Picking up can be a hassle.

I know of no young children, who when given the task of picking up their toys, will not try to get out of it. The sad truth is that without some sort of strategy to corral toys, they would quickly take over all living space. Some parents cope with this by limiting the mess to a room where the door can be closed; others ignore the problem completely; some pick it up themselves; others nag.

I have to admit, I was in the last category. My daughter has designated play spaces, but when the toys make it into rooms where they are tripped over, I insist that they be picked up. My daughter, however, will do anything in her power not to pick things up.

One evening after my daughter had gone to bed I had grabbed a spare laundry basket and I was putting stray toys in it. The idea was that I would use it to transport them all upstairs. But another thought hit, and the Saturday Basket was born.

What Is The Saturday Basket?

The Saturday Basket is simply a laundry basket. Any toy that I find in the non-toy areas (kitchen, office, music room, living room) after bedtime gets put into the basket. The basket is stored on a high shelf in the closet, and on Saturdays the basket is taken down, and my daughter has to put everything away in its proper place. If a toy ends up in the basket repeatedly, it will be quietly removed and given away, at my discretion.

No More Nagging

It took me a few weeks to break the nagging habit, but the system is working fine. We all know the ground rules, and we abide by them. We have not had to give away any toys, and I have a more peaceful and less cluttered living space.

2010 Update

I have used the Saturday basket for several years with great success. I still have to remind myself not to nag, and there have been times when I have found the entire contents of the basket stuffed into her closet or under the bed. However, it has now gotten to the point where there are weeks without anything in the Saturday basket. This is progress in my eyes.

This post was originally posted at LauraEarnest.com and has been migrated here before I shut the LauraEarnest blog down.

Photo by Bird Eye

During the past two weeks and this week, I’ve decided to offer a sampling of my tips on how to simplify and organize your home.

Books

• Purge what you aren’t going to read. Be honest. If you have had a book for a while, are you really going to read it? You might find that getting rid of things you really have no intention of reading may lighten your load a bit.
• Purge what you’ve already read. I re-read books. Yet I have gotten rid of many books that I will probably re-read in the future.
• Group books in a way that makes sense to you. If you group by subject, author or series, do so. Don’t worry about having the perfect filing system.
• Get rid of old textbooks. If you’re no longer in school, you probably don’t need your textbooks anymore. Most people (myself included) have hung on to textbooks and notes for far too long. Purge what you can. I have a basic statistics book, my trig book, and two algorithm books. All of which I have referenced in the last five years.

Computer Software

• Keep software media in binders. This is a bit trickier than with DVDs or CDs, because often you will need some sort of code on the package casing. Keep that code with the media, or write the code on the media itself.
• Purge media you can’t read. It does no good to hang onto floppies or zip discs that you cannot read. Get rid of them.
• Clean off your computer. Needs change. Get rid of software you no longer use. Clean out old versions of software. Defragment.
• Get rid of bad pictures. It seems that people keep digital pictures of a quality they never would have tolerated on developed film. Remove poor pictures from your hard drive.

Cleaning Supplies

• Keep supplies where they are used. Even if this means duplicates. Keep bathroom cleaning supplies in the bathroom, kitchen supplies in the kitchen, garbage bags near the garbage can. You get the idea.
• Purge things that didn’t work. If you tried a cleaner and it didn’t work, get rid of it. (If it’s hazardous, dispose of it properly!) Just because you bought it doesn’t mean you have to keep it — especially if it doesn’t work well for you.
• Use old toothbrushes for detailed cleaning. An old toothbrush takes up very little room, and is great for cleaning small spaces.

Pantry

• Keep like items together. Keep your spices together (out of the light, please!) Same with oils, baking ingredients, cereals, etc. This makes it easier to find, and also to know what you have.
• Use baskets and boxes to group. Keep all your pasta in one box. That way you can find what you need quickly, and also prevent spills. I use baskets for pasta, baking chips, spices, snacks, bread “products” (crumbs, croutons, etc), and individual portions of fruit.
• Prevent orphaned canned goods. Put a system in place to make sure you use the oldest food first. It may be putting the new cans behind the old (my favorite) or writing the month and year on the can (my mother’s system).
• Don’t buy what you won’t use. Sure, the pickled whatsits may be on sale, but if no one in your house will eat them, there is no point in buying them. If you’d like to try something, buy one. If it’s a hit, you can stock up then. And don’t buy things because you “should” eat them.

Miscellaneous

• Use toothbrush holders to store things around sinks. I have a toothbrush holder in my kitchen that stores my veggie brush, my dish brush and the kitchen-cleaning toothbrush. There is one in my bathroom holding makeup brushes. My husband keeps one to hold drying paintbrushes.
• Re-purpose old boxes for grouping items. This isn’t just for pantries. Drawers can be organized with old jewelry boxes. Under-sink spaces can be organized using old dishpans.
• Fold towels to fit. Fold towels and other cloths in a way to fit into your space. My mother taught me to fold in a certain way. But my first home after marriage had a triangular linen closet (don’t ask, it was a weird place). Folding the way I was taught made the space unusable and likely to avalanche. Adapt to what you have.
• Use shoe holders to organize small stuff. I have a shoe organizer in our coat closet to hold hats and mittens. I also have one in my daughter’s room to hold small toys and stuffed animals.

Last week, this week and next week, I’ve decided to offer a sampling of my tips on how to simplify and organize your home.

Mail

• Get rid of junk immediately. The best way to keep it from piling up is to never let it get started. Discard hand-shredded junk before it even gets in your house.
• Have one place for mail. Mail gets lost if it is not kept together. Have one place that you keep mail, and be consistent.
• Process your mail immediately. If you process your mail every day, it will never pile up.
• Reduce the amount of mail you receive. Most places offer paperless billing, cutting down on those things you receive. You can also reduce the amount of junk mail and catalogs you receive by using services such as Catalog Choice.

Media

• Get a binder to hold media. We replaced an entire shelving unit filled with CD cases with five binders. We donated the cases to the local library.
• Burn your media for portability. Rip your CDs and use an MP3 player. Store the unused CDs away. Note: I do not recommend getting rid of your media, because if you do, the MP3 backup is no longer a backup, but an illegal copy of media you no longer own.
• Thin out your collection. If you look at your music and movies, I’m sure you will find some that you no longer use. Get rid of it.
• Purge software regularly. Every time you upgrade anything on your computer, do a software media check. Get rid of anything that is not useful on your current operating system, or on media which you can no longer read. Also check for outdated copies of software (do you really need to keep Turbo Tax from 1995?)

Files

• Purge regularly. Files can become a black hole because they are out of sight. So they keep absorbing material. Purge your files at least once a year. Get rid of what you can, or what you can find readily elsewhere.
• Use a system that works for you. The experts disagree what is best. Use what works for you. If you prefer hanging files, use them! If you like manila folders, use them. If you like one box filing, do it! Don’t worry about what the experts say.
• Use a retrieval system that works. If you think alphabetically, use that. If you group by subject, do that. The trick to any filing system is making one that you can use to find your stuff again.
• Think before filing. Do you really need to keep whatever it is that you are filing? If it is something you need for tax reasons, or can’t be readily found elsewhere, go ahead and file it. Otherwise, convince yourself why you have to keep it.

Art Supplies

• Purge what you don’t use. If you have a hobby that you no longer pursue, get rid of the supplies to someone who will use them. Don’t let it hang around guilting you.
• Keep like things together. Put paints together. Keep brushes in the same place. Group things together so you only have to look in one place.
• Know what you have. One key to reducing art supplies is to know what you have so you don’t buy duplicates. Have an idea (or list) of what you have on hand so that you are not creating more to organize with duplicates.
• One in, one out. This applies to just about everything you buy, but I find it very handy to remember with art supplies. If I buy a new ink, I need to get rid of the old bottle. If I refresh my pen cleaner, the old one has to go. Same with markers, stamps, and scrapbooking supplies.

More next time…

Photo by evelynishere

Over the next three weeks, I’ve decided to offer a sampling of my tips on how to simplify and organize your home.

Kitchen

• Group like things together. Keep serving utensils in one place, silverware together, drinking vessels together.
• Keep things where they are used. Keep the coffee by the coffeepot, plastic kid’s tumblers by the fridge, potholders by the stove, cutting boards by the knives.
• Use racks to organize. Most department and home specialty stores carry racks to make the most of cupboard space.
• Minimize small appliances and keep them out of sight. If you use a small appliance only a few times a year, get rid of them. Keep them out of sight to free up the visual in the kitchen.

Bathroom

• Keep medicines together, away from the damp. Invest in a small medicine cabinet to keep medicines. Regularly purge to get rid of expired meds.
• Use drawer organizers to keep things neat. Dollar stores carry plastic baskets meant for drawers. Use them to corral brushes, toothpaste and makeup.
• Keep cleaners in the bathroom. You’re much more likely to clean if you don’t have to go to another area of the house for supplies. Keep disinfectant wipes, soap and a toilet brush in each bathroom. (Yes, that’s all I use to keep our bathroom clean).
• Eliminate excess linens. Have at most two towels for each family member and an appropriate amount for guests. Same for sheets and blankets.

Bedroom

• Purge clothing regularly. Remove worn, stained, torn and outgrown clothing to keep drawers uncluttered.
• Use empty luggage to store off-season clothes.
• Keep horizontal surfaces clear. Clutter breeds on horizontals. Keep them clear.
• Open things regularly. Clutter breeds in dark corners, out of sight. Review the dark cupboards regularly

Car

• Have a garbage bag handy. This makes it easy to put trash in one area.
• Empty the car regularly. Make it a weekly routine to remove things that don’t belong in the car.
• Keep a small folder for papers. Keep registration and insurance papers together in one place so you can get to them quickly.
• Curb the maps. Remove duplicate maps and ones you will not use again soon. (I purged my maps and found three of my current state, plus a state I have never visited and never will!)

More next time…

Photo by evelynishere

An acquaintance of mine was eager to talk. It could have been out of a sitcom: a woman walks into a house, laden with bags. She announces: “I’m going to get organized. Look at all the containers I bought!”

Stop.

All that pretty containers will get you is a bunch of clutter stored in pretty containers.

I don’t agree with Flylady on everything (see Why Flylady Didn’t Work for Me), but this one I do: you can’t organize clutter. Putting clutter in boxes just gets it out of sight. It may not be visible, but somewhere in your mind it will be weighing you down.

Getting organized is one of the top resolutions people make every year. And every year, people fail at this, because they are trying to organize what they have, rather than getting rid of the stuff they don’t need.

Organization is simply applying the rule: “Everything has a place, and everything in its place.”

I will be re-organizing this year, and I have already started. But the difference is that I am decluttering first.

But Where Do I Start To Declutter?

I like a gut-level approach. I know when things bug me. So I decide I’m going to spend some time decluttering – I will usually take a look around the room I am in and figure out what bothers me most. For instance, I was in my bedroom recently and decided that my top dresser drawer really bugged me. This has turned into a junk drawer of sorts, so I spent some time clearing it out.

You can also do a systematic approach, where you cycle through the rooms and areas of your house and regularly declutter them.

How To Declutter

There are many ways to declutter, but the method I prefer is the pile/basket method. Here are the steps:

1. Get some containers or set aside space for piles. You are going to need four: keep, give away, throw away, put away. I like using boxes or baskets for the give away and put away. I usually have a trash bag for the throw away, and I just put the keep to the side, for it will go back in where it came from.
2. Pull everything out. The key to making decluttering work is not to tackle too big of an area. You need enough space to pull everything out of the area you are going to declutter.
3. Sort. Go through the pile and put it in one of the four categories. If you can’t decide right away on something, put it in the put away pile.
4. Put the keep items back. Clean out the space and neatly put the keep pile back in place.
5. Remove the garbage. Take the garbage out of the house.
6. Remove the give away. Put the give away in a place where you will get rid of it in the next three days.
7. Put away the rest. Here’s the key to successful decluttering. You have to have a space for everything. And you have to tell yourself you can’t dump your stuff in an area you’ve already decluttered. (Otherwise you run the risk of just moving piles around the house). If something ended up in the put away pile because you didn’t know what to do with it, think seriously why you can’t get rid of it. If you are still very attached to something that serves no purpose in your life, put it away, out of sight for a while. You’ll get back to it.

Once everything is decluttered, you’re going to find you don’t need all those storage containers. And things will be organized!

Photo by taberandrew

This is going to have people rolling their eyes at the obviousness, but I recently had a realization: planners are for PLANNING. Somehow in the {ahem}-some years I’ve been using planners, I have been using them all wrong.

Planners as Taskmasters

Every planning system I have tried apparently didn’t state the obvious well enough for me to pick up on planning. Regardless of what I have tried, I just keep making longer and longer lists. They could be lists of things to do in a given role, next actions, or even things I am going to do tomorrow. And the list would sit there, and I would try like a super-human to get through everything. Inevitably, I grew to resent the system and would end up burnt crispy and cranky.

And so then I would jump onto the search for the next system.

With Daytimer, I just listed everything, no thought. With 7 Habits, the lists of things to do for each role got way out of control, and I felt overwhelmed with everything that was supposedly important to me. With GTD, the next action items went on and on, and kept right on coming. Even the weekly review was just restocking the next action list. With Do It Tomorrow, the list just grows, even with the concept of a “day’s work”.

Planners as Planners

I was watching a video of an artist across the world from me display her latest to-do book. And sometime in that video it hit me: I needed to plan my week. Not so that I would get everything done. Not so that my lists would go away (because they never do, do they?). But so that I could get a reasonable amount of things done every day, based on my other activities, yet leaving time for ME.

The New Approach

The first thing I did was decide to see what my load was over the next few weeks. I printed out several of my planner sheets. These have appointments at the top, and room for tasks on the bottom. I printed out four, and filled in the calendar events.

Next, I took a blank book (I have tons lying around), and sectioned off about 30 pages. On the front page, I listed all the things I was working on. This came from my project list in Bonsai.

Next, I started listing on a right hand page, one page per item, each of the projects. Underneath I made notes of things that either needed to be done, or some brainstorming. For those things with hard deadlines, I wrote the dates next to the task. I then went back and put those into the dates on my planner sheets.

After the section for the projects, I put a sticky flag. I wrote the date at the top of the right-hand page. On the left hand page I wrote the mundane repeating tasks that needed to be done (laundry, paper processing, etc). These tasks come out of Remember The Milk.

Then on the right hand page, I did the planning. I looked at the planning sheets to see if anything needed to be done that day. Then I filled in a few items from the projects section, keeping in mind the other things I had going on that day.

So pardon the explanation of the obvious, but I really didn’t get it until this past week.

Photo by koalazymonkey

One of the major things I do every day is DOING things. I have a to-do list, and it keeps me focused and makes sure that I am reminded to do the things I need to. It is critical to my productivity level, and probably the most important consideration of any method of productivity for me.

When it came time to replace my PDA, I was scared. I had been running my to-do list out of a combination of Bonsai (my project tracker) and the Agendus overlay to the Palm tasks. I also used Redo to put repeating tasks into the Agendus database on a daily basis so that the task lists didn’t seem overwhelming with future to-dos.

(Re)Enter Remember The Milk

Back when Remember The Milk (RTM) came out, I took a look at it. But since there was no way to use it in conjunction with my Palm, I discarded the use of the application.

When I left the Palm, I took another look at the application. Not only could it handle recurring tasks, but it was accessible from the Web, on my GMail page, and through a couple of Adobe Air applications. I made the switch, putting in my recurring tasks only at first, then adding the Bonsai tasks via email every week.

I like RTM because firstly, it has a cow logo (as my boss says, ‘You can take the girl out of Wisconsin, but you can’t take Wisconsin out of the girl’). Secondly, it is easy to use, allowing for keyboard access to the tasks, and a well-documented set shortcuts for entering tasks and all their properties on one line. This was important to me, because entering tasks in Agendus required lots of clicks. The availability as an Air application means I don’t have to have my browser open all the time. And the imports of single items and lists of items via email make it very easy to get information into the system.

Touch RTM

One of the first applications I “purchased” (the RTM Touch application is free if you are a premium RTM member) was RTM. It looks and feels just like the online applications. It will sync up when the Touch is connected to Wifi, and will hold the last download for working if you are not connected. Changing different tasks on the Touch and through the web interface didn’t pose any problems on the next sync, either, which tells me it updates items on a single level rather than as a whole file.

How I Set Up RTM

The Lists

Setting up RTM wasn’t difficult. I did this through the web interface to take advantage of the full size keyboard. I started by setting up my lists. In addition to the default Sent and Inbox, I added Bonsai, Monthlies, Weeklies, Someday and Other. This allows me to quickly find items if I need to.

Weeklies

I tackled the repeating items first. In my Weeklies list are all the tasks that occur every week. For example, I have a reminder to clean my car every Friday, as well as reminders to do my work laundry on Thursday, and my daughter’s laundry on Wednesday. All of the tasks on this list repeat every week, and were very easy to enter.

Clean car ^Friday *every Friday #Weeklies

Monthlies

Next came my list of monthly tasks. I pulled this information Bonsai, where I had a backup copy of the information stored in Redo (just in case of Palm failure). These Bonsai entries had codes after them to indicate the timing. For example, (1) Backup blogs indicated that the task needed to occur on the 1st of every month; or (LT) Process tickler meant that I needed to process my tickler file on the last Tuesday of every month. These went very quickly into RTM.

Backup blogs ^10/1/2009 *every month on the 1st #Monthlies
Process Tickler File ^10/27/2009 *every month on the last Tuesday #Monthlies

Bonsai

My Bonsai tasks I imported via email. It was simple to take the CSV export file into Excel and convert it to the format needed. When the tasks landed in the Inbox in RTM, I copied them into the Bonsai list.

I am really liking RTM for my daily task management. With access from various places, I can keep an up-to-date list with me at all times.

Photo by Blogger Dude

It is finally change-of-season time in the mid-Atlantic, and I swapped out my clothes from summer to winter (we essentially have two seasons here: hot and not.) This seasonal clothes switching is a great time to evaluate your wardrobe. Let’s jump right in!

Putting The Outgoing Clothes Aside

To give yourself some room to work, take all the clothes that you will not be wearing until the next time the season comes around and get them out of the way temporarily. We’ll deal with them in a moment.

I like to put the clothes I am transferring out on my husband’s side of the closet to get them out of my way. A bed or chair will work as well.

Examine Your Incoming Clothes

Do a cursory examination of the clothing you are bringing back into circulation. Are there any that are hopelessly out of style? Put them in a pile for donation or trashing. (Get rid of those parachute pants. They’re not coming back into fashion!)

Next look for clothes that you know don’t fit right. Anything that is too loose, too tight or the wrong length needs to join the out-of-style clothes in the pile. Don’t keep things because you are going to lose weight. When you do lose weight, you will want to celebrate with new clothes; besides, you don’t know that the clothes will fit the way they used to anyway.

Examine the remaining clothes for things that are torn, stained or in otherwise need of repair. If you can’t repair it, ask yourself if you will get it repaired. If you’re not committed to getting it repaired in the next week, throw it on the pile to go. If it is stained, ask yourself if you can get the stain out. Will you do so? If not, toss it.

Checking for Usage

The next little trick will allow you to see if you are still wearing the clothes. Put the clothes away backward. If you are using hangers, hang the clothes so that the hanger comes through to the front of the closet. If you are folding them, put them in the drawer upside down. When you launder the clothes, you can put them back normally. At the end of the season you will be able to see what you haven’t worn and purge appropriately.

Dealing with the Outgoing Clothes

After you have dealt with the clothes you are going to wear, take care of the ones you are rotating out. Check to see if there are ones that need laundering or repair and take care of it. Then pack them away in an out-of-the-way spot. Here are some ideas:

• In an empty closet. If you have unused closet space somewhere, consider putting your hanging clothes there. I keep my dress clothes in an unused part of my regular closet.
• In the guest room. We have a chest of drawers in the closet of our guest room. I keep my daughter’s out-of-season clothes there.
• In empty luggage. If you don’t travel much, consider putting your out-of-season clothes in an empty suitcase. I usually toss in a dryer sheet to keep things fresh.
• Under the bed. I’m not a big fan of this strategy, but if you are short on space, consider getting some under-the-bed storage boxes and keeping out of season clothes there.
• Space bags. I’ve never had much luck with Space Bags — the bags that compress your clothing with the help of a vacuum– but some of my friends swear by these bags. If you put your clothes in the bags and compress, you can store them on a shelf easily

With a few steps you can sort through your wardrobe as you do the necessary seasonal switches.

Photo by abstract splotcHes

I followed Flylady for many years. And felt guilty for not being able to make it work. It was a struggle for me. I would get the reminders as I sat at work, and had every intention of doing the tasks when I got home. But life, more often than not, intervened.

I have decided to free myself of the guilt of not being able to make Flylady’s system work. I feel guilty because it worked for me in a small condo before children, and it worked when I was unemployed. Yet add an out-of-home job and child into the mix, and I can’t make the system work. Was I not doing it right? Flylady would tell me the problem was me.

Here are the ways Flylady doesn’t work for me:

The Massive Influx of Emails

When I left Flylady, I was getting 30-40 emails a day from her. Besides the reminder emails which were supposed to spur me into doing something around the house, I also received testimonials, missions of the day, product recommendations, recipes and various other sundry. Her recommendation was to save the reminder emails up for when I got home and deal with them then. But honestly, when I got home, I didn’t want to fire up my computer and drag myself through 10 emails to remind me of things I was already “late” on.

Zones

While I understand the idea of breaking a house into Zones and focusing on each one to prevent distraction, I never could cram my house to fit into the standard 5 zones. A whole week in the kitchen, and a partial week to cover my living room, music room and sun room? How about week three, with two bathrooms, and three bedrooms? And does the guest room need to be cleaned as often as my daughter’s room? Then there was the mixing in of Kelly’s missions, which were supposed to lead us through cleaning the entire house. If I did the mission it wouldn’t necessarily address what needed to be done.

Bedtime

No one appreciates a full amount of sleep more than I do. And I do aim to get to bed by 10:30 every night. But the Flylady reminder fires out at 9:00 to start getting ready for bed. With my daughter going to bed at 8:30, the only time I have to myself is after she goes to bed. I grew resentful of being told I had to take my down time and go shine my sink.

The Sink

Yes, the sink is a good place to start. Cleaning out your sink and giving yourself a clean spot to “grow” from. But being reminded to keep my sink shiny when there are other people in the house is pointless. I was constantly shining my sink, only to have someone put dishes into it. And her solutions to this just increased the stress level in my house.

Shoes

Yes, having shoes on can save you from injury. I know that, because I managed to break a toe playing Scrabble. But having shoes on in the house is a good way to spread dirt around. I’m not Mr. Rodgers. I don’t have time to be switching shoes.

Why Say All This?

My sole reason for saying all this is to let everyone know that if Flylady doesn’t work for you, IT’S OKAY. You’re not the only one. Dump the guilt and move on.

And why break it down? Because I’ve been thinking about where I couldn’t do Flylady, and I’m going to make my own system to compensate for the weaknesses I found in Flylady. Because all that really matters is that I get to a peaceful and orderly home.

Many organization books will have you clear off horizontal surfaces and place little-used items in drawers or containers. I have found that this practice can be good, but it also has a flip side where it can hinder us. Here are some examples to illustrate the point:

Out of Sight: Desk Supplies

I have cleaned off my desk and keep things I don’t use daily in a drawer nearby. I keep a few writing implements on the desk but rarely used ones are the drawer. Other than that, it is all tucked away.

When I need to use the stapler, I know exactly where it is. This out of sight implementation leads to less distracting clutter on my desk, but I sacrifice nothing by keeping supplies put away.

Out of Sight: Earrings

Applying the same technique to my dressing space, I dutifully put all my earrings in a jewelry box that was kept in a drawer. The top of the dresser was uncluttered, but after a few weeks I noticed something: I was consistently wearing only two pairs of earrings. Some people would be fine with this, but I was not. I use my earrings as a means of expressing my mood. These two pairs were small enough to sit with my rings (also out of sight) and consequently were never put in the jewelry box.

The reason was that they were in front of me when I went to get dressed. I found a solution on Etsy (sadly no longer sold) which allowed me to display my earrings on the dresser in a way which did not clutter. This allows me to see what I have and make the choices.

I think the difference between the two situations is the quantity available. I never have to select which stapler to use, since I only have one. But with items where I have choices of which one to use, it is easy to lose sight of things if they are not in a place where I can see all my choices at once. If things can become separated from their brethren, or if it is not convenient to see all choices, keeping things out of sight can actually be less productive than not.

Photo by Ma1974