One of the biggest hurdles to adopting new behaviors is accepting that there is no magic bullet. People ask me for help to find the perfect systems or tools that will allow them to finally be on top of things. If only it were so easy! A bright shiny new filing system loses its luster quickly. … Read more
I think we’re all familiar with struggling to say no to things that are fun or decadent, but aren’t good for us. But what about the things that don’t sound tempting at all, and still, we can’t say no? In this fourth installment of my series about learning how to say no, (click here to read earlier … Read more
Third installment of my “Just Say No,” blogging campaign, where I am examining the complexities of saying no. To re-cap the themes from my previous posts: Acknowledge when we have the option to say no. Identify the option to turn toward a healthier yes. I think I may have hit a sticking point when considering the option to turn toward … Read more
Back to my “Just Say No,” blogging campaign. My goal is to identify all the complexities of saying no, in the hope that we can someday be able to say no as easily as Nancy Reagan would have liked us to. Why is this important? If we want to change our habits around organization and productivity, we need … Read more
Are you stalled from moving forward on a project because you can’t make a decision? Perhaps you aren’t sure which contractor to hire, which bookkeeping software to use, or which after-school program your kids should attend… Life requires lots of decisions. Our decision making styles are inherent parts of our personality, and they fall into two groups: maximizers and satisficers. … Read more
A recent podcast on StuffYouShouldKnow.com explored whether objects or experiences make us happier. Research indicates that the happiness people feel after acquiring a new object fades after time. This isn’t surprising, but it got me to wondering, after the happiness fades, what’s left? And is that next feeling that comes along a good variable for … Read more
Caught an interview with vaccum innovator James Dyson on NPR’s Science Friday. I loved his discussion of failure, stating how it’s necessary for learning to occur. We often don’t make decisions because we’re afraid of making the wrong choice. We don’t try new systems because we’re not sure they’ll work. Imagine how much we could … Read more
The reasons we save things can be broken down to four categories. When struggling with decluttering decisions, it may be helpful to identify which category applies to the items in question and maybe even sort those items accordingly. It might teach you a little bit about yourself! 1. Personal identity “Giving this away would be … Read more
Test-taking skills offer a perfect analogy for decluttering. We teach kids to do the easy questions first and finish as much as they can before they come back to the more difficult ones. I encourage this approach with decluttering. I know this goes against a lot of conventional advice that says to “only handle it … Read more