I'm very excited to share that my first project in the Master Plan is complete! I'm happy with the way it turned out, and also happy that I was able to stay in line with my monthly budget for these projects. (By the way, decent bins are pricey!)
(Note: I created a new page - the "2011 Master Plan" tab at the top of this page - where I will add links to all of my projects as I go through the year. It's the one-stop shop to see everything I've done in one place!)
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Gaining Control Over Email
Project #1 (Laundry Room) is coming along nicely. I only have a couple final things left to obtain, so I'm hoping to have that done tomorrow!
In the interim, I have realized how much time I spend trying to keep control of my personal email inbox. I'm guessing that I probably receive between 30-50 emails a day from various newsletters, stores, financial institutions, and occasionally from actual people I know. That adds up to a lot of backlog if you don't stay on top of it, and that can be difficult since I don't have that much time to spend on my personal email every day.
In the interim, I have realized how much time I spend trying to keep control of my personal email inbox. I'm guessing that I probably receive between 30-50 emails a day from various newsletters, stores, financial institutions, and occasionally from actual people I know. That adds up to a lot of backlog if you don't stay on top of it, and that can be difficult since I don't have that much time to spend on my personal email every day.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
The Master Plan
"Change in any area of life occurs when the discomfort of remaining the same becomes greater than the discomfort of changing."
~ Sandra Felton, Smart Organizing
It's safe to say that my "discomfort of remaining the same" finally outdid the desire to stick with status quo, and so the Master Plan was born.
~ Sandra Felton, Smart Organizing
It's safe to say that my "discomfort of remaining the same" finally outdid the desire to stick with status quo, and so the Master Plan was born.
Monday, January 10, 2011
"Let's start at the very beginning..."
"...a very good place to start." ~ Sound of Music
I have blogged before, but in a more personal, "journal" sort of way. As I've toyed with the idea of getting back into the habit of blogging, I've decided that I'd like to do it in a more focused way. I love learning about food blogs, I've watched my fair share of Food Network programs, and I enjoy trying new recipes, but let's face it: most of the meals I make are pretty basic and rather unworthy of photos and a blog post. (Frozen ravioli and sauce from a mix? One of my faves!) Food blogging was out.
While I do craft (cross-stitching is my long-time love), I often can't devote enough time to it to make swift enough progress to actually warrant meaningful blog posts. I'm not a lover of politics -- let me rephrase that, I try to stay out of it as much as possible -- so that's not an option, either.
A number of factors ultimately caused me to land in the general category of "organization." I find myself drooling over well-organized, clean spaces when I flip through catalogs and magazines. I am a hopeless list-maker and often have some good ideas that never get acted upon. Probably the more motivational factor is that I can feel my blood pressure rise when I find myself in certain areas of my house. (Ok, I can't verify that my blood pressure actually rises, but my stress level certainly does!) So, really, it is a matter of personal sanity that I solve this problem!
And so begins the journey to diagnose the problems and find solutions that I can actually follow and manage. There may be a great idea that would fix one of my organizational dilemmas, but if it's too complicated and doesn't fit fairly easily into my daily routine, it's pretty much worthless. I'm sure that the first answer will not always be the final answer, but as long as I learn from the things that didn't work, I'll always be improving.
Starting with my next post, I'll discuss what I like to refer to as my "Organizational Master Plan," which has been brewing for a couple months now, and will serve as some general guidelines for how I'm actually going to go about revamping the organization in my home. Stay tuned, and thanks for joining me at the beginning of what will surely be an interesting adventure!
I have blogged before, but in a more personal, "journal" sort of way. As I've toyed with the idea of getting back into the habit of blogging, I've decided that I'd like to do it in a more focused way. I love learning about food blogs, I've watched my fair share of Food Network programs, and I enjoy trying new recipes, but let's face it: most of the meals I make are pretty basic and rather unworthy of photos and a blog post. (Frozen ravioli and sauce from a mix? One of my faves!) Food blogging was out.
While I do craft (cross-stitching is my long-time love), I often can't devote enough time to it to make swift enough progress to actually warrant meaningful blog posts. I'm not a lover of politics -- let me rephrase that, I try to stay out of it as much as possible -- so that's not an option, either.
A number of factors ultimately caused me to land in the general category of "organization." I find myself drooling over well-organized, clean spaces when I flip through catalogs and magazines. I am a hopeless list-maker and often have some good ideas that never get acted upon. Probably the more motivational factor is that I can feel my blood pressure rise when I find myself in certain areas of my house. (Ok, I can't verify that my blood pressure actually rises, but my stress level certainly does!) So, really, it is a matter of personal sanity that I solve this problem!
And so begins the journey to diagnose the problems and find solutions that I can actually follow and manage. There may be a great idea that would fix one of my organizational dilemmas, but if it's too complicated and doesn't fit fairly easily into my daily routine, it's pretty much worthless. I'm sure that the first answer will not always be the final answer, but as long as I learn from the things that didn't work, I'll always be improving.
Starting with my next post, I'll discuss what I like to refer to as my "Organizational Master Plan," which has been brewing for a couple months now, and will serve as some general guidelines for how I'm actually going to go about revamping the organization in my home. Stay tuned, and thanks for joining me at the beginning of what will surely be an interesting adventure!
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