We’re decluttering and organising our home offices this month.

Here are the first 3 challenges:

1. decluttering mail and loose papers
2. that declutter at least 5 books or magazines
3. weed through at least 5 files – I also shared my top 5 filing tips

It’s not too late if you didn’t get around to any of the challenges – start anywhere with just 15 minutes a day.

1. Today, we’re going to go through our office supplies and toss:

• anything that doesn’t work
• dry pens, markers, etc.
• freebies you received that you’re not using
• duplicate supplies

If things are in good working order and you just don’t have any use for them, put them in a separate box and donate to a local school.

2. Also go around the house and return items to where they belong. If your stapler is in the kitchen for some reason, bring it back to your home office.

Incidentally, I do believe that you should have duplicates of some supplies. I have 6 pairs of scissors and we use all of them – 2 in the study, 1 with the sewing kit, 1 in the kitchen and 1 each in our two bathrooms.

(if you don’t want to post on the theme, go right ahead and post on whatever you felt like decluttering this week

Are you up for today’s decluttering challenge?

7 easy steps to organise your office MP3 and ebook system will help you get your home office organised and in tip-top shape. By the way, you get this entire system FREE when you sign up for the Virtual Organising Seminar

This week’s challenge

Please link to the post on your blog where you show off your pictures and talk about what you decluttered. If you don’t have a blog, tell me in the comments about ANYTHING you decluttered this week.

It can be anything – physical, electronic, mental clutter or even the need to be a certain way. Like perfectionism!

What did you declutter this week?

Tomorrow is the last day we’ll be decluttering our home offices.

I’m thinking we should do our computers next month….what do you think? Email, photos, documents, blogs, bookmarks, etc.

Or otherwise, what would you prefer?

When people join my mailing list, I send a question out in the autoresponder with their Organising Success Pack that says something like, “tell me your biggest organising challenge”.

I love it when people respond because not only do I get to know them better, but I also get blog topics

Amanda in Australia writes…

I have one monster thing I still need help with and that is organising my filing cabinet.

I start and have done well I thought..but I have problems with working out what headings to have to make this job easier if you get me…I mean..I have one hanging file marked ‘phone‘ and in there I can quickly put all my paid phone bills..and another for ‘House Rates‘ etc..and ‘Electricity‘ those are easy..but I have so many other things to do with my work that I have no idea where to put them under what heading..that I pile them altogether and then can’t find them if I ever need them again.

Invoices for example..do I file them under supplier name? It sounds stupid as I was a receptionist and can file really well..it’s the working out the filing system that I am not having luck with at my home..how come I can do this at work and yet when it’s my own I am stumped???

My paper clutter is still my biggest issue. Ok..well best keep moving..you asked what my biggest challenge still is..there ya go!

Here’s my suggestion for Amanda

1. File the same way you think
Ask yourself, “if I were looking for this piece of paper, what would I look under?”

I happen to know Amanda makes hand-made soaps and toiletries so if she has several suppliers, maybe she’d like to have a file binder called Suppliers, and then have separate dividers to file according to the individual names.

Something to look out for is this: you don’t want to be switching file dividers all the time. E.g. I file my insurance by Homeowners, Content, Car, Life so that even if I switch underwriters (as I did at the beginning of this year), I don’t have to rewrite the headings. Yes, I’m lazy.

In Amanda’s case, especially if I only have one supplier per type of material, I would have one divider per material supplier.

2. First general, then more specific
Take a pile of those papers and a separate page to make notes. For each piece of paper, write down a general category and then specifically, what you may want to call it.

E.g. a credit card statement from Absa would be general – credit card; specific – Absa.

Go through the whole pile and soon themes will emerge. You might realise that you have 3 credit cards so you need 3 dividers, but only one essential oils supplier, so you just need 1 divider for the essential oils stuff.

3. Keep your system fluid
Before you make a new file or filing section, check to see if you already have something similar. If you realise that you don’t like the old name you chose, change it.

Also, if you’re a person who hates filing and you know full well you’re never going to punch any papers, get hanging files so you need to just drop the papers inside. See the picture above for examples of hanging files

Nothing is set in stone – after all, this is YOUR filing system and must work for you.

These buddy drawer systems also work well for the lazy filer. I have the big drawers but you get systems with drawers about one-third the size too which would suit invoices, etc. a lot better.

Just a courtesy reminder that this event happens today at 11am EST.

And remember, if you can’t make this particular time or day, you can book ANY 4 HOURS with me and still get your office organised, so there really is no excuse!

Did you know that the average person wastes one hour a day looking for things?

That translates to over 6 weeks a year.

6 weeks!

That’s time you could have spent with your family, marketing your business, seeing more clients, making more money, going on holiday, etc, etc.

Don’t let disorganisation keep you from living your best life.

Join me on Tuesday 24th Feb from 11am – 3pm EST or 6 – 10pm South Africa time (GMT+2)

We’ll spend four hours together and I’ll teach you all the tips and tools of the trade as you organise your home office.

At the end of our time together you will have…

• a well-ordered, organised desk and office plan with clear zones
• a system to reduce your email overload
• an easy, step-by-step plan to prioritise all your projects
• at least 3 clear ways to make your computer do common tasks, automatically
• a clear, simple way to deal with all the paper in your life
• ideas on how to maximise your office and storage space
• and much, much more

I’m not going to leave you high and dry afterwards though.

I realise your office might need a lot more work than just four hours so I’m giving you free 60 days’ unlimited email support while you take action on your plan (I charge my coaching clients $97 for this kind of access to me).

You also get my 7 easy steps to organise your office ebook and MP3 system to support you long after the seminar has ended so that any time you need a recap, you can go directly to your challenging area and get help.

“I used to spend my days always working on email and never getting anything done. Thanks to Marcia’s suggestions, I now can’t believe everything I get done in one day!

It’s allowed me to have a very successful business while working only 15-20 hours per week. I love that her techniques have given me the freedom to spend time with my sons and husband.

Thanks to her business organizing strategies I have doubled my productivity which has in turn doubled my business income.
Jennifer Haubein

www.BestBizWebsiteSolutions.com

The nitty gritty details

Date: Tuesday 24 February 2009

Time: 11am – 3pm Eastern Standard Time/ 6 -10 pm South African Time (GMT+2)

What do you need: Telephone, pen and handbook which will be emailed to you

Format: By telephone – you can also dial in through your computer if you have Skype and just listen in (great option for readers outside the US)

So how does this work?

Once you register and pay, I’ll send you the access information and the 27-page handbook for the day.

You can call the phone number, listen to me speak and chat back with questions or comments.

On the day, at the top of every hour, I’ll teach for 15 – 20 minutes and the rest of the hour, we (the entire class) will all action that section of our offices.

What are the sections we’ll tackle?

11am How to organise your desk for maximum functionality and efficiency

12pm Clear the paper clutter and create a system for the flow of paper in your office

1pm Conquer your email, set up folders and organise your inbox

2pm Prioritise all your projects and develop a system for planning your month, week and day.

2:50 – 3pm Wrap-up and how to maintain your organised office

The best thing about this seminar is that you’re learning and doing so at the end of the session, you have a beautifully organised and functional office!

Your investment: only $97 (actual value $267)

Let’s recap. What do you get …

• LIVE teaching from Marcia Francois, time management and organising expert
• LIVE group coaching
• 60 days’ unlimited email support
• 27-page handbook
• MP3 audio downloads of all the teaching
• 7 easy steps to organise your office e-book and 3 X MP3 downloads*

* This will be emailed to you straight after the seminar because I don’t want you to get overwhelmed before the time!

You, too, can have an email box that looks like this

If you don’t want 7 easy steps to organise your office, then the price is only $67

is Charity, CEO who wrote…

I could definitely use this. I need something to give me a direction and to give me a better idea of what I am doing wrong. My house, business and life is a mess–help!

Incidentally, Charity is the same person who asked that excellent question about the best handbag size last year and is therefore a gal after my own heart

Well, Charity, are you in for a treat!

But the rest of you don’t have to miss out.

Kim’s giving all my readers 27% off the regular price of the ecourse. But please remember, this is for TWO DAYS only.

This e-course is perfect for you if you’re a WAHM or a blogger who makes money from their blog, or really, any sort of mom with a business leaning.

Work-life balance is hard enough but when it’s your own business, it can get even harder as you juggle multiple balls in the air.

Get your copy of the 7-part e-course, Finding Balance as an Entrepreneur Mom, and get the balance back in your life.

For those of you who have the balance thing sorted out (or mostly sorted), please share your best tip in the comments.

I’ll go first…

The best way that I keep balanced is I have VERY clear boundaries with my time. I know what I want my life to look like (relaxed and lots of lazing around ) so I have no problem saying no to too many commitments.

Over to you!

We’re decluttering and organising our home offices this month.

Last week your challenge was to declutter at least 5 books or magazines. And boy, that wasn’t a very popular challenge

It’s not too late if you didn’t get around to it – I just want you to get used to the idea that not everything you ever bought is sacred You CAN let go of some of your books.

Now today, we’re going to do something that may be a bit more fun for some of you – weeding through files.

The goal this week is to go through at least 5 files. While you’re doing that, ask yourself these four questions:

1. why am I keeping all these papers?
2. what’s the worst thing that will happen if I toss it and I need it again?
3. do I really need to keep this?
4. am I keeping it because it’s a habit?
5. is this working for me? (a la Dr Phil)

(if you don’t want to post on the theme, go right ahead and post on whatever you felt like decluttering this week

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here is my contribution for this week…

I have one household file, one for the cars, one for medical and one personal. That’s it.

I keep my filing streamlined in these 5 ways:

• I only keep 3 months’ worth of most statements, except for our water and electricity (I have everything since we moved into this house) because things go wrong on that account from one month to the next. The Jhb residents understand this all too well
• I refuse to expand to more files so the paper is contained to just the 4 mentioned above.
• When my files get too full, I take 5 minutes and quickly declutter a couple of sections.
• I really hate filing so I only keep what I absolutely have to keep.
• When I change insurance companies, I get rid of everything from the old company after a month with the new underwriter.

So, are you up for today’s decluttering challenge?

7 easy steps to organise your office MP3 and ebook system will help you get your home office organised and in tip-top shape. By the way, you get this entire system FREE when you sign up for the Virtual Organising Seminar on Tuesday 24 Feb.

This week’s challenge

Please link to the post on your blog where you show off your pictures and talk about what you decluttered. If you don’t have a blog, tell me in the comments about ANYTHING you decluttered this week.

It can be anything – physical, electronic, mental clutter or even the need to be a certain way. Like perfectionism!

How many files did you declutter this week?

Did you know that the average person wastes one hour a day looking for things?

That translates to over 6 weeks a year.

6 weeks!

That’s time you could have spent with your family, marketing your business, seeing more clients, making more money, going on holiday, etc, etc.

Don’t let disorganisation keep you from living your best life.

Join me on Tuesday 24th Feb from 11am – 3pm EST or 6 – 10pm South Africa time (GMT+2)

We’ll spend four hours together and I’ll teach you all the tips and tools of the trade as you organise your home office.

At the end of our time together you will have…

• a well-ordered, organised desk and office plan with clear zones
• a system to reduce your email overload
• an easy, step-by-step plan to prioritise all your projects
• at least 3 clear ways to make your computer do common tasks, automatically
• a clear, simple way to deal with all the paper in your life
• ideas on how to maximise your office and storage space
• and much, much more

I’m not going to leave you high and dry afterwards though.

I realise your office might need a lot more work than just four hours so I’m giving you free 60 days’ unlimited email support while you take action on your plan (I charge my coaching clients $97 for this kind of access to me).

You also get my 7 easy steps to organise your office ebook and MP3 system to support you long after the seminar has ended so that any time you need a recap, you can go directly to your challenging area and get help.

“I used to spend my days always working on email and never getting anything done. Thanks to Marcia’s suggestions, I now can’t believe everything I get done in one day!

It’s allowed me to have a very successful business while working only 15-20 hours per week. I love that her techniques have given me the freedom to spend time with my sons and husband.

Thanks to her business organizing strategies I have doubled my productivity which has in turn doubled my business income.
Jennifer Haubein

www.BestBizWebsiteSolutions.com

The nitty gritty details

Date: Tuesday 24 February 2009

Time: 11am – 3pm Eastern Standard Time/ 6 -10 pm South African Time (GMT+2)

What do you need: Telephone, pen and handbook which will be emailed to you

Format: By telephone – you can also dial in through your computer if you have Skype and just listen in (great option for readers outside the US)

So how does this work?

Once you register and pay, I’ll send you the access information and the 27-page handbook for the day.

You can call the phone number, listen to me speak and chat back with questions or comments.

On the day, at the top of every hour, I’ll teach for 15 – 20 minutes and the rest of the hour, we (the entire class) will all action that section of our offices.

What are the sections we’ll tackle?

11am How to organise your desk for maximum functionality and efficiency

12pm Clear the paper clutter and create a system for the flow of paper in your office

1pm Conquer your email, set up folders and organise your inbox

2pm Prioritise all your projects and develop a system for planning your month, week and day.

2:50 – 3pm Wrap-up and how to maintain your organised office

The best thing about this seminar is that you’re learning and doing so at the end of the session, you have a beautifully organised and functional office!

Your investment: only $97 (actual value $267)

Let’s recap. What do you get …

• LIVE teaching from Marcia Francois, time management and organising expert
• LIVE group coaching
• 60 days’ unlimited email support
• 27-page handbook
• MP3 audio downloads of all the teaching
• 7 easy steps to organise your office e-book and 3 X MP3 downloads*

* This will be emailed to you straight after the seminar because I don’t want you to get overwhelmed before the time!

You, too, can have an email box that looks like this

Congratulations on having the twins. I have twins also and they are so special. its fun!

I’m trying to organise toys.. what’s the best method to use??

Chandelle, Qld Australia..

Here are my 7 top tips for organising (and keeping) children’s toys organised

1. Keep toys to a minimum by decluttering regularly. Schedule decluttering sessions before birthdays and Christmas.
2. After birthdays and Christmas, hide some toys and reveal a new one every couple of weeks.
3. Rotate favourite toys so that the children actually play with the ones that are out.
4. Keep a toy basket in each room of the house so that it’s easy to put things away instead of having to constantly return to another room.
5. Use appropriate kid-friendly containers. Don’t buy storage containers with difficult lids to open but do buy square, clear-lidded containers. Labels are your friend!
6. Store things you don’t mind being “messed with” at the children’s height. And things you want to control at adult height.
7. Train your children to put toys away after playtime… and allow for clean-up time….or they get taken away, permanently if you’re very strict or otherwise for a certain period. Yes, there will be crying but think of the long-term gain and the life lessons you’ teaching your children.

What are your favourite tips for keeping toys organised?

Anne here.

Confession time: I quit. I am a quitter.

It isn’t any of the self-justifying excuses I could throw out at you, it is just that I quit.

I did Steps 1-4. I had already done step 5 last fall so I limped through that one by just updating and decluttering. And I quit before I got to steps 6 and 7.

I know what you are thinking. What a loser! Way to go Anne!

I know, I know.

And the guilt is killing me.

I am so close to being finished that it is just insane to stop now. But that is how I operate. Oh, I might call it something else, but it is quitting none-the-less.

• I have plastic-canvas coasters that are 45% completed… from Christmas 7 years ago.
• I have 20% of a baby blanket started in 2000.
• I have thousands of dollars in scrapbook supplies that will *eventually* get mated with photos and stuck into albums.
• I have thrown away so much food because I got through 2 days of Freezer cooking and gave up before I got to the chicken day.
• I clean the entire kitchen and ignore the crumbs on the table.

Yep, I quit a lot.

But that is part of what this is helping me with…. the new system is so easy that I feel stupid for not using it.

And I already identified that it is easy that makes me use things, so what more excuse is there?

Loss of interest?

Could be… but no, I have enjoyed this process.

And you have all been so incredibly supportive.

So I quit quitting.

ANYWAY… I am working beyond belief to catch up and have a post for you all.

I need to share with you how I got off my butt and out of my own rut and completed all 7 steps and blogged about it. (that was a run-on sentence, I am pretty sure about that.)

Look for my final post next week with all the details.

Thanks for understanding!

Hi everyone, Marcia here

I love Anne’s honesty in this post; don’t you?

But more importantly, I want to use this as an organising lesson so we can all benefit.

The truth is that we ALL face obstacles in life when we try to do worthwhile things, whether they’re organising projects, getting fit, eating more nutritious food or just improving our relationships.

That’s life.

The way to overcome those obstacles is to realise that it’s normal and brainstorm ways to navigate those obstacles.

Think about it like this – when you’re getting your house painted, you know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it’s going to be messy and smelly while you’re painting but afterwards, you’re going to have a gorgeous, fresh room/house.

In the same way, the road to our dreams always has an obstacle or eleven

A couple of ways you can navigate those obstacles is:

1. realise that obstacles happen to everybody - it’s not because you’re a bad person, lack discipline, etc.
   
2. get some help (if you can) just to get you over the hump – even someone just sitting there and encouraging you is help
   
3. make yourself accountable to someone (I have the utmost faith in Anne and I know she will finish, and she will finish strong, but I do know that part of it is because she’s made herself accountable to 600-odd of my blog readers. There’s something about that accountability that propels you forward toward your goals)

Now, over to you.

Post about any project you’ve started where you’ve encountered obstacles

Well, are you in for a treat!

My friend, Kim Reddington, has just launched a new e-course and she’s kindly offered a free copy to one of my blog readers.

This e-course is perfect for you if you’re a WAHM or a blogger who makes money from their blog, or really, any sort of mom with a business leaning.

Work-life balance is hard enough but when it’s your own business, it can get even harder as you juggle multiple balls in the air.

And this is where this e-course comes in.

Kim’s written a 7-part e-course, Finding Balance as an Entrepreneur Mom, specifically to help you get that balance back in your life.

The rules

1. Please make sure we can find you so either leave your email in your comment or make sure your email comes through on the comment.
2. All you have to do to get an entry into the contest is comment on this post and answer this question:
   

   What is your biggest challenge in trying to find a balance among your business, your family, and your own needs?

3. The contest runs from Mon – Fri this week and closes on 20th at 3pm EST.
4. Kim will pick the winner and I’ll post the winner’s name on Monday 23rd. If the winner doesn’t respond to my email within 48 hours, we’ll pick another winner.
5. You get an extra entry if you blog about the contest on your own blog and link back here. Make sure you leave an extra comment and tell us where you blogged it, okay?

Let the games begin!