recycle Archives • Page 4 of 6 • Helpful Organizer

Organizing Doesn’t Have to be Scary

October 31, 2017/in Newsletter/by Janine Cavanaugh, CPO®

Side Notes:

I’ve been in business 9 year, and for all those years I’ve been a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers. However, they have recently changed their name and logo. They are now the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals.

*** Have you ever heard of the Buy Nothing Project? It is an on-line community for giving, lending, and sharing. You can search your local area to see if there is one in your neighborhood. You do have to have a Facebook account.

*** Question: Have you ever rented a storage unit? If so, how big and how long? Please share.

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NAPO-NE

Hi ,

Isn’t it hard to believe that there are just two more months left in 2017? Fall is upon us. The colorful autumn leaves are finally sharing their splendor. The Halloween decorations are out, and costume preparations are under way. Now’s the time to share,

How to Overcome Five

SCARY

Thoughts About Organizing.

1. I’m not ready to organize.

I understand that being in the right mindset when tackling a project can impact the success of the project. If that is the case, take your time and do some planing and preparing before jumping in. However, if this is a procrastination technique, you’re not helping yourself. Commit and get started.

2. It’s too hard to do.

Organizing can be difficult, especially deciding what to keep and not keep, but you can always ask for help. Ask for assistance from sincere friends, empathetic family members, or Professional Organizers. The project will get done faster, and it is much more pleasant to work with a supportive helper.

3. I’m no good at organizing.

The best way to get better at a skill we’re not good at, is to practice. The more you organize the better you’ll get at it. Organize for 10 minutes a day, every day, and see what happens after 3 weeks.

4. I don’t know where to start.

I recommend that you start any organizing project by sorting things into general categories. The idea is to put like items together first, and then make decisions about what to keep and for how long. For more information about the steps of organizing read my blog, 3 Step Organizing Process.

5. It will just be a mess again in a month.

There is a natural flow to organizing, and it goes like this, there is order, natural disorder (work, life, mess), and then reclaiming order. In this way, organizing is like doing the laundry or dishes. You have to reclaim order for the mess to be controlled and contained, otherwise it creeps back.

Recycle Resource

Finding new ways to reuse, recycle, and reduce for myself and my clients, makes me happy. Everyone is more motivated to get rid of something when they know it is going to someone who will really use it. At Household Goods in Acton, MA they take donations and give directly to those in need. They help people in a variety of situations make a home for themselves. This is a wonderful organization. Please check them out.

If you have a donation that they don’t accept, or if you’re not close to Acton, they provide a good list of other organizations to donate to.

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!

Organizing Humor

May 8, 2017/0 Comments/in Newsletter/by Janine Cavanaugh, CPO®

Content

Do you reduce?

Recycle Resource

Side Notes:

*** One thing that I like to do is take and share photos. Do you? How many photos do you think you have? Research says that most families have about 60,000 photos on 5 or more devices. If you are feeling overwhelmed about organizing your photos, I can help with small projects, but the two companies listed below have experts that can help you organize, scan, and manage any number of photos on any number of devices.

Ever Present

Pages 2 Remember

Visit their website.

*** Question: Do you have any funny organizing stories? Please share.

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Quick Links

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NAPO-NE

Hi,

Hope all is well with you. Are you enjoying 2017 so far? It seems like the year is flying by. I’m okay with that, because I have a fun summer trip planned. So, I’m excited that it is now only 2 months away. What about you, any plans?

What makes you laugh?

Actually, I just got back from a trip. I was in Pittsburgh, PA for the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) Conference. I attended some inspiring sessions. One that I really liked was about brain clutter and how laughter can help. That gave me the idea to share some organizing cartoons with you. I hope you laugh, or at least, chuckle a little.

Recycle Resource

Finding new ways to reuse, recycle, and reduce for myself and my clients, makes me happy. Everyone is more motivated to get rid of something when they know it is going to someone who will really use it.

This is why I was happy to find Free Cycle. It’s a nonprofit movement that encourages people to reuse. The idea is to keep good, usable stuff out of landfills. It is an online community where people give and get stuff for free in their own towns and neighborhoods. Each local group is moderated by local volunteers and membership is free. Check it out.

From,

Janine Cavanaugh, CPO®
(508)-699-6652
logo square

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!

Yard Sale Charity Rule

May 1, 2017/0 Comments/in Tip of the Month/by Janine Cavanaugh, CPO®

We’re entering yard sale season. If you’re planning on having one, follow this simple rule. Pick a charity before your yard sale and make a rule that all unsold items go directly to that charity. Nothing gets returned to the house, attic, basement, or garage. A few local charities that I support are St. Vincent De Paul, Habitat for Humanities ReStore, and Dorca’s International.

Prevent Clutter

January 1, 2017/0 Comments/in Tip of the Month/by Janine Cavanaugh, CPO®

A great way to prevent clutter is to stop it from coming in the door in the first place. Put a trash can, recycle bin, and shred container in the garage, and use them to clean out the clutter from the car, your purse, your work bag, and school backpacks. Also use them to toss or shred as much mail as possible before bringing it into the house.

Toss the Box

December 1, 2016/0 Comments/in Tip of the Month/by Janine Cavanaugh, CPO®

To save time, remove items that are used frequently, from their boxes, and toss the box. For example, take small appliances, like hand-mixers, blenders, and mini choppers out of their boxes and store them directly in a kitchen cupboard or on a pantry shelf. Also remove smaller items from their packaging and store them in containers without lids, for example batteries, paper plates, q-tips. This eliminates the step of opening and closing the box or packaging each time the item is used, and makes it easier to get things out and put them away.