Summer vacation is at an end. Your kids are restless.  Business is about to kick into high gear again. You’ve got a million things to prepare. It’s time to get organized again for the school year. Where to start? You have to leverage your resources.

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!

Are you stuck at the office while everyone else is out enjoying the summer sunshine? Taking a pass on the neighborhood barbecue because you’re just getting to your taxes – in August? Get organized and you can enjoy life again.

This month, the Scrivener Magazine published my article from page 10, “Get Organized and Enjoy More Time” with tips to not only get organized, but also stay organized.

Some excerpts that you may find helpful:

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I help people de-clutter their lives and get rid of the bad habits that led to the chaos in the first place. Sometimes, my professional advice seems a lot like something you might hear from a life-coach.

After all, my “Three P’s” — planning, process and procedures, which help people stay organized and have a good life balance are also keys to long-term success.

Recently, some of my friends in the coaching field have written advice about forming good habits and letting go of things. My colleague, Dr. Brian Walsh, who collaborated with me on the Self-Hypnosis CD Ending Procrastination, provides this advice on improving behavior:

Over 97 per cent of our behaviors are unconscious. These behaviors are the result of imprinted patterns. Most of these were created when we were very young, perhaps under the age of seven. Another term for these patterns is habits, and yes, procrastination is a habit. It was learned, so it can be unlearned.

Most people believe that it takes 30 days to establish a new habit. Recent research has found that anyone can establish a new habit in as little as five days. Now, there’s a catch to this. Even if you have planted a new habit, the old one is still hanging around and is fighting for survival. Old habits die hard.

Here’s the key to success. Be aware that every time you fall back into the old habit, it will gain strength, and the new pattern will begin to weaken. The converse is true: Every time you practice the new pattern, it will gain dominance over the old one. Eventually it will dissolve, and that might take 30 days. You’ve heard that “Practice makes perfect.” Actually: “Practice makes permanent.”

On the topic of how to make your habits work for you, Life Coach Julia James has written a great article with a list of steps to follow:

1. First, pick a habit to establish.
2. What would be the smallest action you could take to get started? Commit to doing this one small thing on a regular basis, ideally on a schedule.
3. Set up a reminder to help you remember your commitment.
4. When you feel ready, gradually increase your commitment – but no more than you can consistently do.
5. Share your commitment with someone. Accountability really helps.
6. Identify the personal values you are honoring with your action.
7. Notice how good you feel when you follow a healthy habit; give yourself kudos for taking this positive step.
8. Stick with your new habit for at least 30 days. Before long, this behaviour will feel automatic and you won’t have to think about it anymore.

I’ve written before about how to face down the challenge of letting go of stuff that we don’t need. But what happens when your identity is tied to the things you own? My friend, Living in Vision Coach Lynne Brisdon discusses how to get past your hesitation:

When we have a strong attachment with our stuff our identity can feel threatened if we let go of it. This also has to do with being afraid of change and needing to control our surroundings in order to feel secure. The antidote is to shift to a sense of self identity that is truly about being who you are and not associated with having stuff.

This can also be related to the mistaken assumption that material objects: cars, a new PDA, or outfit, will fulfill us or have us feel complete. We feel good for a little while after acquiring the object of our desire, but we soon end up feeling empty again. We mistakenly equate having stuff with being loved instead of feeling whole and complete regardless of our belongings.

My friends and colleagues in Vancouver have been talking non-stop about the latest real-estate innovation to hit our expensive city: “microlofts”, 270 square feet of compact urban living roughly equal in size to two parking spaces.

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.

We are pleased to announce that Linda Chu, Principal of Out of Chaos has teamed up as an associate with Kwela Leadership & Talent Management to offer a time management workshop.

Kwela is a Vancouver-based consulting company dedicated to developing business leaders and the systems that will achieve their strategic goals. They believe that leadership and organizational excellence are interrelated. Kwela works with businesses in Leadership Development, Team Development, Talent Management and Training programs.

Their Time Management workshop is designed for the business person to “Get Organized”. Learn how to develop effective workflow practices and sustain them in the long term. Reduce workplace stress and burnout. Focus your time on what is important.

Register for the next Public Program of Get Organized Time Management, on September 17, 2009. Join Kwela’s Principal, Russel Horwitz in this inaugural public program. Linda will look forward to seeing you there.

Moving can very quickly become one of the biggest stresses in your life, if you are not prepared and organized. Following a recent pack and move at a 5700 square foot home, our Vancouver-based professional organizers have some moving and packing tips to share.

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I love this time of year. Everywhere, it’s green and fresh. It’s a good feeling to be outside. But wouldn’t it be great to feel that rejuvenated and well-balanced at your workspace? It can happen with green organizing.

The reduce, re-use and recycle mantra of the green movement applies very well for organizations looking to reduce clutter and improve how their office is organized. In practice, these can mean:

• Reduce the amount of paper you use. Many offices are going entirely paperless, keeping all of their data in electronic format. Using less paper saves trees, and records kept in network databases or online can be easily sorted and archived using automated tools.
• Re-use office supplies, furniture and equipment as much as possible. Used resources cost less and don’t require the expenditure of any new resources or energy to manufacture brand-new things. Keep an organized inventory of all your equipment and keep a spreadsheet of maintenance schedules to ensure you’re re-using as much as you can. This will help boost productivity and save money.
• Recycle your office materials, equipment and clutter. There are recycling programs for everything from paper and bottles to books and computers. It’s not just recycling depots — think about thrift shops, second-hand stores and non-profit agencies that will accept donations.

For more tips about making your office green, check out the One Day site.

I like Post-it notes. Whether you use the colored-paper variety or the tech-savvy digital Sticky Notes, these little scraps of data come in very handy for organizing your stuff. They’re great for remembering your dentist’s appointment or business meeting, or just jotting down a name and number while you’re on the phone. They work just as well on your monitor as on your fridge or tucked into your pocket.

And I’m not the only one who likes them. This month, I have entrepreneur coach and mentor BackPocket COO, Cameron Herold share his winning Post-it secret for organizing success.

Take a Post-it note and write on it the five most important tasks you have to do tomorrow. Number them in order of their importance.

First thing tomorrow morning, look at item one and start working on it. Look at the list every 15 minutes until item one is done. Tackle item two in the same way, then item three. Do this until quitting time.

Even if you finish only one item, you’ll be working on the important jobs you need to get done. The others can wait. The point is that you’re making progress, maybe even getting all of your tasks done on your list.

“That’s it, it’s pretty simple stuff,” Herold adds. “But it made Charles Schwab a $500 million fortune 90 years ago and if it worked for him, it will for everyone else.” Using this method will also work to cut down your email down to inbox zero, he notes.

Do you have organizing tips that have helped your company become more productive and successful? Contact info@outofchaos.ca and your tips could be featured in the next Chu On This…

Business success can come from better organization, ensuring better workplace productivity. This month, I’ve called on Sean Simpson, Communications Director of Express Employment Professionals, the nation’s fourth-largest staffing company, which employs 350,000 people each year, to provide organizing tips that have helped his company achieve success.

“There is a belief that organization equals efficiency and it has the added benefit of being true,” Simpson says. “When you see a clean workspace, you can’t help but think that the worker is productive and gets their work done.” His company’s organizing tips include:

• Keep only your essential, frequently-used items on your desk. Your computer, telephone, inbox, stapler, note pad, and other items of that nature can be considered as essential. If you regularly use a printer or fax, keep those within reach.
• Throw out old materials. Don’t hoard old files that you haven’t used in years. Shred and discard these old materials to clear up space. Remember to double check files, such as financial records, before you toss them. Items like tax papers need to be kept for seven years.
• Tidy up before you leave each day. Make sure things are in order to ensure you can get off to a fast start when you arrive the next morning. People are a little more reluctant to tackle daunting tasks, but tidying up every day will prevent messes from growing too large and overwhelming.

Do you have organizing tips that have helped your company become more productive and successful? Contact info@outofchaos.ca and your tips could be featured in the next Chu On This…

The first month of the New Year is a great time to re-focus on your goals and start taking the steps to reach them. I’m feeling energized and ready to take on new projects, looking forward to upcoming events and speaking engagements for learning and networking.

But fulfilling those New Year’s resolutions and achieving their goals requires more than just good thoughts; in some cases, we may need to change our old behaviors that stopped us from getting what we wanted in the previous year.

The theory behind the GO System for organizing is that we have to rewire our brains by following better habits. It takes time, but the idea is to consciously use “good habits” until they take root. That way, even when you are stressed or tired, your new good habits will kick in automatically.

This applies whether you’re dealing with improving the energy in your residence, keeping your surroundings in order or organizing your workplace. Good habits could mean always putting new contacts in your address book immediately, making and using a new regular schedule for organizing and clearing your office files, or just taking 10 minutes a day when you get home to put things in order.

FreedomFiler’s self-purging filing system will forever eliminate the hassle of cleaning out and reorganizing files! Tested and proven by professional organizers, FreedomFiler’s easy folder names let you file and retrieve up to 20 times faster than typical home systems. Your kit comes with easy to follow pictorial diagrams. This product is a must-have for any home. Watch this video and see how the FreedomFiler can eliminate your piles. Contact us for discount code to save 15% on your purchase.

What are some habits that you’re changing in the New Year to be more organized and productive? Do you have a secret that has helped you change your bad habits and become a more organized person?

If you’ve got a success story, or know of a colleague who has successfully changed their old disorganized situation, leave a comment or email info@outofchaos.ca. Your answer could be featured on this blog or in the popular Chu On This… newsletter.

To ensure your home is a disorganized disaster in no time, follow these tried and true ways:

1. Buy clothes and never wear them. Put them away in your closet with the price tag on and find them 3 years later.
2. Enter every contest and subscribe to every magazine you won’t ever read. Just let them pile up on a corner of your table until ‘one day…’
3. Plan a weekly shop at Costco and purchase as if you were a family of 6, even though you are only 2 left in the house.
4. Don’t open your mail until you get a cut off notice. Leave mail and flyers in a pile in your entry-way so you can trip over them on your way in the door.
5. Keep everything because you never know when you will need that waffle iron that you got 25 years ago at your first wedding.
6. Bring back a souvenir from every place you’ve ever travelled because you can’t have too many shot glasses, ball caps, and t-shirts.
7. Downsize from your 4000 square foot home and bring absolutely everything with you to your condo apartment, including your lawn mower.

If mastering your disorganization is not quite the achievement you were looking to win the trophy for, you might want to consider some of these quick tips from our archives:

• Could Your Clothes be Worth Thousands?
• Clearing Your Clutter Without Cluttering the Landfill
• Sharing Through Clearing

What is the ultimate fail-safe product that will keep all your papers from conspiring into those endless piles?

Is there a magical secret process to keeping your desktop clear, preventing the mail from littering your kitchen counter, or remembering where you placed those season hockey tickets?

The secret to organizing is not a secret at all. It is truly about finding a solution that is customized to each individual’s needs. Although the dilemmas may be the same, the solutions may be as different as each person.
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