In organizing, just like real estate, it’s all about location, location, location.  Where we permanently and temporarily place our belongings, papers, projects and information, is important because it helps us find what we want when we need it.  The Reach Ability Factor is a system that helps us decide the best location for things based on how frequently we use them.  We have 4 sections.

• Section A:  Items in this section are things we use daily, like our toothbrush, our favorite coffee mug, and underclothes.  Everything in section A is easy to reach, all we have to do is reach out an grab it.
• Section B:  Items in this section are things we use weekly but not necessarily daily, like our workout clothes, and specific utensils or dishes.  Everything in section B requires us to move a little, but still within comfortable reach.
• Section C:  Items in this section are things we use occasionally, like suitcases,  a food processor, and extra blankets.  Everything in section C requires us to exert more effort to reach, like bending down or using a step stool.
• Section D:  Items in this section are things we use once a year, like holiday decorations, or things you can’t part with like our wedding gown.  Everything in section D would be in a remote storage area like the basement, attic, or a cabinet that is more difficult to reach.

The Reach Ability Factor is meant as a guide to help individuals evaluate the best location for their belongings.  What is a perfect spot for one person is not the best spot for another.  Organizing is personal.
Please note that it’s important to concentrate efforts on one’s current lifestyle and reevaluate the placement of items once a year.

If you’d like assistance in using the Reach Ability Factor, call Janine today!
www.helpfulorganizer.com 508-699-6652
©May 2013, Janine Cavanaugh, CPO®  All Rights Reserved

1. Bring a way to take notes, whether that be a paper and pen or your laptop.  You will be bombarded with ideas and new information during the seminar, and you will never be able to remember it all.

2.  As you take notes, focus on the following:

• Quotes/Key ideas - Capture the little “nuggets” that you want to take away, remember, and share with others
• Ideas to Try - You’re not commiting to anything here, but if you hear a new idea that you may want to try back at work (or wherever), write it down.
• Resources/Products - Hear of something that will make your job easier?  Learn of a new company that provides a relevant service?  Write it down!

3. Bring a drink and some snacks to keep you alert as the day goes on.

4. Review your notes the next day to refresh your memory and consolidate some of the new ideas that have started growing in your head.

5. Identify 1-3 clear, concise next steps based on what you’ve learned.  Write them down!

6. File your notes for future reference.  I have a file folder for each professional development seminar that I’ve attended.  Years later, I still am able to go back and find “new” ideas to help me.

Happy Learning!

Amanda Darlack is a Professional Organizer with Living Peace LLC of Salem, MA and Winchester, MA.  Check us out at www.living-peace.com.  Or call (617) 519-5693.

1.  Get your name removed from mailing lists for newspapers, magazines, catalogs and solicitations. Please note it can take up to 6 months to be removed from a mailing list. Some websites to try:

• www.privacycouncil.org
• www.junkmailstopper.com
• www.dmaconsumers.org
• www.catalogchoice.org

2. Go paperless with monthly statements, bills, and newsletters.
3. Go high tech and use nooks, kindles and phone apps for newspapers, magazines, etc.

If you find this helpful please comment.

©April 2013 Janine Cavanaugh, Certified Professional Organizer®. All Rights Reserved

For more information or a consultation please contact Janine Cavanaugh at janine@helpfulorganizer.com (508) 699-6652 www.helpfulorganizer.com

I have a few simple tips that I’ve found make a huge difference for a lot of us. You might not find every single tip useful for your space, but I bet you’ll be able to take advantage of one or two.

Here’s a simple tip for a busy bathroom: Edit your hair and bath products so you only keep the ones that really work.

I used to have so many different bottles of hair product in my bathroom, including shampoos/conditioners (hello, curly hair!). I’d buy new brands to try, and if they didn’t meet my expectations, I’d still have the half-full bottle after moving on to something new. My bathroom looked like the clearance rack at Ulta, I had so many bottles to sort through.

It is so much more refreshing and simplifying keeping only what I need. Plus it’s much easier to clean the bathroom with fewer bottles lying around. When I stop using a product because it no longer serves its purpose, it is time for me to say good bye to it and kick it out of the house!

This tip is also good for other personal grooming products, for instance, makeup. If that lipstick or foundation doesn’t make you beautiful, out it should go.

Do you have any quick bathroom organizing tricks?

Elesheva E. Soloff is a professional organizer with Soloff Space Solutions, based in Boston, MA.
www.soloffspacesolutions.com
email: ees@soloffspacesolutions.com

If disorganization, clutter or a lack of systems negatively affects you and those around you, you are being held captive by what you own and allowing it to control you.  This will cause stress in your life and ultimately your relationships.  Sometimes people have simply acquired more than their space can comfortably contain, but the belongings are relatively current.  Other times clients are drowning in an avalanche of memorabilia or things associated with memories.  This habit will hold you in the past, keep your present from being enjoyable and even your future from moving forward.

It is essential to visualize what is most important to us, and also those around us.  When we can clarify and then agree on what that vision is we become more able to live and exist with less.  Remember less is truly more!

Rebecca Burley
A Spacious Place
www.TheSpaciousPlace.com
Rebecca@TheSpaciousPlace.com
978-895-6362

There are many cleaning schedules online where all the common household chores are spread out over a series of days so that you can work consistently towards a clean home. Here are a few websites that I found with sound solutions:

• Weekly Chore Schedule by Home Ec 101 - http://www.home-ec101.com/clean-it/weekly-chore-schedule/
  • If you need a simple schedule, Home Ec 101 provides a great chore chart (in PDF form) where each day of the week is a single type of chore such as Laundry day or Bathroom day.  The advantage of doing chores this way is that you have one type of chore to focus on. This is great for those who often don’t know where to begin.
• Motivated Moms Chore Planning System - http://www.motivatedmoms.com/
  • Motivated Moms takes all of your chores and house maintenance tasks, balances them across the year so that “you don’t spend your entire day doing housework.” You get a specific set of chores and tasks for each day of the year. What’s great is that they tell you what to focus on and what you can let slide, taking the guilt away for not getting something done. This is great for those who are trying to avoid marathon cleaning sessions. Available in ebook or app format.
• Chore Buster - http://www.chorebuster.net/
  • If you know what needs to get done but want some assistance spreading the chores amongst your family members, take a look at Chore Buster. You enter into the website the people in your family, the chores (specifying their difficulty/undesirability and frequency) and the program “generates a fair schedule of chores.”What is even better is that your schedule can be automatically emailed to each family member so no one can say they didn’t know what they were suppose to do.

For my needs and personality, I feel that the Motivated Moms ebook is going to help me with my cleaning goals. Note that the three web sites above are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to chore schedules so take your time to find the solution that feels right to you. On a side note, if you feel really ambitious and want to tackle two New Year’s resolutions at the same time, you might want to check out cLEANmomma (http://www.cleanmomma.com/) where founder Carolyn Barnes shows you how to turn your cleaning tasks into a workout.

Happy cleaning!

Gabby Burgman is a Professional Organizer with Living Peace LLC of Salem, MA and Winchester, MA.  Check us out at www.living-peace.com.  Or call (617) 519-5693.

Not sure what you use and what you don’t?  Here is a tried and true way to find out.  Empty the contents of your kitchen utensil drawers into a cardboard box.  For one month, only put a utensil back into the drawer if you take it out of the box to use it.  At the end of the month seriously consider discarding everything that’s still in the cardboard box.  Face it: If it’s still in the box after four weeks, you don’t need it!

This is a great tip for helping reduce the number of stirring spoons and spatuals that may accumulate.  I will admit that there are items such as an apple slicer that I do not use monthly, but I will keep as it is immensely helpful when making apple pies.  You will likely have items along those lines.  Just be honest about the likelihood of you using the utensil in the future.

Hillary Adams Case is a Professional Organizer with Living Peace LLC of Salem, MA and Winchester, MA.  Check us out at www.living-peace.com.  Or call (617) 519-5693.

1. Assign a home for incoming mail.  Whether it’s the corner of the table in the hallway or a paper tray on your kitchen counter, you need a specific, designated spot for the mail once it comes into your home.  Nothing else lives in that spot. Whether you process your mail daily, weekly, or whenever you get around to it, at least you know ALL the mail is right there waiting for you.

2. Keep the following items near where you open your mail:

• Recycle bag or bin for openned envelopes and junk mail
• Shredder for any paper that has sensitive information but you don’t need to keep
• Letter openner to prevent papercuts

3. Have specific, designated homes for papers when you BARF, or process your mail:

• Bills
• Action Items
• Reading Material
• File-able Papers

This can be as simple as writing “Bills,” “Action,” “Read”, and “File” on sticky notes and making four piles on your desk.

You can also watch this vlog post by my colleague Susan Stone about how she processes her mail.

Amanda Darlack is a Professional Organizer with Living Peace LLC of Salem, MA and Winchester, MA.  Check us out at www.living-peace.com.  Or call (617) 519-5693.

Place anything that has expired or is no longer needed in a separate bag for proper disposal. Pills that you no longer use but that haven’t expired can be donated to some non-profit clinics for patients in need. Since not all clinics accept medicines, I recommend calling before bringing over your donations.

Expired medicines and ones that can’t be donated should be destroyed so they can’t be found and misused. Unfortunately, the old advice to crush and throw them out or flush them down the drain can lead to these powerful chemicals contaminating our water. The Office of Diversion Control (part of the U.S. Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration) sponsors National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day to help ensure old medicines are responsibly destroyed. The annual Take-Back Day falls on Saturday, April 27, from 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. Click here to enter your zip code to find the nearest location to drop off medications for safe disposal.

For more information on the National Take-Back Initiative Collection.

Experts advise that you cross off your personal information off the bottle labels before dropping off prescription drugs. Expired over-counter medicines can be dropped off here as well.

Earth day is on April 22nd this year! Even small steps  make a HUGE difference to help the earth.

Elesheva E. Soloff is a professional organizer with Soloff Space Solutions, based in Boston, MA.
www.soloffspacesolutions.com
email: ees@soloffspacesolutions.com

1. While you’re getting out your spring and summer cloths purge those items that you didn’t wear last year and any items that are a bit too snug. Donate to a local charity or look into a consignment shop.

2. While getting out your grilling tools and uncovering your grill, weed out and pare down your recipes and cookbooks. Pick a number and only save that many, and make a vow not to print any more from the internet.

3. While tackling your spring yard work, sort through your lawn and garden tools. Get rid of rusty tools and duplicates. Keep only the ones that you really use.

4. While airing out the house, sort through your linens. You only need three sets of sheets per bed and three sets of towels per person. Donate any extra to an animal shelter.

©2013 Janine Cavanaugh, Certified Professional Organizer®. All Rights Reserved
For more information or a consultation please contact Janine Cavanaugh at
janine@helpfulorganizer.com (508) 699-6652 www.helpfulorganizer.com