To: monica@catalystorganizing.com
From: "Monica Ricci" <monica@catalystorganizing.com>
Subject: Simplicity News November 2005
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You Asked... Each month, readers write asking questions about organizing their homes or offices. This month's question was asked by Stacey in New York. Stacey writes, "My struggle is categorizing - what do I call things so that I remember the next time I want to file or whatever, that I know what I creatively called it the LAST time? I find myself duplicating my efforts because of lack of organization when, if I simply knew where to put it the first time and where to find it the second time, I'd have a lot more time on my hands. I can't imagine how people fit in watching TV when I'm still trying to fit in a shower!" Stacey, I work with a lot of clients and this is a common problem. The secret to effective filing is truly multi-faceted. First, don't file everything. Really think it over before you keep something. Filling your file cabinets with unecessary paper will just make it more difficult to find what you need later. Second, abandon the alphabet. Categorizing by topic or subject matter is a much more effective way to retrieve information. We think in categories and pictures, not alphabetically. Once you've created a category, you can alphabetize the sub-categories within it, but a straight alphabetical system is not effective for most people. Third, create LARGE categories that mirror the broad areas of your life. Try to keep it to ten or fewer. This way, you only have ten spots to choose from when filing or retrieving information. Sample broad categories might be Home, Money, Health & Fitness, Auto, Work, Church, Kids. Subdivide the broad categories as you need to, breaking each one down into its smaller components. For example, the category "Home" might encompass Warranties, Repairs, Homeowners' Insurance and Utility Bills. Fourth, cull out your files regularly. Keeping the volume of paper as low as possible will aid you in finding what you need easily. Lastly, if your filing system just gets too big and unwieldy, consider going to an electronic indexing system such as The Paper Tiger. It's like a search engine for your paper files and it's really great. It involves filing your information into a series of consecutively numbered file folders. You simply search by keyword and the software will tell you exactly which numbered folder holds the information you're looking for. You can also order The Paper Tiger software from the products page on my web site. Blog American Style I've been having fun blogging for a few months now. I'm writing about the organizing industry, interesting things that happen to me, my travel, my work, and have also begun recommending books that I've read and enjoyed. I invite you to stop by, check out my latest blog entries and let me know your thoughts, opinions and comments. Today's entry is about clutter that kills. If you agree with me, disagree with me, or just have a book recommendation of your own to add, I want to hear from you! Pop by and leave some of your thoughts behind. Upcoming HGTV Appearances Be sure to catch Monica on these upcoming episodes of HGTV's popular show, Mission:Organization! Episode #503 Restoring Office Functionality We take a chaotic, disorganized home office and make it beautiful and functional for a young professional couple expecting their first baby. Episode #513 Multipurpose Activity Room We transform a messy, disorganized craft room into a gorgeous, functional and organized space where this creative homeowner can craft, sew, relax and be herself in comfort! Airs: Tuesday, January 17, 2006 at 2pm. Episode #609 Home Office Cleanup Watch as we take a gigantic, chaotic loft space and turn it into a combination room where the residents can hang out, entertain, work in the home office, and guests have a place to sleep! This is truly multi-functional! Episode #702 Reclaiming The Bedroom A single professional woman gets a bedroom makeover that goes from paralyzing to perfect! This suburban townhome's bedroom starts out cluttered and hard to live in, and ends up looking like a swanky New York studio! Texas Conference & Book Signing My new book, Organize Your Office In No Time. (Que Publishing) is available on my web site as well as Amazon.com and through most retail booksellers. Texas subscribers, I'll be in Houston this month! Join me Saturday, January 21st at 9:00 a.m. at the NAPO Houston conference, being held at the Sheraton Brookhollow. During the hour, you'll learn how to organize any space using four simple steps! Then join me the following day for a book signing event at the Barnes & Noble on Westheimer from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm. Come by and say hello! I'd love to meet you! Declutter Your Life By Freecycling! Decluttering your life is a wonderful way to rid yourself of the things that no longer give you value. It is also a great way to help someone in need at the same time. All over the world, people are helping others and decluttering their lives by giving away the things they no longer need, through FREEcycle.org. This means fewer items are going into the trash and filling up the landfills of our planet. Monica Ricci is an Organizing Specialist, the author of the book Organize Your Office In No Time and the founder of Catalyst Organizing Solutions, an Atlanta based company that helps individuals be organized and effective at home and at work.You can see Monica on the popular HGTV show, MISSION:Organization. For media interviews or appearances, or to schedule Monica to speak to your conference, team, or association, or for an on-site organizational evaluation, contact her at 770-569-2642 or by email at Monica@CatalystOrganizing.com (c)2005 Catalyst Organizing. All Rights Reserved. | ||