3 Keys Thursday: 3 Steps to Solving that Organizing Dilemma

  Earlier this week, I set out to find a new home for my growing collection of purses. I've been splurging on Kate Spade lately and hanging my purses in the mud room among book bags and jackets was dealing them -- and me -- crushing blows (emotional in my case). 

That's no way to treat a splurge. I needed something that not only gave my new acquisitions the respect they deserved, but made sure the time they'd last justified the numbers on the price tags I'd just removed. In addition, I wanted to keep them accessible. There's no point in owning something you don't use because it's too hard to get to.

I started out by browsing on Pinterest and I got lucky, moving from idea to implementation in one day. Here's how.

Once you've identified the problem:

Identify your styles. This will ensure that you work toward a solution that works for you, not someone else's pretty proposition. Believe me, it's easy to convince yourself that the right tool will solve the problem all by itself. If that tool doesn't also match your styles, that is never the case. 

Brainstorm & browse. I love using Pinterest for this purpose because it makes browsing (getting ideas) and brainstorming (adapting them to fit my space and styles) a two-way street. If I have no ideas of my own, I simply type what I'm trying to organize into the search bar. In this case, it was "purse organization." If I know what I'm looking for (purse hooks, for example), I can get more specific. 

Make a match and try it out. Because I've been organizing by STYLE for quite some time, I quickly zoomed in on style-specific ideas. From there, the next question was whether or not I had the space to implement them. Once I decided on an idea and a location, I looked around for things I already had that would give me a rough idea of whether or not the idea would work. 

I got lucky, finding and implementing a Phase One fix all in the same day. Why a "Phase One" fix? Repurposing something I had works, but I think something else (something I don't already have) might work better, especially since the tool I used was doing another job somewhere else, leading me to have to do a little re-vamping there as well. I ordered something else I want to try from a store I'm familiar with (and whose return policy ensures I'm not stuck with it if it doesn't work). Once it arrives, we'll see if Phase One is a keeper, or if Phase Two works better.

Meanwhile, I've had a couple of days to live with the new solution and, you know what? I love it. If the new hooks don't work in the space, I can stick with this imperfect solution until a better one comes along. If the new acquisition is even better, I can return my placeholder to its rightful place.

As with all organizing, it's a process. Sometimes the first idea works; other times, it leads us to something that does. Either way, we get closer to easy upkeep, one step at a time.

Throwback Thursday: Planners by Style

Last week, I wrote about three questions to ask when buying a new planner, but all of them were about the planner itself, and that's only part of the story. When planners (or any organizing tools) work, it's because the interaction between tool and user is a good fit. Choosing a planner (or, again, any organizing tool) is about choosing the one that's best for you.

If you've already taken the styles quiz and know your personal and organizational styles, read on. If not, you might want to take a minute to take the quiz and see which one(s) of the styles below best describes you. 

• Do you need to see it? I need to see it folks can be very picky about the view. Some like month-at-a-glance, while others are die hard day-by-day planners. Finding the view that works best not for just your life, but for your personal preference plays a role as well. Personally, I need to see white space. A cluttered planner stresses me out, so trying to cram everything into one of those pocket-sized calendars is an absolute guarantee I won't use it, no matter how cute the cover is.

• Do you like to be busy? I love to be busy folks need calendars that travel easily. Many I love to be busy people choose electronic planners and apps for just that reason. Whether you choose paper or electronic, however, finding a consistent home for your planner is key. A lost planner is of no use whatsoever, and is more stress-inducing than no planner at all.

• Do you drop and run? Then you need a place to corral all of those appointment cards and reminders or you need a planner that makes them obsolete. Electronic planners or desk planners may rise to the top for this style because it's less likely that we'll set down a device that serves multiple functions and forget about it than a single-function paper planner. Your personal style may also lead the way here. An I love stuff/drop and run person may gravitate toward a different planner than the I love to be busy/drop and run person.

• Do you know you put it somewhere? Once again, location is key. While personal style may lead the I know I put it somewhere organizer to a particular planner, the most important thing for someone with this organizational style is deciding on a consistent, convenient home for the planner so that it always goes in the same "somewhere." Electronic planners, desk calendars and the ever-faithful kitchen calendar just might do the trick.

• Do you cram and jam? Electronic planners and apps may be your saving grace. Not only do you not have to worry about deciphering all the information you crammed into a small square on a paper planner, but their electronic counterparts will notify you of all the things you tried to squeeze in as well.

• Do you love stuff? You, like me, might be suffering from (or reveling in) too many planners from which to choose! Using just one calendar is often your battle. Notice that I said using, not owning. I love stuff is not my primary personal style, but I do love stationery stuff, so you'll find multiple planners in my house. Each has its purpose, however, and when it comes to scheduling appointments, they all must go on one calendar, or you need a plan to integrate your multiple planners. But, take heart, next week's post focuses on some of the things you can do with all the other pretty planners you just had to have.

When styles (yours and the planner's) and functionality align, using a planner is not only easy, but it makes your life easier as well, giving you that much more time to do all the fun things you put into the planner in the first place. 

Or at least to relax, secure in the knowledge that you've written it down, and don't have to rely on memory alone because writing it down takes us one step closer to getting it done.

3 Keys Thursday: 3 Key Questions to Ask When Choosing a Planner

 

'Tis the season to think about planners! 

I must confess to having a passion for them. Though I know the advice to have one planner that holds everything is sound, for me, planners are like potato chips. 

I can't seem to have just one.

As someone with an I need to see it personal style (more on planners and styles next week), for me, it's all in the layout. Though I have a pile of planners that I use for a plethora of purposes (more on that in January as well), the two I use most regularly rose to the top of the pile because of their layouts. 

One has each month on a two-page spread, giving me space to write in all my appointments and see the month at a glance so I can (theoretically) avoid appointment overload. It's big enough that I don't have to squeeze everything into a tiny square, and thin enough to fit in my purse so that I can write down appointments when I make them.

The other is an undated book with space for daily notes. Each Sunday, I transfer all of my personal appointments and school obligations from the monthly planner into the undated book (dating the pages in the process) so that each day has its own page. Yes, I'm aware that I can find both of these features in a single planner and, for a long time, I did. But I love the space for a to-do list and three daily priorities in my undated planner and the process of transferring things from one book to the other reminds me of what I need to do and aligns the personal and the professional, reducing the possibility of my forgetting to be somewhere or do something. 

Sound too complicated? Then it's not a good plan for you. But, for me, after years of trial and error (#itsaprocess), I've landed on a plan that helps me keep everything straight without having to lug a ten-pound planner with me everywhere I go. As with all things organizing, though, one size (planner) does not fit all. 

Here are a few more things to consider as you go in search of the one that's perfect for you.

Electronic or paper? Do you use your phone for everything? If so, you might already have the perfect planner at your fingertips. Don't like the calendar on your device? There's probably an app for that. Analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of the built-in calendar when it comes to your planning needs can help you figure out what you're looking for....and what you're not.

To note or not to note? I like having pages for notes at the back of the calendar and, if there's some note-writing space on the planner pages themselves, that's a bonus. I don't have a hard and fast rule about what those pages are for. Quite honestly, I sometimes use them because they're the only note paper I have with me but other times, I use them to record things that are time-relevant, like information from doctor's appointments and goals and plans for the year. Again, if you're a planner-on-the-phone person, you might use your Notes app for this.

Parked or portable? As I said at the outset, there's a lot of wisdom in the advice to have a single planner for everything, whether it's in your bag or on the refrigerator. If you're going to break that rule (as I clearly have), make sure you're simplifying things, rather than overcomplicating them. Be honest with yourself about how well your plan is working for you. How often do you forget something that's in the "other" calendar? Never? Great! Keep up the good work! Sometimes? Maybe you need a plan for combining your calendars.

What's the most important feature of a calendar? Its ease of use. It doesn't matter if your calendar is the one that came on your phone, a clearance bin generic version, or an expensive personalized agenda with a monogrammed leather cover. Choosing the tool that works for your styles is half the battle.

What do you like best about your planner?

True Confessions Wednesday: The Strange Co-existence of Order and Chaos

True Confession #34: My house is a blend of order and chaos. Okay, maybe chaos is too strong a word, but, as I've said before, I'm a work in progress. That means that there are places in my house that are exactly as I want them to be and then there's....

The rest of the house.

While a couple of rooms are consistently under control, order and chaos often co-exist in other rooms. Since we have a small house, this means there may be a lovely, clear organized surface two feet away from an organizing challenge in the works. 

My office is a prime example. I have conquered my desk, long an organizing challenge, and now it's usually cleared off unless I'm working there. On the other hand, the counter across the room (and "across the room" is a generous description) is a perpetual clutter magnet and the space in my house that comes closest to actual chaos. I make progress on a weekend, only to find that, by the end of the week, I've dumped new items there. It's a process, and not one I am winning.

While I'm a big fan of seizing small chunks of time to make progress, there are some areas that need either a continual succession of small chunks of time or a dedicated time block of an hour, an afternoon, or even a weekend.

I think my counter falls into that category.

Since I believe in taking small steps, and since I'm unlikely to have a totally free afternoon in which to tackle this organizing challenge, I'm going to set a small, approachable goal. Each day, I will spend at least 15 minutes de-cluttering my counter (even if that means three increments of five minutes each) until I whip it into the lovely, clear space I want it to be. 

Long-time readers who are feeling a sense of déjà vu are not wrong. Seven years ago, I launched Operation: Clear the Counter and I made progress. But, in the past seven years, I've re-vamped, re-organized and de-cluttered a lot of other spaces in my house and within the piles on my counter are items rendered homeless by those projects. Oh, and I retired, bringing all new piles home with me. 

As someone who writes about organization and has mastered it in many areas, I don't like admitting to harboring chaos. This counter project is a big one -- one that has the potential to be just the tip of the organizing iceberg -- so I'm hoping my small steps will not only yield big successes but also help keep the frustration of an tackling an enormous challenge at bay. And I'm hoping that going public will be yet another nudge to creating that Jerry Seinfeld calendar that truly does provide motivation.

Time to put some STYLE into action, fifteen minutes at a time.

3 Keys Thursday: 3 Key Tools for Marking Progress

Yesterday, I wrote about the beauty of progress, which got me thinking about some of the ways we can mark progress, whether it pertains to organization or life in general. 

Here are a few of my favorites.

Lists. I don't think I know anyone who doesn't enjoy the satisfaction that comes from checking things off a list! No matter how we do it -- a checkmark, an X, or crossing out the item entirely -- marking things as completed is a visible sign that we've made progress. And, for those days when it feels as though I'm doing a whole lot of nothing, I like creating a backwards to-do list -- a running list of the things I actually did in a day. Sometimes, I create the list as I go, and other times, I look back over the day and make the list then. Either way, I'm usually surprised by how much I did.

Timers. I'm a firm believer that taking small steps leads to progress but, often, the progress is hard to see. Setting a timer gives us permission to stop when time is up, even if we don't see as much progress as we'd like when that timer finally goes off. But an interesting thing often occurs when we use a timer -- the momentum we create as we work and the small bits of progress we see can motivate us to keep going after the timer goes off. Time permitting, of course.

A whole new view. For me, clear space is not only the greatest motivator of all, but proof of progress as well. Going from piles to empty space is an unmistakeable sign of progress. So, too, is reorganizing a space that wasn't working and using style-specific tools to turn it into something that does work. 

As I said yesterday, process and progress go hand-in-hand. Understanding that getting organized is an ongoing process helps us to get comfortable with the idea that making progress, even if it's only a little at a time, will get us where we want to be. 

 

Seeking Sustainability

It's been a busy and exciting week, and it's only Wednesday! Over the weekend, I put together some visuals (like the one at left) to post on social media. I also wrote Monday's post about my planned countdown to release. And then, on Monday, I got a surprise.

The Kindle edition of Know Thyself is available!

Now, that's the kind of surprise I like -- especially on the heels of all the preparation I've been doing. In addition to sharing my visuals on social media, I have some real-world events planned, along with a webcast tomorrow. (You can read about all of that here).

As with my blogs, though, I don't want my posts to be merely advertisements, so I've been focusing on two important aspects of organization: why we organize and the idea that it's a process.

Getting organized is about defining the sweet spot between what comes into our homes and what goes out. Some things stay only briefly; others stay for a season or they come to live with us long-term and require homes of their own (storage space) within our homes. Which precise items make the cut is up to us, and we retain the freedom to change our minds day by day and moment by moment. In the end, the things that stay say as much about us as about our systems and our styles.

This is why sustainable organization isn't a one-size-fits all or a one-and-done proposition, and why it can sometimes be so frustrating. Getting organized short-term isn't really all that difficult; the hard part is staying organized -- creating a system that works with us and keeps pace with the people and things that are relevant in our lives as we -- and they -- change and grow.

It's in learning to embrace the process that we come to view organization as not just a weekend chore, but a way of life. The flip side to this coin is that our work is never completely done -- there is always something more to sort, to contain, to find a home for. While that can seem daunting, it can also keep things interesting. Imagine never changing your wardrobe or your decor or if the view outside your window never changed with the seasons. While there can be comfort in sameness, a lack of variety can also be stifling.

So, we accept the process, balancing the new and the old, acquisition and release, perfection and imperfection. And, along the way, we establish some order, some clear space and, if we keep our priorities in order, a little bit of the peace that comes with clear space as well.