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How to de-clutter sentimental items
Sentimental items are difficult to de-clutter If an item stirs up feelings, the item is sentimental. We have the item(s) because we want to keep the “thing” that triggers that memory in our lives. For some people, a sentimental item could be a book, a photo, or a nostalgic object. It’s difficult to de-clutter sentimental…
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CHAOS! How my disorganized basement gave me hives
Do you shudder when you enter a room, open a cabinet door or see your disorganized basement because you face “stuff” that you’ve postponed tackling? Have you procrastinated a project that you really want to accomplish? Looking back at her process of dealing with an accumulation of “stuff” in her basement, client, Lynn Amos…
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The Battle between Two Wolves: The Conflict of Decision Making
One evening, an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, “My beloved grandson, the battle inside every person is between two wolves. One is Evil. It is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, false pride and ego. The other is Good. It is…
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Why You Can’t Get Organized: When Organization is a Phobia
Is it “can’t” or “won’t” when it comes to summarizing the reasons people fail to organize their stuff? And does it apply to you? “Can’t” implies inability. “Won’t” is the lack of initiative or desire. The five main reasons fall into BOTH camps: Can’t AND Won’t. CAN’T – Don’t know how Mindy (fictitious name) tells…
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Why People Hold Onto Stuff
“Y is a crooked letter.” This was my grandfather’s standard response to the basic question of childhood “Why, Grandpa?”. My interpretation of that expression is that the answer is complicated. And, when it comes to human behavior, it almost always is. Why do people hold onto stuff? The answer is complicated because there are so…
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The Right Strategy for Paring Down
“Organizing is what you do before you do something, so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up.” – – A. A. Milne, author of Winnie the Pooh Before you tackle your next organizing project, will you plan and strategize? What motivates and inspires you? I have helped 700+ individuals to successfully…
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The Rewards of Organizing
This story about the rewards of organizing is true but the names have been changed to protect the privacy of the innocent. Given a choice, would you choose freedom or burden? Pierre chose to fly like a kite, free from the burdens of his “stuff.” Pierre is 60 years old. For decades, he ran a…