|
|
| Get Organized - Organization Information |
|
|
|
|
Making Space - Letting Go of Clutter
To make room for new things to come into you life, you have to create space for such things. If your environment or life is packed with things you no longer need or that no longer serve you, then you are holding yourself back. There's no room for new opportunities, new relationships or new ideas to enter. Yesterday I had a conversation with a client about this very topic. I congratulated the client on cleaning out items associated with her previous career from her home office to make room for all the new ventures she is exploring. I was reminded of what I went through when I decided to switch careers. When I first became a coach, I was hesitant to toss or give away all the business materials I had accumulated as a financial professional. I kept thinking, "What if I need these items again?" I finally realized that my indecisiveness, (about giving up the security that these materials provided - thinking I could always go back to my former career), was holding me back. After this realization I immediately tackled my office and cleared out 9 trash bags of old business files. Guess what happened? The next day I had a new client! Now I make a habit of clearing out or donating items on a regular basis. Several times a month, one of the local charities calls to ask if I have any items to donate. I never say no because inevitably there's something in my home that would be more useful to someone else. It doesn't take but a few minutes to put together a bag full and it gives me a feeling of making a difference. In addition to the good feeling I get, I know that I have created space for something more fulfilling. I recently read a story about a woman that used to hold periodic garage sales to "de-clutter" her home. After years of doing so, she decided one day to have a very different garage sale. She took everything she wanted to get rid of, put the items in her garage and made a huge sign that said FREE. During the day she would check her garage and was amazed at the rapid disappearance of items. She delighted in imagining that some new homeowner had taken the lawn equipment she no longer needed, or that children were smiling over the "new" toys that her children had outgrown. By the end of the day all she had left was one old shoe and a garbage can with a hole in the bottom! And best of all, she didn't have to sit in the heat all day manning the sale. Are you ready to open your life to new opportunities? Identify the items in your environment that no longer serve you. What do you have that you could joyfully give to others to make room in your life? Schedule an hour on your calendar to sort through and get rid of these items. Make it fun by asking others to help or reward yourself afterwards. Plan a garage sale or call a charity to pick up the items that can be donated. Sit back and watch the new opportunities that appear to fill up the void you created! Copyright July 2004 by Vicki Miller As a Life Transition Coach I work with clients to identify what's most important to them and prioritize around these values. I help my clients identify and remove obstacles in the way and bring clarity and focus to their dreams. What is your dream? Are you undergoing a major transition and not clear where to turn? Call (972-306-4489) or email me, (coach.v.miller@verizon.net), to set up a complimentary, no obligation 30 minute coaching session. Download my FREE e-Book, 12 Fun Ways to Change Your Life, or sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter at http://www.thrivingthroughchange.com
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Identifying the Rocks: Organizing Your Priorities In one of my favorite books, First Things First, written by Stephen Covey with Roger and Rebecca Merrill, is a story of the man in front of his class with a pile of rocks and a jar. He puts the rocks in the jar, and then asks the class "Is it full?" "Yes," they answer in unison. "Oh?" he replies, and gets out some pebbles, which he adds to the jar. "Is it full?" he asks. Catching on, they reply, "Probably not." And then he added sand. And, finally, some water. "What does that tell you?" he asked. Answers included comments like "You can always squeeze something else in" or "Just get started." "Oh, not at all!" he said. "If you don't put the rocks in first, there won't be any room for the them. Get Organized -- Every Home Needs An Office EVERY HOME NEEDS AN OFFICE Common Clutter Culprits- How to Bust Through Clutter Paper 5 Easy Tips on Light that You Can Use to Improve Your Day Light, Work, and You Making Space - Letting Go of Clutter To make room for new things to come into you life, you have to create space for such things. If your environment or life is packed with things you no longer need or that no longer serve you, then you are holding yourself back. There's no room for new opportunities, new relationships or new ideas to enter. Yesterday I had a conversation with a client about this very topic. I congratulated the client on cleaning out items associated with her previous career from her home office to make room for all the new ventures she is exploring. I was reminded of what I went through when I decided to switch careers. When I first became a coach, I was hesitant to toss or give away all the business materials I had accumulated as a financial professional. I kept thinking, "What if I need these items again?" I finally realized that my indecisiveness, (about giving up the security that these materials provided - thinking I could always go back to my former career), was holding me back. After this realization I immediately tackled my office and cleared out 9 trash bags of old business files. Guess what happened? The next day I had a new client! Improve Your Workplace to Make Your Life Better What does "quality of life" mean to you? If you want to improve it, you have to define and measure it. Most people think of it in terms of lodging, car, financial income, medical services, and social position. That point of view, however, is not fully complete. An average person is spending more than half of his/her life at work. That is why the level of comfort at workplace is an essential factor influencing on individual's life. The subject matter of this article is the improvement of your working environment and making it more comfortable for you. Please follow the guidelines in this article to minimize tiredness, achieve more results at work and make your life better. What Clutter Clearing Can Do For You You can get a pretty good idea of the benefits of clutter clearing simply by imagining your life free of all the negative effects of clutter: lack of focus and clarity; feelings of being professionally, creatively, spiritually, and/or romantically stuck; insufficient time and attention for self and family; increased stress, irritability and depression. Wouldn't it be great to be free of all these? Getting Organized For The New Year - Part 1 The following procedures will insure an organized and well run office. Organizing Solutions for the Disorganized Entrepreneur After more than 20 years as an entrepreneur and a consultant to entrepreneurs, I am convinced that for many entrepreneurs, "organized" is an enigma. "Organized entrepreneur" may even be an oxymoron, because the very strength that makes great entrepreneurs makes for poor organizing ? at least organizing as most of the world defines it. Are You Stuck In The Clutter Trap? You arrived on earth without clutter. Your parents and doting relatives started you on a pathway to accumulation. By the time you were a year old, you had mounds of functional clothing, twenty outfits suitable for dress-up, too many stuffed animals to fit in your bed, custom-sized furniture, a silver spoon, and a plastic Winnie-the-Pooh bowl. Perhaps there was also your christening gown: an heirloom already packed safely away waiting for the next generation. You had not even become a toddler yet, and you had already embarked on the road to the clutter trap. Words That Inspire - SIMPLIFY What do you gain if you SIMPLIFY? Technology...The Culprit and the Tool Technology has given us the tools to reduce routine tasking, yet we are all too aware that technology is seen as the culprit as much as the solution. We only need to look around us to see the developments of the past 20 years. American Demographics magazine tells us we receive a staggering 189 messages a day. They come to us through mobile phones, cell phones, faxes, pagers, emails and voicemails. 'You've got mail' has taken on a whole new meaning. But 15-20 years ago the majority of these vehicles either didn't exist or were not being widely used. In our day-to-day lives, it is the conscious act of using technology that helps organize ourselves and see it as a useful tool. Balance - And Other Things The Mexican Villager 25 Tips and Tricks for an Organized Move Worried because you're moving soon? This really doesn't have to be a stressful, chaotic time. Here are some tips to help you achieve a successful, organized move. 50 Ideas to Organize Your Home "Organize" is a familiar word heard on many of today's popular decorating shows. Every family has its struggles with some type of clutter whether it is stacks of papers or a cluttered and cramped bathroom. In fact, the National Association of Professional Organizers reports that 80% of what we keep we never use, we wear 20% of the clothes we own while the other 80% hangs there just in case, and 25% of adults say they pay bills late because they lost them. Be More Productive - Books to Help You Be More and Do More! How many of us have enough time to do everything that needs to be done? Answer: NOBODY! The key is doing that which needs to be done RIGHT NOW and setting the right priorities. Life has changed, and we have more flexibility to do what we want, when we want, provided we set the RIGHT PRIORITIES. These books will help you increase your productivity by at least a factor of 10... maybe more! Compartmentalize The word "compartmentalize" means to separate into distinct parts. I am intrigued with the fact that the word "mental" is in the word. For me, it illustrates the need to separate mentally what we are doing. One of the tricks I am learning is to separate tasks and do one at a time. As a recovering multitasker that isn't easy, but I am beginning to see the benefits of doing one thing at a time. The True Definition of an Organization The true definition of an organization is one that is organized. Organized in all areas of fundamental business best practices. A business that is not organized should instead be known as a chaoticization. Home Organizing Tips & Gizmos Staying organized can be a constant battle. The following organizing tips should help you in various areas of your home, even if you are "organizationally challenged": Thinking Outside the Box Much of my time as a Professional Organizer is spent helping people to put things into containers and boxes. But, success in this business requires as much thinking "outside the box" as it does about putting things into containers. I was reminded of this recently, while consulting with clients who own a large, well-appointed suburban home. Two of the issues that the clients presented were the lack of closet space on the main floor, and the constant clutter on a small, built-in desk. Limited closet space resulted in coats' being deposited in the front entry. Shoes were removed inside the garage and dropped on the floor, by the other door into the house. The homeowners were tired of tripping on shoes. And the last thing they wanted (guests) to see was a wall of coats hanging in the foyer. So, the challenge was clear: This active family needed more closet space.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2005 |