What are your options? To keep or not to keep? The logical decision would be that if space is limited and you want more room, then the magazines must go.

Emotionally however, people grapple with the “what if’s“. What if I might need it again? What if I haven’t read everything? Not to mention, magazines are neatly bound with a nice cover page.

Information is power, but I’d like to believe that ACCESS to your information would be more powerful. So, if you must keep information, do so in a format where you can easily access what you need, when you need it.

When it comes to the ‘important’ articles in your magazine that you can’t bear to let go of, just in case…, tear out your favourite sections and leave the ads behind (which are likely 2/3 of the bulk anyway). Create a personal library of resources in a filing system with headings such as:

• Recipes
• Rainy day activities for kids
• Social media tips & tricks
• Marketing ideas

Keeping your information resources organized and having easy access to them is one thing, but actually using them is a whole other beast. One habit shift to implement is every time you find yourself searching the internet for information, have a look at your personal library of information resources first. And if the likelihood of your ever doing this is slim to none… consider why you are keeping these articles in the first place.

If must keep your magazines intact, here’s a unique ‘designer’ solution, where function meets form. The Hockenheimer Stool by Germany’s NJU Studio. Your personal style will be reflected in your personal magazine collections. They provide the pillow, two leather straps, and a waxed-birch base in one of two sizes.

Take a seat – and give this a ponder.

Juggling the demands of caring for your children and spouses, keeping on top of your careers, managing your personal health and financial issues and now the needs of your aging parents. Notice how your personal needs didn’t even fit into this last sentence. What about ‘me’ time? (night out with the boys, spa date with the girls, date night…).

“The number of people aged 65 and up has more than doubled since the 1920s, according to Statistics Canada, and will double again in the next three decades. By 2031, one in four Canadians — an estimated 9.8 million — will be a senior, up from roughly one in 10 today.”

More and more, when my phone rings, it is common to hear that someone is ‘right sizing’ their lives. People are retiring and needing to right-size their homes or have aging parents that are moving out of their homes of 30 – 40 – 50 years, and downsizing into a smaller more manageable home. Certainly, Out of Chaos is right there with you in the thick of things to assist you to deal with massive collections of stuff that a lifetime of memories are made of.

More often than not, my conversations with people are more along the lines of aging parents being downsized ‘for their own good’ or due to a medical situation, parents are in care and cannot return to their old home. In many cases the families that I speak with are not prepared to deal with all the complexities of an aging parent.

Enter Barb Kirby of BjK Senior’s Advocate. One family I was working with was a result of her later life needs planning services for seniors and children of seniors. Barb provides one on one private consultations on creating a Personal Resource Book on Personal Planning for Later Life Care.

This particular family had engaged in Barb’s services to assist them to plan for their mother’s future housing needs as she grew more dependent on assistance as she aged. During Barb’s private consultation, the family was walked through the steps on how to be prepared for the eventual time when their mother would need the support of others. They were able to create plans in advance, while their mother was still capable and able to communicate her own wishes and desires. They were able to have discussions on subjects that most people do not want to talk about nor know how to bring up (like funeral arrangements).

During this consultation, BjK Senior’s Advocate explained the difference between senior citizen’s residences, assisted living, and long-term care. Care options were discussed, such as in home, public or private care, combinations of public and private, adult day care, overnight care, companions, housekeeping, physiotherapists etc.

All very confusing, even as I am writing this. Can you imagine having to sort all this out during a more stressful & emotionally charged time, like when your parent is in a health crisis, putting demands on your time and your financial resources? Barb will certainly be there to help you sort through the maze of questions and provide information on resources & options that are available to you.

Fortunately for this family, they are taking the time now to plan for the future of their aging mother. They recognize that a move, albeit not right away, is imminent. One of their immediate concerns is what to do with all mom’s stuff of over 40 years? If you are dealing with a similar situation, I would recommend thinking big picture to start.

1. Pull aside memories that are dear to heart

2. Create a living will (pass items on while your parents are alive and can have a say as to who they want a particular item to go to)

3. Identify items that might be suitable for consignment (antique / collectible store or Craigslist / eBay)

4. Identify items that can be donated

5. Create a pile for recycling or trash

Each one of these piles can be sub-divided further with separate action items to follow up on, but everyone has to start somewhere.

If you are dealing with an aging parent and don’t know where to begin, contact us and we will get you Out of Chaos.

One of the services that Out of Chaos provides is project management during your move process (before, during, and after). We take care of all the details.

We hear horror stories all the time about moves gone wrong.

The Top 5 Move Moans

1. We were not completely packed when the movers arrived
2. We were living in boxes for months after the move
3. The movers placed boxes everywhere, except in the right rooms
4. How do we avoid the landfill with all our unwanted stuff?
5. We were so overwhelmed with all our stuff and did not know where to start

Following these move tips to ensure a stress-free move.

Pack Completely and Pack Properly
The night before your move can be one of your most stressful. You are overwhelmed and overtired. More often than not, you head off to bed, thinking that you will pack the last few items just before the movers arrive, on the morning of your move. The last thing you want to do on move day is fret over the final details of all the unfinished tasks littered around your home.

By ensuring that you are completely & properly packed, you are better prepared to manage the movers when they arrive and be on hand for any last-minute decisions. Properly boxed items will enable the movers to stack your boxes, making the move faster and reduce your moving costs.

Plan What You Pack
If you just empty whole drawers and shelves into boxes, you are guaranteed to bring items that you no longer use or remember you had.

Be selective about what you pack and bring to your new home. Our team of professional organizers will assist in downsizing your belongings so that you are assured of moving only what you need and have room for.

Label, Label, Label
All too often boxes are re-used, making it difficult to find what the contents are in each box, as you try to decipher handwritten contents from previous moves.

Clearly label all boxes by room. Colour-coded labels with an agenda for the movers will help to ensure boxes get into the right rooms on the day of your move.

Cash, Consign, Craigslist or Charity
But you paid good money for this stuff… and the thought of it ending in the landfill is just too much to bear, so you just defer the decision to your ‘later’ pile (aka the basement, garage, spare bedroom).

Read more about four options to consider, when it comes to leaning out your household goods and downsizing your home.

Move Managers
Overwhelmed with thoughts about moving?

Allow our team at Out of Chaos to make it a smooth, stress-free experience for you. Have the comfort of knowing that you don’t need to be present for moving day. We will ensure your time is spent enjoying your new home, and not living in boxes.

In preparing for the appropriate words of wisdom, it gave me the opportunity to reflect on my own journey and the journeys of those that I have worked with throughout the years.  In my work as an organizing & productivity consultant, one of the most common things that I come across is people who are dealing with procrastination and how they struggle with developing systems to reach their goals.

There’s a saying by Nicholas Murray Butler.  “People are divided into three groups:  Those who Make things happen, those who Watch things happen, and those who Wonder what happened.”

Everyone of us, at some point deals with procrastination and even the most organized lose their way.  It’s overwhelming at times to know where to start, when the piles are so high and the to-do lists are so long.

Things will continue to be thrown in our paths, whether it’s through paper mail, email, or people interactions.  Our lists and intentions will continue to grow.  It’s about adapting to change and circumstances and thinking about things in a different way.

I grew up Watching my Dad work in hotels and working in my Dad’s restaurant.  I grew up Wondering what was happening that he was able to create such a buzz and excitement for his loyal customers.  So it was no surprise that when I was ready I wanted to Make things happen for myself.

I followed in his footsteps and entered into a career of over 20 years in the hotel / restaurant industry.  When the events of 9-11 struck, I lost my job with the downturn of the hotel economy.  All I knew was the hotel industry – so what now?, I asked.

I had no idea what I wanted to be, otherwise I would be there already…I had to look at things differently and adapt to the changes that were before me.  There’s another saying, “If you don’t know where you are going, any road will take you there”.

I needed a plan, a system, a map.  I had to map out what I wanted, what my goal was.  Then, I had to decide how I was going to get there?  How I was to accomplish my goal?  Which road would I travel to get there?

Success can be defined in many ways and is different for everyone.  It may be about money, a job, providing for your family, status.  For me, it was to be self employed with my own business.

Whatever it is, your goals can change and will change.

It is so easy to sit back and procrastinate and think one day…later…  To Watch – as things fly by.  To Wonder – what if…

Make thing happen:

1. Adapt to the changes that will always come your way
2. Look at things differently (do something different)
3. Set your goals (determine what you want to achieve)
4. Design your road map (how are you going to get there?)
5. Be persistent, be brave, take one step at a time

Which person do you want to be?

1. The person who MAKES things happen?
2. The person who WATCHES things happen?
3. The person who WONDERS what happened?

Four options to consider, when it comes to leaning out your household goods and downsizing your home. Time is always a factor and cost is a variable. Cash, Consign, Craigslist, or Charity.

Cash for Clutter

One man’s trash, another man’s treasure. Are you a garage sale junkie? But what about you more valuable items?

Like many, that ‘value’ is hard to give up, so the thought of getting some money for your treasures would seem to make it easier to let go. Let’s examine value. Is it about the stuff or about the money? How much of your time will it take? What value do you place on your time?

People are looking for a deal at garage sales and if you are looking to unload your treasures, you’d better price them well to sell quickly – not to mention, be prepared to haggle. If you have the time to haggle over a quarter difference in price, then garage sales are for you.

Consignment

According to Michael Tee of RHV Tee & Sons (England), the antiques market has changed dramatically over the years. Buyers are not looking for large bulky furniture (pieces that your grandmother once proudly displayed). Homes are much smaller and furniture lines are more streamline. So select pieces for estate mansions, like the 12-seater dining set or a special antique accent piece for a modern home only come in as custom requests.

What was once $4500.00 four to five years ago will now barely fetch $500 – 1500.00. As the owner selling this to the antique dealer to sell on consignment, you would only be receiving 50-75% of re-sale prices, if you are lucky.

Craigslist

If giving away your treasure for free and limiting your costs is your motivator, listing your items on Craigslist or Freecycle might be the way to go. You will expose your treasures to a wider circle of loyal followers.

The cost to you is your time to take photographs, take measurements, create a descriptive listing, create an account on Craigslist or Freecycle, post each items for sale/give-away, and be available to respond to each phone call or email from interested parties.

Charity

Many charities with pickup services no longer pick up large household furniture. Mattresses and stuffed animals, due to hygiene reasons, are no longer wanted. Items are often being considered based on the charity being able to re-sell to the public for monies that will go back to support their charitable programs.

Some donors would prefer that their items are not sold or that they are given direct to those in need. There are charities that will come by to take away your larger donations (like beds & televisions) and place them direct into the hands of those in need. However, due to usually very limited funds, lack of storage space and volunteer drivers, pickup can be very selective and limited to the immediate need of a family in waiting.

So, if your interest is to get your household items into the direct hands of those in immediate need, your time and your dollars may need to be spent to match donation to recipient.

You Chu’s

In the situation with this particular homeowner, going through her three-level house to identify almost 60 items designated for garage sale – consignment – Craigslist – charity, to photograph, and take measurements took two of us at least two hours (four man-hours). This does not take into account the time to post each listing for sale or to source out consignment stores, nor to correspond with emails and phone calls of interested Craigslist buyers.

There is no guarantee that you will get any money for items your choose to sell, not to mention if there are even interested parties for the items you are giving away for free. Even designating items for charity does not guarantee the charity will accept everything.

At the end of the day you still pay for:

1. Your time to research, contact, navigate and negotiate
2. Professional organizing services to coordinate and navigate you through a potential stressful time in your downsizing
3. Junk removal service to deliver your treasures to a charity, recycling depot and/or the rubbish yard
4. What is your time (and peace of mind) worth?

Overwhelmed with thoughts about moving? Allow us to make it a smooth, stress-free experience for you or your loved ones. Contact Out of Chaos today for a consultation on our Stress-Free Move™ Services. We take care of all the details.

They had moved into a new home and the sweaters were packed away in a box (all 30 of them). She had refused to unpack the sweaters, since he never wore them. So they sit, in the box, unpacked, in their basement, never to be looked at again.

Yet… he would not let them go. He would not even talk about them. The organizing challenge is how she was to approach her husband about ‘The Sweaters’.

I often talk about value, being made up of two components — Emotional and Usefulness.

It was obvious that her husband had no use for the sweaters, especially since they were sitting in the box, months after the move, still unpacked. Emotional on the other hand — bingo! ‘His mother had made them…’

My recommendation in this scenario:

1. Throw Blanket
   Find someone who can knit. Hand knit sweaters can be taken apart and the yarn can be used to make a throw blanket(s). You might even consider a ‘patchwork’ of all 30 sweaters. So, every time you snuggle up with your re-purposed throw blanket, you will be reminded of ‘mommy dearest’.
2. Themed Photo Album
   Have some fun and have a dress-up day. Take out your camera and take a picture of your husband in each of the sweaters his mom made. Place them in a photo album with a snappy caption under each photograph (scrapbookers are jumping at this creative project). Use this as a way of honouring his mother and the memory of each sweater.
3. Donations
   Of course, there is the practical argument of donating the sweaters to a seniors home/centre or to a charity in need.

But, as you are well aware, this has nothing to do with a useful decision — it’s clearly pure emotion.

… thank goodness it’s only one box.

Perhaps you want to de-clutter and get out from under the piles of stuff that have accumulated since June (or since you moved into a new home). Or Perhaps you need systems in place to boost productivity for your business for the next quarter. If so, feel free to get in touch with me regarding professional organizing services to get your new school year off to a great start.

Maybe you need help with another area of your life or business so you can get focused for the coming season? I’m happy to recommend some partners, colleagues and trusted services I’ve used that might also benefit you.

Here’s a quick list of resources that can help you:

• Melanie Fung Lifestyle Management Inc. Personal shopping, small business assistance, running errands, event planning and more.
• Fresh Start Recycling. Helping home owners, building managers, and construction rid themselves of unwanted items.
• Silver Bullet Shredding. Professional, reliable and cost-effective shredding services.
• Recycling Council of BC. Information about where to recycle.

Do you need help organizing your time? De-cluttering your space? Making sense of your paper and electronic files? Get help from a professional organizer today.

Have a great start to the new season!

In an Olympic-frenzied city with some of the most expensive real estate in the world, I guess it was inevitable that people would start living in accommodations that combine your sink, toilet and shower into a single “washroom enclosure”. But the question on everyone’s lips is “how do you organize your stuff to actually live in such a small space?”

When the CBC interviewed me about this topic, I noted that in a perfect world where you have as much space as you could possibly need, you would just keep everything. But for most of us, organizing our living spaces means making choices. What do you really need? What do you actually use? And what do you just have around because of emotional attachment or memory?

For those of us who don’t live in spacious mansions, these are very practical questions. One way to face it is to ask yourself, what would I keep if I could only have 100 items? Would I keep my Wii? All the DVDs I’ve collected but never actually watch? How many sets of cutlery do I need? Which is more important: that set of coasters that I bring out for company twice a year, or my toothbrush (well, I hope you’d choose the toothbrush, but it’s your choice…)?

We’re moving into smaller spaces and as a result, self-serve storage is a booming industry. It’s not just people shifting gears in a tough economy; many retired residents are moving from 2000 or even 5000 square feet homes into rooms roughly equivalent to in space to these microlofts – and they’ve acquired decades worth of stuff.

But if you’re paying for a storage locker after you downsize, how much would that extra $200 or $300 per month buy you in rent or a mortgage? If you’ve filled up your garage so you have to pay for a parking pass for your car to park on the street, how much are you paying every month for stuff that you might never use?

When I’m working with my professional organizing clients, helping them through the downsizing process is often a cathartic kind of process. They realize what is really important to them. At the same time, they learn how to make smarter decisions about how they use their space. For instance, in smaller spaces, you learn how to turn your coffee tables and ottomans into dual-use pieces and find places for hidden storage.

It’s often a challenge at the beginning, but in the end, they realize better value and a better standard of living from their homes than they ever had before.

That’s mostly true, but not the whole story.

Often we hold onto things based on the emotional value they provide, which they spark in our memories. Sometimes the object reminds us of an intention to do something. Other times, we just don’t want to get rid of something we spent money on, whether or not it is actually useful in our lives.

My clients are asked to determine the value of the item they are keeping. Value is measured in two forms: Functional Usefulness and Emotional Attachment.

To illustrate, I’ll tell you a story about myself.

My Dad owned a Chinese/Western food restaurant. It was a small neighborhood eatery, visited by the locals. Think back to times of Pink Ladies, Fuzzy Navels, Shirley Temples and Rob Roys.

He had quite the following. There were line-ups out the door every weekend. The community where he was located has a strong Scottish clientele. Imagine, a Chinese food restaurant hosting Robby Burns Day ceremonies, turning out authentic Haggis and entertaining the sell-out crowds with Highland Dancers and full Robby Burns Day ceremonies.

Dad was presented with his own kilt, brought back from a loyal patron on a visit back to Scotland. He wore it every year during the ceremonies. When my Dad passed away, we buried him with his kilt. I remember George, a regular restaurant patron, playing the bagpipes as we followed his casket at the graveyard.

One thing that I did keep of my Dad’s was this statue, made by another loyal patron — complete with glasses cut out of black construction paper and the black marker scribble for Dad’s mustache. The base of the statute reads “Hamish McChu”.

Just think of me as Linda Chu from the McChu clan…

Dad looks over me each night from atop of my wardrobe in the bedroom. What value does this item bring to me, you ask? Emotional or usefulness? You decide. Contact me and let me know what you think. Best regards.

Divide and Conquer
Split your clothes into two seasons, winter and summer. Store any items (like heavy skiing sweaters) that you would never wear out of season.

Birds of a Feather
Put pants in one pile, T-shirts in another and so on. Subdivide the piles into casual and dressy items. Take it one step further and sort by colour or sleeve length – a great way to discover a glut of items. Do you really need a dozen black camisoles?

Tough Calls
If you’re waffling on an item, put it in what Chu calls the “not-sure box.” List what’s in the box with the current date and the contact information of a charity and attach it to the box. Make a note in your calendar a year from now. If you haven’t missed anything in the box by then, you can donate it to charity without opening the box (and risking a trip down memory lane).

Two Questions
Question each item using two principles of purging: When was the last time you used it? Were you surprised to find it?

Air Time
Clothes need to breathe, so don’t store them in plastic boxes. Be sure to label the containers.

Call for Help
If you feel overwhelmed by your closet, Chu recommends having someone support you in the process. Make a deal with a friend to work on your closets together, or hire a professional organizer for help restoring order to your space.

View full magazine spread.