Organize 365® Podcast

Has your New Year’s energy kicked in yet? It’s time to capitalize on that energy! We know you have goals and we have the tools you need to get you there!

One of the things that I have learned over the last decade is that life is work. There’s unpaid work at home and paid work at work and sometimes there’s unpaid work at work and sometimes there’s paid work at home. It’s all work. In order for me to be the best me I can be I need to plan for both the unpaid and the paid work that is my privilege and responsibility as a contributing member of society.

We have heard from many of you that you are trying to decide or pick what your focus will be in 2023 and I say we should just have it all.

An organized person unlocks their time, allowing them to pursue what they are uniquely created to do! The start of the new year feels like the turning of a page, a clean slate to make lasting organizational change in our lives - at home and at work. Organization is a learnable skill. One that will take you wherever you want to go.

Follow your renewed energy that the new year brings and use it to maximize your progress! Half the battle in learning the skill of organization is deciding what to do next. The “Organization Is For ME 2023” Bundle can make those decisions for you. This bundle will assist you with getting organized and making consistent progress towards your goals at HOME and at WORK.

Why can’t we have it all? Why can’t you be organized with your paid work and your unpaid (but oh so fulfilling) unpaid work? 

That’s why we’ve put together the Organization is for Me in 2023 Bundle - to help you do just that. You don’t have to choose between work and home. This bundle is going to give you the courses and tools you need to excel at both. 

In this bundle you’ll get The Productive Home Solution™ with Planning Day. As well as The Friday Workbox® system with the Goal Planner and Planning Day for your work.

Imagine how amazing it will feel to unlock your time in 2023?! How it would feel to come home to an organized house and create a system and routine for managing your work, passion projects or business?

This is your YEAR! Be all you can be with the Organization is for Me 2023 Bundle!

Episode Resources:

Direct download: Bonus_Episode_-_Organization_is_for_Me_in_2023.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Last week I shared with you that one of my weaknesses has been overcoming the fact that I usually "ready, fire, aim" as opposed to "ready, set, go."

Learning to do the SET step in Ready, Set, Go has been my weakness. What I have found from nearly 11 years of working with the Organize 365® community is that GO is the area that tends to trip you up.

Being able to GO - actually getting started or keep moving on your goals and overcome your self-limiting doubt - can paralyze us.

I used to be where you are. I used to worry about what others would think of me. Will Greg (my husband) judge me? Can I meet or exceed my own goals? What if I can't do what I want to do? What if I can't live up to my own expectations? What if I invest time or money and fail?

The what ifs would paralyze me and keep me from starting. It allowed me to stay stuck. Stuck in my reactive and negative life. I would start a cycle of getting ready and set but never going. 

Ready, Set, repeat. There was no risk with ready and set. I didn't have to step too far out on a limb or too far out of my comfort zone.

Then one day I asked myself - what if everything happened for me? What if everything was easy? What if I did achieve these goals? What if I was able to achieve a bigger impact on my family, community and ultimately the world?

And I ask you - What if I had never started Organize 365®? What if I stopped podcasting tomorrow because I worry about looking silly or foolish? What if all of the Organize 365® products went away and were no longer resources to you?

How did that make you feel?

I don't know what it is that you have to offer the world. I don't know what a more organized life with less stress and more time will do for your family, your community and your work - but I bet it is more than you even realize now. And ultimately the only way we will know is if you GO. If you actually get started. Stop holding onto that branch of self-limiting beliefs and negative what-ifs. It's time to take the next step in your organizing journey - it's time for you to go.

What great timing! We are headed into a new year - clear out your house, clear out the cobwebs in your mind. Get ready, set, and let's GOOOOO. I believe in you. You can do this, you have what it takes, and the time is now. Please join me. We are going to do this together.

If your goal is to reclaim your home and your time - I have the solution for you. The Productive Home Solution™ is a new way of thinking about your space and time! Half of the battle with anything we are ready and set to do is deciding what the next step is (and then the next step after that). Avoid decision fatigue and use The Productive Home Solution™ as your roadmap to guide you through the journey of getting organized. Organization will carry you through so many of your goals; and was the first step for me getting to where I am today.

EPISODE RESOURCES:

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: 517-_Go..._Final.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Today I will be giving you a full orientation on the Organize 365® Kids Program.

Children want to be helpful. They love to learn and want to please adults! And in a perfect world, we would all have plenty of time to work together to keep a home clean and tidy.

But we often don’t have the time or energy. Our time and patience gets consumed by after-school activities, homework, housework, and adult work.

Teaching your children the skill of organization is an absolute must. These skills will serve them well while they're living in your household and, one day, their own. The Organize 365® Kids Program is your solution. This is your “get organized'' class for kids.” Taught directly to them by me!

EPISODE RESOURCES:

Direct download: Bonus_Episode_-_The_Kids_Program_Orientation_Final.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Meet Michelle. She’s the voice behind the mailbag introductions on the podcast and the Customer Service Team lead here at Organize 365®. Michelle is SO loved by the Organize 365® team and customers!

She got quite the surprise when I asked if I could come and organize her storage area and video it for The Productive Home Solution™!  You guys…my home is already SO organized, including my storage area.  I’ve already shown everyone in The Productive Home Solution™ my storage area too many times. It was time for me to tackle someone else’s storage room.

The progress we made in ONE DAY may seem unbelievable; but it is all very doable when you know the order of the tasks you need to complete to get organized! 

Michelle picked me up at the airport and we got to work. Thank goodness we had a dumpster. We started by focusing on what could go in that dumpster.  We were able to tackle a tucked away storage area with old shelving and her garage.  

Michelle, who described the experience as “humbling”, almost had us pass on that tucked away storage area. But looking back, that was the most rewarding space to get organized. We really forced Michelle to focus on what we could get rid of first by repeatedly saying “You have the dumpster, we are here, what can go?”. Then we focused on cleaning and reloading the storage area by zones. 

Michelle said it felt like a 40 year old weight had been lifted off her shoulders at the end of the day. Her mom (who also lives in the home) was so pleased at what we accomplished in one day.  

When you listen to this episode, I want you to be inspired and know that you too can learn how to get an organized storage area and then go do it. Once you have it organized properly, it should stay organized for a very long time…if not forever. 

EPISODE RESOURCES:

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!


Wow, a lot can happen in a year! As you reflect on this year, go over your planner, see how much you did, what new things you tried, and how much you have grown and changed!

Let’s talk about how you want to grow in your business, in your unique gifting and in the impact you can have on others. Imagine if you could help them to get results faster?  

As you think about 2023 I want you to consider helping your clients even more than you do already!  

Listen in to hear about The Paper Solution® Certification. If this is something that has been on your mind or in your heart to do next year - schedule a call with Monique Horb (MHorb@organize365.com) to learn more!

EPISODE RESOURCES:

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: End_of_the_Year_Business_Tax_Prep__2023_Certification_Dates.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

In part two of this three part Ready, Set, Go series, we are going to discuss the middle child of the Ready, Set, Go family - SET. What does it mean to get SET and to be SET?

The running joke for visionary entrepreneurs like myself is the quote, “Ready, Fire, Aim!”

And boy have I lived that quote in the past! At first, in my 20s, it was because I didn’t know what I was doing - at home, at work, or as a parent. I learned the hard way - every time!

But later in my 30s, it wasn’t really my fault anymore. There wasn’t enough time to prepare or aim. Life was moving so fast that I was missing important things while running at Mach 1 speed!

It wasn’t my fault. And it’s not yours either.

The last time we had “preparation time” in our calendars was in grade school where our teachers carefully planned our assignments and workload so we had time to complete things.

By the time high school arrived: extra-curricular activities, part-time jobs and sleep filled in all the cracks and then some.

No one has enough time. And no one is going to give us more time. #truth

Work colleagues, parents, children, partners, neighbors and friends all want our time. Some demand, some plead, some expect it without question. And we give it…gladly, lovingly, freely.

We get up earlier, stay up later, eliminate hobbies and rearrange our days.

Eve Rodsky compares our time this way, “Men’s time is worth diamonds, and women’s time is like sand.”

Ouch. You can’t unhear that. But, it’s true for me.

Greg has a golf night. He goes on fishing and golf trips. I haven’t had a hobby night or gone on a trip with friends since having children (22 years ago)!

After work, Greg makes dinner and then watches TV. Now, I do the dishes (sometimes), take a bath and do a puzzle. But I feel weird about it.

Until a few years ago, my after-work activities involved driving kids, cleaning the kitchen, laundry, straightening up, etc. until I felt it was an acceptable time for me to stop “working” and take my bath.

When are we going to give ourselves the permission to take back a little of our time?

Last week we talked about being ready. The truth is you and I are OVER ready. We have been for decades. But we don’t make the plan and run the race to a different end. Why is this?

SET is all about saying your time is not more important, but AS important as everyone else’s.

For me, in this season, it means I am going to start my Ph.D program and travel - A LOT. For work, for pleasure, and for me.

Let me be clear. My family is not happy about it. They intellectually support it, but in words and actions, they are not pleased with the change.

Am I being selfish? Maybe.

Would I want it for every single one of them? Absolutely! When one of my family members wants to…further their education, move out, have a baby, take a trip, find a new doctor, pursue a new passion…I facilitate the how, when, where, and payments.

I am happy for the sacrifices of time and self-focus I have devoted to my family over the last 25 years, and for the ability to grow Organize 365® around my family.

But now I want to pour more of my time and talent into my unique gifting.

So, how do we get SET to do the things we want and need to do in life?

We know how to help others in our lives get set. We set our kids up for school, set-up their school supplies, bookbags, dorm rooms, etc. We set our partners up for their endeavors and trips. We know how to get set-up; we just don't often look at doing it for ourselves the way we do for others.

How do we SET ourselves up for success?

Getting SET comes after getting ready because when you are getting SET you are already ready. You are doing the final steps before you GO (more on that next week).

What do you need to GO? Get that together now.

How can you get SET for a productive and proactive new year?

If your goal is to reclaim your home and your time - I have the solution for you. The Productive Home Solution™ is a new way of thinking about your space and time! Half of the battle with anything we are ready and set to do is deciding what the next step is (and then the next step after that). Avoid decision fatigue and use The Productive Home Solution™ as your roadmap to guide you through the journey of getting organized. Organization will carry you through so many of your goals and was the first step for me getting to where I am today.

EPISODE RESOURCES:

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: 516_-_Set...Final.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

On the Wednesday podcast, 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 learn the skill of organization, too!

Amber N. shared her transformation with me! She’s the mom of two children who are a senior in high school and 14 years old, and she has a Greg of her own! Amber had always been inspired to be organized; but at some point life just got in her way.  She was no longer organized but desperately wanted to be. Amber had tried other organization systems, including hiring a professional organizer.  The funny part is, once she got through some of the Organize 365® resources, she no longer needed that professional organizer to come back in for a “refresh”.  She had learned the skill of organization and now she can do it on her own! I keep telling you, organization is a learnable skill people!

Amber had to come to terms with what “being organized” actually means.  Did it mean mimicking the pictures from Pinterest; or was it more important for it to be done? Picture vs. Reality. Cute vs. Organized. We put so much pressure on ourselves to give our children these picture perfect parties or bedrooms. Honestly, our kids aren’t on social media and do not see the pictures we see. They are not on Pinterest. They are not looking for these tiny details. They are just happy to spend time with us, and to celebrate their birthday. Give yourself some grace. 

Amber had to start with baby steps…but ultimately she ended in a sprint.  She started with her mail and the Sunday Basket® despite all the paper in her house.  She was so excited with the results that she wanted more and wanted it more quickly. Now she’s The Paper Solution Certified and can help people on their own organizational journeys!

I encourage everyone to evaluate what your energy level is during each season, and what area you want to focus on - such as the house, school & work, or maybe it’s being a more intentional mom. Then set the expectation at the beginning that ‘something is better than nothing’ when it comes to getting organized. 

Amber has learned so much from Organize 365®.  Her major takeaway is to extend herself grace. Her other biggest takeaways are: 

  • If you put a process in place, you can move through it
  • Good is good enough and focus on macro not micro
  • Don’t get bogged down

Now that she is organized, she has time to spend with her family and on her business too. She also has more money because she isn’t paying late fees and more grace that she gives to herself!

EPISODE RESOURCES:

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.

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: Transformation_with_Amber_N._Final.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Are you READY to think differently? Are you READY to evaluate your past new years goals and productivity? Are you READY to put in the work and reap the rewards of your focus & labor? Are you physically READY? Mentally READY? Emotionally READY?

 

Today’s episode is about readiness. And I’m so excited to share my ideas for what it means to be READY.

 

My favorite activity is to think about my thinking. It is a habit that I have cultivated into an art form and can no longer do without. It’s my habit.

 

And that is the thing about habits. Bad ones are easy to fall into and hard to break. Good ones take thought, planning, discipline and determination to establish.

 

Yet, habits are the ONE thing that separates the life you have today and the future you envision for yourself.

 

  • You cannot fall into productivity (it doesn't just happen)
  • Your house will not magically clean and organize itself

 

As I get ready for the new year, I want to share with you how I think about this coming season. As the December days quickly pass by, I look forward to the new year. This is the official day I start running my race for a productive 2023 - when new opportunities like starting college for my Ph.D program begin.

 

I am getting ahead of myself. Today. Today is about being READY.

 

Readiness is a state of being.

 

You will never be 100% ready. And that's 100% okay! You don't have to be 100% ready in order to start!

 

Readiness is an understanding of the strengths and limitations you are experiencing in THIS phase of your life.

 

What unique seasons are you experiencing right now that you can leverage to move forward in your home organization goals?

 

  • Are you in a season where you are home more?
  • Do you have more energy at a certain time of day, or day of the week?
  • Is there a big event coming up that will motivate you to work faster?
  • Do you have a companion who is motivated to pace with you?
  • Is this a season where you have money in the budget to add to your efforts?
  • Would selling unused past purchases help you fund your new years goals? 

 

You may not be in a season where you are READY to devote more time and energy to your personal home. And that is OK.

 

However, what I have found to be true more often is that there is always a seed of readiness in each season, but we miss it.

 

I mentioned that I think about my thinking - constantly. I love sharing my unique thinking with you - to motivate you to do the same! Think about where you are right now and what you are ready for!

 

Change is normal. Most people spend their whole life trying to avoid change.

 

But change is where transformation comes from. Change unlocks the future. And it starts with READINESS.

  • READINESS is fragile
  • READINESS is fleeting
  • READINESS holds all the potential for the future

 

Next week I will share with you my thoughts on SET, but this week focus on your READINESS. READINESS is the first step in your new year. Don't miss it!

 

EPISODE RESOURCES:

 

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: 515_-_Ready....mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am 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!

Today I am so excited for you to meet Maura. Over the summer I put out a social media post requesting a family that would allow me to get their kid’s rooms organized and FILM IT ALL for a movie about Kids Organization. Maura was jumping up and down saying “pick me”!

Maura is a mom of four - Bode (12), Lucy Belle (10), Finley (7) and Blaise (4). She runs a bakery out of her house (oh my goodness - she makes the BEST cookies) and her husband also works from home. 

As Maura put it, “the spigot never stops.” Which leads us to talking about OVERWHELM as a parent. The overwhelm is beautiful and messy all at the same time. And I’m so glad I was welcomed into Maura’s house to put into action the principles of Organize 365®’s Kids Program.

I LOVE ORGANIZING CHILDREN. I LOVE IT.

I was able to come one day early, meet these kiddos, and look at the task ahead of me.  I spent a total of 2-3 hours with each child individually and we focused on the oldest three. 

We are all looking for ways to connect with and spend quality time with our children. Did you know that time spent teaching kids the skills of organization while organizing their room with them can be the BEST quality time? 

Get the kids involved! Working with your kid to organize their room is quality time you can spend with them. They love the one on one time. They love talking about their stuff. They love getting to make decisions. They love the result and the process. You are teaching them the valuable skill of organizing while spending time with them.

Make it an enjoyable process for both of you! Listen to their stories. Everything in their room has a story for them. These are their little treasures!

Now when Maura tucks her kids in at night, she can actually go into their rooms and not get filled with so much frustration over the mess. Listen for the update since my visit. 

I can’t come to everyone’s house but trust me - you can do this!  The Organize 365® Kids Program is like I am there with you and we go through all the areas.  Harness your kids excitement to your benefit

NOW is just as good a time as any.  Since the kids are out of school and there’s anticipation building for the holidays…declutter and organize.  Make room for all the new stuff that will be coming into your home. I also shared some tips you may want to use for other ideal times that you want to declutter and organize.

EPISODE RESOURCES:

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!

I look forward to helping YOU get Organized!

Direct download: Organize_365_Reality__KIDS_TV_Show_with_Maura_Final.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

“In today’s podcast, I’m channeling my 30-something self. 

Once school let out for the holiday break, any shred of productivity or sanity that I was going to have for the last 10 days of the year were out the window and I was back to being camp counselor again.

If you are in your active parenting years, this podcast is a HUGE HUG from me. It’s all going to be alright. You’re going to be fine. Everyone is going to love everything that they get, everyone is going to appreciate the work that you are doing, all the invisible tasks are going to be well-rewarded. YOU ARE DOING A GREAT!

If your primary role and responsibility right now is raising humans…that is not a job. It’s a life’s calling. It is your legacy. It is your life. It is all consuming. I’ve been there. I’ve done it. 

I know you feel like you never have any time. And you may tell yourself that you will get organized when you have more time. But, the truth is...people in their 30’s are the BEST at getting organized. Because you need it SO much more. 

 

Learning the skill of organizing is not optional. If you opt-out, meaning you don’t want to learn the skill of organizing, then everything is going to be harder for you. Organization skills is where ease, capacity, time and sanity comes from! It is an essential skill.

The Organize 365® Year End Bundle includes the three essential things you are going to need in order to get optimally organized in 2023. This will ensure your whole entire life is organized so you can move even faster.

I know what you want…

  • More impact
  • More capacity
  • Do more. Be more places

You really don’t have to pick and choose. You need to be everywhere and doing everything in your 20s-40s.

You need to learn the skill of organizing AND your children need to learn the skill of organizing.

So here’s what we’ve put together for you:

  1. The Productive Home Solution™
  2. The Kids Program - like The Productive Home Solution™ for your kids
  3. The Sunday Basket® System

If you are wanting to get your WHOLE family organized; from the dog all the way to mom and dad, then listen to the end because we have a big event planned to help you AND your family

Direct download: Limited_Time_Family_Organization_Year_End_Bundle_Final.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

show notes

Direct download: 514_-_The_Productive_Home_Solution_with_Tanya_Blackburn.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

On the Wednesday podcast, 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 learn the skill of organization, too!

This week, I am sharing my interview with Ashley C. She lives with husband, three children and some fun pets! She shares her struggle with living up to the Pinterest perfect bar she set for herself when she had her first baby.  

Ashley has been a dedicated podcast listener for years.  The Organize 365® podcast gave her the permission to forgo the Pinterest perfect nursery rooms and scrapbooks and get things done a little less than perfect.  

We discuss how we have all these long to-do lists and so much pressure on ourselves but the funny thing is, no one is checking that list.  No one is disappointed that we didn’t accomplish something or accomplish it in the way we planned.  

Ashley is somewhat of a reformed perfectionist now.  In her business, she uses the phrase “experiments in imperfection.”  She joined The Productive Home Solution™ and got her new home organized. Only recently did she purchase the Sunday Basket®.  Why now?  Lisa helped her to unveil feelings of fear of failure. Ashley knew about all the resources Organize 365® has to offer but she subconsciously felt that maybe she wouldn’t do them justice. 

I encourage everyone to not sit on the sidelines due to fear of failure. Is it time for you to get off the sidelines and make the commitment with the Sunday Basket® system I am happy to say Ashley is organized and on her way to the next chapter of life. Her transformation story is ongoing as she is now working her way into business and just got started with the Friday Workbox®

EPISODE RESOURCES:

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.

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: Wednesday_Podcast_with_Ashley_C..mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Great News!  We have two new locations for 2023!!  I hope to see you there!

 

Learn more and sign-up for a live, in-person Paper Organizing Retreat.

 

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: Coffee_Chat_2023_Paper_Orgnaization_Retreat_Locations.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

In today’s episode as we wrap up our series on my ADHD journey and exploration of executive functions, I am excited to introduce you to Keith Boswell, Vice President of Marketing at ADHD Online.

ADHD Online is transforming the diagnosis and treatment of people dealing with neurodiversity. Organize 365® and ADHD Online have partnered several times over the past year to present organizational solutions that I have found to work for others struggling with ADHD.

Keith brings a new level to this conversation we’ve been having - he is open about his diagnosis of ADHD and his own organization challenges and triumphs. We talk about his familys’ problem areas, the progression of aging children, and roles that will come with the organization of their house.

Find out how we met and how our partnership is evolving. Keith and ADHD Online are doing some important work for awareness and helping people function with ADHD. They are helping people to get a faster diagnosis and move on to finding solutions.  ADHD Online has medical professionals providing the diagnosis and from there you can choose to work with them or your primary doctors and pharmacies. And, they are proud to say that the solution is not always medicine!  They really work with their clients to help them succeed. Organize 365® is  excited to work with them to provide solutions that work for helping their clients live a more organized and proactive life.

EPISODE RESOURCES:

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: 513_-_Keith_Boswell_from_ADHD_Online.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

In today’s episode we wrap up our four part series on exploring the executive functions and the role they play in our ability to be organized. I’ve always believed that you won’t just “be organized.” Organization is a learnable skill. This means that it’s not something you have to be born with. If you’re currently not organized, that's okay too! You can absolutely learn how to be organized.

I have always had a strong belief that organization is a learnable skill. So, I wasn’t surprised to learn that 87% of Americans also believe that organization is a learnable skill. However, I was surprised to find that of those same Americans - only 18% believed that they are organized. Organize 365® courses and programs teach you how to be organized. If you struggle with initiating and task monitoring, then you need community. That’s why adding the Organize 365® Community App was important to me.

Initiation is simply the “start” factor. Task Monitoring is the ability to look at how far you have come and understand how much still needs to be accomplished.

EPISODE RESOURCES:

Listen to today’s episode to learn how community and grace play a huge role in helping you learn a new skill (like organizing).

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: 512_-__What_is_the_Executive_Function_of_Initating_and_Task_Monitoring.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

As we continue our series exploring executive functions today we get to talk about planning.

Can you hear it in my voice? Planning is my FAVORITE-IST thing!

Planning is so much more than filling in a planner or checking boxes. Planning is purposefully setting aside time and deciding how you want to show up in the next season. Decide what rules you want to make for your next season so you can be as proactive as you want to be. It’s time to dream about what is possible, about what you want to change, and about what you don’t want to change. 

At Organize 365®, I offer LIVE Planning Days for home and work where I teach you how to proactively plan. They are conveniently scheduled around natural Golden Windows.

Golden windows is a phrase I created to help articulate different times that are optimal for getting started on your transformational journey to organizing. Learn more about golden windows in podcast 242 - Golden Windows of Organizing Opportunity.

You do realize, without knowing it, there are about three times a year we shift in life?  These are what I like to call Golden Windows.  This is a time to organize and plan.  Effective planning going into these golden windows can have a profound impact on your organizational transformation because your organizing energy is naturally higher than normal. And with a plan in hand you can really capitalize on that energy. 

Planning is everything! Planning will help you make the invisible work visible. See how I’ve applied this to so many seemingly “invisible” tasks in life such as putting up and taking down my Christmas tree.

There are a lot of layers to this conversation - listen to the full episode and join me for the next part of this executive function series where we will be talking about initiation & task monitoring.

EPISODE RESOURCES:

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: Ep._511_-_What_is_the_Executive_Function_of_Planning.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Today’s coffee chat is a special Holiday Blitz Edition. Every year I host my annual FREE Holiday Blitz. The goal of the Holiday Blitz is to help you strategically plan for your holiday season by making the invisible work of the holidays visible. The Holiday Blitz includes 13 free downloadable planning pages and 5 course videos where I walk you through planning the holiday season. We talk about how you can simplify your holidays, embrace your uniqueness and be present, proactive and productive throughout the season.

 

Listen in as I interview busy CEO and mom Jessica Evans of Ultimate Bundles. Jessica shares with us how she used the Holiday Blitz to plan out her holiday traditions. Find out what traditions she loves, which ones she doesn’t enjoy as much and how she is setting herself up for success this holiday season. Jessica also shares some really fun holiday ideas!

 

Do you want to plan your holiday season with The Holiday Blitz? There’s still time! Join the Holiday Blitz On Demand now.

 

EPISODE RESOURCES:

 

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: Ultimate_Bundle_Coffee_Chat.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am EDT

Does it ever feel like you have a two year old in your brain talking to you all day reminding you of things you need to do and demanding what to do next?  Do you feel like you are playing an adult version of Memory or Go Fish when it comes to your paperwork? 

Now that I've learned that I have ADHD, I'm ready to dive deeper into this topic of executive function and organization with formal research. Lots of times ADHD can be diagnosed when the person’s executive functions are analyzed. In this episode I explain the Executive Function of the Organization of Materials.

Did you know most people organize their closets and kitchens first?  Why do you think that is? Listen to the full episode to understand.

At Organize 365®, I have designed systems with enough structure to get the job done and with a little wiggle room for customization, because we’re all unique. Here are the rules to keep you on track…

  1. Everything should have a place. True - but you (not Pinterest, not society - you) get to pick that place.
  2. We tend to reorganize about every twenty years due to stages of life and unexpected life events. This is totally NORMAL!
  3. Maintain what is working for you. You only need to implement systems for what is unorganized.
  4. Organization of Materials has an order (think stages of life)
  5. Organization of Materials is about personal rules you create to maintain sustainable organization. 

Through learning the skill of functional organization; you will literally unlock your time and be able to spend it doing what you are uniquely created to do.

EPISODE RESOURCES:

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!


What's next for research at Organize 365®? Now that I've learned that I have ADHD, I'm ready to dive deeper into this topic of executive function and organization with formal research.

Lots of times ADHD can be diagnosed when the person’s executive functions are analyzed. 

In this episode, I shared three examples of me relying on my working memory.  I analyze if my working memory helped or hindered the situation and explore explanations as to why I responded, the way I did, in each situation.  

The executive function of working memory holds information in your head for a short amount of time so you can manipulate that information and do something.  Example: A math problem.  You take in the information of the numbers and functions that are being requested. When you do the problem in your head you are using your working memory to solve the problem.

All hope is not lost - yes we can improve our executive functions according to Psychology today.  They suggest to identify which executive function you want to improve and then pick a strategy to help you improve.

Strategies to improve your executive functions include:

  1. Chunk things into smaller tasks
  2. Externalize information using notepads, to do lists, or reminders 

(had you completed the math problem, mentioned earlier, on paper, you would be helping your working memory by reducing demand upon your working memory so it is available for other items you need to remember)

  1. Buddy up with a peer to foster accountability
  2. Blocking access to distractions such as your phone in a drawer while focusing on a task
  3. Use rewards to motivate periods of consistent effort

EPISODE RESOURCES:

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: 509_What_is_the_Executive_Function_of_Working_Memory.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:00am EDT

What's next for research at Organize 365®? Now that I've learned that I have ADHD, I'm ready to dive deeper into this topic of executive function and organization with formal research.

There are five areas of executive function that involve organization:

  1. Initiating - getting started
  2. Working Memory - holding information
  3. Planning - planning ahead
  4. Monitoring - knowing what needs to be done next
  5. Organizing Materials - organizing your home

I believe that you can impact and change your executive functioning by learning the skill of organization so you can have more time to do what you're uniquely created to do. At Organize 365® we have programs, systems, and products to help you in each of these areas.

In this episode, I explain where I am going next and the massive decision that I have made in order to take the next step. I've talked about doing it for years, but finally, in January of 2023, I will begin a one-year program that will lead me into a Ph.D. program.

No one else will do this research for me. If we are going to take on this project as a company, I want to be the one not just leading the team, but leading the research. To do that, I have to have a Ph.D.

I've already been rearranging my schedule and preparing myself, my family, and my team for what this will look like. I'm dividing my week into three parts so my family, my company, and my studies all get the attention they need.

Come along with me on the journey!

 

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: Org365-508.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 want to let you know that there will not be any Wednesday Transformations in November. I had some scheduling conflicts and was not able to record any new interviews for you. Wednesday Transformations will return on December 7.

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!

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-W-2022-10-26.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Do I have ADHD or not? This has become so confusing!

According to ADHD Online, I have a medical diagnosis of ADHD. According to Barbara Hunter's analysis of my BRIEF-A assessment, my executive functioning indicates that I do NOT have ADHD. Who is right?

I took my questions to a psychologist in Cincinnati for a final answer.

Why? Well, first, I want to give good recommendations to the Organize 365® community. If ADHD Online is not a good resource, I don't want to refer you to them. Second, I want to continue to do executive function research related to ADHD and organization, so I want to know if I actually have ADHD or not as I go into that project.

Organization is a learnable skill. If we learn the skill of organizing, can we mitigate or eliminate the effects of ADHD?

In this episode, I share with you my story of gathering supporting information from my childhood, taking additional assessments, and speaking with the psychologist to get the final answer. I explain the criteria for an ADHD diagnosis. I also share how in the process, we determined first that I do NOT have dyslexia as I have always been told.

Two interesting things were the clinchers for my final answer. One was speeding tickets, and the other was how I handle money and debt.

Listen to this episode to hear how in the beginning, the psychologist believed there was no way that I could have ADHD and how this all came together to finally find out if I do have ADHD.

More Resources

 

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: Org365-507.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 Carrie F. She lives with her husband and they have two teens at home and one away at college. She's a retired veterinarian. Paper was her greatest organizational struggle at home, especially after closing her practice. We talk about how she overcame her piles of paper by pressing through, starting with the current paper, and then working her way back through the rest of the paper.

Is paper your nemesis? The Sunday Basket® System is the first step to getting your paper organized!

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-CarrieF.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

This month I've been exploring the topic of ADHD and more specifically, discovering if I have ADHD.

Last week, I shared my journey to reach the point of deciding to be tested for ADHD. First I took the assessment from ADHD Online and was told that I DO have a medical ADHD diagnosis.

In this episode, I'm talking with my friend Barbara Hunter about whether she thinks I have ADHD... or not. She gave me The BRIEF-A to make her determination. This is the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function® Adult Version.

The BRIEF-A is given in three parts: I took the assessment. Then both my husband, Greg, and my chief of staff, Stephanie, took the assessment to give their perspective on me.

Barbara walked through the sections of the test with me to explain what the various sections mean and my results compared to Greg and Stephanie's opinions of me, as well as ways to improve my executive functioning in some areas.

The final result? According to The BRIEF-A, Barbara says that this current assessment of my executive function says that I do NOT have ADHD.

So, where do I go from here? I contacted a doctor in the Cincinnati area to do more testing so I can definitively find out if I have ADHD or not. More to come!

Looking for more information on ADHD and Organization? Start with my book, How ADHD Affects Home Organization. It's available for free as an audiobook on the ADHD Playlist!

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

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: Org365-506.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 Kat S. She lives with her husband and together they run her music studio out of their home. Kat feels like she learned to be organized at a young age because her mom had hoarding tendencies, but she has learned so much more since implementing Organize 365® systems. She and her husband trend to the minimalist side and have great systems in place for living and working together.

Kat was able to bring her husband home to work in her business in part because she was able to show him using her Business Friday Workbox® and her stack of pink slash pockets all of the ideas that she had for her business that she needed help to bring to life.

What's in your pink slash pockets?

Visit Kat's website at KatStarrMusic.com.

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-KatS.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Do I have ADHD? My mom doesn't think I have ADHD. I didn't think I had ADHD. At one point, I adamantly opposed people who suggested I had ADHD.

But, in more recent years, I have thought: Maybe I do have ADHD?

When I would organize women in the Cincinnati area, many would start their appointments by telling me that they had or thought they had ADHD. My kids received their ADHD diagnoses when they were children and attended Springer School and Center for many years. I was a teacher and I saw many kids receive their ADHD diagnosis and the support put in place for them.

My book How ADHD Affects Home Organization came out of this time of discovery and research about ADHD and research about organization. (By the way, you can now get the audiobook for free on our new Organize 365® ADHD Playlist!)

People who have ADHD need more structure and support. It's not an issue of intellect. It's an issue of executive functioning. Everyone learns at a different pace and organization is a learnable skill. It's just that people who have ADHD tend to need a person to help put structure in place for them to learn the skill of organizing.

In this episode, I fill you in on my journey of learning about ADHD and then coming to the point of deciding to find out if I actually have ADHD... or not.

Many things came together recently for me to reach this point personally. I have done some biohacking with my Oura Ring and Apple Watch. I began a partnership and series of webinars with ADHD Online and learned more about their services.

But, it was my recent meeting with Barbara Hunter that pushed me over the edge. She was at Springer School and Center for over 20 years. I took any class they offered as my kids were students there. They often bring in top-notch experts in conjunction with Cincinnati Children's Hospital. Barbara is now doing executive function coaching through her company Integrated Learning Designs. In this meeting, we were discussing how there are many resources for students and employees with ADHD, but no one is really addressing how ADHD affects your home life.

So, then, I pondered out loud whether I actually have ADHD or not. Do I really want to know? What would it change if I knew? I wouldn't medicate for ADHD at this point in my life if I have a diagnosis because I have skills and systems already in place to make my life run smoothly. What would knowing that I have or do not have ADHD do for me? What I really want to know is my level of executive functioning and how to optimize that, whether I have ADHD or not!

Barbara tells me there's a test for that! It's called The BRIEF-A. I was in! Just in our casual conversation, Barbara saw signs in me that pointed towards an ADHD diagnosis. And I saw more signs. I always had a floating "C" in school, I'm a talker, I interrupt people, I'm a busybody who doesn't vacation well, and I can't sit to watch TV without a puzzle to work on or laundry to fold. So, I made arrangements to take the test with Barbara.

Before that, still unsure of if I really wanted to know the answer, I decided with some trepidation and some encouragement from Joey to first take the test from ADHD Online to see what they had to say.

The results? According to ADHD Online and their assessment, I have ADHD.

Next week, I talk about my results from The BRIEF-A and my meeting with Barbara Hunter. What does Barbara have to say about my executive functioning based on The BRIEF-A?

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

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: Org365-505.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 Jennifer S. She lives with her husband and three kids, two of whom are off to college. Jennifer is an attorney and has always worked full-time outside of the home. We have a great discussion about wills, trusts, power of attorney for your adult children, inventories, caring for aging parents, and so much more. Jennifer shares how the Sunday Basket® kept her life running in a hard season while caring for her grandmother at the end of her life and her own aging parents.

Jennifer loves Planning Days for both home and business but needed a little extra help. She gives a thank you to Stefanie at Island Organizing for her services related to the Business Friday Workbox® organization and the community she's found there.

Jennifer, like many of us, tends to be a perfectionist. She's learning to say, "I am a person of excellence!" How are you pursuing excellence?

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-JenniferS.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

In over a decade of studying female heads of households in their homes and researching what it takes to get them organized, I've thought a lot about time and the invisible work we are doing.

The big thing when I started my business was hitting six figures. Everyone wanted to hit $100,000 in yearly income. Back then, I had just quit my teaching job in a private school making $24,000 a year in take-home pay. I couldn't even wrap my mind around ever being a six-figure income earner!

Over the years, as I've looked at how women use their time, I've come to this conclusion: You can have six-figure time without the six-figure income. It's all about mindset and how you choose to spend your time. In this episode, I share my observations of six-figure income earners and my suggestions for developing a six-figure time mindset.

How Six-Figure Income Earners Spend Their Time

As a professional organizer, I went into the homes of many six-figure earners with million-dollar homes. These were often doctors, lawyers, business owners, and C-Suite executives. I had the opportunity to see how they run their lives and the type of help they hired. Having a six-figure income gave these women and their families a choice in how they spend their time.

Can you have this six-figure time mindset without the six-figure income? I think you can! Many millionaires are time-poor while many who have no income at all are time rich. What's the difference between time poverty and being rich in time?

Time Passing vs Making a Difference

Most people see time in terms of how much time is passing and what they can get done. Truly productive people see a third dimension: If I spend my time doing this today, will it make a difference in the future? Will it make a difference a month, a year, 5 years, or 10 years from now? People who are time multipliers always make their time decisions based on the significance factor.

If you could get the to-do list done, what would you do with your free time? Too many of us just add more to-do items to the list. 

I think we most want time freedom. To reach that goal, you must be proactive and not reactive. I talk about this all the time at Organize 365®. This is not a new concept. But, this is more than just planning out the big projects. You have to develop the habit muscle of proactivity in every area of your life.

It means not doing every little thing when you have the thought. You write the thought on the index card, drop it into the Sunday Basket®, and do those little things all batched together to save time.

Six-figure time takes being proactive a step further. Instead of waiting to have the thought about the dog's medicine or the bills that need to be paid, you put it on a schedule with a plan for how to get it done or create other automations for the task like using bill pay. You purposely plan ahead for how the task will be done. What in your life can be systematized, scheduled, and automated to save you time and mental space?

Forward Thinking and Planning Days

Everyone is a forward thinker according to Ben Hardy. The difference is how far ahead into the future you think. It's great to have 15 minutes of free time and do something that your future self will appreciate like emptying the dishwasher or starting the laundry, but this is reactive productivity. How do you move to the next step and think farther into the future?

The answer is planning days.

Planning days for your home and your work give you the focused time to get more done and have more impact. The goal isn't a longer to-do list. The goal is more time to do what you're uniquely created to do so you can have more impact.

I'll be honest: It's more comfortable to add to the to-do list and check off the low-level tasks because it makes me feel productive. It takes time to wrestle with the question of what you're uniquely created to do and to try things out to see if that's the right thing for you. It takes time to develop skills and practice those skills. Six-figure income earners spend a lot of time growing their skills. 

Six-figure income earners also spend a lot of time networking and making connections with like-minded people. Surround yourself with people who are investing their time and resources into being more productive so they can have an impact on the world.

They also change their role as they grow. Six-figure income earners do the things that are the highest use of their time. You have to focus on working your way out of jobs. This might mean delegating jobs to other people or services that can do the work for you. This might be other family members. Consider meal planning services or hire a house cleaner. It might also mean changing the standard at which you do a task in your home. Can you lengthen the time between dusting or changing your sheets?

Building Relationships

I think that the true freedom of six-figure time comes when you can start to think about not just the work that needs to be done at home or in the office, but how you can impact relationships in your family, friends, and work. This is harder to prioritize because no one is holding us accountable. 

Using the Sunday Basket® for Six-Figure Time

The Sunday Basket® System is the first step in developing a six-figure time mindset. It helps you think about and systematize your personal life, household, family, and finances. I teach you how to move from being reactive to proactive.

Now, based on this podcast you can take your thinking to the next level. When you focus on your Sunday Basket® color of the week, consider the chess level next steps. What can you do for yourself, your household, your family, or your finances that would save you time and give you time freedom for the future?

I encourage you to pay special attention to how you invest your time with your family because these are the types of things that never make the to-do list and we fail to think about them until it's too late. I've shared many times about how I spent purposeful time with my kids in their teens to develop the close relationships that I have with them now. 

Here's a simple way to be productive in your home instead of reactive and make time for family and relationship-building this holiday season: Join our holiday blitz! Get on the wait list for the 2022 Holiday Blitz now!

Being a six-figure time person means seeing how valuable your time is and how valuable you are. Invest your time wisely!

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

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: Org365-504.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

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.

For the rest of this month, I have a treat for you on the Wednesday Transformation episodes I want to share with you some of the extraordinary breakthroughs from women just like you who attended Embrace 2022. Listen in for Part 3 of the transformations!

Embrace is now available on demand! You can learn more about the Embrace Self-Guided Retreat here.

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-Embrace2022-Part3.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

There are four types of work that we all do at home. In this episode, I go through these four types of work in detail and discuss how to reduce the amount of time spent on the first three so you can do more unique purpose work.

Housework

We've talked a lot over the last couple of years about housework. As a part of our Organize 365® Research, I have honed in on and defined this type of work. There are three main types of housework: cleaning, tasks of daily living, and organization. You must clean your home to some standard you set, do all the tasks that make you a human, like showering and brushing your teeth, plus the things in your house must have a home. Housework is like a part-time job of 18-25 hours each week for the average household without children!

Listen to these episodes for more about how I define housework:

Invisible Work

This is the work that happens in your Sunday Basket®. I talked about this with Eve Rodsky. Invisible work is the mental load and related tasks to running a household. These are things like paying the bills and planning for holidays. This type of work doesn't fit into the housework category and we have a hard time labeling and quantifying it.

The Sunday Basket® System helps with invisible work. The first six weeks of setup and habit-building can take a lot of time because you're setting up systems and processes. You have a set time to handle all these little one-off or recurring tasks. It might take you 90 minutes to 3 hours in the beginning, but then something magical happens. The time savings (and lightened mental load) that you experience during the week is exponential. The average Sunday Basket® user saves 5 hours each week!

There is a second type of invisible work: emergency invisible work. Illnesses, scheduled changes, and childcare/adult care fall into this category. When you or someone else gets sick in your family, the world around you doesn't stop and wait for you. The regular work doesn't go away and the emergency itself often creates more work. There are also schedule changes that are really just a part of life and we have to just roll with them. Not everyone has the final category, but childcare and caregiving for adults is a full-time 24/7 job all on its own. 

Hobby Work

Angela Watson and I talked a lot about hobby work earlier this summer in relation to teachers. We naturally fill our time with work, but it's not all essential work. Sometimes, we do extra work to make ourselves feel better or make something look the way we want. That's hobby work. This often involves trying to be perfect or redoing work. When I talked to Jacqui, she called this overwork. Whatever you call it, it is robbing you of your free time! This is refolding the clothes in the drawer, matching the socks, folding the underwear, micro-organizing the toys, and over-cleaning.

Unique Purpose Work

The female head of household struggles the most to prioritize unique purpose work over all other work. Unique purpose work is the work that you're uniquely created to do. No one else can do this work except you. But, too many of us feel that we must have an "A" in the first three areas before we can move into unique purpose work. Your family will push back. Your internal thoughts will push back. It's easier to search the internet for a fun printable about cleaning and press into hobby work. The reality is this: The pain of not doing what you're uniquely created to do must become greater than the pain of continuing to prioritize housework, invisible work, and hobby work for you to choose to prioritize your unique purpose work. 

How Do I Find What I'm Uniquely Created to Do?

I'm asked all of the time: How do I find what I'm uniquely created to do?

First, I suggest that you go through the Embrace Self-Guided Retreat. We've set it up as an on-demand experience that you can do alone or make a weekend of it with friends. The sessions will help you focus on yourself and show you how to begin to dream again. 

Second, you need to understand that finding your unique purpose takes time. I told you when we talked about passive organizing that it takes 12-18 months of research before you get started on organizing. It's natural then that it will take just as much time and research to find what you're uniquely created to do. You need focused thinking time.

At Organize 365®, our mission is to help you get organized so you have the free time to do what you're uniquely created to do. Take your time back through organization! Find what you're uniquely created to do and press into it!

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: Org365-503.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

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.

For the rest of this month, I have a treat for you on the Wednesday Transformation episodes I want to share with you some of the extraordinary breakthroughs from women just like you who attended Embrace 2022. Listen in for Part 2 of the transformations!

Embrace is now available on demand! You can learn more about the Embrace Self-Guided Retreat here.

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-Embrace2022-Part2.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Marie Kondo is like the Atkins Diet of organizing. Yes, it's true. Let me explain.

Please understand that this is NOT an anti-Marie Kondo episode! I think Marie Kondo is awesome in so many ways. She's done so much to raise awareness for organizing and decluttering in the media and the general public. There are benefits to her method, but I do feel that the Marie Kondo method is not the best long-term solution for the average American woman or home.

Last week I kicked off this podcast series by talking about passive organizing. When you're in this information-gathering stage, your interest and initial motivation can be sparked by things like Marie Kondo's book or TV show. 

In this episode, I explain why Marie Kondo's organizational method is like the Atkins Diet of organizing. 

First, ultra-low-carb diets like the Atkins Diet can give you quick results. You can get really, really quick results using the Marie Kondo method. That quick win can give you the motivation that is needed to keep going in the beginning. The problem is that you have to get rid of nearly everything to get those results!

Americans (and Australians) in particular tend to have larger homes and more stuff in those homes. Japanese homes are usually much smaller and rooms are more often multifunctional. When an American woman uses the Marie Kondo method of organizing, there's a lot of pain and chaos that goes along with pulling everything out of a particular space. It's like the headache you get when you go through carb withdrawal.

Second, the Atkins Diet is very one-size-fits-all, as is the Marie Kondo Method. There are strict rules to follow without deviation to get those results. Marie Kondo's Method is very prescriptive, telling you exactly how you should have each area of your home.

Do you have paper? She says get rid of it all except a tiny folder. This doesn't work for the typical American because so many important documents must be kept and presented in paper format. My grandson, Grayson, is a toddler and he already has two pieces of paper that must be kept track of for the rest of his life: his birth certificate and his social security card. We are not and cannot be paperless in the United States at this point in time. There are too many variables in the American household, especially in terms of paper, making a one-size-fits-all approach difficult to follow.

Don't even get me started on books. Marie Kondo says to get rid of all of your books. I did it. I got rid of all of my books. And I regret it! I love books and bookshelves. I have a couple of custom bookshelves in my home and I want more. I have hundreds of books on Audible and I'm in the process of buying many of those again in paper format so I can highlight them and write in them. 

(Side note: I'm so used to thinking in terms of pink, purple, blue, and green work that I'm starting to highlight information in my books this way using our Organize 365® highlighters.)

Third, the Atkins Diet is very restrictive and not as filling. The Marie Kondo Method is very restrictive and not as fun. There is one way to follow her program. If you don't follow the program to the detail, you don't get an A. But, I want an A in organizing.

The problem is, I like stuff. I'm organized, but I like stuff. I don't have a ridiculous amount of stuff, like clothes, but my closet is far from being a capsule wardrobe. 

These types of prescriptive systems tell you exactly what the end should look like to be considered organized. Minimal. Rainbow ordered. What if you have 35 pieces in your wardrobe instead of 33? What if you kept your books instead of getting rid of them all? Then you didn't follow the method and you don't get an A. You're not organized. 

Lastly, most people cannot maintain the Atkins Diet for the rest of their lives. In a similar way, it is difficult to maintain organization like Marie Kondo. As soon as you stop following the prescriptive directions, the organization falls apart. It doesn't last. The Marie Kondo method of organizing gets you started, but it's not a sustainable way for most Americans to live.

Organization is a skill that must be learned.

You must know how and why you want to get organized. Your phase of life and the type of order that you want play a part. You need to practice making decisions that become rules and then habits for your life and home so that in the long term, you deal with less decision fatigue. 

Marie Kondo's method of tidying is a wonderful place to start your journey. You can make some great visible progress with her system, but if you are not naturally a minimalist, it is not a sustainable lifestyle. 

If you're like me and you like stuff (and are a bit of a rebel), it's time instead to focus on learning the skill of organization. Use the momentum of these quick-start methods to propel yourself into lifelong organization rather than endless cycles of decluttering and feelings of lack.

Here at Organize 365®, we're not about Pinterest-perfect organizing. Our focus is functional organizing. Learning the skill of organizing is a lifestyle change, not a quick-fix project. It requires a mental shift. It's about having what you need, those things having a home, and regularly putting everything back where it belongs.

The Productive Home Solution™ teaches you the skill of organization, guides you in developing systems, and learning to make decisions that become habits. I help you do the mental and the physical work. I show you how to make the invisible work visible. 

Are you ready to move from passive organizing and short-term solutions to actively learning the skill of organization?

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

Related Episodes

 

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: Org365-502.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

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.

For the rest of this month, I have a treat for you on the Wednesday Transformation episodes I want to share with you some of the extraordinary breakthroughs from women just like you who attended Embrace 2022. Listen in for Part 1 of the transformations!

Embrace is now available on demand! You can learn more about the Embrace Self-Guided Retreat here.

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-Embrace2022-Part1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

It's time to add a new term to our organizing glossary: passive organizing.  I've said for years that it really takes three years to get organized, but the first 12-18 months are not easily recognized in that process. The reason is that this first chunk of time is spent in passive organizing.

What is passive organizing? Passive organizing is the time period during which you're becoming aware that maybe organization could help you become more productive. Maybe organization could help you get back your time. You're thinking, you're researching, and you're listening. This is passive organization. The change is happening in your mind, in your emotions, in your heart, and in your beliefs.

Passive organizing is the "pink" work of organizing. This is the time frame when you're working on yourself. You haven't committed to organizing, but you're gathering information and working on your mindset. You're thinking about the when, the how, and the order. You're deciding who you want your teacher to be. 

In passive organizing, you're consuming exorbitant amounts of information. Sometimes, this can cause information overload and paralysis. You might struggle to take action because you see the best in all the options. 

Let's take a little rabbit trail. The Kolbe Assessment is a quantitative test that helps you determine how you think. Among other things, it tells you how you leverage these three areas of thinking and processing in order to complete a project:

  • How much do you need to research something before you can do it?
  • How much structure do you need before you can take action?
  • How much do you need to talk before taking action?

I am a "quick start." I spend the majority of my time talking about a project and then the active work portion of the project comes out really quickly at the end. I verbally process everything and I change my mind a lot. My team on the other hand tends to be much higher in research and/or structure.

An example of this is how I wrote the book How ADHD Affects Home Organization. I completed the writing of the book in a weekend, but I spent two years preparing to write the book and talking about it first!

How much research, structure, and talking do YOU need before you can take action on getting organized? 

The other obstacle to deciding to get started with organing is having a tipping point. You have to reach a point when the pain of continuing to live in the current state of life is greater than the pain of change and learning a new skill to get the result you want. You have to realize that organization is a learnable skill. 

Another tipping point is a golden window. These are big life events: a milestone birthday, a new baby, a new house, a new job, a loss, a health diagnosis, etc. Many times, multiple big events happen at the same time. These are seasons of opportunity. Disorganization leads to more disorganization, but when you seize the opportunity, these are major turning points.

I want to remind you that I was once where you are. Back in 2012, I quit my teaching job, I was overweight, I was depressed, and everything was falling apart around me. You can read my story in Organization is a Learnable Skill and listen to my depression story in episode #69. I was negative and pessimistic. You would not have wanted to be my friend back then. What you see of me now is the after picture!

You must also believe that you can get organized. You must make a decision that you are now going to live proactively instead of reactively. This is where you draw a line in the sand and step over it.

And one day, you will find yourself listening to an Organize 365® Podcast episode and you just get up and start organizing while you listen instead of just gathering information!

Are you ready to draw your line and get started on your organizing journey?

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

Related Episodes

 

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: Org365-501.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 Loren S. She lives with her boyfriend and her 10 houseplants. Loren describes herself as a natural "piler" but implementing the Sunday Basket® System means that she now has fewer piles around her home. She and her boyfriend participated in the Adult Spring Break Blitz by cleaning out and reorganizing their linen closet together. Loren also introduced me to The Conqueror Challenge, which is an app that gamifies exercise.

I do some teaching in my conversation with Loren about how to manage her Sunday Basket®. We talk about having only 5 slash pockets in each color and how to manage an ideas slash pocket for each color.

Loren shares how she tried to DIY a Sunday Basket® for herself before committing and purchasing the Sunday Basket® System. She found the extra teaching you get with the Sunday Basket® System precisely what she needed to mentally grasp the system and be successful. Is it time for you to make the commitment and purchase the Sunday Basket® System?

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:

Related Episodes

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-LorenS.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

One of the most impactful books I've ever read is The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson. This book taught me so much about consistency, well before Organize 365® was even an idea.

We've reached a major milestone with this episode here at Organize 365®. This episode is our 500th Friday podcast episode. This doesn't count the extra episodes we've done over the years with Wednesday Transformations, Coffee Chats, and more. Counting those would bring us to well over 700 episodes in total and you've downloaded these episodes over 16 million times as of July 2022.

Those numbers and that amount of content creation only come with consistency. In all these years, I've NEVER missed publishing a Friday episode!

I was in my late 20s or early 30s when first read The Slight Edge and it stuck with me. I didn't fully understand back then the impact of a habit over time. You don't see that until you look back later. I knew I had to find ways to unlock more time in my life. I dived deep into how organization could unlock more time for me. Now, with the creation and implementation of the Sunday Basket® System, YOU have collectively unlocked 3 million hours and counting in YOUR lives! Wow!

In this episode, I'm sharing quotes from The Slight Edge and things I learned from the book.

Here are some of my takeaways:

  • I had to see things in life not as being "to" me, but rather "for" me.
  • Consistency beats talent.
  • Most businesses take 10 years to really get started.
  • Things will take longer than you want, but you need to look at time differently. 
  • Stop looking for permission!
  • Podcasts that take breaks don't last.
  • I have higher self-standards now, but there are no "shoulds" and much more "grace" in my life.
  • Focus on what you can change.
  • Visionaries make people uncomfortable.
  • I'm odd. You probably are too.
  • There are fewer people to talk to as you move up.
  • You have to live more in your mind than in reality to see the next big thing happen.

It's time to stop filling your days with to-do lists and household tasks. Quit doing things that don't matter in the long term. Focus instead on being consistent in what WILL make a difference over time. Consistency beats talent, money, and pedigree every time.

I'd love to hear how you're using your extra time to do what you're uniquely created to do! Join me on a Wednesday Transformation episode, tag me on Instagram (@Organize365), or share your story in our community app.

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

 

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: Org365-500.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 Laurie R. She lives with her husband and three kids, including one with special needs. When Laurie lost her job in 2015, she looked for organizing podcasts to listen to and found Organize 365®. At the time she was frustrated because her 1800s-era home had no closets and everything felt cluttered. You might be surprised to learn that she actually tackled her paper management first! We talk about Swiss cheese organizing, how hiring a house cleaner is a form of accountability, and permission to let go of things.

Laurie also gave a great tip for creating a "jobs binder" to hold copies of professional licensure paperwork, performance reviews, and portfolio samples. 

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:

Related Episodes

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-LaurieR.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am EDT

Time to plan out the next quarter of your work? Learn more about the Friday Workbox® Planning Day in this orientation replay.

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

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

Time to your work? Learn more about the Friday Workbox® in this orientation replay.

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

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

The Pareto Principle says that 80% of the fruit comes from 20% of the labor. I first learned about this principle when reading 80/20 Sales and Marketing: The Definitive Guide to Working Less and Making More by Perry Marshall. This is not just a sales thing. It can be seen in nature, road traffic, and math. So, I started thinking about how this 80/20 principle applies to our homes and housework.

I know that perfection is not attainable. Instead, I've resolved to strive for excellence. What does it look like to be an excellent homemaker?

We tend to equate cleanliness with organization. We are looking for order but "cleaning" your house doesn't bring that order. 

In this episode, I share with you how I have employed the 80/20 principle in my house to bring it to excellence but not perfection while also giving me time to do what I'm uniquely created to do. (Spoiler alert: We're going to talk more next week about using that extra time!)

What do 80% and excellence look like for my floors, counters/flat surfaces, laundry, and straightening/tidying in my home?

What does it mean to get to 80% in your Sunday Basket® routine and The Productive Home Solution™? 

Read the full show notes here: https://organize365.com/podcast/effort-the-80-20-of-housework-not-all-housework-is-equal 

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

Related Episodes

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: Org365-499.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, 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