moved to certain folders, which can help keep your Inbox more manageable.

Again, the steps for creating rules and filters vary from one e-mail program to the next, so refer to the Help in your program for specifics.

Using Color-Coding, Flags, and Tags
While it's helpful to move as many messages out of your Inbox as possible--especially those that aren't current or active--it's likely that there's at least a handful of e-mail worth keeping in the Inbox, either because you haven't fully processed it yet or because it relates to something you're actively working on or waiting for.

To help prevent the messages that do hang out in your Inbox from becoming one undifferentiated blob, consider using visual or textual cues, such as color-coding, flags or stars, or tags or labels. These cues make it easy to group similar messages and to specify what needs to happen with them: you might, for example, have a "Phone Call" tag that you apply to any message you need to follow up on by phone, or maybe you'll assign green color-coding to all of the e-mails related to bills you need to pay.

To keep Inbox clutter at bay, and to prevent these visual and textual cues from becoming ineffective background noise, be sure to take time each day (or, at the very least, a few times a week) to delete or move any messages that no longer need to be in your Inbox and to remove or update any cues that may no longer be accurate (say, changing the "Phone Call" tag to "Waiting for" on messages you've followed up on). A few minutes of Inbox maintenance on a regular basis will keep your system organized and running smoothly.

Organizing E-mail, Part 1: Sorting & Weeding

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 02:07:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, February 27, 2011

E-mail may never clutter up your physical space as postal mail can, but it can nonetheless be the cause of stress, frustration, and headaches when it piles up. By getting control of your e-mail, you can help ensure that it becomes the tool it's meant to be--one that keeps you in touch and informed--without causing overwhelm.

The first step toward creating a functional organizing system for your e-mail is, of course, weeding out those messages you no longer want or need. Here are some criteria and pointers to help you slim down your Inbox and get rid of digital cruft.

Where to Start
Often, it's easiest and most effective to start by sorting and weeding your oldest e-mail messages, as they're the least likely to be timely and relevant, and many of them may be outdated. If you have a very large backlog of e-mail, you may want to create a general Backlog folder to hold the messages you want to sort through so they don't clutter up your Inbox and become overwhelming.

I recommend starting with 20-30 minutes of sorting, which is generally enough to allow you to make some progress but not so much that you'll get bored or worn out. If you're still inspired, keep at it; otherwise, take a break and come back for another 20 minutes or so later.

Creating Guidelines
As when you weed other kinds of things, it's helpful to have some guidelines up front for what you're ready to part with and what you'd like to keep. Here are some of the types of e-mail messages I delete when I'm weeding:

Messages I didn't want to receive in the first place (spam, of course, but also newsletters I didn't sign up for, unwanted Forwards, and so on)
Messages with out-of-date info (on, say, events that have already passed)
Informational messages (like newsletters) I've already read and am unlikely to read again
Informational messages I haven't read that are more than 2 months old
Messages I've skimmed and don't want or need to do anything with
Messages whose info is available elsewhere
Earlier versions of messages that have become part of longer threads (that is, if a client sent a message to which I replied, and then the client responded to me, I will keep only that most recent message--which has all three bits of correspondence in it)

Delete Away!
With your guidelines in hand, review the contents of your Inbox with a finger over the Delete key on your keyboard, ready to pounce. Because so much e-mail tends to linger as reminders of things you have to do, try doing this exercise with your To Do list at your side; when you come across a message you've been keeping only because it reminds you of something you need to take care of, write that task on your To Do list and then delete the message (or, at the very least, move it out of your Inbox to a folder).

As you sort, try not to get too caught up in the contents of messages: if there are long e-mails you want to read, for example, skim a few lines to be sure they're worth saving, and then move them to a To Read folder in your e-mail program. Also be on the alert for distractions, such as clicking on a link in a message and then getting engrossed in tooling around online. If you need to, set up a folder for Sites to Visit and store there any messages with info about things you want to check out online.

As you work, think of your e-mail Inbox as you would a physical Inbox on your desk: ideally, it should hold only those messages you haven't yet reviewed or that you're actively working on. Clearing out the stuff you no longer need, and moving to folders anything you want to keep as reference, will make it easier to get a handle on what's truly active and current for you.

Next week, we'll look at ways of storing and organizing the e-mail messages you opt to keep. This week, set aside some time to create your own sorting and weeding guidelines, and then to put them to use decluttering your Inbox.

Clean-Slate Organizing

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 01:12:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, February 20, 2011

For all of the stress that moving house involves, it offers at least one clear benefit: when you're starting from scratch, you can take the opportunity to create completely new organizing systems, deciding where things should go based on how you plan to use each space, how much stuff you have to store, and how much storage is available to you.

While it can be challenging to build a system from scratch, it can also be freeing, because you can approach it in a very different way than you would if you were trying to make changes to one that was already in place. Rather than having your perspective cluttered, literally and figuratively, by existing stuff, you can start fresh.

Of course, it's not realistic to move each time you need to take on a new organizing project, nor is it necessary. By applying what I call clean-slate techniques, you can reap the benefits of starting from zero at any time. Here's how.

Step 1: Choose a Small, Specific Spot
Start by selecting a very limited area you'd like to work in-the more specific, the better. For example, rather than focusing on your entire home office, pick one area within it: a set of bookshelves, for example, or your desk drawers. Depending on how much stuff you're dealing with, you might opt to go even smaller, focusing on just one shelf or drawer.

Step 2: Wipe the Slate Clean
Once you've chosen your area of focus, clear it out completely: take all the books off your bookshelves, for example, or empty the contents of your desk drawers. Don't worry about deciding what to keep at this point--that'll come soon. During this step, your objective is just to remove everything from the spot you'll be working on. If you'll be tackling this project over time, have a few boxes or bins on hand as temporary storage.

Step 3: Get Clear on Your Requirements
With the space cleaned out, think about what you'd ideally like to store there, and how it would be organized. For example, you might decide that the bookcase in your home office should be dedicated to work-related books and magazines, and that you'd like to organize them by subject. Having a solid sense of what you want to use the space for will make it easier to get a usable system in place.

Step 4: Decide What Goes Back
Now for the biggest push: determining which of the things you've cleared out of the space really deserve to be put back. Take a different perspective here than you would with traditional sorting: rather than focusing primarily on weeding things out, emphasize consciously choosing what to keep. In order for anything to merit a spot in the area you're working on, you must consciously decide that it's definitely worth keeping. If it's not, set it aside for donation or disposal. If you're not sure, create a Not Sure box or bin to stash it in temporarily, making sure to revisit it before the end of your project.

Step 5: Organize According to Plan
Finally, when you've consciously chosen everything you'd like to keep, organize and store it according to the simple plan you came up with in Step 3. This is also a good time to figure out what, if any, organizing supplies you might need to finish off or enhance your system. (On those office bookshelves, for example, you might want bookends, or subject labels on the edge of each shelf.) Make any tweaks necessary to get your system feeling functional and complete and voila! You're done, and can move on to the next area you'd like to tackle, starting the process over again.

This clean-slate approach to organizing can be especially helpful in spots that feel overwhelming to deal with as they are, as it gives you a different perspective and turns the standard organizing process a bit on its ear. Give it a try the next time you're faced with a spot that could function better and enjoy the benefits of starting fresh, even if on a very small scale.

Overcoming Organizing Paralysis

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 17:05:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, February 13, 2011

I recently worked with a client who had given up her home office and writing space last summer to create a room for her new baby, and who was hoping to reestablish a workspace in her partially finished garage. As we looked at the area she was planning to transform into an office, she told me she felt overwhelmed each time she contemplated the process of getting the space organized.

The more we talked as we walked through the space, the more I recognized the source of her overwhelm. It wasn't that the garage was hopelessly cluttered--in fact, it was relatively sparse--or that the client lacked organizing skills; indeed, she already had several systems in place that worked fairly well for her.

Rather, what caused her to feel paralyzed each time she walked into the garage intending to work on organizing her work area was the sense that she had to tackle the entire project in one go, from clearing off her desk to reorganizing things on shelves to weeding through old files and papers. Figuring she couldn't possibly get everything done in the time she had available, she'd quickly get overwhelmed and would wind up in retreat.

One Bird at a Time
In her book Bird by Bird, Anne Lamott shares a story about her brother, who, at age 10, having put off writing a school report on birds until the night before it was due, sat at the kitchen table surrounded by books and binders, near tears at the magnitude of the task ahead of him. His father sat next to him and gave him this bit of advice: "Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird."

It's such simple advice, yet so easy to forget when we're faced with complex tasks and projects. Every undertaking has to start with one step, one small action, but so often we find ourselves thinking that we need to begin and finish a project in one fell swoop, which, of course, can lead straight to a sense of overwhelm so strong that it stops us in our tracks.

Getting Unstuck
When you find yourself paralyzed and unable to get started on a project, step back for a moment and remind yourself that all you need to do is begin. What I suggested to my client was that she start by simply moving off her desk anything that already had a designated home, such as cd's and picture frames, both of which already had spots on nearby shelves. Once she had done that, she could start going through her papers and files one small stack at a time. I also recommended that she take each pile upstairs to sort it so that she wouldn't be distracted by reminders of what still remained to be done down in the garage.

We broke down the rest of the project into similarly small chunks, each one independent of the next, and clarified what her desired end point for the first phase of her garage reorganization would be: creating a comfortable, functional workspace. She confirmed that the other phases of the project--including sorting through stuff that was already stored on shelves and clearing out another part of the space to make room for a car--could wait.

Finally, she decided that a reasonable commitment for her, given everything else happening in her life, would be to spend 30 minutes per day on the project. This gave her the sense of structure and discipline she found helpful and, at the same time, freed her from having to worry about spending hours at a time on the project.

At the end of our session, she reported feeling much clearer about how to approach the work ahead of her, as well as feeling like she'd moved past the point of paralysis. She no longer felt like she needed to complete the entire project at once, and the approach we came up with gave her the reassurance that by taking small steps, she'd be able to get everything done that she wanted to.

The next time you're struck by overwhelm when facing an organizing--or, really, any--project, remember the bird by bird approach, and then start with a single step.

Stop Clutter & Disorganization Before They Start

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 17:52:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, February 6, 2011

Benjamin Franklin wasn't talking specifically about organization when he said, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," but his words apply perfectly to keeping disorder and excess stuff at bay.

When it comes to organizing, we tend to focus on clearing out existing clutter, trying to juggle an over-full schedule, or recovering from being overwhelmed by paper, possessions, or tasks.

But what if we turned that model on its head and instead focused on ways of preventing clutter and disorganization before they become problems? Here are 5 straightforward ways to put Ben Franklin's words to work in the organizing realm.

#1: Say No to Tasks & Activities Before They Overtake Your Schedule
It can be tricky to say "no" when someone asks you to take on a responsibility, attend an event, or handle a task, but it's a lot harder to try to get those excess commitments off your calendar once you've agreed to them (and, of course, it's harder still to try to do absolutely everything). Before you agree to take anything else on, whether it's a seemingly simple errand or a complex project, take a look at your calendar and your To Do list and determine whether you really have the capacity to do it. If not, politely but firmly say "No."

#2: Think Carefully About What Makes It Through Your Door
Have you ever brought something home only to realize that you don't really need it (and maybe don't even particularly want it), and that you don't have the space to store it? You're not alone. The good news: you have the power to change that. Starting now, promise yourself that before anything comes home or to the office with you, you think carefully about it: do you really need it or want it? Do you have a place to store it? If not, it doesn't make it across your threshold.

#3: Practice One In, One Out
What about the stuff you deem worthy of bringing home? Keep clutter in check by adopting a one in, one out habit: for each new item that comes in, at least one older one of a similar nature goes out. So if you buy a new book, choose an older book to donate to charity or sell back to your local bookstore. New item of clothing? Remove an older one from your closet for donation.

#4: Stop Junk Mail and Catalogs Before They Reach You
The daily mail is a frustratingly common source of clutter, packed as it can be with unwanted catalogs, credit card offers, and other unsolicited correspondence. While it may not be possible to put an end to junk mail altogether, there are a few simple steps you can take to significantly cut back: visit DMAchoice to opt out of marketing offers and ads; submit a request through Opt Out Prescreen to stop receiving offers of pre-approved credit cards and insurance; and use Catalog Choice to get your name off of catalog mailing lists.

#5: Do 5 Minutes of Organizing Maintenance Every Day
It's always much harder--and far more frustrating--to have to spend hours dealing with several weeks' worth of clutter or disorganization than it is to take the "little and often" approach to staying on top of things. Taking as little as 5 minutes a day to tackle simple organizing tasks like putting clothes away, clearing unwanted papers off your desk, emptying the dishwasher, and recycling the day's newspaper will keep you from having to devote more time to those tasks once they've snowballed after a week or two.

Adopt Franklin's "ounce of prevention" mindset to stay in control of your space, stuff, time, and tasks with much less effort than you'd have to expend if you were to focus on the cure once things had gotten out of control.

How to Donate or Dispose of Almost Anything

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 17:22:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, January 23, 2011

More and more these days, we're conscious of not wanting to send usable items to the landfill, and of trying to recycle as much as possible. This is definitely a big step in the right direction, though it can get tricky if you've got stuff cluttering up your space that you're holding onto only because you're not sure where or how to responsibly part with it.

The good news is that there are now charities and companies that will take almost anything you might want to donate or recycle, from clothes to computers to construction materials. Here are some of my favorite resources for clearing out your unwanted stuff without sending it to the dump.

Think Outside the Bin
The ladies behind Think Outside the Bin, a professional organizer and an "eco-educator", have created a fabulous and wide-ranging directory of recycling and donation resources. Ever wondered where to donate Bibles? Used animal cages? Old Halloween costumes? They've got ideas for you! Keep an eye on this site: the owners are committed to posting something new every day in 2011, which will make for an even more impressive directory by the end of the year. Take a look at Think Outside the Bin.

Officiency's Recycling and Donation Resources
Officiency, a professional organizing company started by K.J. McCorry, has an amazingly comprehensive list of options for donating or recycling everything from appliances to luggage to Tyvek envelopes (like those used by FedEx). K.J.'s list also includes links to recycling resources in Colorado (where she's based) and throughout the U.S. Check out the list here.

How to Recycle or Reuse Anything from Real Simple
Real Simple's editors have collected information from past issues of the magazine into an online directory of all sorts of donation, recycling, and reuse tips, including guidelines on what can be recycled, how to decide whether something can safely and responsibly be donated, and where to find new homes for the stuff you're ready to part with. As a bonus, there are also ideas on ways to reuse stuff that may not be recyclable or donatable, such as Ziploc bags. Visit Real Simple's recycling and reuse directory here.

Freecycle
If you like the idea of getting your unneeded things directly into the hands of people who'll use them, you'll love Freecycle, a world-wide network of people dedicated to passing along cast-offs to others in their community. Here's how it works: visit the Freecycle site to find a group near you (there are more than 4,900). Once you join (it's free!), you'll be able to post e-mail announcements to your group listing the things you're ready to part with. You'll get replies from interested parties and can then make arrangements for pick-ups. Freecycle is consistently praised for being a great way of finding new homes for hard-to-donate stuff like mattresses and toys. Visit the website and find a group near you.

The Organized Life's Recycling & Reuse Resources
Finally, of course I'm a fan of the recycling and reuse resources I've collected on The Organized Life's Links & Resources page! While several of these resources are specific to the San Francisco Bay Area (including county-by-county guides), many are country-wide. I'm always looking to expand this directory, so if you have a favorite donation or recycling resource, leave a comment and let me know.

How to Live Within Your Means

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 23:01:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, January 16, 2011

A client recently described one of her organizing goals as wanting to feel more like she was living within her means. She went on to explain that she was referring not only to avoiding overspending or purchasing things she couldn't afford, but also to not having more stuff than she needed and used, and not living in a home that was too large for her.

Our conversation got me thinking: so often the phrase "living within our means" refers to not spending more than we can afford, but it can so easily refer just as well to making sure that other aspects of our lives--our living space, our possessions, and our tasks and activities--are the right "size" for us. Here are some thoughts on how to recognize and rebalance areas of your life that might feel out of whack.

Space
In the midst of the housing bubble a few years back, we heard a lot about people living in homes that were well beyond their means, both in terms of how much they cost and how large they were. Did couples without children at home really need 4-bedroom mini-palaces with great rooms, formal living rooms, and finished basements?

Especially in American culture, we sometimes equate copious living space with happiness, whether or not we need quite so much room, or use it, or can afford it. But too much space can leave us not only poorer, but also feeling hollow. To live within your means space-wise entails choosing a home that allows you to live comfortably, but one that's not well beyond your needs or your budget. If you're living in a too-large home, is it time to rightsize? (I recommend checking out Rightsizing Your Life for guidelines and pointers on this.) If you're in a space that feels too small, take a look at what's in it: is your stuff or your furniture taking up more room than it should?

Possessions
People who have kitchens full of fancy gadgets and appliances, but who never cook at home; who have closets stuffed with career wear and formal clothes, but who almost always wear casual outfits; who have closets full of craft supplies, but who haven't created anything with them for years--all of these people are living beyond their means in terms of possessions.

Your stuff should support and enhance your life as you're living it now, and should do so in a way that doesn't have a negative impact on your finances, your space, or your relationships. If there's stuff in your home you don't need, use, love, or find beautiful, there's a chance you're living beyond your means and that it's time to do a bit of culling.

Of course, having too many things often goes hand in hand with experiencing money issues, so getting control over the stuff you allow into your house is often an important step toward getting control over your finances and overcoming overspending, too.

Tasks & Activities
Finally, one realm in which far too many of us regularly live beyond our means is that of our tasks and activities. It's one thing to have an active schedule that's comfortably full of projects, hobbies, and events that are either critical (like work) or enjoyable to you; it's another thing entirely to have a calendar that's so jam-packed you can hardly stop to breathe. Just as living beyond our means by spending more than we can reasonably afford to will eventually cause us serious problems, so, too, will trying to maintain an endlessly hectic pace.

Rebalancing your schedule doesn't entail hiding out at home and saying "no" to everything. Instead, try taking a look at your calendar and your To Do list and jettisoning one or two things that you don't truly need, want, or love to do. Maybe it's time to admit that book club isn't your thing, or that trying to fulfill two volunteer roles at the same time is driving you batty. It might feel uncomfortable at first to part with these activities, but the trade-off will be more time to devote to whatever it is that's really important to you--or more time to relax.

Living life within your means doesn't require being monk-like or getting rid of things you love or cutting off all of your activities. Instead, it entails getting a clearer sense of how you define "enough" in each realm of your life, and then taking steps to reach that point. The result? A greater sense of calm, less stress, and the satisfaction of knowing that you're living your life in balance.

A Great Guide to Help Get Your Finances Organized

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 22:32:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, January 9, 2011

There's perhaps no type of disorganization that's more stressful than the financial kind. Feeling like you're out of touch with your money--how much of it you have, how much of it you owe, what your bank and brokerage and retirement accounts are doing--can be unsettling at best, and sometimes downright terrifying. It follows, then, that getting your finances in order can go a long way toward making you feel more in control.

But that kind of organization can be a big job, especially if you're starting from what feels like sheer money-related chaos. The good news is that there's a guide for those of us determined to forge a better relationship with our cash: One Year to an Organized Financial Life, by Regina Leeds and Russell Wild. Here's what I liked about the book, and why I think it's a worthwhile addition to your bookshelves.

What It's Like
As the title suggests, One Year to an Organized Financial Life is a year-long approach to getting more in touch with and more control over your money. The book is divided into months, with a different area of focus for each month (January's is Take Control, for example, while July's is Make Long-Range Financial Plan). Within the chapter, there's a habit of the month, a tool of the month, and a separate mini project for each week, designed to help you accomplish the month's overall goal.

Sprinkled throughout the book are sidebar tips on everything from when to get the best deals on essentials throughout the year to how to cut down on things like catalog clutter and unwanted credit card solicitations.

There's also a thorough list of resources at the end of the book, including recommendations on finding financial and organizing help.

Why It Gets My Thumbs-Up

One of the things I like best about One Year to an Organized Financial Life is its week-by-week, step-by-step approach to what can easily be a huge, daunting, and completely overwhelming endeavor. The book is designed to be read a week at a time: read a few pages, undertake a simple, straightforward project, take a breather, and then move on to the next week--no need to worry about having to do everything all at once. The book ensures that you'll get to it all eventually.
The year-long approach is also great because it emphasizes that financial organizing (like any kind of organizing) isn't a do-it-and-be-done-with-it undertaking. Lasting organizational change involves slowly building up habits and practices you'll stick with over the long term, not throwing yourself so completely into a project that you burn out, get overwhelmed, and abandon it.
In terms of topics covered, the book is amazingly thorough. It deals with not only the usual suspects--setting up a budget and getting your financial statements in order, for example--but also things like finding ways of cutting costs everywhere in your life, helping your kids understand and respect money, and understanding every kind of insurance you have to make sure you have enough coverage without overspending.
The authors aren't preachy. I find books that claim there's one right way to do things insufferable, especially when it comes to a topic as complex as money. Regina Leeds, a professional organizer, and Russell Wild, a financial advisor, clearly know their stuff, but they present their tips and recommendations as, well, tips and recommendations, not as dictates.
The book takes a holistic approach to the topic of financial organizing. January's habit of the month: Drink more water. That may elicit a "Huh?" until you realize the motivation behind it: being hydrated helps you think more clearly and stay more focused, which in turn will make it easier to tackle the month's organizing projects. The authors stick with that approach throughout the year, making connections between other areas of our lives and our relationships with our finances.

A Few Small Downsides

One thing I would've loved to see in the book is fillable worksheets and checklists for tasks like creating a budget and reviewing insurance policies. The authors do encourage you to create a financial notebook from the start (it's January's tool of the month), but for me, pre-printed forms would be extra helpful.
Not all of the topics in the book will apply to everyone. If you don't have kids, for example, the September chapter (on teaching kids about money) may not be of interest to you. Consider using the weeks that cover topics you're not concerned with to take a break from financial organizing, or to finish up a larger project.
Due to the week-by-week format of the book, it's one you're better off owning than borrowing from the library. Luckily, it's not expensive: it retails for $16.95, and you can get it at Amazon for under $12. It's also worth checking with your local bookstore to see if they can offer you a deal.

I'm a firm believer in the benefits of having someone to guide you through the process of getting organized, especially when that process involves something as complex as money, and I enthusiastically believe that One Year to an Organized Financial Life is a worthwhile guide.

[Note: I reviewed a copy of this book sent to me, at no charge, by the publisher.]

Are You Ready for Lasting, Positive Change?

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 18:56:00 +0000

Tip of the Week, December 26, 2010 and January 2, 2011

With 2011 just days away, you, like millions of others, may be setting resolutions for the months ahead. Whether your goals involve getting more organized, adopting healthier habits, taking control of your finances, or improving some other area of your life, you're far more likely to succeed if you do a bit of advance planning.

Here are a few questions to keep in mind that will help set you up for success as you choose your resolutions for the new year.

#1: Does my motivation come from within?
Adopting a resolution because you truly want to make a change, rather than because someone else thinks you should, will make you more likely to do what it takes to achieve it without resenting it. If the goal you have in mind isn't one you'd choose on your own, consider an alternative.

#2: Is my resolution realistic?
Ambitious goals can be motivational, but if they're not tempered by a dose of realism, they can be very hard to achieve. As you set your resolutions, aim to make them challenging but doable: rather than hoping to lose 20 pounds a month, for example, aim for losing 5 or 6 pounds at a time, and then keeping them off throughout the year.

#3: Do I have a plan?
One of the quickest ways to see your resolutions derailed is to try to achieve them without first creating a plan for each. Give yourself a leg up by defining solid steps that will help you work toward accomplishing your goals. Want to get more organized, for example? Take the time to write up a plan for weeding out what you don't need, creating storage for the items you keep, and developing habits that will help you stay organized over the long term.

#4: Do I have a support system?
No matter what your resolution, chances are it'll be easier to achieve if you don't have to go it alone. Find a supportive, nonjudgmental friend, family member, neighbor, or online buddy who can help you get through the rough patches en route to your goal and celebrate your successes.

#5: Am I prepared for obstacles?
No matter how motivated, well prepared, and supported you may be, chances are you'll run into at least a few snags as you work toward making your resolution a reality. To ensure that these hurdles don't trip you up completely, it's important, first and foremost, to be aware that they're likely to appear: if you're aiming to eat healthier, for example, you can expect some moments of temptation when you're faced with less nutritious foods. Believing that you'll be able to accomplish your goal without facing any challenges is unrealistic, and can make it even more demotivating when you do trip up.

The next step in overcoming obstacles is to prepare in advance for how you'll overcome them. If you expect that you might be tempted by junk food, what will you do? If your goal is to exercise more, how will you handle those days on which you'd rather do anything other than hit the gym or go for a walk? Having solutions at hand to overcome the hurdles you think you might encounter will make it easier to deal with them--and then to continue on toward your goal.

Whatever your resolution for the year ahead, use these five questions to create a plan that will make it much more likely that, come late December next year, you'll be celebrating 12 months of success.