Estate Division - A Stress Free Way to Divide Assets with No Hassle

Organizing your life includes organizing your assets so that your family knows what you want done should anything happen to you.

A lot of people think that only old people should have a will and think about the future. That is the furthest thing from the truth! Being prepared for anything that life might throw at you is a gift that you can give your family. At a time of crisis a lot of people make decisions based on emotion instead of logic. Make your important decisions before a crisis so that the decisions you make are in your best interest.

One way to do this is to make a list of all of your assets. If you want to give something to a family member, make sure that they really want it. If not, pick another person that you want to give it to. Don't burden your family with things that they don't really want.

Divide your assets without dividing your family.

There are numerous ways to divide your assets so that it's fair and equitable. With a little bit of planning  you can avoid a lot of issues in the future.

One great option is FairSplit. It can be used to divide estates and even when someone is going through a divorce, to divide their assets.

Estate Division software - there is a FREE version available. This is a great way to track and later divide household assets.

Take a look at FairSplit to see how it can help simplify your life.

Organize your home and life - on your terms.

 

Less Clutter = Less Stress ^SM     in your home, your business and your life

Organizational Consulting Services

http://www.organizationalconsultingservices.com
.

Visit our Life & Business Coaching website:  North By Northwest

*** check out the Products tab for self-paced workshops, planners and more.... 

Clearing Your Clutter During This Pandemic

The last few months have been very stressful for everyone. But it's also given people a lot of time to work on clearing their clutter.

Then again, there's the problem of what to do with the clutter if the donation centers are closed or they won't pick up.

Clearing you clutter should be an ongoing project. I always have a donation bin going at all times. When the donation bin gets filled - it's time to take it to the donation center. So what goes into the donation bin? Anything and everything. If you have kids and they outgrow their clothes - put it in the bin. If they outgrow their toys - put it in the bin. It will fill up quickly!

You can go through your rooms - one by one - and take a good look at everything in the room. First start with anything that you don't really like anymore. Your tastes change - so let someone else enjoy the item! If your room looks too crowded - move some things out. It will open up the room and make it look bigger.

Go through your kitchen. What gadgets haven't you used in the last 6 months or a year? If you haven't used them - ask yourself "will I ever use it?"  Be honest! If you aren't using them (but will during holidays or only once a month....) - put them somewhere out of the way - instead of on the kitchen counter or in a prime location.

Go through your garage and basement - and clear out things that you rarely ever - or never use. If you "might need it someday" - you can always borrow it or buy it again (which can be cheaper than storing it).

A lot of people have tons of books - that they have already read (numerous times) or never read at all. Maybe it's time to let them go.

What about memorabilia? How long are you going to keep it? Why are you keeping it? Do you have a place to display it - or is it just taking up valuable space? Take a picture of it, write a story about it and let it go.

What about things that you are keeping for your kids - who are all grown up with families of their own? How long are you going to store it? Ask your kids if they want it (they probably don't). If they do, give them a deadline to pick it up - or you will donate it. If they don't want it - donate it.

When you  are going to start a decluttering project - give yourself a time limit - so that you don't get overwhelmed. Take frequent breaks.

Now - as for the donation dilemma. If your favorite donation center is not accepting donations yet - you have two options. Either you pick another donation center that is open or you continue to store your donation bin for a time in the future (hopefully soon) that it will start accepting donations again. But, put a time limit on how long you are willing to wait. 

Clearing your clutter gives a lot of people a sense of freedom and clarity. If you don't experience that - it's o.k. At least it will give you a less cluttered home!

Happy Clearing!

Less Clutter = Less Stress ^SM     in your home, your business and your life

Organizational Consulting Services

http://www.organizationalconsultingservices.com
.

Visit our Life & Business Coaching website:  North By Northwest

*** check out the Products tab for self-paced workshops, planners and more.... 

Buried in Treausures

 

 A Group to Address Hoarding Behavior

   

 The Buried in Treasures Workshop is about more than clutter...

· Overcoming challenges 

· Increasing motivation 

· Reducing acquiring

· Prioritizing and celebrating choices

Self-Help & Empowerment

For

Finders and Keepers

Is clutter getting in the way of how you want to live your life?

Are you feeling overwhelmed with too many possessions?

Are you embarrassed to have people over?

This program offers a 16-week course that is based on the book ‘Buried In Treasures’​.  Join us for this group created by and for people who are ready to live a less - cluttered life! 

​The Buried in Treasures group is for people who would like to learn tips on how to de-clutter and stop over-acquiring with people who know what it’s like. Each week we will have a discussion around a specific skill, followed by the completion of challenging and rewarding exercises. Individual progress, challenges, successes, and goals are also monitored throughout the sixteen weeks.

Participants are expected to commit to attending all the sessions as well as to participate actively.

A Buried in Treasures Group is forming >>>

*** this will be a VIRTUAL CLASS - anyone - anywhere can participate in the class

Sessions start:    Wednesday, September 9^th, 2020  -  from 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm  -  Mountain Time

This group offers a judgment-free environment for people ready to make a change in their life.

Registration required. Call or email for more information.

(440) 666 – 9326 or  kefconsulting@gmail.com

**** Virtual Class available – Conference Style – by phone and/or computer - call /email for Starting Date / Time and to be put on a Waiting List for future classes

Organizing Podcast

I just wanted to share a Podcast that I was on with 3 other Organizers who were from Idaho. It was a lot of fun!

The Podcast focuses on Organizers who live and work in rural areas.

James Lott - our host -  is an Organizer and media celebrity in LA.

All of us really love what we do - and it comes through in our Podcast.

https://www.spreaker.com/user/jljmedia/rural-professional-organizers-karin-frie

Less Clutter = Less Stress ^SM     in your home, your business and your life

Organizational Consulting Services

http://www.organizationalconsultingservices.com
.

Visit our Life & Business Coaching website:  North By Northwest

*** check out the Products tab for self-paced workshops, planners and more.... 

5 Mistakes That Cause New Habits to Fail

In order to be successful - you need to have Goals and a Plan. But sometimes you are your own worst enemy - because of your bad habits. Trying to change your habits takes time and commitment.

It's not easy to develop new healthy and productive habits that you can stick to. But don't give up!

Your habits determine how much money is in your bank account and the size of your waistline. Your habits determine the quality of your life.

It can seem impossible to break bad habits or to create new, positive habits. Most people have an ineffective approach. They try to go cold turkey and rely on willpower to force the necessary changes.

You already know this doesn’t work unless you’re incredibly motivated, and motivation isn’t reliable. It’s here one day and gone the next.

Create new habits more effectively by avoiding the most common mistakes:

1.      Changing too much, too soon. A new habit is best installed in baby steps. If you want to spend two hours each day writing your novel, start with a single sentence each day. One sentence accomplishes something exciting: it gets you in the habit of sitting down and writing when it’s time to write. That’s the most important first step.

·         Start with small changes. Then increase the amount of time and effort when the habit of beginning is in place.

·         Seek behavioral changes that are so easy, you can’t possibly fail.

2.      Relying on self-discipline. If your habit requires self-discipline, it won’t last. At most, self-discipline should only be required to make a habit of getting started. Habits are automatic. Self-discipline isn’t required to eat a candy bar or watch TV for most of us. If you have a habit of going to the gym, self-discipline isn’t required for that either.

·         Self-discipline is a short-term solution.

·         Seek behavioral changes that are so easy, you don’t need self-discipline.

3.      Expecting a new habit to be easy to install. Change isn’t easy. You’ll become complacent and lazy if you expect a new habit to be easy to implement. We’d all be rich, in shape, and speak five languages if creating new habits were a simple matter.

4.      Expecting a new habit to be difficult to install. The opposite is also true. If you expect the process to be exceptionally difficult, you’ll also struggle. The thought of doing anything that’s hard can be sufficient reason to never get started in the first place.

·         New behaviors are easy to implement if you start slowly and have patience. It’s moving ahead slowly and having patience that are difficult.

5.      Relying too much on information. Our society is blessed, or cursed, with access to an excessive amount of information. This can create two challenges:

·         It’s very easy to believe that you don’t know enough to take the first step. There’s always something out there that you don’t know. The need to know everything before getting started can leave you stuck. There’s no prize for knowing the most. There is great success in doing the most, though.

·         The belief that knowledge alone is sufficient is just as harmful. You might know how to do pushups, but that doesn’t provide the same results as doing 100 of them each day.

·         The special forces have a motto that 60% is enough to take action. If you know 60% of the relevant information, you know enough to move forward. You can figure out the other 40% along the way. Spend 90% of your time doing and 10% learning.

Dropping your negative habits and adding new, supportive habits is the key to changing your circumstances. Unfortunately, our instincts about change are incorrect.

Tiny changes are easy to implement and build upon. But this approach requires patience and the belief that it can work. Remember: small changes add up to big results.

Avoid the most common mistakes when attempting to add a new habit to your life and you’ll find greater success in adding habits that make a positive impact on your life.  

Less Clutter = Less Stress ^SM     in your home, your business and your life

Organizational Consulting Services

http://www.organizationalconsultingservices.com
.

Visit our Life & Business Coaching website:  North By Northwest

*** check out the Products tab for self-paced workshops, planners and more.... 

 

Tips to Balance Work and Home Responsibilities

If there's one thing you've likely realized by now, it's that life is rarely one-dimensional! You probably have a hard time identifying a period in your past when life proceeded without interruptions.

But have you ever thought about this? Those "interruptions" belong there because life is meant to be multi-dimensional.

Your life is interesting and fulfilling because of variety. Variety in the professional and personal aspects of your life make every day worth living. Now all you really need to do is learn how to balance it all.

Train yourself to balance life's demands by implementing these effective habits:

 

1.      Prioritize. Although you may be a little hesitant to go through this step, it's vital.

·         Do you find yourself putting greater effort into your career? Perhaps that's where your passion lies right now. It's important to come to terms with that.

·         Have you experienced being at work and contemplating where to take your kids this weekend? Maybe that's truly your focus, and that's okay too!

·         The first step is determining what's more important to you. After you've done that, consider whether you can afford to be in that position. If there are factors pointing to unrealistic priorities, be honest with yourself. Put first things first!

2.      Create a distinction. Now that you've outlined your priorities, your next task is to ensure the responsibilities are properly distinguished. Are there certain responsibilities which really shouldn’t be on your radar right now?

·         Earning another degree can certainly add to your qualifications, but is the timing right? If your job is already fulfilling, how about putting off more schooling for now? Use your time wisely so you can balance professional and personal responsibilities.

·         It's great if your kids can participate in tons of extracurricular activities. But do you have the time to attend all the games and recitals? Meet them halfway by limiting the activities, or share the responsibilities with your spouse.

3.      Stick to a dedicated schedule. It's only fair to give each aspect of your life the time it deserves. Once you've identified the priorities, avoid allowing both areas of your life to intertwine.

·         If you've allocated three hours each evening to those special people in your life, ensure you stick to that. This will keep your relationships intact.

·         Sure, unexpected occurrences may pop up at work and throw your plans out of whack. But what's important is that you make the effort to stick to schedules as much as possible.

4.      Make it worth your while. When you've identified set windows of time for specific responsibilities, maintain your focus and follow through.

·         If it's time for work, make it all about work. Try to produce your best quality and get the best results. That way, you'll feel at ease when you're ready to move on to your personal time. You'll rest better knowing you've given your best at work.

The same thing goes for personal time. Turn off the television. Silence your cell phone. Shut down your computer. Allow yourself to take care of personal responsibilities without interruption.

When you practice these tips regularly, you'll find is that it gets a little easier each day to balance these two different areas of your life.

Soon, you’ll be able to handle any unexpected circumstance without getting flustered because you have a good handle on balancing your work and home lives.

Less Clutter = Less Stress ^SM     in your home, your business and your life

Organizational Consulting Services

http://www.organizationalconsultingservices.com
.

Visit our Life & Business Coaching website:  North By Northwest

*** check out the Products tab for self-paced workshops, planners and more....