Fall is such a wonderful time! Over the years I've noticed a natural tendency: Spring is the time to expand; Autumn is the time to contract.

Is down-sizing on your list of things to do this season? Some of my professional organizer peers refer to the process as 'right-sizing' because it's not merely about having 'less' stuff; it's about having just the right amount for your family and household's size and lifestyle.

I'm aware of another noticeable pattern: we spend the first half of our lives collecting and amassing quantities of things, but we end up spending the last half trying to divest ourselves of the same items. What a lot of work on both ends!

If you're ready to let go of some of your excess, this issue is all about how to prepare for the release and where to take things once you've decided they've got to go. Get your pens and pads handy for this resource-packed newsletter!

Less is more!

Here's an assortment of approaches to systematic reduction:

• Set a bag or box in the entry and/or in each person's closet to be able to toss in an unwanted item whenever you think of it.

• Schedule a 'once a month purge' session; the whole family can be involved.

• Adopt the 'one new in; one old out' principle: whenever you buy something new (or even something used) you make a point to let go of a different item. This works especially well when you have cramped quarters.

• A serious minimalist lives by 'minimum/maximum guidelines': for those of you who like to make lists, here's an opportunity for you to write out how many (of any given category) you'll allow yourself, e.g., 5 sleeveless tops, 5 short sleeve, 5 long sleeve, 7 shorts, 5 jeans, 7 dress pants, 3 jackets per season, no more than 10 pairs of shoes total and so on.

However you decide to tackle the problem, it is well worth your effort. Don't give up! Even if you only make one trip per season to donate items, they'll no longer be competing for your limited space.

Where oh where should my donations go?
(If you have additional resources to share with readers, please let me know! Look for subsequent newsletters that highlight some 'unusual' donation sites! FYI: Did you know you could take your unfinished weaving projects to the MN Weaver's Guild? Who knew?)

American Cancer Society
www.cancer.org or 1-800-227-2345

Value Village Thrift Stores & Pickup Service
www.arcsvaluevillage.org or 612-866-8820

Courage Center
www.couragepickup.org or 952-881-1100

Epilepsy Foundation
www.efmn.org or 651-287-2300

Salvation Army
www.thesalvationarmy.com or 612-332-5855

Vietnam Veterans of America
www.vvapickup.org or 651-778-8387

Charities Review Council of Minnesota
www.smartgivers.org (Rates various charities)

www.GoodwillEasterseals.org offers these tips about donating:

• When in doubt, throw it out! (if you wouldn't wear it, it probably won't sell either)
  

• If it isn't sale-able, please dispose of it properly. (don't contribute to their trash bill)

• Check with donation site to ensure that item meets safety standards. (no hazardous waste!)

• Your donation is tax deductible! (Be sure to get a receipt.)

In closing, remember that being organized is just another way of being prepared. With simple and sustainable systems in place, you can prepare your home for guests, prepare your office for productivity, prepare your life for fun and relaxation! But don't forget to...

Keep It Simple Sweetheart!

Are you having a fun summer? I hope you're taking lots of photos and videos. Can't wait to share them with loved ones? Me too!

Here are a few more resources and ideas to help you capture those images to keep forever and ever and ever and ever...

Am I repeating myself again, again?

I received so many favorable responses about the photo and film resources I highlighted in my last newsletter that I want to add a couple more.

If you're ready to stop all the manual cutting and gluing, "The Future of Scrapping" offers digital scrap booking classes (group and individual). Just one more small album to do by hand and then I'm ready to go digital. Join me!

Do you need the services of a professional photographer? I know a couple of photo wizards who do wedding, portrait, event and even exhibition photography. Say "in beauty" and that's where you'll be when you work with Wendy and Karl Blomseth of Inbeaute Photography. They also teach you how to take better photos in their Fertile Mind Foto workshops.

Christmas tips already?

I know, 'Christmas in July' marketing has never really captured my attention either, but I want to plant a seed in your mind for something you could do at any time, not just Christmastime.

As you're trimming your tree and thinking about all the wonderful memories associated with each of the ornaments, why not tell the stories aloud and capture the whole event on video? If your loved ones can't all be together, you can at least share the event with them by sending off a mini-movie.

You could do this with any memorabilia at any time of year. If necessary, especially in the case of downsizing, you can finally let go of some possessions you no longer have the space to store. Fortunately you'll have captured their essence on film so you'll always have the recorded images to enhance your memories.

In closing, remember that being organized is just another way of being prepared. With simple and sustainable systems in place, you can prepare your home for guests, prepare your office for productivity, prepare your life for fun and relaxation! But don't forget to...

Keep It Simple Sweetheart!

Summer's going by so quickly!

It's hard to keep up with the fast pace of the world today, don't you agree? Just when I think I've 'entered the 21st Century' by learning a new skill (usually a form of technology), something newer is introduced and I'm running to catch up once again.

It's a good thing that I'm committed to informing you of the latest and greatest resources. It motivates me to stay on top of my game.

Say CHEESE (without the guilt)!

So we've all been taking photos and movies since we were kids. Some of us have those photos neatly tucked away in albums; the most creative of us have clever displays in scrapbooks! There's been so much innovation in the field of photography in recent years; now our photos come on CD's and we can save them all to our computer. But are you feeling pangs of guilt because these precious memories aren't being properly showcased? Do you have physical snapshots that haven't made it into albums yet? Still have all those great old movies on VHS or 8mm instead of DVDs? Don't have time to scrapbook? Wish someone could just take over? Have I got some great resources for you! - First of all, you can haul your boxes of photos to Midway Training where skilled and supervised employees with developmental disabilities will scan your photos to CDs. - Saving Tape will not only transfer your VHS or 8/16mm movies to CD's... they can even add your narrative! - Wish you could delegate the artistic process? "I Hate Scrapping" to the rescue where two lovely women in Bloomington will create meaningful photo arrangements and have them printed in bound books (you can even order duplicates)! - Lastly, History Crafters or Just A Pipe Dream can take the whole process a huge step further; they'll interview you or your loved ones to get the story behind the photos and create an heirloom book to last more than a lifetime. I've either recently used or will soon utilize all of these resources. I hope you give their respective websites a 'look-see'. Your memories will be preserved forever and your guilt will be long gone!

But where do I begin?

So, how to best begin organizing photos if you've fallen behind and you want to do it yourself? I suggest creating a time line. I list each year followed by my age and then the grade I was in during that year until I graduated from high school. I continue through to include my daughter's information and end at the present day. I put in other important milestones such as places I worked or where we lived. Here's just one year's info:

2006: I'm age 50, Rose age 17 in 11th grade, officially started SendInMaureen.com

Now it's time to look at your loose photos. Create a box (or envelope) for each particular chunk of time - let's say 'by decade' to start: 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's and the first ten years of the new millennium (what would you call that?!)

Maybe you can't remember what year the picture was taken but you might remember where you lived at the time or some other time-related fact. Just start putting as many photos in their corresponding boxes as you can. For the ones you just can't be sure of yet, leave them aside; later you may find that something will jog your memory and you'll just intuitively know where they belong.

An alternate approach to organizing photos would be according to subject or season e.g., all birthday celebrations or all holiday snapshots together.

How ever you feel compelled to sort your backlog of photos, the main thing is to begin. Just get started and you'll gain momentum. And here's a friendly reminder: perfectionism only leads to paralysis. Don't let it stop you from enjoying the process. Have fun with your memories of a lifetime!

And as I sign off, please remember...
being organized is just another way of being prepared. With simple and sustainable systems in place, you can prepare your home for guests, prepare your office for productivity, prepare your life for fun and relaxation! But don't forget to...

Keep It Simple Sweetheart!

"Summertime, and the livin' is easy..."

Are you feeling the 'ease' of the summer season or are you feeling stressed out by your never ending 'to-do' list? Maybe you're stressed out because of your unwritten list of expectations of yourself... your list of should's!

Recently I'd been feeling a lot of pressure about my should's. I attended a presentation by Anne Newell at a Women In Networking event and subsequently bought her book,"The Myth of Time Management: The Simple Formula for Finding the Time You Need to Do the Things You Want to Do". Within a few days I had the good fortune of going on a writer's retreat with other business owners and I read the book in less than a day.

My perspective about my lengthy 'to do' list immediately changed and I still feel much less pressure about all of it. And I've experienced a profound attitude adjustment regarding my relationship with time.

One main point Anne makes is about finding where your passions, talents and habits all converge. Here's just one example: I love to organize, I'm good at it and I work at it weekly. What's one of yours? There are so many more great concepts in the book; I recommend reading it before the summer is over!

"Limited Edition" is good enough

I know of several elderly people who used to take great pride in their immaculately clean homes. Some of these same people wonder what the fuss was all about now that their aches and pains prevent them from doing things they would otherwise enjoy. I think they wore themselves out doing things that may not have been that important in the first place. Some of the best advice I received when I was pregnant was 'good enough is good enough' and 'pick your battles'. I took both of them to mean there's no need to strive for perfection in all areas of your life. So I chose the places that deserved the highest standards (in my parenting it was always health and safety) but lowered my expectations accordingly in other less important areas (like having my toddler's clothes match or the 'clean plate' expectation). Overall that approach significantly contributed to saner living during those early (and busy) child development years. Regarding achievement, especially for women, we've asked ourselves for decades: Is it possible for us to 'have it all'? You know what I mean, ladies, don't you? Well, I believe we can have it all but maybe not everything all at once. You can have your career and your marriage and your home and your children and your vocation and your hobbies and your leisure... but some of the biggest lifelong goals may have to take turns and happen sequentially, not all simultaneously. So, if you don't have the time or energy (with or without toddlers in tow) or if you've never learned how to (efficiently or sufficiently) clean your home, my advice to you: exercise the limited edition! LTD: Laundry, Trash, Dishes. If every day you do something in each of those three areas, you won't get backlogged and you'll always have: 1) clean clothes to wear 2) clean dishes to use and 3) a place to put your garbage On the flip side, if any of those areas gets backed up, the old saying is definitely true: 'it'll take a lot more energy to catch up than to keep up'. As far as additional cleaning goes, have a mini routine once a week for the other major tasks: (Windex, dust, vacuum, bath & kitchen) and subsequent routines for monthly, quarterly and yearly chores (contact me if you need resources for these routines). But above all, consider your priorities (especially when you have young children) and don't make yourself crazy trying to live in a museum when your home is really meant to have that 'lived in' look. The opinions expressed herein are those of the person writing this newsletter for the sole purpose of recommending a saner approach to living for clients who may be tackling these tasks themselves. These opinions in no way reflect the kind of high quality cleaning methods the Send In Maureen team utilizes when we clean your home or office... perfection is our default position. ;)

Speaking of recommendations...

I use the non-profit, free service, Catalog Choice, to reduce unwanted mail: not just the standard junk mail, it now includes credit card offers and phone books!. (They ask for your social security number and birth date but can easily process your request without that information.)

Just one more resource... Are you familiar with The Simple Truth inspirational mini-movies? "212 Degrees" and "The Dash" are just a couple of my favorites. They provide the perfect internal lift on a gray or drab day. The website allows you to watch the brief movies for free but also offers a multitude of products for sale (great gift ideas).

(See all the websites for today's resources in the Quick Links section in the above left of this newsletter.)

And remember, being organized is just another way of being prepared. With simple and sustainable systems in place, you can prepare your home for guests, prepare your office for productivity, prepare your life for fun and relaxation! But don't forget to...

Keep It Simple!

Happy Spring! I just love all the myriad shades of green this time of year! And all the fragrant flowers - they're everywhere!
I hope you have some beauty blooming in your yard or at least something really colorful you can see from your windows.

We have the good fortune of living on the banks of a little lake, our own oasis in the city. The muskrats are busy swimming back and forth, the geese are loudly claiming their territory and the beautiful egrets have finally returned.

I can't wait to hang some flowers from the balcony and plant my little herb garden in a nice big pot. What's on your spring to-do list? Anything I can help you with? Keep in mind that I'm really well connected too, so if I can't help you I can probably find someone who can.

'To do' or 'not to do', that is the question...

So you've got a 'to-do' list a mile long. Where do you begin? First of all, I like to start my lists with action words: 'call', 'go', 'do', 'read', 'write', 'consider' is my standard format. I make a chart. One column for each action.

You may have other more specific categories: 'at home', 'at work', 'with family' etc. If each 'to-do' item begins with an action word or specific category you can cluster similar tasks together e.g., make all your phone calls in one time block, schedule your errands in a loop in order to make the most of your mileage or have uninterrupted time at your desk to get your writing done.

Research indicates that switching gears back and forth from one type of task to another throughout the day is not only inefficient, it uses up precious mental energy and focus. Wondering about the 'consider' column? I use it for things I need to reflect on or discuss with someone before I make a final decision.

Are you familiar with Steven Covey's thoughts regarding 'important vs urgent' tasks? To read more about it on his blog, see the Quick Links section in the upper left of this newsletter.

Remember that a professional organizer can help you finally accomplish those 'important but never urgent' items; the kinds of things that need to get done but never really have a deadline e.g., create a paper or digital filing system, or plan, create or troubleshoot other systems for time management and record-keeping.

If it has anything to do with information, an organizer will always have plenty of ideas about how to manage it. Contact me to discuss your current information management needs. Let's get those important things off your 'to-do' list!

All the news that's fit to print...

Sending out my first e-newsletter was so exciting for me! I hope you enjoyed it. I spent a lot of time figuring out exactly what I should say and how I should say it. But learning how to put it all together with Constant Contact didn't take much time at all.

I called the support line a few times to re-size the photo, align the text and make some changes to the contact list (virtual assistant Kris Jamieson from Resourcefully Yours imported it - thanks Kris!). Overall it was really an easy process.

If you're thinking of having a newsletter for your business or organization (or even for your family and friends), I highly recommend Constant Contact. For more information go to the Quick Links section (above left).

Remember, being organized is just another way of being prepared. With simple and sustainable systems in place, you can prepare your home for guests, prepare your office for productivity, prepare your life for fun and relaxation! But don't forget to...

Keep It Simple Sweetheart!

name change to: Send In Maureen LLC

I recently changed my business name from Send In Maureen Organizing Services to Send In Maureen, LLC. Over the years clients have requested that I offer more services, so I've gladly accommodated them. Now they're available to you as well.

Through my newsletter and this blog you will receive easy tips and tricks to help you get and stay organized. You'll also learn clever ways to manage your home and accomplish your tasks.

Don't let disorganization prevent you from being effective, efficient or even spontaneous. I'll show you easier, faster ways to do things. Then you'll have more time and energy to live that wild and wondrous life of yours!


Do you really love to send greeting cards? Are you the person who always remembers everyone's birthday and anniversary? Do you feel good after sending off a quick 'thinking of you' note to a friend or a get well card to a family member? Do you like to keep in touch with clients by writing a personal message?

Or are you the kind of person who can't seem to get it together to ever send anything out on time? Do you end up writing 'belated' best wishes for just about every occasion? Could it be that you mailed your holiday greeting cards... in February? Do you wish you had a systematic way to touch base with your contacts that didn't take so much time?

Whichever way you operate, I may have just the thing for you. I recently learned about a great service that allows you to:

* create a card with your own handwriting, photos, images and your own message

* or choose from many types of cards with predetermined images and messages

* do all of this at any computer at any time

* create reminders or schedule to have your card sent on a specified future date

* your recipient receives a greeting card - in the mail, yes, via 'snail mail'!

Visit this website and notch up your communications to a much higher level:

www.SendOutCards.com/sendinmaureen


How can I help you?

Are your closets, basement or garage 'disaster' areas? Have your living spaces been taken over by too much stuff? Do you wish you had a simple system for retrieving your paper or digital documents? Would you like someone to present to your staff about how to be a more organized office worker?

Perhaps it's time to Send In Maureen!

I'd be glad to roll up my sleeves to help you rearrange things in order to maximize your physical space. I can help you determine criteria to help you decide what possessions to keep and where best to keep them. I can teach you very simple ways to ensure that your information can easily be accessed. I may even bring about some ease and simplicity into your world with just the right personalized touches.

Remember, being organized is just another way of being prepared. With simple and sustainable systems in place, you can prepare your home for guests, prepare your office for productivity, prepare your life for fun and relaxation! But don't forget to...

Keep It Simple Sweetheart!