So I’m still working on letting go.

As I said, it’s very practical now but I will move onto bigger and more important stuff like feelings, commitments that don’t suit me, people that drain me, etc. once it becomes easier

I’m a firm believer in small steps.

I’ve also been trying to declutter my blogs in my google reader.

I started last week with 76 and I’m now down to 60. I should have left number 61 on but I wanted a nice round number

To put that in perspective, my comfort number is around 40 – 45. By that I mean I can get through them daily, I can comment on about half of them and I don’t feel like I’m just scanning.

Remember everyone doesn’t post daily so it’s manageable to me if I clear my GR daily.

I’m going to revel in that number for a few days and then see if I can get that number down further.

Yes, it was hard to let go of blogs especially since I’m so curious to find out what’s going on in other people’s lives.

Anybody else like that?

Some were easy – I probably followed them after reading one good post and now it’s all blah blah blah, but some were difficult as I’m still interested (like all the house, crafty and creative blogs I read) but I knew I had to make choices.

How many subscriptions are in your Google Reader?


And what’s your comfort number?

I thought I’d share a personal experience so that you can learn from my mistakes.

I’ve been thinking about doing things a little differently in my business and so I decided to consult with other business owners in a forum I belong to and gather some opinions.

Well, as you’d expect, this one said this, another said that, still another said a different thing. Multiplied by about 10. Or so it felt.

There were some great ideas in there but I soon realised that I’d come to a screeching standstill due to overwhelm and I was indecisive.

Me- indecisive!

(if you know me in real life even just a little bit, you’ll know I’m not in the least bit indecisive. In fact, I err on the other end of the spectrum in that I can make decisions a little too quickly sometimes).

Although the same thing happened to me when I first walked into a baby shop – too many choices, too much to think about – and I walked right back out

It’s the overwhelm.

This time I stopped working on ALL my projects because I didn’t know which were good ideas, which were bad and which ones I had on my list because of a “should have” and not a “want to” based on other people’s thoughts and ideas.

Again, overwhelm.

So I made myself a cup of tea and checked in with my gut – immediately I felt good about proceeding with just one project.

When I have clarity on the rest, I’ll move on.

But this got me thinking -

How many times do we feel overwhelmed because other people feel that we should do things but yet it doesn’t feel right for us?

Things like volunteering for committees, at the children’s school, church, etc.

Also, if you’re online in any capacity, how many times do we do things, not from a place of authenticity, but because the Big Name Expert says to do so.

And yet it doesn’t feel right and so we stay overwhelmed and inactive.

This week’s organising challenge

* Think about areas of your life where you feel overwhelmed. Is it the state of your desk, your wardrobe, your children’s rooms, your business?
* Check in and examine why you feel so overwhelmed.
* Is it that you don’t know what to do or where to start.
* Take one small action and see how that sits with you. Keep building on that action, step by step, until you build momentum and can see your way out of the overwhelm again.

Break out of overwhelm is a fantastic 60-minute audio that was especially designed to unleash the secrets of getting out of the paralysis that being overwhelmed brings.

It’s accompanied by a comprehensive 27-page handout and is backed by my special guarantee if you’re not happy.

This is one of my favourite products because it helps you INSTANTLY get through your overwhelm.

I am teaching myself to let go.

I recently read a fantastic book called Motherstyles (Janet Penley) and it correctly identified that for my Myers-Briggs personality style (ESTJ) one of my struggles is letting go.

The book talks specifically about parenting but I recognise it in so many areas of my life and this is something I feel that I need to do some self-coaching on.

But as with everything in life, I’m doing it in baby steps.

So first thing to let go of was an easy-ish one. My diary (planner).

I have a GORGEOUS deep red diary/ planner but I haven’t been using it regularly. The same thing happened last year – I thought it was the maternity leave/ baby thing but no. I forget to look in it half the time and then two weeks pass.

And what good is a diary if you don’t look at it?

No more.

So I let go.

• Even though it cost a bit of money.
• Even though I’d customised it perfectly.
• Even though it’s bee-yoo-ti-ful. Don’t you agree?

And so on.

I was thinking about WHY I’m not using the beautiful diary and I realised I really, really, REALLY love a week-at-a-glance diary – that’s how I plan my life and that’s what works best for me.

I had a spare week-at-a-glance diary I got on a sale so I hauled it out and I am so much happier.

I planned out the rest of the month and it’s been so EASY doing it like this!

Small steps, people.

Yes, I’m sad not using the other but I cheer myself up because I’m teaching myself to let go

What are you working on? Please tell me I’m not the only one with issues.

Resources: How to set and achieve your goals

It’s autumn in the southern hemisphere (in fact, very nearly winter) and it’s a great time to do some seasonal organising.

Have you switched your clothes around yet?

My babies have taken to having one lovely, long two-hour nap (maybe it’s the colder weather?) so I took advantage of the extra time to quickly change around my summer and winter clothes.

I donated some (gently used) shoes I hadn’t worn for about two years and packed up the last of my maternity clothes.

I reorganised my wardrobe so that it’s colour co-ordinated again – very useful when you’re having a “red” day, to be able to go exactly to all your red clothes

I also tackled the babies’ clothes and now have a huge bag of their things for another twin mom who works with me.

Dion’s clothes, unfortunately, is off-limits to me. But I did see him set aside some shirts for the gardener

It is so lovely to have space in the cupboards again.

Your organising challenge

Set aside some time every day for the next week to work on it. Every 15 minutes helps and will be well worth it when done.

Warning – your clothes may take longer to change around, especially if you haven’t organised in a while.

Be patient and persevere.

I do mine regularly so it was easy to do in 30 minutes. The babies, however, were another matter altogether

I am looking for ways to organize different aspects of my life.

Need ideas on organizing office files and folders, project files, etc.

Can you give me some ideas?

Regards K.P.R.Karanth| Project Manager

First off, my golden rule for filing is…….

1. Don’t keep any paper you absolutely don’t have to.

Less paper, less filing

This is how I only need to file about 10 papers every 3 – 4 weeks.

2. What type of organiser are you?

Note I didn’t say “what type of organiser do you want to be”. Be realistic.

Will you actually punch paper and put in lever arch files (3-ring binders) or do you know you’re a bit lazy and need to just toss things in a folder?

Before I went on my decluttering bend years ago, I used to be a very lazy filer and so I used these files. No punching, just toss. Lovely.

3. Decide on a solution and try it out for a month

Think carefully about your needs before you go out and buy anything! Buying is the last step in the organising process.

That said, if the system doesn’t suit your working style, stop frustrating yourself and try something else until it works for you.

If you’re lazy about filing like I used to be because of the MOUNDS of paper I’d collect, then I’d use the folders above and store them like this.

or I’d put the papers in clear display folders (flipfiles) and store them in these magazine holders

My favourite way to organise projects is by throwing everything in one of these clear plastic envelopes. You can see I toss in the pens and flash drives, everything.

When I’m done, I pare down the paper and keep only the essentials in these envelopes. They take slightly less paper and then they go in those magazine holders.

Do you know you can make your own magazine holders with cereal boxes?

What are your favourite ways to organise your office files and folders?

P.S. Check out more ways to organise your office

I was visiting a friend out here on holiday and came across this great idea at her sister’s loft apartment.

This desk is ready for working at, but when they’re done, they simply let down the blinds and the “desk mess” is hidden from their living area.

So this is what it looks like as is…

close-up view of the cubbyhole shelves above

and a close-up view of the desk

This is way too cluttered for my working style but I really like the idea of having it all out mid-project and then just pulling down the blinds so you’re not distracted if you need to move onto other tasks.

What do you think?

I’ve been working with a client over the last couple of weeks, decluttering her rental home while her current home is being renovated.

It is going to be BEAUTIFUL when it’s all done. I told her that if I were in her shoes, I’d never leave. Oh! The view from her bedroom window overlooks a river and is just so nurturing to the soul.

She hired me because she told me there’s no way she can move all that clutter back into her new home.

Rightly so!

I actually really admire her for taking a stand as it’s easy to keep moving from house to house, hauling all your stuff along with you time and time again.

I’ve done it in the past and I’m betting, so have you.

Once we got started though, it started to look really scary… and I had to remind her (and me) that it always looks worse before it starts coming together.

When you have to sort through 12 years of stuff, it’s a huge challenge.

Especially when you start sorting and labelling. And spreading out…

And there’s a point when you think, “is this actually worth it?”

I think that point happens in any project just before you see the breakthrough.

It’s decision time, you see.

Do I continue to press through? Or do I give up and resign myself to what appears to be insurmountable?

I’m here to encourage you – don’t give up!

You CAN do it. You can organise your home, office, paper, whatever.

Somehow as I’m writing this, I get the feeling I’m speaking so someone out there – nothing to do with organising but just the “don’t give up” message. If that’s you, don’t give up and …I’d love to hear your story

This week’s organising challenge

* Are there any half-finished projects that are REALLY important to you?
* Maybe they’re half-finished because you started giving up at that point I described above.
* This week, tackle just one and press through until you complete it.
* Let me know what you accomplished so I can celebrate with you.

P.S. If your half-finished project is your paper piles, then help is here. Join me tomorrow for No more paper piles teleclass!

How would you like to start every day off on the right foot?

Wouldn’t you like to feel a sense of excitement as you start your day?

You CAN if you do something for just 5 minutes a day.

This is not some crazy statement – it really is true. I promise

If you spend 5 minutes every evening (or at the end of every day) planning the next day, your life will dramatically change.

So what do you need to do?

1. Grab a notebook or piece of paper

My Eat the Frog form works equally well.

The point is to have somewhere to capture your thoughts.

2. Ask yourself one of these important questions

* Which 3 – 5 things, when accomplished, will move me towards my goals?
* What is the best use of my time tomorrow?

3. Think effective, not busy

Busy means you’re doing LOTS of things. Effective means you’re doing the RIGHT things.

E.g. Yesterday, after I downloaded email, I had two choices – keep BUSY by reading newsletters and replying to all my blog comments & personal emails, or be EFFECTIVE by responding to a journalist who wants to interview me, and write my newsletter.

Guess which I chose to do?

4. Write down no more than 6 tasks

Mary Kay, one of the world’s most successful businesswomen, said that the secret of her success was to only tackle 6 tasks a day. If it’s good enough for her, it’s good enough for me

I actually showed a client my own planner a few weeks ago. When I think I’m Superwoman and put down more than 6 tasks, I never get them all done. But when I put 5 or 6 tasks on my list, I get them all done.

Did you know you can spend time with me in a Virtual Organising Session? I show you exactly how I set up my own systems and we go through all the computer and email tricks you could possibly imagine. *email me if you’re keen*

5. Number your tasks in terms of priority

Only now (in step 5) do you number them. Don’t try and number them before you get them down – you might get stuck in analysis paralysis

You’ll hit the ground running the next day when you start on number 1 and move through your list until you complete number 6.

At this point you can relax and enjoy your evening knowing that you’ll have a productive day the following day.

For many, many more tips, check out I need more time – guaranteed to give you another 5 – 10 hours a week.

Marcia Francois is a time management and business organising coach who helps small business owners make the most of their time. Visit http://organiseyourbusiness.com for your free 7-part audio series, 7 tips for time-strapped business owners.