Organizing for Seniors

Organizing is not as straight forward as people might think.  "Just get rid of stuff. Just move things around" some people would say.   Yes, that might be part of the organizing process but it does not take into account the special needs of each client.

Organizing for various age groups and people with varying degrees of capabilities requires special considerations.

As people age they might not have the strength to do the job themselves. They might get tired more easily. They might not be able to bend or lift things like people that are a lot younger. This also applies to people with varying health issues ...but for this session we want to talk about the special considerations that you might want to make when you are organizing with people that are a bit older.

If you are helping your parents or relatives that are over 60 you might want to take a step back and realize that they have different levels of energy, different ideas of what they want to let go of, different ideas on a lot of things.

As a non-professional organizer you might not think about all of the issues that they are facing but rather think about your own desire to just help them. This is a normal mistake that a lot (if not most) people make.

The first step that might help you is to just take a step back yourself and ask yourself  "how would you feel if someone came into your home and just started throwing all of your prized possessions and memories out?".  I am sure that the answer would be "not good".  So put yourself into their place, take a step back and think about them and what they want and need as you help them. Don't make this about you.

Some issues that you might have to deal with when organizing for seniors are:

Memory issues - they can't remember where they put things. Because of this they might have gotten into the habit of leaving everything out in the open (therefore causing a cluttered house) so that they can see it.

They constantly buy more and more (food or clothes.....or whatever) because they forgot they already have it.

Physical issues - they don't have the strength or stamina to clean up after themselves so they don't. Again, this is one possible cause of their cluttered home.

Mental issues - they no longer care about their home because they have lost a loved one and are depressed. Their friends are all dying and they have no social interaction.

All of the above are just some of the reasons that seniors might have more issues with clutter.

But clutter itself can also cause physical problems in that it creates a dangerous situation in their home with them tripping over the clutter and causing physical harm to themselves.

When working with seniors be sure to limit the amount of time for each organizing session. Make sure that they get plenty of breaks and snacks to keep their energy up.

So as you see.... organizing isn't just a straight forward project. It is a complex process that is different in every situation.




Organizational Consulting Services

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Being Organized - vs - Being Efficient

A lot of people think that being organized is the same as being efficient. It's not.

Being organized  - though it has many facets - is more about having things in place. Your belongs, your schedule, your life. It's about having things arranged in a certain order. It's about being able to find things in a short amount of time. It's about knowing where to find things. It's about things looking presentable, neat, orderly.

Being efficient means that thing are done in the best way possible.

Being effective means that we are doing what's best.

Time Management uses both efficiency and effectiveness. Time management is about activities while organization is about things.

You can't really manage time. You can only manage how you use it.

You can't be productive if you waste time. You can't be productive if you aren't organized. Just because you do more in a day doesn't mean that what you have accomplished is worth anything. If the quality of the work you produced is not up to par - then have you really accomplished more?  If you produced less but the quality of the work or product was better - wouldn't you really be further ahead?

It's complicated and for the best results organization, efficiency, effectiveness and time management must all work together.

Organizational Consulting Services

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Organizing Your Taxes

January is over and by now we should have most of the documents that we need to get our taxes done.

Yes, it's everyone's favorite time. Not !  Too much paperwork. Too much pressure.

So how can we make it easier?   Well, by having had an organized plan throughout the year for starters.

Most people never think about taxes and tax time until right before the tax deadline.  And that's when they get stressed out.

By thinking about your taxes throughout the year and having a place for anything that might be tax related, your actual "tax preparation time" .... the time it takes you to get all of your documents, supporting documents and anything else that you take to your accountant...ready....  you will have a much easier and less stressed time.

That said, start by just having a file for anything tax related. Put anything that comes in over the year into that file. Anything related to your home, your business (in a separate file), your savings....should all go into a file for your taxes.  That way you are not searching for it at year end.

Make a checklist of all of your saving & financial accounts and all of the documents that you need for your taxes. By doing this, when you are getting ready to take your paperwork to your accountant, you won't forget anything and won't constantly have to "think" about what you might be missing. This will save you time and stress each year.

For most people doing their taxes is not fun.  By having a system in place throughout the year you will spend less time at the beginning of the year hunting for those needed documents.

Happy Tax Preparation !

Organizational Consulting Services

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Start Your Year By Getting Organized

January is GET ORGANIZED month...  so start a new mantra....  "I WILL GET ORGANIZED".

You don't need to go overboard and make a lot of lists or promises that you won't keep. You don't need to go out and buy a lot of organizing products. You don't need to throw everything out of your house.

All you have to do is try!  That's all!  Just try! Take it slow. One small space at a time. One small change at a time.

One rarely worn article of clothing or one rarely played with or outgrown toy or one never read magazine.  Put it in a pile to donate. Watch the room suddenly become less cluttered and more organized. One small pile at a time.

Write down all of the things that bother you in your home or office. Then pick the thing that bothers you the most and make a real effort to try and change it. If you don't know how or can't do it by yourself....there is help available.

The key is to just start somewhere. One step at a time.

If you make the project too big you might get overwhelmed and stop before you even get started. Or you might start and then get overwhelmed when you realize that it won't get done in an hour like on T.V.

Getting organized takes time. It also looks worse once you start and get into the project. You usually have to take everything out of a room (or closet or desk....) and that makes things look a lot more cluttered than when you started. But remember..... getting organized is a process.

It will get better if you keep at it. Don't give up! GET ORGANIZED!  One step at a time.

Remember....   Less Clutter  =   Less Stress....

Organizational Consulting Services

www.organizationalconsultingservices.com

Clutter - Chronic Disorganization - Hoarding

Everyone has a different definition of clutter. To some people clutter is anything that is out of place.  If a coffee cup is left on the kitchen counter - it's clutter.  To other people, clutter means you can't walk through a room.  Everyone views clutter differently.

 

Just as the saying goes "one mans trash is another mans treasure. Or some people would define that person as a hoarder.  

Who's right ?

According to the dictionary, clutter is a “confused or disorganized state or collection”. 

A confused state? Yes, you can have clutter of the mind. But most people think of clutter as just “stuff”. A collection of random objects scattered all over the place. That’s a nice and simple definition. It could just be that you hadn’t bothered to pick up after yourself and have stuff everywhere. 

Then we get to a more serious and a more cluttered situation and we could end up with chronic disorganization.

Chronic Disorganization also has a definition:

• Chronic disorganization is having a past history of disorganization in which self-help efforts to change have failed
• an undermining of current quality of life due to disorganization
• the expectation of future disorganization.

This means that you have been disorganized for many years. And it has started to affect your quality of life. You can’t find things. You are constantly late because you can’t find things. You are embarrassed by your mess.

It’s a little more than just basic clutter.

A person can be organized in one area of his life but not in another. They can be organized at work but be disorganized at home. They can be organized by how they manage their time but not with how they manage their stuff.

Then we go up another level and get to “hoarding”.

What exactly is “hoarding”? According to “Frost & Hartl’s (’96) definition of clinical hoarding:

1) the acquisition of, and failure to discard, a large number of possessions that appear to be useless or of limited value

2) living spaces sufficiently cluttered so as to preclude activities for which those spaces were designated

3) significant distress of impairment in functioning caused by the hoarding

Some people have an obsessive need to acquire things. They tend to develop an emotional attachment to things that many of us would consider trash.

Family and friends of hoarders don’t always understand that “hoarding” is an “illness” and that the hoarder needs professional help. They sometimes feel that by just going in and cleaning out the house (sometimes even when the hoarder doesn’t know that they are going to do it) that everything will be “o.k.”.  Once the mess is gone, problem solved. But that can actually make it worse.

Hoarding is a complex issue. An issue that not even the mental health community can agree on. An issue that there might not be a cure for.

It’s a problem that many people won’t admit they have and one that might cost them their family or even their life.

A problem that is more common than you think.

Organizational Consulting Services

www.organizationalconsultingservices.com

Organizing on a Budget

I love organizing gadgets. Nothing makes me happier than looking at the variety of organizing gadgets on the market. But, unfortunately some of them are expensive.

Being organized and organizing has nothing to do with gadgets. It's about "order" and "functionality". Plain and simple.

There is not only one way to organize a room.  Each person has to organize their space to reflect not only how they will use the space but also how their mind organizes things.

Everyone is different. There is no "one size fits all"  in organizing.

I never tell my clients to go out and buy a bunch of organizing gadgets and then organize their space to reflect how I would do things. In fact, when I first talk to a client I very specifically tell them to "buy nothing" until I know what they want to do with the space and we figure out how to best accomplish their wishes. And then I try to utilize the things that they already have, re-purpose their existing belongings before we even consider any other options. 

You can be organized without spending any or very little money.  Just look around your home or look at some of the inexpensive containers at the Dollar Store that might work for your project.

Use Ice Cube trays to contain your jewelry or craft supplies. Or re-use glass jars to contain a variety of things. Contain the kids puzzle pieces in Zip Lock bags.

Organizing doesn't have to be expensive. Learn to "think outside the box".

Now get started.... you know you want to !

Happy Organizing....and remember .....  Less Clutter  =  Less Stress....

Organizational Consulting Services

www.organizationalconsultingservices.com

Organizing for the New Year

It's New Years Eve....and tomorrow is the start of the New Year!  It's the day that everyone makes New Years Resolutions.....  What is yours going to be?

Why don't you start the new year off right by promising to try and GET ORGANIZED.  The key word is try.  Make a real effort... to at least think about it.

Don't make big promises that you can't or won't keep. Don't say that you are going to organize your entire house....when you probably won't.  Make a commitment to think about changing your life by becoming more organized.

One step at a time.......   You can't rush organization.  You can't change your habits in one hour or one day. It takes time.

Making a commitment is scary to a lot of people.  But once you do....and once you start the actually organizing process..... you will wonder why you waited so long.

And it is a "process".  Having an organizing coach....a Professional Organizer.... just like your workout coach.... will help keep you focused and going in the right direction.

So..... make a plan. Any plan. How about "organizing your office".  Or "organizing your kitchen".

Break it down into manageable pieces. One drawer at a time. One hour at a time.

Once you have accomplished one task and can physically see the difference....you will be inspired to continue.

So make that New Years Resolution....to GET ORGANIZED !

Wishing you a very Happy and ORGANIZED New Year !

Organizational Consulting Services

www.organizationalconsultingservices.com