Backsliding – Why we all need to understand this concept!

The definition of backsliding is to regress to a previous state. Nearly everyone has experienced backsliding in a variety of areas in their lives.

Here are some of the reasons for backsliding at home:

• Have a new or reoccurring health problem with yourself or a loved one
• Hold or plan a special event in or around your home
• Must assist a loved one or friend with an event outside the home (wedding, party, move)
• Add something “new” to your home, New Pet, New Person, New Furniture.
• Acquire a New “helpful” tool – Example: Robot vacuum
• Plan a re-model or redecorate your home, (Paint, Carpet, Flooring) 
• Get a new job or project that changes your daily or work week schedule
• Have an in-home maintenance emergency such as a pipe or roof leak, plumbing issue, pest issue
• Dealing with broken appliances – troubleshooting, getting replaced or repaired

Here are some of the reasons for backsliding at work:

• Changing office or workspace location
• New technology or system implementation
• Having to cross train staff or a new person
• Taking on the responsibilities of a colleague who is leaving or being promoted
• A large important project with an impending deadline
• Out of office travel
• Too many unplanned or last minute meetings to attend
• Support staff illnesses or absences causing delays of needed material or information
• Technology failure or system going offline

The best way to cope with backsliding is to accept the inevitable and plan for reduced progress. Acknowledgment and awareness of backsliding means more understanding of the process in your home and work life and less frustration with yourself and others.

PS If you want to know why a robot vacuum means backsliding, it means all floors need to be cleared of objects it can “suck up”, get stuck on or get lost underneath. Time will be spent searching for the robot who is hiding below something. Usual lost areas include bookcases, dressers, beds, closets. Items that a robot can “suck up” include bed linens, towels, clothing-especially long dresses or robes. Robot vacuums will also get stuck on some floor vents or behind a chair. Don’t get me started about robot vacuums and pets…. However, once a robot vacuum is understood and your home designed to accommodate it, the robot vacumn becomes a great time saving device.

The Gentle Art of Death Cleaning – A Review

I finally got hold of the book, The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning by Margareta Magnusson and here is my review.

The book is very gentle in tone and leaves the message that “death cleaning” can be started at any age and the sooner the better. Death cleaning being the sorting and organizing process to cull, reduce, recycle and discard your worldly possessions.

Margareta continually describes herself as between the age of eighty to one hundred. Initially, I  found this very endearing at the onset but rather repetitive towards the end. The author has moved internationally many times and has performed the process of sorting and reducing many times during her life journey.

Her approach is very toned down and “gentle”. This is a good book for professional organizers to recommend to their clients over 50. Margareta looks at death cleaning as an opportunity to spare your relatives and others from difficult decisions and the actual hard work of clearing out your stuff.

Margareta does bring the traditional gender roles attitude towards death cleaning – believing it to be more of a woman’s job than a man. I think we can forgive her for this since she is between eighty and a hundred years of age. However, I think she understands this is changing with the younger generation.

In the latter part of the book, she discusses written communications, photographs and even digital communications. Margareta says “Although our belongings can bring memories to life, it becomes much more difficult with photographs and written words.  She asks “Will anyone I know be happier if I save this?”.  If she answers no, then it goes into the shredder. However, before it gets shredded she takes time to reflect on the even or feeling to know that it has been part of her story and life.

Having just spent several months, working on compiling my father’s memoirs, I have some mixed feelings about waiting to sort photographs and letters. I’d like to suggest we put some time aside, perhaps in the cooler weather months for sorting photographs and letters as a middle age project instead of at the very end of our life or when in the elder years. The volume of letters and photographs are still extensive in the pre-digital age. There is an abundance of treasures for family history or genealogy waiting to be gleaned.   Waiting too long means the potential loss of valuable information.

The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning is the book to help you get motivated to start your cleaning and help save your loved ones their own precious time to take care of stuff you do not want anymore.

Clutter is the Cholesterol of the Home

I ran across this interesting metaphor for clutter – Clutter is the Cholesterol of the Home (1) . After searching the web I came across earlier usage of this metaphor by Maria Cilley – The Fly Lady in her 2002 book Sink Reflections.  On page 25 she states Clutter is to our home as Cholesterol is to our arteries.

Her points in the book:

• Clutter invades the pathways of our homes
• Clutter causes stress in your life
• Clutter decreases joy in living
• Clutter pushes money away from you
• Clutter destroys closeness in families
• Clutter is a result in overindulging in stuff
• Clutter causes hearts to harden

Try using this metaphor with your own home or chronically disorganized clients.

Are there any other metaphors you use to describe clutter?

 

1  LA Times Opinion Article of 2013  by Howard Mansfield titled An American dilemma: Your clutter or your life.

Home Organizing Notable Authors

Professional Organizers have been tearing up the social media airwaves with their thoughts on the latest book entree into the organizing world. Marie Kondo’s book The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up is the latest star in a long line of New Concept books.  Concept leaders include Stephanie Winston, Julia Morgenstern, Peter Walsh and now Marie Kondo.

Here is a table to help review the New Concept – Home Focused Organizing Books. Be sure to take note of the lower part of the chart which lists the subset of authors who have sold to specific markets and have also done extremely well.

Tell me what you think. Have I missed anyone in the general audience home organizing category?

The Three Losses in Five Years Syndrome

Over the past 10 years, I have come across a subset of individuals who begin a sudden onset of chronic disorganization. These are individuals who are serving as family caretakers who have experienced at least three significant losses in their life over the span of 5 years. This subset has usually served as primary caretaker for either parent(s), spouse or sibling(s). Many of them also serve as the executor of one or more of these estates. Many of these individuals seem to take about 7 to 12 years after the final loss to come to terms with this in their life.

What I would like to see is a more active approach to treating this, more on the onset prevention than as an after effect treatment.

It would be beneficial to have physicians and their staffs work to identify caretakers who are already at two losses in five years, and encourage them to get additional support through grief counseling, caretaker support group participation and for those financially able, consider the services of a skilled professional organizer. A skilled professional organizer can do wonders to help the “primary caretaker client ” in terms of time management, goal setting, project planning and management. Many professional organizers can help establish bill paying and document management systems to handle the growing paperwork that complex and long-term medical conditions usually entail as well as documents for estates probate. A professional organizer can help the client simplify his or her life and environment as well as serve as a body double for difficult and often procrastinated tasks.

While a professional organizers services are not inexpensive, they are a valuable tool that may help the primary caretaker live a more vibrant and fulfilling life while and after experiencing heavy losses in their life.

The Three Losses in 5 Years are primarily death losses. For some, however, one of those losses can be the loss of a pet, divorce or significant job loss.

I believe more research and education is needed in this area. Let’s hope that this syndrome can be more clearly understood and helpful strategies for success developed and promoted to the general public.

 

This is a best of post

Show Your Work

Austin Kleon’s  Show Your Work: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered published  written in 2014  is a quick and helpful read for all ages,  Share Something Small Everyday is a simple yet wonderful concept  explained and nicely diagramed in chapter 3. This concept is perfect for aspiring creatives and artists to understand and immediately begin the process. Share Something Small Everyday is also a great strategy for young high school S.T.E.M. students who want to start distinguishing themselves from the rest of the pack

Open Up Your Cabinet of Curiosities , chapter 4 brings home the gem “Your influences are all worth sharing because they clue people in to who you are and what you do – sometimes even more than your own work.” Kleon.  In this regard, Austin believes you should always give credit where credit is due and don’t share what you can’t credit.

Learn to Take A Punch is a chapter about building resilience, something all creatives, leaders and visionaries need. I almost passed this by on the first glide by but realized the value upon preparing for this review.

This under 225 page book will take you no time to read, yet will provide some useful and practical insights for some parts of your own work  or your client’s. The thing to remember about this book is that it is SHORT, therefore don’t expect too much.  However, it’s the words and wisdom in this little book that will come in handy from time to time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Humor and Productivity

Sometimes you just need to laugh. Laughter is, after all, the best medicine. Medical experts have found laughter stimulates blood flow, reduces stress and can actually lower your blood pressure.

Over the years I have become aware that my life is just better if I don’t take myself too seriously. Our clients also benefit from our humor. It uplifts their spirits and has a beneficial effect making them more productive.

While looking at humor I realized there are at least 3 ways in our organizing businesses we deal with humor; first humor with self, then with clients, and finally, with our colleagues.

Humor with Self

Sometimes as organizers, coaches and consultants we tend to think of ourselves as needing to perfectly embody the heart and soul of our profession. I think we all have our foibles and areas of disorganization. My specialty is a compulsion to collect and maintain an extensive lipstick collection. The other day I had 12, a few months ago while on a 2-night vacation I tallied 17.

Now most of you that have actually seen me in person may realize my lipstick is not always apparent. How can this be? I am, unfortunately, not yet skilled at continuous and productive lipstick application. I might need a course in this.

In my office I have a series of humorous organizing cards I have collected over the years. One features a woman with a cluttered desk, 2 pair of glasses on her head and lots of interesting “stuff”. The inside of the card says, “Just as soon as I get organized.” Having this in my office makes me smile and is especially helpful now that I have transitioned to reading glasses. Put up some fun stuff in your office to provide some comic relief.

Humor with Clients

Using humor with your clients can bring a touch of levity on a tough subject, or a break from the monotony or stress of a situation. A well placed humorous remark can bring a much-needed smile and defuse a moment of anxiety. Clients, like employees, work better in a happy state rather than a depressed one.

It actually helps to admit a few (note – I say few not all!) of your areas of disorganization to your clients. This allows your clients to realize that you, the expert, are not perfect and have your areas of shortcomings. This helps to diffuse judgment later on when you end up being five minutes late or temporarily mislay a document.

Take some time to laugh with your clients and colleagues and finally start laughing at yourself. You will find that you create a more productive and enjoyable environment.

 

This is a revised best of post – you might also enjoy: 

Routine Reflections

 

 

Time for Kudos

Kudos means a praising remark. We all like to be appreciated and acknowledged for our work or contributions. Let’s spend some time exploring kudos.

Why Give Kudos

There are a few reasons to give kudos. First, we all like to be acknowledged and appreciated. Second, appreciating someone’s work or efforts can sometimes be the catalyst to develop or deepen a new or existing personal or work relationship. Third, kudos are sometimes the sustaining embers in people’s lives.

How to Give Kudos

Kudos can be verbal or written. Kudos can be physically given as in a handwritten note, card or with a small token gift. Kudos can also be given via an email or on a blog posting can be made from time to time.

Receiving Kudos

It is nice to receive kudos. Kudos can be put up on a bulletin board or display shelf. Verbal kudos can be transformed to penned lines and inserted into an appreciation journal.

Appreciating the Giver of the Kudos

It is polite to acknowledge the sender for their sentiments or gifts, either by verbalizing your appreciation or by sending an acknowledging note.

Making Kudos Part of Your Routine

Take time to routinely reflect and send appropriate kudos to those around you. Kudos giving can be a nice break in a full or busy week. Kudos giving makes us look outside of ourselves, which can be helpful when we are too inward thinking.

Who can you give kudos to in your life?

Renew and Refresh

I have been thinking about words that describe and encompass positive end stage turning points in change and transition. Renew and Refresh are two words that come to mind.

Renew is to be restored to a former state; become new or as if new again.

Refresh means make fresh again; reinvigorate or cheer (a person, the mind, spirits, etc. ).

Definitions from dictionary.com

Have you experienced either of these when clearing or phasing out of a transitional phase? Comments and thoughts welcome.

 

 

Make Time for Kudos

Kudos means a praising remark.  We all like to be appreciated and acknowledged for our work or contributions.  Let’s spend some time exploring kudos.

Why Give Kudos

There are a few reasons to give kudos. First, we all like to be acknowledged and appreciated. Second, appreciating someone’s work or efforts can sometimes be the catalyst to develop or deepen a new or existing personal or work relationship. Third, kudos are sometimes the sustaining embers in people’s lives.

How to Give Kudos

Kudos can be verbal or written. Kudos  can be physically given as in a handwritten note, card or with a small token gift.  Kudos can also be given via an email or on a blog posting can be made from time to time.

Receiving Kudos

It is nice to receive kudos. Kudos can be put up on a bulletin board or display shelf. Verbal kudos can be transformed to penned lines and  inserted into an appreciation journal.

Appreciating the Giver of the  Kudos

It is polite to acknowledge the sender for their sentiments or gifts, either by verbalizing your appreciation or by sending an acknowledging note.

Making Kudos Part of Your Routine

Take time to routinely reflect and send appropriate kudos to those around you. Kudos giving can be a nice break in a full or busy week.  Kudos giving makes us look outside of ourselves, which can be helpful when we are too inward thinking.

Who can you give kudos to in your life?