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Shopping Guidelines

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Celebrating
10 years in business
in 2018!
 
 
I apologize for not sending out a newsletter in July. I was traveling and the summer just flew by. However, I did write some blog articles that you may find inspiring and interesting. Please see below.   
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Recent Blog Articles:
Question:  Have you ever experimented with minimalism? Please share.
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Hi  ,
      How are you? Can you believe it is already the end of October? Summer has come and gone, and once again we are gearing up for a cold, snowy New England winter. Time marches on and with winter comes the gift-giving-season. Are you ready? Would you like to do things a bit differently this year? If so, I have a few organizer friendly shopping guidelines.
  1. Make a list and check it twice (like Santa).
  2. Set limits on number of gifts to give each person and dollars to spend per person.
  3. Always shop with your list and have a specific purpose for each purchase.
  4. Buy gifts that get used up instead of things that take up space. A few examples are bubble bath, art and craft supplies, and sweet treats.
  5. Use technology as a gift-giving inspiration and acquire downloads of books, movies, and games.
  6. Purchase gifts of experience like movie passes, sporting event tickets, zoo memberships, concert tickets, and ice cream shoppe gift cards.
  7. Check out my list of clutter-free gift giving ideas.
  8. Store gifts in one spot, so you can easily see what has been purchased.
  9. Update your list each time you make a purchase.
  10. Schedule time to wrap gifts so you don’t have to stay up till 3:00AM the night before the big holiday.
 If you have other shopping guidelines that have worked for you in the past, please share them with me.

Giving Resources

Looking to clear out some stuff before adding more during the holidays?

Here are a few giving options for toys:

  1. Cradles to Crayons helps families and children in need.
  2. Project Smile works with police and fire departments
  3. Daycare centers
  4. Domestic and homeless shelters
  5. Children’s Homes
  6. Social Services
  7. Hospitals and doctor’s offices
Here are two on-line giving communities:
  1. FreeCycle
  2. Buy Nothing

Happy 2018!
I’m truly grateful for you and your support of me and my business. Thanks for helping me make it to my ten year anniversary. Wishing you all the best in the final two months of 2018 and a happy and safe holiday season!
From,

Janine Cavanaugh, CPO®
(508)-699-6652
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If you’ve worked with me in any capacity, I’d be grateful for a review.  Simply click on this link and answer 3 questions.  Thank you and happy organizing!

Define Minimalism

Helpful Organizer BlogHow would you define minimalism? I asked this question at the beginning of a presentation I gave recently at Brown University in Providence, RI. The answers I received were varied, but most of them included the concepts of intentionally having less stuff, and living a meaningful life with less material possessions. This was consistent with what I found while doing research for this presentation, and reading how established minimalists defined minimalism. I found three definitions that I could easily relate to, one by Joshua Becker, one by Joshua Fields Millburn & Ryan Nicodemus, and one by Miss Minimalist, Francine Jay.

Joshua & Ryan define minimalism

Miss Minimalist defines minimalism

After reading these definitions I was inspired to come up with my own personal definition of minimalism. This is what I came up with:

Minimalism is a lifestyle choice in which we focus on:
…minimizing consumption by shopping less, buying less, using less.
…embracing limits through reducing, reusing, recycling.
…protecting our environment and natural resources with voluntary simplicity.
…finding greater pursuits in life than material possessions.

This definition became the outline for my presentation on embracing minimalism. It also inspired me to adopt a more of a minimalist lifestyle. I’ll be sharing my ideas, tips, and experiences on aspiring to be a minimalist in future blog articles. I hope you stay tuned and get inspired as well. If you’re interested in having me share my presentation on embracing minimalism, please contact me.

Below are some resources on minimalism that I’d like to share. I hope they encourage you to make changes in your life, like they have encouraged me.

  1. Joshua Becker’s website, books, and blog
  2. Joshua Fields Millburn’s & Ryan Nicodemus’ website, books, and blog
  3. Francine Jay’s website, books, and blog
  4. Courtney Carver’s website, books, and blog
  5. Patrick Rhone’s website, books, and blog
  6. The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo
  7. Becoming a Minimalist: Your Guide to Living a Great Life With Less Through Minimalism by Kimberly Wilson
  8. Minimalism: How Living on Less Means Living More Life by Addison Fenn
  9. The Simple Guide to a Minimalist Life by Leo Bubauta
  10. You Can Buy Happiness (and It’s Cheap): How One Woman Radically Simplified Her Life and How You Can Too by Tammy Strobel

©October 2018  Janine Cavanaugh, Certified Professional Organizer  All Rights Reserved

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How to Keep Only What’s Important

Organizing tipKeep what’s important and let go of the rest. Keeping only what’s important will help us stay organized because we won’t be wasting our time with things that aren’t wanted, needed, or used.

Complete these 4 statements to focus on what’s important in life right now.

  1. I want this in my life now, because…
  2. This holds value and significance in my life now, because…
  3. This make me happy because…
  4. This is worth preserving and holding onto because…

Once the 4 statements are complete, take action to remove, recycle, or re-purpose what you can.