Simplify Your Fall! - KRDU 1130AM - Your Inspiration Station

Barbara Tako #2 - KRDU 1130AM - Your Inspiration Station: "The 'Clutter Clearing Choices' lady is back with tips on how to unclutter our lives as a new school year begins!"

Life Balance: It isn't all about the clutter either

In light of being a recent breast cancer survivor and probably just naturally as I age, I realize it isn't all about clutter clearing, even for me, maybe especially for me. I start to look at clutter more philosophically. If it (the clutter) isn't interfering with the important aspects of my life like my faith and relationships, then is it something that really needs to take my time and energy to weed out or organize? Maybe as I get older, I am just slower or maybe I am working a little smarter. I start to ask better questions, I think, to keep my life in balance.

As I look around my home, I ask myself:

1. Do I need to weed it out or organize it right now, or is there something more important I could be doing right now?

2. What is the worst thing that will happen if I just walk away from it right now?

3. Is the clutter interfering with the lives and happiness of the people who live here, or is it just hanging out right now?

Life is about staying in balance and making good choices. If the answers to the above questions are "No. Nothing. And, no." then I may be more in balance to continue with my life flow than to stop and deal with the clutter.

Clutter can wait, but maybe my life and relationships can't. In the end, life is a marathon rather than a sprint, and the joy is in the moments of the journey. How do you balance living life with organizing and clutter clearing it? 

In the dog days of summer, just keep swimming

It is 7:10 a.m. and I already feel behind. It is probably more of a feeling than a reality, but it isn't fun. To get past this, I recite what Dory from the Disney movie Nemo would say, "Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming."

I get dressed, straighten things up (fairly superficially), check e-mail, move laundry... These are all activities that help me push the reset button on my home and gradually restore that illusory sensation of "being in control." Now it is off to exercise.

When life (or clutter) overwhelms, I find it helpful to "just keep swimming." I try to move myself forward. What do you do to move past being overwhelmed?

Twin Cities area organizing help!

I would like to introduce you to Kellan Baker. Kellan has a passion for solving problems, especially ones that involve making people’s everyday life more efficient and simple.  Kellan can see the minute details that with a little tweak can make all the difference in design.  He enjoys matching the wide range of design options available at California Closets to the client’s particular needs and wants. Whether that is a basic white closet that stresses an increased need for functionality or a grand entertainment center made of real wood veneer with crown molding. 

He is a graduate of the Univeristy of Minnesota’s accredited Interior Design program and has been involved with many aspects of the design world including Commercial Office Design, Casino Lighting Design, and Residential Design.  His wide range of experience will surely help your unique space be the best it can be.

Follow Kellan's Blog

Television appearance on Daytime

Hi! I just wanted to share that I will be doing a short segment on getting rid of clutter and getting organized on Daytime tomorrow, Wednesday, March 16. A clutter clearing kitchen segment and  wardrobe segment will also be upcoming!

Top 7 Phrases for Uncluttered Communication: Simplify Your Interactions

Sometimes we make things more complicated than they need to be. My spouse describes the interactions of the human race very simply. He says, "We are all just fallible, dopey beings out here bumping into each other." I think that is pretty accurate (just don't tell him I said that). Given we are out here bumping into each other, my daughter and I tried to come up with the best short phrases that would simplify and improve our communications if  only we used them regularly.

Here are our Top 7:

1. Please.
2. Thank you.
3. I am sorry.
4. I forgive you.
5. I love you.
6. Let's have a "do over."
7. How can I help?

Honestly, I wish I had learned some of these earlier in life. At times when I didn't know how to react or preferred to ignore or run away from something, I really could have hung in there and simply said, "How can I help?" Think about it. If we used these with the people we interact with every day, wouldn't we get along better? What would you add or delete from this list?

Book review of "Clutter Clearing Choices"

Check out the book review today at the Imagination Cafe. Thank you!

Quit trying to get motivated to clear out clutter: 3 steps to just do it

The walls creep inward after the holidays in the cold of winter. Normal household clutter and newly gifted items and sale shopping purchases crowd our space. It is depressing and demoralizing to come home and look at the stuff. Quit trying to get motivated to purge and just do it:

1. Set the timer for fifteen minutes. You will either be done, close to completion, or "into it" when the timer goes off. You will make more progress than you think you will. Just do it.

2. Work in your personal prime time. Weeding out is about making lots of decisions. Make decisions at your best time of day. In the morning if you are a morning person...Just do it.

3. Time yourself at the tasks that create household clutter and back up on you. Don't let dishes linger in the sink when it only takes 6 minutes to empty the dishwasher. Don't let clean wrinkled clothing pile up in the laundry basket when it only takes 30 minutes to sort it and put it away...When you time yourself, you gain and keep perspective and you will tackle these things rather than waste time stalling. Just do it.

What is the secret to staying motivated to weed out clutter? The secret is developing lots of tiny habits to process the stuff that comes into your life so that it will also flow out of your life when it is time for it to leave. Don't get motivated, just do it. You will create space to enjoy, peace at home, and the potential to live your best life. Just do it.

A small well-organized yet "maxed out" child's closet

How to achieve your New Year's Resolutions

Check out the article at boomerbrief.com to achieve your goals for this year!


http://www.boomerbrief.com/2011/01/how-to-keep-those-new-years-resolutions.html

Organize Your Home and Reclaim Your Life

Organize Your Home and Reclaim Your Life
Check out this article with closet photos to get ideas to clear your clutter and get organized!

Clutter Clearing Choices Presentation - January 14, 2011

Clutter Clearing Choices Presentation - Jan. 14th
1/14/2011

Barbara Tako will present clutter clearing choices at the Thomas St. Angelo Public Library in Cumberland Friday at noon. The Friends of the Library will provide lunch and everyone is welcome.

Simplify your calendar in 2011

As we switch from 2010 to 2011, it is a great time to evaluate and simplify your calendar usage. Whether you have an electronic calendar or a paper one, these thoughts are to help you!

How many calendars do I need to buy? Consider using only one  calendar. In my experience multiple partial calendars create confusion and are an invitation to disasters in the form of missed events and appointments. If you use only one calendar and trust only one calendar, all information will be there in one place! It saves time too, since you won't be checking in different calendars looking for information.

What kind of calendar is best? Choose one that you like and that fits your personal style for the way you schedule your time and the amount of information you want to record right on the calendar. There is no one "perfect" calendar or style of calendar out there.

In addition, if you have a paper calendar or planner, get one with big enough boxes for each day to record everything. It is helpful to have room for names, addresses, and phone numbers right on the calendar in case you need to call to change an appointment or figure out driving directions at the last minute.
 Maybe that seems obvious, but if you are managing events for multiple people in a household, it is very important. Also, always write in pencil. The only certainty in our lives is that they will change. Doctor appointments will need to be rescheduled. Events will change times or be cancelled. The only constant is change, so be prepared.

What is the best way to use my calendar? It is helpful to write all events on the calendar immediately, as soon as you learn about them. If you have a list of events or a repetitive activity that happens every week, take the time to record those on the calendar for the entire year right now. It is also helpful to record birthdays, starting and ending school dates, conferences, school holidays, summer camps, and annual vacations right away as well. This will help prevent conflicts, and you won't have to reinvent the calendar at the start of each month.

What is the most important thing to keep in mind as I create my 2011 calendar? Your time is your life. When we discuss calendar management, we are really talking about time management which is life management. If you overbook, the only one to blame is yourself. Create time for your priorities. Create time for yourself. Live the best 2011 that you can! You can do this!