Organize 365® Podcast

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week, Holly P. is joining me again to update us on her transformation. You can listen to her previous transformation story here. Holly is back to talk about the Friday Workbox®, quick moves, self-care, and more. I love how Holly put together a Workbox® just for her pink slash pockets and how her dreaming and rising self-confidence brought her a promotion to management in her company. Way to go Holly!

Holly's story is a great example of what happens when you use those pink slash pockets and start dreaming. What is in your pink slash pockets?

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday.

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

 

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media!

Direct download: Org365-HollyP-2.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Time to get your paper organized? Learn more about our paper organizing retreat in this orientation replay.

Watch the video version and download the syllabus here: https://organize365.com/orientation

Direct download: Org365-Orientation-PaperRetreats.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Jacqui Ioli is back with me on the podcast to finish the conversation that we started last week. Be sure to listen to her Wednesday Transformation to hear more about who she is and her story. Before you listen to this episode, go back and listen to the first part of our conversation about Jacqui's Hot Mess Theory of work and the concepts of overwork, underwork, rework, and workarounds.

In this episode, Jacqui and I get into real-world examples of how you can eliminate overwork, underwork, rework, and workarounds, especially in terms of creating correct paths using the Sunday Basket® System.

Many people have gotten organized using Marie Kondo's system of pulling everything out and going through it all until it's done. Unfortunately, this doesn't work well for the average woman, especially moms. It causes more chaos because you don't have big blocks of time to work with. The Organize 365® method gets you organized in 15-minute, bite-sized chunks of time that you can expand into larger blocks when the time and energy are available. You will still have some of the hot mess chaos between the stages of decluttering, organizing, and increasing productivity, but it will not be catastrophic to you personally and your life in general.

The Sunday Basket® specifically helps you eliminate the four types of work that Jacqui discusses and gives you back time. Our research says you can get back on average 5 hours a week by developing a Sunday Basket® routine! Having a place to gather the actionable paper but also a time to sit down and process those papers and random thoughts gives you the space to develop procedures and eliminate the problem of no correct path. 

Jacqui describes how she has a procedure for when she finds a pair of work pants that don’t meet her needs. She has a correct path for removing those pants from her closet and home.

Could you create your own Sunday Basket® System? Could you create your own curriculum like The Productive Home Solution™ to organize your home? Sure, but as Jacqui describes, it's faster and easier to buy the programs and modify anything to fit your specific needs rather than to create it from scratch. Eliminate the overwork!

Jacqui also talks about signs and systems for taking care of an aging parent. If you're caregiving for an aging parent or another relative, you need to hear how Jacqui talks about vital signs for determining their capacity for caring for themselves. She also gives this great tip about creating a duplicate binder of their paperwork to keep at your home.

What about paper versus digital? Yes, we went there too in this conversation! By all means, keep digital copies, and feel free to create complimentary digital systems. But, paper is powerful! When you walk into doctor's appointments or IEP meetings, you will save time, get more accomplished, and be taken more seriously if you can hand over a physical piece of paper.

I hope you enjoy this conversation with Jacqui. I loved hearing about her research and examples of how and why the Sunday Basket® system works to eliminate the hot mess chaos in your life! Be sure to visit the post for this episode because you can download Jacqui’s slides from her presentation as well as some medical forms that she graciously shared with us and links to other things we discussed.

Direct download: Org365-498.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week, I am sharing my interview with Lisa J. She lives with her husband on a farm in a remote area of Western Australia. They also have two teens who go to boarding school because of their remote location. Their 17,000-acre crop-oriented farm and they have employees who live onsite. Lisa found Organize 365® when she was searching for a better way to organize their business. We had a great conversation about Australia, the Friday Workbox®, Lisa's partial digital system with her Friday Workbox®, anxiety, and community involvement. I even snuck in a little business coaching about hiring and training new employees.

Lisa's story is a great example of what happens when you get your work life organized. If you're looking to get your business or work life organized, you need the Friday Workbox®!

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday.

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

Workboxes

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

 

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave us a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. See this post and coffee chat episode for help setting up a podcast app as well as how to leave a rating and a review. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media!

Direct download: Org365-LisaJ.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Have you been considering becoming a certifed organizer? Learn more about The Paper Solution® Certification program in this orientation replay.

Watch the video version and download the syllabus here: https://organize365.com/orientation 

Direct download: Org365-Orientation-Certification.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:01am EDT

Are you ready to tackle the piles of actionable paper in your home and misc to-dos that you're keeping in your head? Learn more about The Sunday Basket® System in this orientation replay.

Watch the video version and download the syllabus here: https://organize365.com/orientation

Direct download: Org365-Orientation-SB.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Jacqui Ioli is my guest today on the podcast. If you're not familiar with Jacqui's story, be sure to go back and listen to her Wednesday Transformation episode.

I asked Jacqui to join me to talk in-depth about why the Sunday Basket® works and how the concepts spill over into your work with the Friday Workbox®.

Jacqui has been a registered nurse for 40 years and a nurse practitioner for 25 years. She went back to school in her 50s to get her Ph.D. in nursing education and research. She's brilliant! (And talking with her makes me want to get a Ph.D. even more!) I know you're going to love hearing how she explains these concepts.

Jacqui got into research because she wanted to figure out why work was such a mess for the outpatient nurses she was supervising. She found grounded theory research, which is simply the basic way people solve day-to-day problems in a particular setting. She applies her knowledge of grounded theory to my theory of organizing: Declutter, organize, and increase productivity.

After some insight into how a medical practice operates, we dive into types of work as well as the concept of invisible work. Invisible work is everywhere at home and at work! Making the invisible work visible allows you to reduce it, systematize it, and talk about it. Next, we dig into Jacqui's Hot Mess Theory of work.

The Hot Mess Theory consists of four different types of work that are happening simultaneously. These are:

  • Overwork
  • Underwork
  • Rework
  • Workarounds

In this episode, Jacqui fabulously explains these four types of work in detail and how they relate to the Sunday Basket® and your work life. 

Overwork is too much work or too many steps. Jacqui explains this in terms of dusting. You could dust daily, but is that necessary? Could you stretch out dusting to my standard of six weeks or maybe every four weeks works between at your house?

In this area it is important to ask two questions:

  • Where am I doing too much?
  • Where can I delegate?

If you are overworking, you are also underworking. Underwork is working below your level of skill and training. If you say that it is just easier to do it yourself rather than delegate a task, you are both underworking and overworking yourself at the same time.

This brings us to rework. This is work that wasn't done right the first time and must be done again. At home, this can be related to looking for something that you lost. The Sunday Basket® rescues you here because you can use it as the holding place for those important and actionable items. In terms of paperwork, where can a task be automated that has to be done over and over again? In housework, why are you refolding clothes or reloading the dishwasher? Let good enough, be good enough! Doing rework leads back to overwork.

Workarounds happen when you don't follow the process or there is no correct path. You don't have time to think when you're in the midst of overwork, underwork, and rework. You then end up taking the workarounds because there's no correct path.

The Sunday Basket® System and Friday Workbox® routines give you the opportunity to process the work, iterate, and create the correct path. These systems help you reduce barriers to your work and you make forward progress! 

Jacqui and I just kept talking and talking so we split this conversation into two parts. she will be back next week to talk more about her Hot Mess Theory.

Be sure to check out the full show notes on the website for this episode to get the download of Jacqui's slides from her presentation.

Direct download: Org365-497.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

 

This week, I am sharing my interview with Jacqui I. She lives with her husband and adult son, but has also been responsible for her aging parents and their estate. Listen in to hear how getting organized has helped her cope with the emotional rollercoaster of some unexpected events over the last year. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday.

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

 

Organize 365®

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution™

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

 

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

Direct download: Org365-Jacquii.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

I'm so excited to have Eve Rodsky on the podcast again!

Eve first joined me on the podcast back in episode #312 where she discussed her book Fair Play: A Game-Changing Solution for When You Have Too Much to Do (and More Life to Live). I highly recommend going back and listening to that episode so you have a foundational understanding of the concept of Fair Play. Since she was here last time, she has released the Fair Play Documentary that I also think you should go watch.

In this episode, Eve and I discuss the invisible work being done at home and how society has tried to erase the gender division of labor in the home. So much focus has been on women and giving women tools to better balance work life and home life. Eve found it difficult through Fair Play to give solutions to families who said that both the man and the woman in the household were doing a task. Enter the mustard. How did the mustard get into your refrigerator? This is a great example that you have to hear Eve use to explain the difference between the execution of a task versus the cognitive labor related to a task. It's eye-opening!

We then discuss some of Eve's family background growing up with a single mom as well as my daughter Abby's life as a single mom today. A large number of children each year are both to single moms. These single moms are unfortunately at a disadvantage because they are usually holding all of the cards for their families and therefore have fewer work and income opportunities available. 

Eve also walks me through an exercise that I hope you will also do for yourself.

First, what is an activity outside of your roles that you love to do and share with the world? This goes beyond self-care or exercise or pleasure reading.

Second, what is something you love to do? What values does doing this thing bring up for you?

I of course talked about travel and learning, but Eve helped me see how understanding the values underneath these things will help you find activities that can bring up these values for you even when you're unable to do the activities you really want to do.

I hope you enjoyed this conversation with Eve Rodsky as much as I did!

Connect with Eve Rodsky

Direct download: Org365-496.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Shea B. She lives with her husband, her 12-year-old daughter, and her 8-year-old son who has special needs. Shea found Organize 365® because she needed something to pick up her after listening to true crime podcasts. She stayed because she related to my stories about raising my kids who also have special needs. Shea says that she appeared organized, but she didn't feel organized. She ordered The Productive Home Solution™ and while her family was away, she did a year of organizing in 4 days! The freedom of an empty house allowed her to move quickly. The other resource that Shea found helpful is the Warrior MAMA Binder. She tells how she was able to better advocate for her son and receive needed services for him. Now she has more time to give back to the community that supported her when her son was a newborn. What a great way to use her extra time!

Can you relate to Shea's story? Do you need a system to manage all of the paper and information related to a disability diagnosis for your child? The Warrior MAMA Binder is the resource you've been looking for! I walk you through gathering all of the paperwork from medical to IEP/504 and more so you can be a better advocate for your child.

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

The Sunday Basket® System

The Productive Home Solution™

The Paper Solution® Warrior MAMA Binder

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-SheaB.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Over the last several weeks, we've been talking about the history and importance of Home Economics.

Listen to all of the episodes in this series:

I left you last week with the promise of the story of how my house didn’t fall apart while I was on the book tour last summer. This story really begins in 2012.

So, back in 2012, I started getting organized. In Organization is a Learnable Skill, I share this story and how I went from being overweight and depressed to organized and starting a company.

What happened next was the realization that I could teach this skill of organization through a podcast and courses. The problem? Well, about 5 or 6 years ago, I found that I was out of time. With everything I was doing at home, I only had about 6 hours a day to devote to Organize 365®. I tried working until late at night. I tried working on the weekends. My family wasn't happy because they only saw my working hours and it looked like I was always working. I just didn't have any additional time in my days to grow my business and I didn't have the finances to hire any more people.

In this episode, I want to share with you how I worked myself out of jobs at home to make time to do what I'm uniquely created to do!

At that time, my kids were in high school and I was driving them 25 hours a week. I was doing all of the household chores except taking out the trash and mowing the lawn. So, I made some decisions. I abdicated everything related to cooking, except doing the dishes. Greg took this area on. I delegated the house cleaning to a housekeeper. For a period of time, I even hired out most of the laundry to our local dry cleaner.

The Sunday Basket® and my weekly Sunday Basket® routine took the load of many of the invisible things. The routine running of the household takes place during my Sunday Basket® time. Bill paying, holiday planning, date night planning, vacation planning, reordering prescriptions, making doctor appointments, placing online orders, scheduling car maintenance, and more. Anything related to running errands, I place orders to be shipped or picked up instead of running around town.

As far as organization is concerned, there wasn't much left. My husband and kids handled their own personal organization, I was personally organized, the storage area was organized, and my paper was organized. These things only needed maintenance. That only left family and communal spaces. Because I have a house cleaner, all that's left is for me to just make sure that those spaces are picked up regularly. 

When I left for the book tour last summer, Greg was sure that the house would fall apart without me. But, it didn't! Everyone continued to do the things they do and they figured out how to handle the dishes. Every member of our family is now capable of making a meal, cleaning, and doing their laundry. They handle their own personal and paper organizing needs. I have worked myself out of these jobs!

What job can you start working yourself out of so you have more time to do what YOU are uniquely created to do?

The Productive Home Solution™ and the Sunday Basket® System can help you take control of your home and paper starting today! The Sunday Basket® System alone can give you back 5 hours a week of your time!

Direct download: Org365-495.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Lauren S. She lives with her husband and 4 kids. She has a daughter who is non-verbal and wheelchair-bound from a genetic condition. Lauren shares the chaos of the last couple of years from two job changes for her husband to issues with access to services and changes to special ed teachers for her daughter during the pandemic. She decided that she could not continue to live in survival mode permanently! She joined The Productive Home Solution™ and jumped in with both feet. This self-proclaimed creative who struggled with organization decided that organization is a learnable skill. She made organizing her part-time job and plowed through the 100 Day Home Organization Program and more in less than 100 Days! Lauren pushed past grief and faced the emotional paperwork for her daughter to create her Warrior Mama Binder in time for an IEP meeting as well as boxing up belongings of her late brother for safekeeping that had been taking up space in her home office. The community app and the Sunday Basket® Club were essential to her success especially when she struggled with figuring out what her next step should be.

Can you relate to Lauren's story? Do you have a special needs family member for whom you are the primary caregiver? Are you tired of living in the chaos of survival mode? Regain control of your home and paper with The Productive Home Solution™ and the Sunday Basket® System like Lauren did!

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

The Sunday Basket® System

The Productive Home Solution™

The Paper Solution® Warrior MAMA Binder

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-LaurenS.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

We're bringing back in-person Paper Organizing Retreats! I'm so ready to start traveling again to see you and help you get your paper organized!
 
I would love for you to join me at one of these upcoming corporate Paper Organizing Retreats:
 
10/1-2: Phoenix, AZ
10/8-9: Orlando, FL
12/10-11: Cincinnati, OH
 
Gather up and fill your car with all of your paper to join me at one of these Paper Organizing Retreats. We will start Saturday morning by bringing in all of your paper and pairing 1-2 retreat attendees with a certified organizer who will personally guide you through the weekend. Until lunchtime, you will declutter and prepare for shredding. Then we have lunch and a shredding company will come to do all of the shredding on-site. The rest of Saturday and most of Sunday will be spent separating your paper into projects. We will end our time on Sunday with a Sunday Basket® time.
 
You can expect me to be on-site on Saturdays at these retreats. We plan to have time to take pictures together, do a book signing, and have a mini Organize 365® store open for you.
 
Please note that there are a limited number of seats available at the Paper Organizing Retreats. Start planning now! You can learn more and register for the retreat near you at https://organize365.com/paperorganizingretreat.
 
Our certification program is changing too! On the Fridays before these Paper Organizing Retreats, Monique will guide new certified organizers through their training so they will be ready to assist attendees. I'll be there to get a picture with you for our website and have lunch with you. If you're interested in certification, learn more at https://www.thepapersolutioncertification.com/.
 
If an in-person Paper Organization Retreat isn't a good fit for you at this time, check out the virtual Paper Organizing Retreats that our certified organizers are hosting here: https://organize365.com/paper-organizing-retreats.
Direct download: Org365-CC-034.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

This is the third episode is a series on Home Economics and the book The Secret History of Home Economics by Danielle Dreilinger. In the first episode, I talked to you about my personal family history. In the last episode, we talked about how Home Economics grew and moved outside of personal homes in the 1800s and early 1900s.

Listen to all of the episodes in this series:

In this episode, we pick up the timeline at World War II. The ending of the war brought a change with fewer women in the workforce and fewer women going to college. Two-thirds of women were married by the time they reached age 24. Despite new technology, in the 1950s, these women were still spending 52 hours a week on housework. At this time the American Home Economics Association defined Home Economics as being concerned with strengthening family life. 

A divide emerged. On one side were women who understood the original definition of Home Economics. They believed that what happens at home is important, is a science, and should be studied in higher education. On the other hand, there were children of the next generation like me who were taught that Home Economics was about socialization and based on what the government and consumer brands wanted for society.

You either had to be a fulltime homemaker or have a fulltime career. Jobs held by men generally brought in enough income for women to have the luxury of being primary homemakers. There were still scientific advancements being made in the field of Home Economics during this time period, but brands like Betty Crocker and Johnson & Johnson were driving the narrative of what it meant to run your family.

I love digging into the history of divides in thinking like this. My grandmother never understood the controversy. She said to just do the work! It doesn't matter where the work is or what the work pays. Just do the work. 

As we move forward, I want to talk more about the division of housework. How did housework go from being all women's work to now being a discussion about having equity at home?

What I really want you to see is the invisible work that is being done at home. Much of what we do is on autopilot and was learned from our mothers and grandmothers. There is a shift in process. Everyone in the family wants to feel valued for the work that they are contributing to the family. 

In the next episode, I'll share how I worked myself out of being a fulltime stay-at-home mom to being a working mom who traveled for six weeks last summer. (Spoiler alert! Nothing fell apart at home while I was gone!)

Direct download: Org365-494.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Tracy S. She lives with her husband and three high school and college-age kids. Tracy is a former special education teacher and homeschooler. She used to have so much anxiety at night that it would drive her out of bed. Everything was in her brain and she was terrified of forgetting an important piece of information or not being able to find an important piece of paper. The Sunday Basket® reduced her anxiety and helps her sleep better. Tracy also found the Kids Program helpful and wishes that she'd had that resource available when her kids were younger.

Can you relate to Tracy's story? Do you have paper and informational stress and anxiety that keeps your brain awake at night?

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

The Sunday Basket® System

The Productive Home Solution™

Kids Program

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-TracyS.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

I'm going to get a little meta on you today. This is a podcast about podcasts. Stick with me!

Take a journey with me and learn about some of the changes to podcasting over the years. I'm not a fan of asking you in every episode to rate and review and follow the podcast, but rating, reviewing, following, and sharing a podcast is what helps the podcast directories know that you find our content valuable. In turn, those directories like Apple and Spotify are more likely to put the Organize 365® podcast in searches and on charts where new people can find us.

When you share on social media, I'd love it if you'd take a screenshot of the episode you're listening to and tag me in your post.

It's not about the numbers themselves or the charts. Those are vanity metrics in many ways. The podcast crossed 16 million downloads last week (and that's amazing!), but more people need to hear our message! This is about reaching more people with the message that organization is a learnable skill, the invisible work needs to be made visible, and being organized gives you time back to do what you were uniquely created to do.

 

Direct download: Org365-CC-033.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Last week, I shared with you some of the history of my family of origin, which has given me the perspective that I have regarding home economics. You can listen to that episode here.

In this episode, I'm diving into the content of The Secret History of Home Economics by Danielle Dreilinger. This is a meaty book and a fascinating read! 

Home Economics was the path that was created for women to enter college and earn college degrees. Women like Catherine Beecher, Ellen Swallow, and Margaret Murray Washington led the way in the field. Home Economics at that time was about an ideal home life that was unhampered by tradition and which utilized modern science for better productivity. It was about the study of food properties and diets as well as experiments with bacteria, standardization of clothing measurements, and so much more.

This is the time in which MY grandmothers were living and earning their Home Economics degrees. They were learning that what you do at home affects the larger American economy. Running your home like a business is a thing and it impacts more than just your family!

I hope that you found this history as informative and as interesting as I did! I shared a few ways that we are making changes in our home to be better examples for and to teach our children how to stretch their budget and food supplies. How will you use this knowledge about Home Economics to make changes in how you run YOUR home? What missing skills will you be teaching your children now in light of the current state of the economy?

In the next episode, we will talk about how the view of home economics shifted after World War II. 

The Launching Life Skills Bundle is a great resource for the young adults in your life! We’ve put together digital training and the essential portions of our physical resources to help your high schooler, college student, or young professional prepare to transition from living at home as a kid to being an independent adult. Learn more here about this and the rest of our Kids Program here.

Direct download: Org365-493.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Nancy B. She lives with her husband and their two young children. Nancy is a nurse practitioner in Canada. She first learned about Organize 365® through a former grad school professor who was sharing about her Sunday Basket®. Nancy had used the Marie Kondo method successfully for herself but quickly found that she needed something more to keep her growing family organized. She really saw the benefits of her new systems during a medical emergency when she was able to quickly gather medications and information for her husband when he experienced a heart attack a few weeks after their second child was born.

Can you relate to Nancy's story? Are you a somewhat organized person but your systems aren't working now that you're a wife and mom? Have you had a medical emergency in your family and not been able to quickly gather the needed medical details and paperwork? This episode is for you!

Related episodes:

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

The Sunday Basket® System

The Productive Home Solution™

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-NancyB.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the Organize 365® Podcast. I'm your host, Lisa Woodruff, CEO and Founder of Organize 365®

 

87% of Americans believe that organization is a learnable skill but they only give themselves a 1 in 6 chance of being organized in any particular area. 

 

As a former educator, I'm taking on the challenge of uncovering how to make the invisible work at home visible, how to eliminate as much as possible, and to get our home from being in the process of being organized to finished being organized.

 

Join me for client success stories on Wednesdays and my latest thoughts on the state of the American home on Fridays, plus some bonus episodes from time to time.

 

Welcome to the Organize 365® Podcast. I'm so glad you're here!

 

Learn more about Organize 365® and our programs:

Organize 365®

Organize 365® Research

The Sunday Basket® System

The Productive Home Solution™

The Friday Workbox®

 

Visit the Organize 365® podcast channel to see all of our podcasts and playlists.

 

Direct download: Org365-Trailer.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:20pm EDT

Last summer while I was on The Paper Solution®  book tour in Chicago, an attendee recommended that I read The Secret History of Home Economics by Danielle Dreilinger. It sounded interesting so I grabbed the audiobook. 

Oh my! I couldn't listen fast enough! When I got home, I had to have a paper copy of the book to take notes and dive deeper. 

Over the last year, I've been digesting and contemplating what I read in this book. I'm now ready to share my thoughts and reflections over the course of several podcast episodes this month. 

First, I want to talk to you about my latest reflection on my family of origin and how this reflection has created a greater understanding for me of the role women in my history have had and then next week we will dive into the content of the book.

In this episode, I share about the families on both my dad's side and my mom's side and the difference between the two in terms of average life span, education, and family practices. I go into depth about my mom's side of the family where we have a long history of women going to college and becoming entrepreneurs. The Secret History of Home Economics helped me understand why each generation in my family thought about and experienced a different college and work experience - even with the same college subject degree! 

This was the foundation from which I went to college, became an entrepreneur, developed a love for travel, and now understand home economics. I also share with you the origin of my "grandma name" that I hope Grayson will use once he starts talking! - but so far I respond to anything!!

What was your family of origin like? What is your background in understanding home economics? History is SO fascinating!

There is an economy at home and work to be done at home that is valuable. At Organize 365®, we're figuring out what that work is, defining it, and eliminating Swiss Cheese organization.

The journey begins with the Sunday Basket® System to organize your actionable paper and continues to organizing the rest of your home with The Productive Home Solution™.

Then you can take that success into your work with the Friday Workbox®. Join me as I teach you the skill of home organization and make visible the invisible work that is done at home!

Direct download: Org365-492.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Laurie W. She lives with her husband. They are empty nesters with boys who come home frequently for long visits. Laurie found Organize 365® through the podcast. She was about to start working on organizing her youngest son's room while listening to an episode of the podcast when she heard me say to work first on the room where you spend the most time. Laurie dropped everything and moved to the living room to start her journey to a lasting organization. We talk about the pandemic, family working from home, organizing storage spaces, how bigger houses just mean more places to put things, Sunday Basket® insights, The Paper Solution® book, Home Planning Day, and more.

Can you relate to Laurie's story? Are you an empty nester ready to take advantage of this golden window? Are you surrounded by family working and schooling from home? Are you struggling to get your Sunday Basket® habit started? 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

The Sunday Basket® System

The Productive Home Solution™

The Paper Solution® book

Home Planning Day

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Read the full show notes with links here: https://organize365.com/podcast/transformation-with-laurie-w 

Direct download: Org365-LaurieW.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

I'm changing and iterating again! I'm a teacher and a life-long learner and it's time to pass new knowledge on to you. We are finally ready to release to you the changes to The Productive Home Solution™ that I've been talking about in some of the recent podcasts. 

Over the last 18 months, our Organize 365® Research has revealed that 87% of you believe that organization is a learnable skill, but only 13-18% of you feel organized in any of the four essential areas of organization. So, a large percentage of us feel like horrific failures when it comes to organization! It's time for that to change!

It's now time for The Productive Home Solution™ to be re-organized to reflect these four essential areas of organization. Beginning today, The Productive Home Solution™ Dashboard will have the content and videos from the 100 Day Home Organization Program split into Slash Pockets for the four essential areas of organization. Now you get to decide which area you want to organize first and declare that you are organized in that space. You'll also find four new corresponding groups in our community app where you can share and chat with others who are working on that same essential organizational space with you.

In this episode, I give you more background and information about these changes. I also give you some advice and considerations for which space to tackle first.

If you've not yet taken the leap to join The Productive Home Solution™, now is the perfect time! No more waiting for the next session to start. You can begin with any of the 4 organizational spaces starting today! Learn more here.

Which area will you choose to get fully organized first this fall? Your personal spaces? Your family & communal spaces? Your storage spaces? Your paper management?

Read the full show notes with links here:

https://organize365.com/podcast/bite-size-organizing-how-to-declare-you-are-organized-

Direct download: Org365-491.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Samantha S. She is a teacher who lives with her husband and her three kids under four years old. Samantha found that by going through The Productive Home Solution™ to organize her home, moving to a new home was easier but it also made for much less stress when both her second and third children were born four weeks early in 2019 and 2021. Samantha loves following along with the Sunday Basket® Club using the recording and is able to process her 1.0 Slash Pocket system in less than an hour each week. She says that following along with the Sunday Basket® Club removes analysis paralysis. She doesn't have to think about what needs to be done to process her Sunday Basket® because we guide her through each week! Next up on her list is to get her The Paper Solution® Binders organized.

Can you relate to Samantha's story? Has The Productive Home Solution™ helped you survive a move or unexpected event? Do you join us each week in the Organize 365® app for the Sunday Basket® Club? 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

The Sunday Basket® System

The Productive Home Solution™ (formerly All Access)

The Paper Solution® Binders

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-SamanthaS.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Have you seen the organization in a kindergarten classroom? It's full of cubbies and bins. Any classroom from preschool through high school is designed to function well. The environment is organized in a way that there is a place for everything to be put away. There's a place for the books and the toys. There are stations designated for different activities. Classrooms are also set up to be age-appropriate. You won't find baby toys in the middle school classroom! The classroom environment is set up so that when the kids enter, they have the age-appropriate things they need and everything is where it is supposed to be. Your home can be set up this way too!

If you are teaching the skill of organizing to someone else, you first need a picture of what done looks like. Have an orientation when you organize a space in your home. This shows your family where things are located, the rules of that area, and what it should look like when it is clean up after using that space.

Next, you need a lesson plan. You have to know the right amount of work to give to your student so that they neither become bored or overwhelmed when learning how to organize.

Finally, the person you're teaching needs to have a spark ignited to want to learn the skill of organization. You cannot create this spark in someone else, but once they have it, it's game on!

In this episode, I help you think about what your space should look like to make it function like a classroom. I also walk you through how to teach the skill of organization to someone else.

What will your first step be in making your home function like a classroom?

The Productive Home Solution™ gives you all of the information and tools that you need to organize your home so that it is age-appropriate and functions well for your current life stage. It's also set up in bite-sized chunks so you can do as little or as much as you want to do at a time. Join The Productive Home Solution™ here.

Direct download: Org365-490.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Andrea P. She lives with her husband, their young son, and their dog in the UK. Andrea with diagnosed with ADHD as an adult. She sought the diagnosis because while she compensated well into her adult years while she was single, life became too much when in a space of 3 years she married, bought a house, adopted a dog, and had a baby. I'm sure many of you can relate! She found that organization is a learnable skill and is now thriving!

What resonates with YOU about Andrea's story? Do you have ADHD?

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

The Sunday Basket® System

The Productive Home Solution™ (formerly All Access)

The Paper Solution® Binders

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-AndreaP.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Do you know your preferred learning style?

If you don't know your learning style, think back to your highest level of formal education. How did you make it through or study for tests? That's likely your preferred learning style. You may find that you use more than one learning style, but you have a natural bent toward one of them. 

There are four main learning styles:

  1. Auditory
  2. Kinesthetic
  3. Visual
  4. Reading / Writing

In this episode, I'm sharing details about these four learning styles to help you figure out which one works best for you. Then, I want you to use these learning styles to see your home (and your work) in a different way. Because I am a teacher at heart, I have created our systems at Organize 365® to work for any learning style. I explain some of the features of our products and how to make better use of those things from the perspective of your learning style. From podcasts to coworking times, from videos to written materials, I've given you the content in multiple formats to help you succeed in becoming organized.

It's your home! Focus on consuming and implementing new information in your preferred way of learning. Give yourself the grace to learn as an adult learner the way that you are uniquely wired to learn!

How do you learn best? What features of Organize 365® programs and products have you found work best for your learning style?

Direct download: Org365-489.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Sarah K. She lives with her husband and two of her adult children. Sarah shares how she tamed the paper monster! She used to dread her husband asking for a receipt or important paper, but not anymore. She went from 13 (yes, 13!) file cabinets down to 1/2 a desk file drawer and organized binders. Now she can find the papers she needs for her family, her home, and her rental properties quickly and easily in her Sunday Basket®, Business Workbox®, and The Paper Solution® Binders. I also love how organizing became a family project for this tight-knit former homeschooling family.

What resonates with YOU about Sarah's story? Are you dealing with medical issues in your family or drowning in paper?

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

Direct download: Org365-SarahK.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Angela Watson is here again! If you're a teacher and you don't know Angela, you need to meet her! She was a classroom teacher for 11 years and has spent over a decade as an instructional coach. She has a podcast called Truth for Teachers and created the 40 hour Teacher Workweek program to help teachers take back control of their time.

In this episode, Angela and I dive into what's going on in education and the classroom post-pandemic. A survey from the NEA says that 55% of teachers are looking to retire sooner than they had the previous fall. That's a scary number when the typical attrition rate for teachers is 8%. Education Week says that teachers work an average of 54 hours a week and half of that time is spent on non-teaching time work. Angela's surveys have found that the average in her audience is 62 hours per week. Teachers know when they go into this profession that work doesn't end at 3pm, but at the same time, teachers are being taken advantage of because of their deep care for their work.

What's the solution? How can teachers work fewer hours and be more productive? Angela and I have both spent a lot of time working on different angles of this issue so we chat about ways to fix this problem! It comes back to boundaries and organization.

Angela's contribution to the solution is the 40 hour Teacher Workweek program. One of the things she does in this program is help teachers understand the difference between hobby work and required work. We have a long discussion about what hobby work is and how to cut back your work hours by reducing this type of work. Using Angela's program, most members have been able to cut 5 hours off of their work week in the first month in the same way that Sunday Basket® users are able to save 5 hours a week after using the system for 6 weeks!

My contribution to the solution is the Education Friday Workbox®. This system compliments Angela's solution by helping you organize the administrative and paperwork side of teaching. Instead of missing deadlines and spending time looking for important papers, you have more time to focus on the lesson planning and the teaching that you love.

I love talking with Angela! I hope you teachers out there find help and hope in these solutions!

Direct download: Org365-488.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

For the final episode in this series about the Education Friday Workbox®, I'm talking with Kate McDonnell. Kate is single and lives with her cat in Colorado. She has been a teacher for over 15 years. Her career started with teaching science but her background is in computer programming. She now teaches many different technology-related courses in different formats with a schedule that changes every week.

Kate is also a certified organizer. You can find out more about working with her here.

In this episode, Kate and I discuss the challenges of teaching and organizing so many different classes and then the administrative work that goes along with that. Kate loves using the portable Sunday Basket® to carry her Slash pockets and papers with her to her various schools. We also talk a little about managing email. You know that I'm not your digital organizer, but I do have some tips for organizing email. (I share even more about email organization in the email course inside of The Productive Home Solution™.)

Learn more about the Education Friday Workbox® here.

Registration for Teacher Camp is now open. Click here to learn more and sign up.

Direct download: Org365-EDU-Kate.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this final week of the series on spaces to organize, I'm talking about the second optional space to organize: memories and photos. Now, I don't personally believe that this is an optional space to organize for me and my family. It's kind of a passion of mine!

After you have sorted through the four essential areas of paper -- medical, financial, household reference, and household operations -- you're still left with a lot of paper that I categorize as memories and photos. What do you do with all of these things?

In this episode, I explain that there are different levels of final organization of memories and photos that you could choose to end at from simple boxes of collated photos to photo albums and binders. I love creating topic-based albums: holidays, vacations, birthdays, etc. I also personally love creating binders and albums because my family is more likely to pull them off the shelf and look at them over items kept in a box. Organizing your memories and photos can be such a source of joy for your family as they look back at the family history you've gathered and fun memories from their lives.

In our Saving Your Story Photo Organization Program, I walk you through sorting all of your photos, eliminating duplicates, and creating final albums with those photos. 

Is organizing memories and photos optional for you? What is keeping you from organing this space?

Direct download: Org365-487.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Over the last few weeks, we've been talking about the updated Education Friday Workbox®.

This week, I'm talking with Michele Vinje. She's been an educator for over 28 years in the same school and the same building for her entire career. She has taught various history and economics courses to sophomores, juniors, and seniors over the years. 

You can hear more of Michele's personal story in her transformation episode. Michele is also a certified organizer. You can find out more about working with her here.

In this episode, Michele and I discuss how the education system has changed since the pandemic. We talk about how the Education Friday Workbox® is a place to hold all of those administrative tasks that are important but not urgent so you can get to them once a week and before something is due. Michelle describes how the Education Friday Workbox® frees up your brain and that it is a system that is inclusive for all educators and administrators but customizable for anyone in the education world. And don't forget about the colors! The colored Slash pockets make it easy to find a category of information quickly.

Learn more about the Education Friday Workbox® here.

Registration for Teacher Camp is now open. Click here to learn more and sign up.

Direct download: Org365-EDU-Michele.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

The final Embrace experience is right around the corner! I've put together a playlist on Spotify of all of the music we will be playing over the course of the weekend. 

In this Coffee Chat episode, I share with you why I'm sharing this playlist and why I think it is important for you to hear the music before the Embrace experience. 

Find the playlist on Spotify by searching for Organize 365® Embrace 2022 or use this link: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2ZTrssdhbwGJPtsIPK4YUx?si=ifJnWlyPQqGsvbCpz8ffxQ 

It's not too late to join the Embrace experience virtually. Go here to learn more and sign up to join us: https://organize365.com/embrace2022 

Direct download: Org365-CC-030.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

We've been talking about essential organizing for the last several podcast episodes. Listen to the rest of the episodes in this series:

  1. Organizing Personal Spaces
  2. Organizing Family & Communal Spaces
  3. Organizing Storage Spaces
  4. Organizing Paper Management

This week, we are transitioning to the first of two optional spaces to organize. The first space is kids. Organizing anything related to kids is optional! But, if you have kids, I really think you do need to organize the things and spaces related to them. 

I've tried to organize my kids in a way that is Pinterest-worthy but let me tell you, it just doesn't work. It's not functional. I have three mindset shifts for you when it comes to organizing kids:

  1. It's good enough.
  2. Establish how long it takes to achieve good enough.
  3. Remember that organization is a learnable skill, even for your kids.

In this episode, I go deeper into these three thoughts. I also break down the ages and stages of organizing kids and give you tips for each of those stages. Whether you have 0-5-year-olds, 6-12-year-olds, or teens, I have suggestions for not only organizing your kids but also teaching them how to organize themselves!

What do you find hardest about organizing your kids? How are you teaching them to organize for themselves?

Take the next step in organizing your kids with our Kids Program. For your teens and young adults heading out into the world, take a look at our Launching Life Skills Bundle or Launch Bundle.

Also talked about in this episode: 

Kids One Clip

 

Direct download: Org365-486.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

This week, Annie Sisemore joins me to tell you how she uses her workbox in her job as an educator. Annie began her teaching career by substitute teaching right out of high school and has experience over the years in middle school math, instructional coaching at the district level, and as an adjunct professor teaching college students who want to be teachers. 

You can hear more of Annie's personal story in her transformation episode.

In this episode, Annie shares some great insights from her personal experience for using your Education Friday Workbox® such as how she uses slash pockets for her college students who she never sees in person and for gathering information for training new teachers in her district. We also talk more about the philosophy behind and changes we made to the Education Friday Workbox®.

Get the presale Education Friday Workbox® with special bonus here while supplies last.

Registration for Teacher Camp is now open. Click here to learn more and sign up.

Direct download: Org365-EDU-Annie.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Teacher Camp is coming the week of July 11 - 15, 2022!

Sheri MacGregor and I are going to walk you as a teacher or education administrator through the Education Friday Workbox® to get you ready for the coming school year.

We will add a new Slash pocket color each day with 30 minutes of teaching and training to give you ideas for how to organize your administrative work. Then for the next 90 minutes, you will have the opportunity to co-work with other educators to work out and plan your system of organization.

Listen to this episode for all of the details!

To join Teacher Camp, go to: http://organize365.com/teachercamp

Direct download: Org365-CC-029.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this podcast series, we've been talking about essential organizing. You can catch up on this series by listening to these episodes:

  1. Organizing Personal Spaces
  2. Organizing Family & Communal Spaces
  3. Organizing Storage Spaces

This week, we are moving to organizing your paper management in our quest for functional organization in your home. You know how much I love to talk about paper organization! People are FINALLY coming around to the fact that paper is not going away, and it needs to be organized. You could organize your paper first or last, and you could also choose to only organize portions of your paper. 

We found in our research study that 54% of people have piles of paper everywhere. Only 18% of people have a system in place for organizing that paper. In addition, 70% of Millenials perceive a reduction in stress when their paper is organized. You see, we all have paper. You could have less paper, but you're never going to be paperless. 

Paper is different than other areas of your home. It's different because 85% of what you store in your filing cabinet you will NEVER need again. The remaining 15% is paper that you do need and you need to be able to find it when you go looking for it. You only go looking for these important papers when there's a problem. Binders are the solution! Trust me, your future self in crisis will thank you when you have your paper organized and can find what you need.

But here's the other problem you will run into with paper: Only about 20% of what I suggest that you put into your binders is actually in your filing cabinet or it is actually paper at all. The other 80% of what needs to be in your binders is either on the computer where only you know how to find it or it is stored in your brain. If something happens to you, how does anyone else take care of anything in your home or for your family?

In this episode, you'll find encouragement for why and how to get your paper organized.

Are your papers organized? What is keeping you from organizing your paper?

Mentioned in this episode:

Podcast #420 - The Weight of Paper

Paper Organizing Retreats

The Paper Solution® Binders

Direct download: Org365-485.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

I am so excited to share with you our updated Education Friday Workbox®! Sheri MacGregor is joining me in this episode to help me tell you about all of the changes.

Sheri MacGregor is a former teacher with a Master's in Elementary Education, a certified organizer, and is now in charge of our teacher support at Organize 365®.

You can listen to these previous podcast episodes to learn more about Sheri:

Sheri was a part of the mastermind group that helped us revamp the Education Friday Workbox® and Playbook. You'll be seeing a lot more of her because she did all of the videos in the Education Friday Workbox® dashboard, will be joining me for Teacher Camp, and will be your host and guide for the weekly co-working time for teachers.

The new Education Friday Workbox® has an updated Playbook to help you set up your organizational system. We also included not only the 2.0 Slash pockets but 3 additional colors of Slash pockets -  because we know that teachers are juggling extra categories of work that need to be organized!

In this episode, Sheri and I talk about these changes and so much more! We share with you some practical ideas for organizing your Education Friday Workbox®, Teacher Camp coming this summer, and how to approach your administrator for reimbursement and continuing education units.

Get the presale Education Friday Workbox® with special bonus here while supplies last.

Direct download: Org365-EDU-Sheri.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this podcast series, I have talked with you about organizing your personal spaces and then about organizing your family and communal spaces. Now, we're ready to move into your storage spaces.

Storage spaces are not easy to organize, but once you set your mind to it, they can be maintained for the rest of your life! Really, they can! Whether it is your attic, basement, or an off-site storage unit, once you have a system in place, this storage space can stay organized for decades.

With the exception of some transient storage spaces, your storage space is generally a hidden area of organization. People don't see these spaces so we tend to put off organizing them. 

What I want you to understand is the mindset of organizing a storage space. You must start thinking of it as a store. It is your on-demand, already paid-for store, where you're storing things for when you need them.

In this episode, I share with you about creating a storage mindset, what kinds of things you might find in your storage space, and how to group those items. I also talk about why you might consider tackling your storage space BEFORE the rest of your home.

Ready to organize your storage space? You'll find more detailed guidance for organizing your storage space in  The Productive Home Solution™.

What do you keep in your storage spaces? What have you been holding onto in your storage space that really needs to go? 

Direct download: Org365-484.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Krys H. She lives with her husband and their 21-year-old cat, but she is also mom to 11 grown children. Krys talks about the medical issues in her family and how having The Paper Solution® Medical Binder paperwork with her helped the first responders care for her during a recent accident. She also shares how she packed for a long-distance move that included downsizing from 3,000 sq ft to 1,400 sq ft. Krys is also a faithful keeper of her Sunday Basket®, which she does on Friday each week. There are so many fun nuggets of inspiration in this conversation!

What resonates with YOU about Krys' story? Are you dealing with medical issues in your family or preparing for a move?

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

The Sunday Basket® System

The Productive Home Solution™ (formerly All Access)

The Paper Solution® Binders

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-KrysH.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

This week we are moving from personal organization to the next area of organization: family and communal spaces.

These are the areas that you will want to organize first because people see them when they come into your home, but they are the hardest areas to organize and maintain. I know, there can be judgment anxiety over these spaces. There is also a tension between wanting these spaces to look good but also being able to live in them comfortably.

In our research study, we found that only 14% of people say that they have their family and communal spaces organized. Why is this? Well... 

How often have you spent so much time cleaning and organizing just to turn around and find that space trashed again? I'm sure you've been through these seasons or you might be living in one of those seasons right now! Sometimes, it's like shoveling snow in a snow storm!

As you can see, family and communal spaces are hard and that's why I recommend that you start with organizing your personal spaces. Build your organizational muscles and habits there first. When you do get to the family and communal spaces, start with your kitchen. You'll feel a difference when you know where everything is in your kitchen and when you know that everything in there is purposeful. After the kitchen, move on to your other shared spaces: the family room, communal bathrooms, dining room, front hall closet, and cleaning supplies. 

Listen to this episode for more encouragement and inspiration for tackling the organization of these hard-to-organize family and communal spaces.

What makes these family and communal spaces so hard for you to organize and maintain? Do you have toddlers? Teens? Lack of time? Too much stuff? 

Ready to get these family and communal spaces organized? Learn more about The Productive Home Solution™ and how the program can help you reach that goal. 

Direct download: Org365-483.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Catherine D. She lives with her husband and their blended family of 6 kids. They also have a dog, two bunnies, and fish. (And backyard chickens are on the wish list!) Catherine talks about wrestling through paper, passion projects, and storage spaces. She put the effort into creating spaces in her home that were functional during the pandemic. There's even a little retreat space for Catherine to relax with decor that makes her happy. She says that Organize 365® has helped her look at the spaces in her home differently!

What resonates with YOU about Catherine's story? Do you have any special retreat spaces in your home?

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

The Productive Home Solution (formerly All Access)

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-CatherineD.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Oh my goodness!!!

 

The Organize 365® Podcast launched in September of 2014 and has now reached a major milestone: A few weeks ago, we crossed 15 million downloads! 

 

In this quick coffee chat, I simply want to say thank you for listening. But, in true Lisa fashion, I want to turn the tables and encourage you to pursue your unique calling even when it seems like that thing doesn't even exist yet.

 

Be sure to listen to Emily's farewell episode to hear how Emily's dream job appeared when she was ready for it: http://organize365.com/farewell-emily.

Direct download: Org365-CC-027.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

I’ll be honest: Organization is optional. While cleaning and tasks of daily living are not optional, you CAN survive without organizing. Even though this next-level step of organization is optional, when you do choose to do it, it is a current investment of time today for a future exponential return on time later.

Organization always pays you back in time and sometimes money.

You can't make anyone else be organized, so you have to start with yourself and your personal spaces. Organization must become a habit starting with these personal spaces. It needs to be something that you do regularly, spending 15 minutes a day or an hour once a week working on building your organizational muscles.

The best place to begin? Your closet! You are 100% in control of your clothing. After that, you can move on to your portion of the bathroom space and bedroom space, your wallet or purse, and your transportation.

Remember: This is NOT about perfection. Organized means that everything has a place and everything is in its place.

When it comes to organizing these spaces, there are no rules. I'm not going to come judge you and your space. Make it how you want it to be!

In our research study, "Organization is Not an Optional Hobby for Women," we found that 62% of women reported that anxiety prevents them from organizing their personal spaces. I just want to hug you and tell you that this doesn't have to be stressful.

In this episode, I share more about what personal spaces are and some encouragement and instruction for building your habit of organizing in these spaces. There are also some changes coming to the 100 Day Home Organization Program in the fall based on this research that I share too.

Are you ready to get your personal space organized?

Read more about our research studies here.

Ready to start organizing? Read more about The Productive Home Solution™ here.

Want more inspiration? Listen to my morning, afternoon, and evening routines episodes to hear more about how I use and organize my personal spaces.

Direct download: Org365-482.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

On Wednesdays, I usually talk with members of the Organize 365® community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. This Wednesday Transformation is a little different.

In this episode, I sat down with my sister, Emily Kelly, to talk about her personal and professional transformation. Emily came to work with me at Organize 365® over 4 years ago. During that time, her mindset has shifted. Emily has been leveling up. She has regained control of her finances. She's gone through hard seasons. Now she's ready for a new adventure.

I said I'd never fire Emily and she said she'd never quit, but the time came recently for Emily to leave Organize 365® because her dream job appeared. She didn't go looking for it. It found her. Listen in as Emily tells the whole story in this episode.

Mentioned in this episode: You can listen to my depression story in episode #069.

I hope you find Emily's story encouraging as you're working towards your transformation!

How are you leveling up?

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-Emily-Farewell.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Jackie S. She lives with her husband, two young children, and their dog. Jackie is also my cousin! Jackie describes herself as an under-buyer until the pandemic made her change a few of her habits. She talks about how Planning Day gives her more realistic expectations of her time constraints and keeps her from "should-ing" on herself. She shares how she's learning to balance her time between family, home, and work responsibilities with creative twists when needed. She also wants to have more than three priorities in a day, but I reign her in and explain the difference between three deeper priorities and a million shallow tasks. We also geek out together on topics like task-stacking and habits. Jackie and I could have talked forever! I hope you enjoy our conversation!

What resonates with YOU about Jackie's story?

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution (formerly All Access)

Planning Day

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-JackieS.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

It's time for a little Organize 365® history lesson! Let's retrace the 10-year journey of Organize 365® and the various iterations of the 100 Day Home Organization Program.

I was a very organized child. My mom used to take me shopping with a bag of buttons in hand. While she tried on clothes, I'd sit on the floor and sort the buttons.

I love sorting things and I love finding new ways to organize things.

Over the course of my lifetime, I've had seasons where I was extremely organized, such as when I was a teacher. At other times, I was completely unorganized, like when we adopted our babies or when my father passed away and I was managing his estate. 

I found that when I was disorganized, I felt so out of control.

Listen in to hear more about how the 100 Day Home Organization Program was born and continued to change over the years. We're making changes to the program again now that it is a part of The Productive Home Solution (formerly called All Access). Based on our research, I'm excited to reveal the new choose your own adventure format that will enable you to make progress on what you need to organize in your current season of life. 

Note: If you're a current member of The Productive Home Solution™ you will continue to have legacy access to anything you have access to now. 

Learn more about and join The Productive Home Solution™ here.

Direct download: Org365-480.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Jullia R. She lives with her husband, two teenagers, and their pet cat. Jullia shares how the Sunday Basket® tamed her mail and papers. She loves that system creates vertical, color-coded piles that do NOT take over her counters. She also tells how a simple change she made while going through the 100 Day Home Organization Program made a world of difference in the functionality of her kitchen. In between the extra trips to the donation center and the dumps, she's found more control.

What resonates with YOU about Jullia's story?

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution (formerly All Access)

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-JulliaR.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this podcast series, I will be diving into organizing the business of work. I will be taking you along with me for a workweek that I recorded in November 2021.

At Organize 365®, we divide our work into four categories. As a shortcut, we use the Friday Workbox® colors to categorize the different kinds of work. These colors are pink, purple, blue, and green. 

Creating a shared vocabulary and defining different kinds of work gets all of our team on the same page. Together, we move faster in the same direction and have fewer episodes of miscommunication. 

Today is Friday - It is a hodgepodge day for me with a little green, a little blue, and a little purple work, but little to no pink work.

On this Friday, I start my day with purple by talking to YOU live online about this week’s podcast episode topic. Because I record my podcasts so far in advance, by the time an episode airs, I usually have a little more to share with you. Another purple activity for today is a masterclass I’m teaching called “Your Most Productive Year Ever.”

I’m spending some extra time with the team today by having Thanksgiving lunch together. Many people on the team will be taking extra time off for the holiday next week.

Most of you probably do your Friday Workbox on Friday afternoons, as I counsel you to do. While I will do a deep dive into my email, I will wait until over the weekend to do my Friday Workbox. It sounds blasphemous, but I purposely do this so I don’t overwhelm my team with new ideas going into the weekend. I just tie up the loose ends from my email, handle anything left on my desk, and prepare for the very beginning of the week. 

Then, I will spend 4-5 hours working over the weekend and during that time, I will go through my Friday Workbox®. I don’t talk much on the podcast about working over the weekend. I know many of you don’t want to work over the weekend, but this is what works for me in this season. This also gives me the margin to spend more of my Friday on social connections with my team.

I love the life I’ve created for myself, but by the end of the day on Friday, I’m ready to go home to spend time with Greg and snuggle Grayson.

In this podcast, I will take you along and talk to you at different times during my workday. Listen in to hear more about how I spend Fridays with my team, why we don’t do Black Friday sales, and how I use Google docs over email when possible.

How do you spend your Fridays? Do you do your Friday Workbox® on Fridays?

Learn more about the Friday Workbox® here.

Direct download: Org365-479.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!  

This week I am sharing my conversation with Kristina S. She lives with her husband and two young girls in Germany. She shares how she and her husband stay organized as teachers without a permanent classroom space as well as how the Sunday Basket® has been the solution to her family's paper organization needs. I always love these international stories!

 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

 

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution (formerly All Access)

Workboxes

 

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

 

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-KristinaS.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this podcast series, I will be diving into organizing the business of work. I will be taking you along with me for a workweek that I recorded in November 2021.

At Organize 365®, we divide our work into four categories. As a shortcut, we use the Friday Workbox® colors to categorize the different kinds of work. These colors are pink, purple, blue, and green. 

Creating a shared vocabulary and defining different kinds of work gets all of our team on the same page. Together, we move faster in the same direction and have fewer episodes of miscommunication. 

Today is Thursday - It is an all pink day for me.

It is important to both work in and on your business. Working on your business means taking time for your personal development, your growth, your mindset, your skillset, and thinking about where you’re headed in the future.

You need days like this when you can step back to work on yourself and dream for your business. 

On Thursdays, I usually focus on myself. I spend time raising my lid so I can lead Organize 365® and the dream team to the next level. I use these days for coaching programs, conferences, webinars, podcasts, and books. Instead of joining a coaching program right now, I’ve instead joined a couple of round tables for C-level executives and for business owners in the Cincinnati area. 

I have been spending my Thursday mornings meeting with other members of these round tables. On Thursday afternoons, I’ll often do things that I personally need to do like doctor’s appointments or clothes shopping. No one expects me in the office on Thursdays and I can do whatever I want!

In this podcast, I will take you along and talk to you at different times during my workday. I’ll share with you who I’m meeting with today, how I got a rare lunch with my husband, and how I handled some unexpected changes to my schedule.

What activities and resources are you using for your pink days to work on yourself and on your business?

Direct download: Org365-478.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Natalie H. She lives with her husband and two (soon to be three!) kids. She shares how she set out to declutter 25% of her stuff and changed her mindset along the way. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution (formerly All Access)

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-NatalieH.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:39pm EDT

In this podcast series, I will be diving into organizing the business of work. I will be taking you along with me for a workweek that I recorded in November 2021.

 

At Organize 365®, we divide our work into four categories. As a shortcut, we use the Friday Workbox® colors to categorize the different kinds of work. These colors are pink, purple, blue, and green. 

Creating a shared vocabulary and defining different kinds of work gets all of our team on the same page. Together, we move faster in the same direction and have fewer episodes of miscommunication. 

 

Today is Wednesday - it is a mix of purple and blue work.

Wednesday tends to have some departmental meetings and I use the rest of my time to focus on some purple work to meet end-of-year deadlines.

In this podcast, I will take you along and talk to you at different times during my workday. 

Part of what I share is some different productivity habits I have slowly added in over the past 30 years that help me to be more effective and get so much done. 

Listen in and I’ll share about my meetings with Amy, Mary, and Sue. I also share some of the details of how Organize 365® functions, how I make decisions, and how I go through my workday.

Sometimes, you need to do a whole bunch of different kinds of work on the same day. In many ways, Wednesday is a rainbow day for me. 

What systems or tools do you use to keep your work organized during a rainbow day?

Direct download: Org365-477.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Valarie H. She lives with her husband and their two dogs. They have two adult children who visit. She shares how her stay-at-home move helped her get the house organized and gave her more time for hiking. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution (formerly All Access)

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

Direct download: Org365-ValarieH.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Organize 365 wants to support your decluttering efforts in an organized way to support the refugees fleeing from Ukraine.
 
Join us in the Adult Spring Break Blitz March 21-25 to declutter with a purpose or to deep dive into ONE area of your home.
 
Register here https://organize365.com/adult-spring-break-blitz and join us in the Organize 365 app!
 
Direct download: Org365-Bonus-Declutter-Ukraine.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Today is Tuesday, and this is a blue day. This is my most structured day of the workweek. It is meeting day.

Organize 365® is 10 years old, and we were a 2 million dollar company in 2021. We have 20 team members:14 in the office and several remote contractors. We also work with outside vendors and support companies.

I will be in meetings all day with the team. I’ll be working in the business.

 

How Organize 365® Keeps Meetings Productive

I have created the most productive way of communicating with the team with a weekly check-in to make sure we are on the same page. Communication is the number one obstacle to growth inside of a profitable company.

At Organize 365®, we have shared meeting agendas in Google Docs for every single scheduled meeting (and for some of our major projects). I put my own thoughts, questions, and ideas at the top. The team enters their questions for me in the next section for things that need approval, a budget, a signed contract, extra help, or other things to move forward. 

Within the document, there are topics for the team discussion. Each team member types in a different color, and often we are able to resolve questions or collect ideas in advance of the actual meeting. If we are able to resolve things outside of the meeting, the team can move forward in their work.

As an organization, we very rarely email other team members. All projects are in shared documents and can link out to other files if needed. No one needs to comb through an email thread or hunt for an email. 

I check all of the agendas a few times a week and add anything I can answer at the time. By keeping all our ideas and communication in one place, we make better and quicker decisions. 

 

Today’s Meetings

Listen in as I take you along on my meetings with Vanessa, Shona, Stephanie, Pat, Monique, and Erin. 

I used to fit my meetings into my calendar, but now I have dedicated a full day to the meeting necessary to keep the company running smoothly. I schedule every meeting to start at the top of the hour, and if we finish early, I fill in the time by making progress on other tasks. 

When my meetings are done for the day, I use any time left to complete administrative work, review meeting agendas to find my actionable items to add to my Friday Workbox®, and deep-diving into some projects.

What can you do to make your team days more productive?

Direct download: Org365-476.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:01am EDT

I’m so excited. It’s my birthday! I am 50 years old today!!!

The women in my family have lived to be old—into their 90s and 100s. I have always been in awe of all they have done in their lives. Organize 365® just turned 10 years old.  I think I am going to live to 100, so I am just getting started.

I have an innate understanding of time and money that I call “Lisa math.” It doesn’t follow the traditional rules about these things, but I am able to use it to show how I understand the world. 

We all have constraints in life. We are naturally limited by our time, money, and energy. Getting organized helps you to develop more capacity by investing your current time for a future return of more time. 

Improving your capacity allows you to do more things in life, handle unexpected events, and live out your unique purpose. 

The mission of Organize 365® is to help busy people get their home and paper organized so that they can do what they are uniquely created to do.

Over the last 20 years, my Sunday Basket® has given me an extra 5,200 hours. I have poured that extra time into creating Organize 365®. I have been able to help many of you save more time by using your Sunday Baskets®. And, boy, have those hours added up!

By end of 2020, the Organize 365® customers saved over 1 million hours!!! At the end of 2021, we have saved over 2.5 million hours. 

Your time and capacity have been unlocked. So many of you have been gracious enough to share how you are living your unique purpose using the hashtag #myextra5. That is the best birthday gift ever.

Direct download: Org365-475.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Jennifer M. She and her husband are empty-nesters who are also snowbirds. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365® community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution (formerly All Access)

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-JenniferM.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

I want to stop by quickly and let you know about some upcoming Organize 365® events. 

For all the details, check out https://organize365.com/mastermind-with-lisa-upcoming-events

Direct download: Org365-CC-023.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In this podcast series, I will be diving into organizing the business of work. I will be taking you along with me for a workweek that I recorded in November 2021.

At Organize 365®, we divide our work into four categories. As a shortcut, we use the Friday Workbox® colors to categorize the different kinds of work. These colors are pink, purple, blue, and green. 

Creating a shared vocabulary and defining different kinds of work gets all of our team on the same page. Together, we move faster in the same direction and have fewer episodes of miscommunication. 

Today is Monday, and Mondays are pink days in my work.

Pink work is about ideas and possibilities—new projects, new ideas, new partners, possible process improvements, and other future ideas that might become a reality. 

Because I am the CEO and visionary of Organize 365®, I give myself two full workdays each week to focus on my pink work. I take time to think, to dream, to process, and to move forward about what might be in our future. I spend a lot of time and research exploring possibilities, and sometimes I put the ideas on hold, and sometimes I decide that we are never going to do a particular project. 

In this podcast, I will take you along and talk to you at different times during my workday. 

Part of what I share is some different productivity habits I have slowly added in over the past 30 years that help me to be more effective and get so much done. 

Direct download: Org365-474.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Tiera A. She lives with her husband and middle school daughter. She shares all about how she got her house in order, lost 30 pounds, and found lost time. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution (formerly All Access)

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

Direct download: Org365-TieraA.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this podcast series, I will be sharing how my habits, routines, and the different ways I think about time. This week I’ll be sharing my evening routines.

I always learn more from listening to real-life stories of how other women are “getting it done.” Thanks for letting me share mine with you!

Evening routines help us transition from day to night. They take place after dinner and as we wind down for the day. It’s time to relax, get ready for bed, and do any prep for the morning.  

 

A Day in the Life Evening Routines

When the sun goes down, I’m done for the day. 

I love being at home, taking my bath, and then sitting on my bed. I might watch TV, work on a puzzle, read a book, or snuggle Grayson. 

I went to record my evening routine for you, and I don’t really have one. It doesn’t change much. I don’t want to talk about it at night, because that’s my low energy time.

I take a hot bath every night. The length of time varies, but I use my Epsom salts and some other skincare and self-care. I put on my pajamas and a cozy jacket. I get ready for my evening.

In the past, I would prep for the day ahead. I would pack a lunch and lay out my clothes. I also review my calendar and think through my schedule for the next day. Now, I tend to do this at the end of my workday during my afternoon routine. 

I’m also including a recording of an older evening routine that I followed when the kids were younger. Different seasons of life have different needs for structure. 

 

Do you have an evening routine? Which of your routines are the most effective for you?

Direct download: Org365-473.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week I am sharing my conversation with Martine E. She lives in France with her husband and their two daughters. She started with a DIY Sunday Basket® and then upgraded to a Friday Workbox™ and The Productive Home Solution™. She shares about her newfound peace of mind and exploring to find her unique purpose. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution/ALL ACCESS

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-MartineE.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this podcast series, I will be sharing how my habits, routines, and the different ways I think about time. This week I’ll be sharing my afternoon routines.

I always learn more from listening to real-life stories of how other women are “getting it done.” Thanks for letting me share mine with you!

Afternoon routines are those things we do between our daytime activities (work or school) and dinner. 

 

A Day in the Life Afternoon Routines

Adding an afternoon routine to my schedule in my 40s was a game changer!

Today my commute home from the office provides that natural transition. In my 30s, my transition came at the end of the school day, driving in the carpool, or collecting the kids from the bus stop. 

Recognizing your transition may be all you need for your brain to make a switch in priority and production. 

Ultimately daily routines add structure and reduce decision-making fatigue.

Listen in as I share how I “bucket” my morning routine to line up with the kind of work I’ll be doing each day of the week.

As a bonus, I added my afternoon routine when my kids were in high school to this podcast episode. 

This podcast series is not for you to compare yours and my schedules, but to open your thoughts to explore the possibilities of what could be in your everyday life. My afternoon routine has continued to change and evolve over the years and will continue to do so in the future.

Do you have an afternoon routine? Is it time to add or take something away from your afternoon routine?

Direct download: Org365-472.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I normally get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized! This month, I have a special treat for you! Normally, you get to hear the transformational story of ONE member of our community. This month, I want to share some of the very special breakthroughs of women just like you as they attended Embrace 2021.

You can learn more about the 2022 Embrace experience on our website. In 2022, we have both virtual and in-person options. Save the date of June 25 & 26, 2022!!!

Direct download: Org365-Embrace2021-Part4.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In this podcast series, I will be sharing how my habits, routines, and the different ways I think about time. This week I’ll be sharing my morning routines.

I always learn more from listening to real-life stories of how other women are “getting it done.” Thanks for letting me share mine with you!

It's time to dive into the workweek.

Before I go any further, I just want to remind you that here at Organize 365®, we view your “work” as “whatever you spend the majority of your Monday - Friday doing during the day.” 

Why is it important to define our workday as “work”?!

It was so powerful for me to redefine “work” for myself and view my seasons of parenting, homeschooling, and being the family medical liaison as “work” because then I could embrace and apply better routines & productive habits to my day.

I share one week of my morning routines recorded in November in this week's podcast. While recording this week, I realized that I actually have two different morning routines.  

Listen in as I share how I “bucket” my morning routine to line up with the kind of work I’ll be doing each day of the week.

As a bonus, I added on to this podcast episode my morning routine when my kids were in high school. 

Hands down, one of the best habits I embraced for my mental health was establishing daily routines. 

Why? Because it gave my “never-ending to do list days” structure and broke my day into buckets of time. 

We all need structure, routines, and transitions in our days.

This podcast series is not for you to compare yours and my schedules, but to open your thoughts to explore the possibilities of what could be in your everyday life. My morning routine has continued to change and evolve over the years and will continue to do so in the future.

Do you have a morning routine? Is it time to add or take something away from your morning routine?

Direct download: Org365-471.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I normally get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized! This month, I have a special treat for you! Normally, you get to hear the transformational story of ONE member of our community. This month, I want to share some of the very special breakthroughs of women just like you as they attended Embrace 2021.

You can learn more about the 2022 Embrace experience on our website. In 2022, we have both virtual and in-person options. Save the date of June 25 & 26, 2022!!!

Direct download: Org365-Embrace2021-Part3.mp3
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In this podcast series, I will be sharing how my habits, routines, and the different ways I think about time. This week I’ll be sharing my Sunday Routine.

I always learn more from listening to real-life stories of how other women are “getting it done.” Thanks for letting me share mine with you!

As I shared in the last podcast episode, Saturdays are fundays around here, which means Sunday afternoons are my domestic workday. 

We started watching church from home sometime in late 2018/early 2019, and Greg’s mother has been coming to our house on Sundays for the past few years. My Sundays are now spent entirely at home. I decided for this season to add all housework tasks in and around my Sunday Basket® time on Sundays from 12-4.

I fit my housework into a four-hour time block.

Each weekend, I give my home and family a four-hour block of time. Some weeks I am running to check all the to-dos off my list, and other weeks I am looking into my Sunday Basket® to find projects to fill that time. 

I have always found that getting my machines and people started first, before I dive into the work only I can do, has improved my productivity. I do the same thing on Sundays during this work time.

  1. I go through my emails and make decisions.
  2. I review my meeting agendas for the week.
  3. I get myself organized. I clear out papers, plan my outfits, and update my calendar so that I have time to get my most important work done. 

In my 20s, 30s, and 40s, four hours would not have been enough time for all of this. This podcast series is not for you to compare your schedule with mine, but to open your thoughts and explore the possibilities of what your everyday life could look like.

How much time do you need to spend on housework each weekend? Which day or days will you do so, and for how long?

Direct download: Org365-470.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I normally get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized! This month, I have a special treat for you! Normally, you get to hear the transformational story of ONE member of our community. This month, I want to share some of the very special breakthroughs of women just like you as they attended Embrace 2021.

You can learn more about the 2022 Embrace experience on our website. In 2022, we have both virtual and in-person options. Save the date of June 25 & 26, 2022!!!

Direct download: Org365-Embrace2021-Part2.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Today marks the start of a podcast series I have wanted to produce for years! I love sharing the “behind the scenes” of my daily life on Instagram. For a long time, I have been thinking about how I could share my day-to-day life on the podcast.

Over the next few weeks, I will be sharing how my habits, routines, and the different ways I think about time. I did not get to these mindsets and behaviors overnight. It was a transformation that happened over a decade. I want to share the information that would have helped me make these changes faster and more effectively. 

Now, I do not “have all the answers.”  I am on the journey of life, just like you, working to have more control over how and where I spend my time and energy. The easiest way to understand where someone's time and energy goes is to hear their story. So, I’ll be sharing my days in lots of detail.

I ask that you just consider these as possibilities and inspiration. Dream a little bit and explore how you might make some changes to your everyday life. 

Saturdays

Let's start with my Saturday routine. Saturday is a “free day” in the Woodruff household. 

On Saturdays, everyone picks their meals, sleeps as late as they want, and chooses their entertainment. It is a great way to transition from the hustle and bustle of our Monday - Friday into the more relaxed pace of the weekend. 

Saturday is my new Sunday.

Until we made this transition as a family, Saturdays were full of chores and work. 

Now that I work full-time in an office, I can’t even imagine having the energy to stay in full-on work mode on my Saturdays at home. 

Many of you make Sundays your “free day.” Either way, I think the important thing is that each person in the house gets to have a day, or a part of a day, to “do their thing.”

Do you have a day to rest and enjoy your passion projects? 

I am not sure I could have had this kind of a day in my 20s, 30s, and 40s, but I wish I had at least considered the option.

One of my passion projects is taking care of my family and our shared home. Listen in as I take you along on my “domestic day” and the rewards I choose when my time and energy run out. I don’t get it all done either! But, I do rest and rejuvenate when I hit my limits.

Direct download: Org365-469.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I normally get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This month, I have a special treat for you! Normally, you get to hear the transformational story of ONE member of our community. This month, I want to share some of the very special breakthroughs of women just like you as they attended Embrace 2021.

You can learn more about the 2022 Embrace experience on our website. In 2022, we have both virtual and in-person options. Save the date of June 25 & 26, 2022!!!

Direct download: Org365-Embrace2021-Part1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

There are 4 main categories of reasons why people decide to get organized. In this episode, I walk you through the main reasons to help you find YOUR why.

Unpacking your why will help you stay motivated and keep your eye on the prize when you get stuck in the day-to-day of your organizing. 

Which of these four reasons for getting organized resonates most with you?

  1. I got caught up in the hype of New Year's resolution or the Marie Kondo Netflix series.
  2. I'm tired of feeling behind and reactionary.
  3. I'm looking for my home to be a restful haven.
  4. I want to break a family cycle of disorganization.

Every reason has its trouble spots to overcome. If you jumped in spontaneously, the beginning is fun and easy, but then you find an area that requires more thought or doesn't fit the model, and you get stuck. Dig into another reason to continue organizing. If you're reactionary, there will be a period of time in which you feel like you're going backward. If you didn't have a model of organization growing up, it's probably going to take a little longer to learn the skill of organization. 

Be sure to take (and print) pictures of your progress too! It's hard to see your progress when you're so close to your home. Taking a step back and comparing before and after photos will help you see the progress. 

I don't want to see you give up! Figure out your why and hang onto it when you feel discouraged. What will getting organized allow you to do or be?

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media!

Direct download: Org365-268.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week, I have an extra special treat for you! By popular request, today’s transformation is featuring Lorie and her dad JB. So many of you have enjoyed watching Lorie help her 92-year-old dad declutter his home and get started with his Sunday Basket® habit. They are both great storytellers and have so many life lessons to share. I hope you enjoy their story as much as I do! 

Lorie has been a previous guest when she shared her own Wednesday Transformation and she also shared how she adapted to teaching from home during the pandemic.

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution/ALL ACCESS

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

PS - Be sure to share YOUR unique way of using #myextra5 and tag your post on Instagram so we can share your wins!

Direct download: Org365-JB-LorieG.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week, I am sharing my interview with Charlotte S. She shares her very unique journey. She has worked as an international disaster relief nurse and lived both overseas and in the US. Her family size and shape have changed dramatically over the years. Listen as she goes from overcrowded and overstressed to having more time and an empty nest. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution/ALL ACCESS

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

Direct download: Org365-CharlotteS.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Happy New Year’s Eve!

It’s hard to believe, but ten years ago, I started along this journey to create and share Organize 365®. I share the details of this story in my memoir Organization is a Learnable Skill. I was in a place where my world was spinning out of control, I had quit my job.

I could never have in my wildest dreams imagined that so many good things would happen. A podcast, physical Sunday Basket® system, and published books were not even in the realm of possibility in my future. 

But, I had written down my biggest possible goal for Organize 365®. I have all of my dreams recorded in my special pink notebook. I went back and looked at it.

That year I took to focus on my home and family changed my life. I changed my mindset from overwhelmed and reactive, to productive and proactive. I knew that my zone of genius was organizing. I set some goals for growing my business, but I have pivoted and exceeded my wildest dreams!

Sometimes it’s hard to dream forward ten years. Instead, take a little bit of time and look backward ten years. 

  • What have you accomplished in the last decade? 
  • What life experiences have you added to your journey? 
  • Who are you today that you weren’t ten years ago?

Over the last few months, Organize 365® has been making a lot of changes. We are planning to be settled into our new normal by January 2022. We are working to make the transformational journey easier to start (and to finish) for everyone! We have been busy bees at the office getting everything decluttered and organized to better support your journey.

You can learn more about:

The Complete Sunday Basket® System

The Productive Home Solution™ (formerly known as All Access)

The Kids Program

The Friday Workbox™ 

Organization is an inside job. But, it is also a learnable skill. It’s not as simple as tying your shoes. It’s more like learning a foreign language. It typically takes about 365 days. You can start anytime you want. The sooner you start, the faster you will transform your life. Join us! I look forward to helping you get organized!

Thank you for being on this journey with me! Thank you for listening, downloading, sharing, and rating the podcast. We are going to celebrate ten years next week, and I cannot wait!

Direct download: Org365-465.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

If you and I were at a family holiday gathering together this week, the podcast today is the conversation I would start. 

I have always been inquisitive. Asking big questions and researching new interests is something I have always done. I see it in my husband, Greg, and our kids too. Whenever we wonder about something, we grab our phones and start to Google.

It’s a great thing really, the ability to question and get answers to your questions right away. Access to information has become a great equalizer and I find more and more of my friends have caught the questioning and researching bug that I have always had.

The last two years have brought an unprecedented amount of change in every single area of our lives, and it is the pace of that change that is hard to comprehend.  

I do not have a big revelation, actionable plan, or solution to share. These are partly mindset shifts, and some observations, thoughts, and musings. 

Listen in and have a mental conversation with me this weekend. YOU are the person I would most like to talk to at the party. 

Direct download: Org365-464.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Be My Guest! Read more and apply here: https://organize365.com/wednesday

Direct download: Org365-W-BeMyGuest.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

What do you think of when you think of productivity?

Remember last week when I said that when I am organized I feel like I can make forward progress on my goals and projects.

For me productivity means doing MORE usually in LESS time or with less resistance. 

If you break down the 3 steps to getting organized: 

  • Decluttering = Removing.
  • Organizing = Rearranging.
  • Increasing Productivity = Moving forward faster.

Let's look specifically at Increasing Productivity. Productivity comes from thinking and planning. Every minute you spend planning SAVES 4-5 minutes in executing your plan.

Planning = TIME SAVED.

While it may be hard to find time to plan your day, your meals or your vacation, you KNOW that when you do - everything goes easier and faster.

Once again I have one caution... to be most effective, you need to have decluttered and organized the area you want to increase productivity in. These steps do need to be done in order.

5 Steps to Increased Productivity.

  1. Use the organized system.
  2. Plan.
  3. Refine and reorder.
  4. Evaluate / maintain.
  5. Execute.

Get your FREE printable of the 3 stages of decluttering here!

 

Direct download: Org365-463.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week, I am sharing my interview with Sarah H. She is a physician and a single mom. She shares how she has worked to become more proactive even during an unpredictable phase of life. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution/ALL ACCESS

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

Direct download: Org365-SarahH.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Get your FREE printable of the 3 stages of decluttering here!

FINALLY!

Don't you just want to jump right to the step where you get to go buy cute matching containers when you are organizing a space? ME TOO!

BUT every time I do that... it influences what I keep and how I store things instead of my THINGS influencing those decisions. (In the podcast I share how I figured that out as a professional organizer.)

First, let's talk about what being organized means. For me it means:

  • Everything has a place.
  • I know where to find things.
  • I do not spend time LOOKING for things. 
  • I FEEL organized and put together.
  • I can have friends over and feel great.
  • My house looks good - not perfect - but good.
  • I feel confident in my abilities.
  • I don't have too little or too much.
  • I have choices of how to spend my time.
  • I am able to make forward progress on my goals and projects.

Before I dive into the 5 steps to organizing I want to give you one caution...

You will not get it 100% right the first time. 

Yep, no matter what you are organizing, your goal is to get 80-90% better. The last 10% comes in step 3. Which I will cover next week.

Ok, so you know how you will feel and are not going for perfection, let's dive in!

5 Steps to Organizing

  1. Get a big picture plan for the space.
  2. Combine like items.
  3. Match your items to the space.
  4. Buy organizers.
  5. Clean and finish.

Organizing feels amazing! But after a while... you realize something is missing. The last 10% is Step 3 of organizing — Increased Productivity.

Links to things mentioned in the podcast:

Try one FREE week of the 100 Day Home Organization Program - now available inside The Productive Home Solution.

Direct download: Org365-462.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

 

This week, I am sharing my interview with Kerensa P. She lives with her spouse and young daughter. She shares her story of how a medical binder helped in her infertility journey and helped her to grow her family. She also shares how much she has benefited from working with a Sunday Basket® Certified Organizer. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution/ALL ACCESS

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

Direct download: Org365-KerensaP.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

 5 Steps to Decluttering 
  1. Eliminate all trash, food and broken items.
  2. Sell or consign anything of value you want to sell. 
  3. Bag up any donatable items and deliver them to the donation center. (Including consignment items they wouldn't take)
  4. Collect everything that goes in another room and locate it in that room.
  5. Make a list of any spaces that need organizers, or items that need to be replaced. 

Decluttering feels good, but not finished. Step 2 of organizing needs to follow quickly to bring order into your newly emptied space. 

Try the 100 Day Home Organization Challenge free at https://organize365.com/try100/

Get your FREE printable of the 3 stages of decluttering here!

Direct download: Org365-461.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

 

This week, I am sharing my interview with AJ C. She lives with her spouse, two kids, and a pandemic puppy. AJ shares how she has made progress in her storage room, kids rooms, and how she has increased her capacity to handle more projects with less stress. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

The Productive Home Solution/ALL ACCESS

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

Direct download: Org365-AJC.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Happy Thanksgiving weekend! Yesterday was Thanksgiving here in the US. It’s a time my family uses to catch up with family and friends. Thanksgiving kicks off the busy memory making, holiday filled end of the year.

Today, I want to share how thankful I am that I have been able to connect with you through this podcast for the last seven years. Even more mind-boggling, Organize 365® will turn ten years old in January 2022. 

Now that we are nearly a decade in, I am thinking about what Organize 365® will look like in another ten years. What do we want to take along as we move forward? What do we want to refine?

The podcast is not going anywhere. The Organize 365® team is here to help you with your life transformation, and we want to be sure the podcasts we share align with helping you to achieve your goal. I am deeply exploring the question: Are the quantity and quality of the podcasts we share actually helping you transform?

So much of our foundational teaching about the skills of organizing are buried back in the beginning of the podcast. The skills of organization are built on decluttering, organizing, and increasing productivity.

I want to really create some foundational podcasts that you can listen to on Fridays. They are concepts from older podcasts, but they will be refreshed for our new normal. There are a limited number of skills you need to learn to be able to get organized. Once you learn, then you need to apply the skills to actually create change! I am super excited about these curated podcasts we are putting together. I am looking forward to seeing their impact.  

What have you been running hard and holding your breath to get through over the last eighteen months? Where do you need to refine your own life to make it more sustainable going forward?

Direct download: Org365-460.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Monique Horb is back, and today is the day!!!

Our community app is now live and available for download!!!

Our old app with access to some of your dashboard has been removed from the App Store and Google Play Store, but we have a brand new online community ready for you. 

Today, we are launching our Organize  365® online community app. This will function similarly to Facebook, but it is private and less distracting.

We have simplified everything to make this app more productive. There is nothing there to take you away from your organizational interactions. When you are in the app, you can enjoy the other members and a supportive community, but the distractions have been eliminated.

You will have as much community as you desire, but you will also be able to stay focused on your own transformation and make progress along your own organizational journey. The app is directly connected to our website, so all of your specialized online communities will open automatically when you log in.

We have been working behind the scenes for months to get ready to host this community. We built this specifically for you. We want to have one place where it is easy for you to find what you need, and where it is easier for us to get you news, information, updates, and encouragement. This new community will save you time, help you be more productive, and give you encouragement. 

We have organized the community app to match your organizational journey. There are only six groups in the app.

  • News & Updates - will have all the current news about Blitzes, Masterclasses, and whatever Lisa dreams up
  • The Sunday Basket® Club - everything from the Facebook group has moved here including the weekly Sunday Basket® Club live and the replays
  • 100 Day Program - motivation, encouragement, and interaction for completing the 100 Day Home Organization Program tasks
  • All Access Program - content related to the extra step of All Access including the Tuesday Binder tips, photos, planning day, and the new All Access Podcast by Lisa
  • Friday Workbox™ Club - all the support and encouragement you need for maximizing your Friday Workbox™ including the Friday Workbox™ sessions and replays
  • Certified Organizer Group - community support and interaction for all of our Sunday Basket® Certified Organizers, our The Paper Solution® Certified Organizers, and Friday Workbox™ Certified Organizers

We hope that you jump in, make connections with the rest of the Organize 365® community, and continue to move along your journey!

We are still learning about the amazing ways we can support and encourage you using this technology - please give us grace as we continue to increase the value for you.

Things we do know the new app offers - badges to show what groups people belong to (including the Dream Team and Certified Organizers), direct messaging capabilities, and direct access to many of the printables. 

We are so excited about having a new community app. We would love for you to download it and come check it out!

Please download the official mobile app through the iOS App Store  or Google Play Store. You can also access the community on your desktop

  • When you create your account, please use the email address that is associated with your Organize 365® dashboard access.
  • Once logged in, check out “Start Here" to learn about this new platform.
  • Have questions? Please click here for app FAQs
Direct download: Org365-459.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In the current podcast series, I am sharing my conversations with members of the Dream Team while we are in the messy middle of some of our current transitions. In this four part series we will be unpacking the most commonly asked FAQs for different parts of the Organize 365® transformational journey. I want to keep you updated on changes and improvements as we declutter and organize before our 10th Anniversary in January 2022. We are not eliminating anything, or raising our prices on any existing products. We are simply doing some decluttering, organizing, and increasing productivity.

This week, I am sharing my conversation with Monique Horb. Monique is the Organize 365® Director of Business Development. We have spent most of the last year taking the Friday Workboxes to 110%. We have upgraded our Friday Workboxes into two overarching categories - Business and Education. 

We look at work differently here at Organize 365®. For us, work includes anything you do for the majority of your hours from Monday to Friday. We want to help you organize the different kinds of work that you do so that you can get more life and spend time in your unique purpose.

Friday Workbox FAQ

  • What is the Friday Workbox™ and why might I want one?

    At home, we are used to thinking about having paper. However, at work, it feels like we are always on a computer.
    The Business Friday Workbox™ is a physical representation of your work inside of a box. Our brain is not digital.This system will hold all of your ideas and actionable to-do in a single place where you can quantitatively see it. Printing your emails and other digitials items helps you and others see the quantity of work you are handling.
  • What is the difference between a Sunday Basket® and a Friday Workbox™?

    The physical components are the exact same physical tools as the Sunday Basket®. But, it goes deep because business is more complex and nuanced. For most of us, our brains make connections better when we are not in front of digital screens.
     

    The Sunday Basket® is for anything related to your home, and the Friday Workbox™ is for anything related to work. Both help to eliminate your to-do list, and hold your ideas for future possibilities. Both help you to prioritize how you will spend your time and energy over the upcoming week.
  • I understand how the Friday Workbox ™ can hold ideas, but what other things go in there?

    As a leader of a company, it is easy to spend a lot of time talking about ideas. If you have a more traditional job, the systematic approach of the Friday Workbox™ will still work for you. It works for anyone in any kind of business.


    Every job has four core components. Once you identify the components that relate to your job, you can optimize them and make your approach more productive. 
  • What colors are used in the Friday Workbox™?

    Pink - anything that is only done by you

    Purple - your assignment or job description
    Blue - the team that helps you get your work done (direct reports and supervisors)
    Green - financial OR administrative and repetitive tasks
  • If I get a Friday Workbox™, how long will it take to work? What do I have to do for this to be useful?

    This is not a one and done system. The Sunday Basket® takes four to six weeks to build the habit. The Workbox takes a bit longer to set up and build the habit. We ask you to give it a full quarter of the year; give it a full 13 weeks.

  • You keep talking about planning. I don’t feel like I have the time or authority to stop my work and plan for my next quarter. How does your planning system work?

    When I think about my planning, I realize that I am a teacher, and teachers always spend so much time planning. I’ve always been a salaried employee, not an hourly one. When I tried to limit my hours in the past, I had to plan a lot to be a really good teacher. As the owner of Organize 365®, I am spending at least 20 hours a week thinking and planning. The more prepared
    I am, the faster and easier the work is for the rest of the team.

    For you, start with five minutes after each meeting. Go through what you have been asked to do, and add it to your actionable to-do list. See how much your productivity improved. Next, add on five minutes before meetings and review the notes from the previous meeting, write down any questions you have for the meeting, and then do your five minute post review.
  • I know that a Friday Workbox ™ is the place to store the actionable to-dos and the Friday Workbox ™ Planner is the place to plan. What makes the Organize 365® planner different from others?

    I was an unusual child and I have had a planner since the fourth grade. I
    love planners. Most planners sold are really more of a date book or calendar; they record dates. Our planners have actual education for how to plan your time. The front of the planner has pages to guide you in thinking about your goals in all four kinds of work. I then guide you through an audit of how you actually spent your time. Then, we realign your time decisions so you can create what you are trying to create. The calendar keeps track of your appointments, and the planner gives you the vision of what you are going to accomplish.

    Planning and purposeful thought makes everything happen. Every single person is busy, but the goal in life is not to do more. The goal is to organize your time, thoughts, and energy so that you can make the biggest impact in the world. This system will increase your impact. Using a common language improves your communication tools. Improving your communication tools helps more people collaborate effectively without requiring more complexity.
  • I have a lot of paper for my job. Does it all live in the Friday Workbox™?

    Each slash pocket represents and holds the paper for a single idea or project. Lisa has multiple boxes of slash pockets — one at work and one at home. The most active ones live in an active workbox or portable bag for this quarter, and the rest tend to stay in one place.


    Frequently accessed reference papers are printed and kept physically in binders, and they are also kept digitally. The binders are color coded to match the workbox and hold the reference materials for easy access when needed. The contents of each binder is reviewed quarterly to ensure they are up to date and to identify any decisions that need to be made on the contents.
  • I have heard about a Friday Workbox™ Club. What is that and how can I join?

    As a teacher, I know there are many different kinds of students and learners. They need different levels of support and tutoring to be successful. Organize 365® provides three different ways to help you be successful in implementing the Friday Workbox™ system.
  • On demand dashboard training videos
  • Friday Workbox™ Club  - 90 minute virtual sessions in an online community for co-working and accountability
  • Friday Workbox™ Certified Organizers - individuals who partner with Organize 365® and can provide 1:1 or small group assistance
  • I have purchased other programs and not followed through. What support or access is there for the Friday Workbox™?

    Organize 365® is an education company. When you invest in our programs, I want you to have access to the teachers, the community, and the support you need to achieve organization. There is a lot included in your initial purchase — we want you to succeed!


    This is your professional development and an investment in yoru time management and productivity. It will multiply your time going forward, and we are not going to take it away from you.
  • Is there a way to try this before I make a purchase?

    Absolutely! Please go to organize365.com/workboxes and read all about the workboxes. A Masterclass is coming soon! And, there is a
    free five day mini course available to you. 
Direct download: Org365-458.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week, I am sharing my interview with Holan S. Holan lives with her husband and young son. She is a rebel dealing with family medical emergencies, and shares how she has been successful despite not following directions for the 100 Day Program. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

ALL ACCESS

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

Direct download: Org365-HolanS.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week, I am sharing my interview with Jessica E. Jessica has a very unique living situation. She has her son at home, her husband works out of the country, and her mom lives with them part -time. As a full time college instructor who will soon be moving overseas, she shares all about how now that she is organized she has more free time and more increased capacity to meet her goals.  I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365®

The Sunday Basket®

ALL ACCESS

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

Direct download: Org365-JessicaE-2.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

I am super excited to welcome you to the next Organize 365® Podcast series. I am sharing my conversations with members of the Dream Team while we are in the messy middle of some of our current transitions. In this 4 part series we will be unpacking the most commonly asked FAQs for different parts of the Organize 365® transformational journey. I want to keep you updated on changes and improvements as we declutter and organize before our 10th Anniversary in January 2022. We are not eliminating anything, or raising our prices on any existing products. We are simply doing some decluttering, organizing, and increasing productivity.

This podcast is all treats --  no tricks!

This week, Emily Kelly and I go back to the foundation of home organization and talk about the Sunday Basket®. Emily is our Director of Customer Success and my sister. Emily has been making phone calls to  many of you and has gotten to connect with you on a personal level, just like I did during the summer book tour. We are hearing about how you found Organize 365®, where you live, and what your transformational journey looks like so far. We are taking what we learn in those conversations to make our programs even better!

During our opportunity to interact with all the members of this community, the same questions came up over and over. Change is nerve-wracking, especially after the out of control experiences so many of us faced during the pandemic. As your organizing teacher, I want to give you the lesson plan for how to get started and make progress getting your home and paper organized. 

Today, Emily and I share the top ten questions we have been getting about the Complete Sunday Basket® System. Listen in and let me know what you learn from our discussion!

Top 10 Sunday Basket® FAQ:

1. What is the Sunday Basket®? 

At the most basic level, it is a box that sits on your counter and acts as a place to hold all your ideas, actionable to-dos, kitchen counter papers, and mail. It is also a cadence to check those items and prioritize them for maximum efficiency throughout the week. It is your brain in a box! This clears up your brain for higher level thinking, problem solving, or even to rest. Although the “brain in a box” started as a joke, the Sunday Basket® actually does externalize your executive functioning part of your brain. Anyone can find success using this system, but it is especially effective for people diagnosed with ADHD. 

2. What does the Complete Sunday Basket® System include?

As a teacher, I wanted to ensure that any kind of learner could use and be successful with this system. For that reason, the training materials and support cover a variety of learning styles. The physical products include all the supplies you will need to use your Sunday Basket®: a collapsible box in your choice of color, 25 slash pockets to organize your actionable paper, and a training booklet. There is an online dashboard with training videos. And, every purchase includes access to the online community with a weekly Sunday Basket® Club - an online co-working and accountability session. As with all Organize 365® products, this includes lifetime access.

3. How long does it take to know if this system will work for me? 

Some people catch on quickly, and have it down in two weeks. For the majority of people, it takes four to six weeks to develop the Sunday Basket® habit. It takes some time for you to change your habits, and learn a new way of keeping track of your to-dos and making good decisions about how and when to do them. You are moving from living in a reactive mode to a proactive mode. 

The to-do list isn’t going away; finishing your to-do list faster is not the answer. It takes your brain at least a month to trust yourself and the new system. Initially, your brain will pester you, but if you consistently use the Sunday Basket® your brain will learn to calm down and trust that the Sunday Basket® works!

4. What if Sunday at 5 pm doesn’t work for me to do the Sunday Basket® Club live?

Do it
every week when it works for you. Watch the Sunday Basket® replay! The day and time you do your Sunday Basket® does not matter as long as you are consistent and develop the habit. Make a rule for yourself, and stick to the time that works in your life

5. I don’t have enough paper to do my Sunday Basket® every week. What should I do?

It’s ok to adjust to what you need. If you are just getting started, still develop a routine habit of working in your Sunday Basket®. You can start with once a month or every two weeks to get in the habit, and then increase to every week.


If you have been doing your Sunday Basket® for a long time, you may be more proactive and you likely have cleared out a lot of your previous backlog. It’s ok to do it less frequently just don’t stop entirely! You can try every other week, or the first two weeks of each month, or a different cadence.

Whenever you feel stressed or anxious, consider going through your Sunday Basket® to get back on track. Chaotic times of year like May, August, and the last six weeks of the year benefit from weekly attention.

6. I have the opposite problem. I can’t wait a whole week without going into my Sunday Basket® again, there’s too much going on. Can I do it twice in the same week?

This situation is more typical, especially as people are learning the skills of organization or in a transition time of life. When going through my Sunday Basket®, I (Lisa) typically only plan through Thursday. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday are too far away to plan effectively. I front load my week to get as much as I can done on Monday and Tuesday, and then I adjust as the week goes on.
Of course, if needed, you can do your Sunday Basket® twice! 

7. You say to do the Sunday Basket® first when getting organized. Can I do the Sunday Basket® and the 100 Day Home Organization Program at the same time? If so, how would you recommend I do them together?

Yes! Emily recommends picking one day to do your Sunday Basket® and make that your only organizing task that day. Then, the rest of the week, do as much of the 100 Days as you reasonably can - focusing on progress over perfection and giving yourself grace for what is not done.


Lisa recommends - reframe your sense of time. “Most people underestimate what taking a full 365 days to focus on getting organized will do to transform the next ten years of your life” ~ Lisa Woodruff. Take a deep breath. You are on a journey moving toward proactivity and organization. You have everything that you need. What do you want to do first?

Start with your most pressing need or what you are most excited to do. Make it work for you. You have made an investment, so keep working towards your goals. 

8. I am drowning!! What if I don’t have the time to dedicate to my Sunday Basket® in order to get my five hours a week back? Is there a way to “start smaller” on the Sunday Basket® concept?

If you literally have no time or energy to get started, this can feel overwhelming.
We know that spending about 90 minutes per week going through your Sunday Basket® gives you five hours of free time later in the week once you establish the habit. The Sunday Basket® moves you into proactive anticipation, and that results in more efficiency and effectiveness. The net result is you have more free time.

If you are listening to the podcast, you are taking the first step. You are mentally becoming a more organized and proactive person. It can take 9-18 months for your mindset to change enough that you are ready to take physical action. You are doing it right, and you are already saving yourself time just by the learning you do when listening to the podcast!

Unfortunately, there is ultimately no smaller step to getting organized than the Sunday Basket®. In order to pivot from reactive to proactive living, you need a system. The Sunday Basket® is the system you need to create change. You need to refocus your time and priorities to make changes in your life. Find one whole day before the end of the year and use it to stop and completely change direction. Set up your Sunday Basket® and see how your life changes.  

9. Talk to me about the lifetime access part of Organize 365® programs. I have purchased programs from other companies and I haven’t done them. I don’t trust myself to follow through with this either. Can you convince me?

I don’t follow the most common online selling practices. I don’t want people to feel pressured or anxious about purchasing or participating. I want to offer a transformational experience that I know is going to work and will be available for you as you go through life. Financial situations change. Emotional and physical demands change. Unexpected events are part of every single life. Organize 365® is here for you when you are making progress, and when you step away and come back.


Making a purchase can take things to the next level. It tells your brain you are serious and that you are investing in making a change. The membership aspect to our paid programs also helps to build community, gives you support, and strengthens your commitment. When you are in the Sunday Basket® Club, you have a membership in a group of people who focus on prioritizing what they are accomplishing for the upcoming week.

With lifetime access, you can start today. Some progress is always better than NO progress. Start now and take the first step. Join and start making progress. And, with the Sunday Basket® Club, you have weekly educational courses from certified organizers. Slowly improving over time can lead to big changes.

10. Does the Sunday Basket® organize ALL my papers?

No! The Sunday Basket® is only for your
actionable to-do related papers. When you start your Sunday Basket® we have you collect the loose papers from everywhere in your home. You then divide them into actionable and reference/archive.

Any papers that do not require action should live outside of your Sunday Basket®. Organize 365® recommends storing your archival papers in portable, space-limited binders. Listen to podcast 456 next week for more information about that. 

BONUS: OK I think it might work, Is there a way for me to try it out before I buy it? 

We have a seven day mini course where you get more information on the Sunday Basket® delivered by email. Sign up at organize365.com/minicourse

Direct download: Org365-454.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

This week, I am sharing my interview with Mary G. She lives with her husband and two daughters. She shares about her journey with anxiety and helping her kids deal with their ADHD. Mary shares how getting (more) organized and learning to think proactively helped her family survive some very challenging unexpected events. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I do! 

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

ALL ACCESS

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

Direct download: Org365-MaryG.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

We have a big announcement for you! We wanted our amazing community to be the first to know. We are leaving Facebook!

I have wanted to leave Facebook for three years. The Organize 365® mission, vision, and values includes building life in community. In the past, some people who purchased a Sunday Basket®, the 100 Day Program, or All Access were unable to participate in the community aspect of our programs. Some did not have an account, and others chose not to have one. That limitation has always bothered me. The community that goes along with the Organize 365® transformation should be available to everyone who wants to participate.

We have been upgrading our technology and support for your transformation for several years already. The online community was especially difficult because it took us a long time to find the right way to create it. I wanted an app for our community that was truly independent of any other platform or company. 

We finally found our solution. We are creating our own custom Organize 365® community app. Now, everyone can be in community on this app specifically with other people who have invested in their transformational journey with Organize 365®. I wanted a way to host a community that was positive, productive, and purposeful. Everything in the new community app will help grow your mindset, increase your positivity, and help you organize your home to live a positive, proactive, purposeful life. 

Here’s what it will look like:

  • Organize 365® app for people who have purchased Organize 365® products
  • The app is free to download, but participation is limited to those who have purchased specified products
  • It will provide the same community groups we currently have on Facebook
  • The Dream Team and Certified Organizers will be there to help you along your journey
  • All Access members will have a curated, private podcast starting December 5th, available only in the app
  • The current Organize 365® app is going away once the new app is ready
  • The website is optimized for mobile and you have access to your dashboard directly on your smartphone
  • Near the end of 2021, we will archive all of the Facebook groups associated with our purchased products
  • The free Facebook groups will continue including my lives and the Blitzes

We are giving you information to help you be proactive about this transition. The app is not launching today. We’re hoping to have it live in the next 2-6 weeks - ideally sometime in November 2021. You will get an email inviting you to join once the app is ready.

We have been working on this transition for three years already. It’s the right time for us to make this happen. We are looking forward to seeing you in our new community as soon as everything is in place.

Direct download: Org365-452.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to our new Wednesday series of transformational stories from our new Friday Workbox Certified Organizers! Organize 365® recently upgraded all of the Business Friday Workbox Systems and we are so excited to share the stories of the certified organizers who helped us make these improvements!

On Wednesdays, I normally get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. 

Today, I am sharing my conversation with Jennifer Butler. Jennifer is one of our newest Friday Workbox Certified Organizers. Jennifer brings experience as a parent of a child with a serious medical illness, and as an entrepreneur. She also has experience with autism, ADHD, and living internationally with her family. She brings all of this life experience and knowledge to her services.

You can find Jennifer at House of Order, on Instagram, and Facebook.

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

All AccessCCESS

Friday Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

Organize 365® Certified Organizers

Direct download: Org365-Workboxes-JenniferB.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Four years ago, on a plane from Los Angeles to New York, I wrote out the Organize 365® mission, vision, and values. Today, we are a much larger team making a bigger impact in the world, but our values have stayed true. 

What is truly amazing is that these five values are not just held by the Dream Team, but these are the values that the Organize 365 community has as well. When we focus on these values, we arrive at the “after” feel of organization and productivity I shared with you last week. (Don’t forget to tag us in your after photos of what you are doing now that you have increased your capacity by getting organized!)

Organize 365® guides you along a transformational journey that organizes both your heart and your mind. Our values are:

  • Power of Positivity 
  • Building Community
  • Life in Abundance 
  • Transformational Freedom
  • Proactive Anticipation

Let me know what value you think is the strongest for you and how you are seeing it in your transformational journey!

Direct download: Org365-450.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to our new Wednesday series of transformational stories from our new Friday Workbox Certified Organizers! Organize 365® recently upgraded all of the Business Friday Workbox Systems and we are so excited to share the stories of the certified organizers who helped us make these improvements!

On Wednesdays, I normally get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. 

Today, I am sharing my conversation with Jenn Dickel. Jenn shared about finding a Mastermind back in early 2020. She is back today to share her experience in our newest Mastermind to improve the Friday Workbox and become a Friday Workbox Certified Organizer. Jenn is a businesswoman and entrepreneur who loves to help others focus on improving their productivity. 

You can find Jenn at Seasonal Navigation Organizing, on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

All AccessCCESS

Friday Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

Organize 365® Certified Organizers

Direct download: Org365-Workboxes-JennD.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Most professional organization companies like Organize 365® want to show before and after photos. We all love to see a big change - we love makeover shows, decluttering shows, and even dating shows. Magazine pictures and Pinterest show some drool-worthy before and after photos, and many of us are striving to achieve that “after” look of perfectly aligned shelves, and color coded produce bins in the refrigerator. But, those pictures aren’t reflective of real life. Those photo-worthy moments don't last when life is lived and stuff is used. 

The real change that comes from getting organized is hard to put into words, impossible to quantify, and can’t be demonstrated on social media. The photos we can take in our homes can sometimes show a partial improvement or a sample of the transformation. When you get organized, how you feel changes dramatically! 

Listening to this podcast starts to shift your mindset toward living an organized and proactive life. You incrementally get better at using your time to achieve your own priorities. When you add on our courses and products, you add rocket fuel to your transformation. 

Getting organized enough to feel different can happen in a weekend or a month, but your home (your outer reflection) will not look perfect. It’s actually not about your stuff.

Before

We have all had at least one season of life where our feelings were the “before” of living an organized life. When you live reactively, feeling stressed, depressed, overwhelmed, and anxious is typical. When your life is driven by someone else’s agenda and the obligations others place upon  you, all you can do is react. 

As I share in Organization is a Learnable Skill, during my most reactive times, I was afraid of letting other people down and not meeting external expectations. My emotions were just like a before picture of a disorganized kitchen. Thoughts were everywhere. I couldn’t focus and I knew I was not keeping up. Even worse, I was unbelievably stressed and I wasn’t meeting my own expectations. I didn’t have capacity for anything more. My house, brain, and heart were all disorganized.

After

As I developed the Sunday Basket®, I got a grip on my life again. Taking 60-90 minutes a week to look ahead and plan, gave me much more mental capacity and less stress. As I have continued to be more proactive in my own life, I have more time for myself, for self-care, for my passions, and for building relationships. I also have more capacity to pour into Organize 365® so that I can help you get organized so that you can live out your unique purpose. 

As you get organized and learn to live proactively, the way you feel inside changes. You are more calm and less overwhelmed. When unexpected events occur, you can adjust what is on your calendar, defer and delete the things that are no longer important, and handle what is actually happening. Your capacity increases - in almost every area of your life. You have more time for yourself, your relationships, your passion projects, and your life. 

Show us your afters!

We want to see your after photos. Not the cluttered and then empty kitchen counter, though that is great too! The after is you, living the life you are uniquely created to live!  

What is the essence of you? What do you love doing?

Maybe it’s being with your family, reading a great book, hiking in nature, starting a business, writing a book, spending time supporting a charity, or something we haven’t even thought about yet. 

The more you increase your organization and proactivity, the more capacity you have for what you want to do. The possibilities are limitless. Each of us has a story that keeps expanding.

So, on Saturdays, we want to see your afters on Instagram! We’ll be sharing some from the Dream Team, and we want you to share with us.

Direct download: Org365-448.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to our new Wednesday series of transformational stories from our new Friday Workbox Certified Organizers! Organize 365® recently upgraded all of the Business Friday Workbox Systems and we are so excited to share the stories of the certified organizers who helped us make these improvements!

On Wednesdays, I normally get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. 

Today, I am sharing my conversation with Sheri MacGregor. Sheri was a Wednesday Transformation guest in 2020 and is back today as a Friday Workbox Certified Organizer. She has experience as a teacher, running a construction business, dealing with medical paperwork, has worked on IEP’s, and has settled an estate. We talk about how she has adapted her professional organizing business in COVID and while moving. There’s so much to learn here!

You can find Sheri at Peaceful Paper Peaceful Spaces, on Instagram and on Facebook

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

All AccessCCESS

Friday Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

Organize 365® Certified Organizers

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

Direct download: Org365-Workboxes-SheriM.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

For our final podcast in the Friday Workbox series, I want to teach you how I am able to get so much done, so that you can use the same tools to transform your life.

I am a naturally productive person. My productivity is the result of my ability to plan. One of my gifts is my orientation to time. I have always been good at assigning an accurate amount of time to a task. As I moved from my to-do list to my Sunday Basket® and Friday Workbox™, I began to schedule time to complete tasks directly on my calendar.

Every week, I take time to work through my Sunday Basket® and Friday Workbox™. As I do so, I pull out the tasks that must be done in the upcoming week, determine how long it will take, and schedule when I will do them. I can immediately see if there are conflicts between what I need to do and the time available so that I can prioritize and make decisions proactively.   

Every seven days, I make new decisions about what I will take action on. The reason a Sunday Basket® and Friday Workbox™ are so effective is because all of my dreams, ideas, research materials and goals are safely captured in my boxes. I may not get to those dreams as soon as I would like, but nothing is ever forgotten. 

My secret sauce to productivity and success is the act of planning. I want to share with you how I use Planning Day and Workbox Planning Day with every new season as the ultimate task stacking habit. 

Home

At home, Planning Day occurs just prior to the new cycle of the 100 Day Home Organization Program. During that week, I look at how I will use my time in the upcoming 17 weeks, set new goals, and deep review through any 2.0 slash pockets that have been on hold.  

Work

At the end of each calendar quarter, I deep dive into my plan for my business. On the 13th week of the quarter, just before my new quarter starts, I use the last week to reconcile expenses, set new goals, update the social media agenda, and do a deep review of every business slash pocket I have created. Then, I execute that plan for the next 12 weeks.

Win

By being realistic about what I can complete in the upcoming quarter, I am able to actually achieve my goals and finish my projects. Anything that I will not have the time, money, motivation, or energy to address goes back into holding. Those ideas and projects are ready and waiting for their right time to shine. I know all of those slash pockets will be reviewed at the next planning day, and I can take action on them then if the time is right. 

The better you get at planning and improving your productivity, the more capacity and impact you will create. You will win at home, work, relationships, and in your community. You will learn to live with excellence, ease, and enjoyment. Planning is the key to unlocking your ability to achieve your goals!

Direct download: Org365-446.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to our new Wednesday series of transformational stories from our new Friday Workbox Certified Organizers! Organize 365® recently upgraded all of the Business Friday Workbox Systems and we are so excited to share the stories of the certified organizers who helped us make these improvements!

On Wednesdays, I normally get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. 

Today, I am sharing my conversation with Tanya Blackburn. Tanya is a professional organizer in Winston-Salem, NC. She is a Friday Workbox Certified Organizer who has experience in both corporate settings and as a small business owner. We talk about setting and meeting goals, finances, business operations, and the new slash pocket colors

You can find Tanya at Prime Organizing, on Facebook, and on Instagram

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

All Access

Friday Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

Organize 365® Certified Organizers

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

Direct download: Org365-Workboxes-TanyaB.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

This week, I want to teach you all about the green slash pockets in the Friday Workbox System. Green slash pockets are for financial responsibilities and repetitive administrative tasks.

At first, I thought green slash pockets were optional. I worked in direct sales for a long time, and I realized that most direct sellers did not look at the financial side of the business. We had a passion for the products and companies we were representing, but did not pay attention to the money. Unfortunately, many of us were not making enough sales to be profitable, and it was also easy to spend money faster than it came in on new samples and gifts.

Creative Memories introduced me to the idea of looking at my business finances on a monthly basis. By keeping my sales and purchases organized, I was able to know every month if I was making a profit or experiencing a loss. This simple financial organization was the inspiration for the Organize 365® Annual Income & Expense Binder.  Money in the door is not profit, and it is vital to update the financial situation of a business at least monthly to ensure your financial picture is realistic. 

Not everyone owns a small business or deals with financial tasks as a part of their work. When not used for finances, the green slash pockets are repetitive administrative tasks that need attention on a regular basis. Tasks repeat at different intervals in different work settings, but consider what tasks you do over and over every day, week, month, quarter, and year. Creating checklists and systems for ensuring these repeating tasks are handled will improve your efficiency and productivity. 

As you begin to reach your maximum capacity at work, I recommend hiring an administrative assistant or an executive assistant. These staff members can begin to take over these repetitive administrative tasks, especially those that are easy to explain and delegate. Training someone to handle your email, calendar, correspondence, and errands is an investment in leveling up your own capacity for your most important work. Having your checklists established helps ensure your assistant is cost-effective. 

Despite having over twenty team members at Organize 365®, there are administrative tasks I must do every single week. I share more detail in the podcast, but I still need to ensure that every week I make time for email, errands and orders, checklists, and my Friday Workbox. 

My Friday Workbox time is not optional. This is the time when I review all of my slash pockets and active projects, update my calendar, plan time to work on each slash pocket in the upcoming week, and update all of my meeting agendas. I need to ensure I move projects forward so our company stays healthy. 

Effective and productive work is the result of good habits and systems. If you want to succeed at work, your green (administrative) work is not optional. 

Direct download: Org365-444.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Welcome to our new Wednesday series of transformational stories from our new Friday Workbox Certified Organizers! Organize 365® recently upgraded all of the Business Friday Workbox Systems and we are so excited to share the stories of the certified organizers who helped us make these improvements!

Welcome to the newest Wednesday Podcast! On Wednesdays, I normally get to talk with members of the Organize 365 community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps, and triumphs along their organizing journey. You can see and hear transformation in action. 

Today, I am sharing my conversation with Adriane McGraw. Adriane is a professional organizer in Fostoria, OH. She has experience in HR for a Fortune 500 manufacturing operation. Her business Paper & Progress is dedicated to helping small businesses and working professionals streamline their operations and systematize their success. We also share about how the Business Friday Workboxes have been made even better by the certified organizers mastermind team.

You can find Adriane at Paper and Progress. She is also on Facebook and Instagram

I am grateful that you are reaching out to share your stories and progress with me and with the Organize 365 community. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday

For more information about the programs and products mentioned in this podcast please check out these links:

Organize 365

The Sunday Basket®

100 Day Home Organization Program

ALL ACCESS

Workboxes

Paper Organizing Retreats

Organize 365® Certified Organizers

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

Direct download: Org365-Workboxes-AdrieneM.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Today, I want to teach you how I think about the blue slash pocket topics in my Friday Workbox. At first, blue is for you. Then, as your business or role grows, blue becomes the color for your team.

In the Friday Workbox, the slash pockets build upon one another, and need to evolve in order, especially if you are the owner of a business. Pink possibilities become purple projects. Purple projects then inspire you to grow a team to help you meet your business goals. 

When you first begin working, blue slash pockets are for your professional development, meetings, and your human resources records. You need to know and understand yourself first, before you can lead a team. After you know yourself, you can learn more and better understand your family members and work team members. 

Learning and developing yourself and your team can only make your work better and more effective. As you better understand who you naturally attract and how you best deliver your message, your impact will grow. As you reach more people, you will need to add people to your team. 

If you are a female head of household, it is best and easiest to add housework assistance to your team first. This can be a housecleaner, laundry assistance, child care, pet care, or car care. Freeing yourself from household tasks gives you more capacity for your work. In Organization is a Learnable Skill, I tell my own story of growing a team at home and at work. 

Growing your team at work, especially if you are directly hiring people, is a new skill set that you will need to develop. If you are a business owner, when you hire employees or contractors, you will have to generate pink and purple work for those people and you will want to ensure their efforts are worth the financial expense. Blue slash pockets will help you keep your team organized, and will provide reminders to learn about your worker’s styles for learning, feedback, and motivation. 

As your team grows, your personal development should focus on growing your own skills in communication, overseeing workloads, and running meetings. Organize 365® also has some unique approaches to meetings. I share how we use one-to-one, daily huddles, department, and team meetings in the podcast - be sure to listen in to hear the details!

Direct download: Org365-442.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT