Staying organized during the holidays

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5 Helpful tips on how to stay organized during the holidays

  1. Write everything down. Make shopping list, to do list, mailing list, decorations list, meal list. Getting it out of your head really does help.
  2. Delegate tasks to others and allow them to do it their way. Examples are household chores, grocery shopping, trips to the post office.
  3. Simplify and reduce to save time. Bag gifts instead of wrapping them. Put up minimal decorations. Reduce your gift exchange list and your charitable donation list.
  4. Hire someone else to clean.
  5. Give experiences instead of things.
all or nothing

All or Nothing

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Have you ever convinced yourself that you can’t start an organizing project, or any type of project because you wouldn’t be able to finish it. Do you tell yourself that it’s not worth starting if you can’t finish. This is an all or nothing attitude. The idea that we have to do the whole project gets in the way of us starting the project. Here are 5 easy steps to help jump-start any project.

  1. Write down what the very first step of the project is.
  2. Pick a day and time to start and put it on your calendar.
  3. Gather all the materials you’ll need.
  4. On project day, set a timer for 30 minutes and work on completing step one of your project.
  5. Repeat the process. You may need more time for step one, or you may be ready to move on to step 2,3,4… either way, you’ll be making progress.

Winter wardrobe prep

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I know it’s only October, and you don’t want to be reminded of the cold winter days ahead. But they’re coming. Soon we’ll be dressing in layers, wearing wool socks and sweaters, and pulling on winter boots. A bit of winter wardrobe prep can make the transition easier.

Preparation steps:

  1. Wash tank tops, shorts, bathing suites, and summer dresses, before packing them away until next summer.
  2. Evaluate the items you’re packing away to determine if they’re worth keeping
  3. Swap out summer hats, scarves, leggings, footwear, pocketbooks, and jewelry for winter options.
  4. Add fall layering pieces to your wardrobe. This includes turtlenecks, slippers, bathrobes, and warmer Pjs.
  5. Once it gets colder add winter coats, gloves, and boots.

Habits

Make it habitual

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Habits by definition are memory enhancement tools, because when something is habitual it requires less of our memory. A habit is something we do almost without thought. Work towards making daily organizing tasks habitual. Here are a few that I practice:Chart of Organizng Flow

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Feel happy while Organizing

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I read about a study from Gretchen Rubin’s book Happier at Home that indicated, “interrupting a pleasant experience with something less pleasant can intensify a person’s overall pleasure.” Let’s use this while organizing. While doing something you enjoy, pause that activity to perform an organizing task.

Here are 3 examples:

  1. While watching a favorite tv show, podcast, or YouTuber, pause and organize the surface of your desk.
  2. While baking cookies, pause and organize your pantry.
  3. While chatting with your BBF, pause and organize your dresser.

lady talking on phone