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Year-Ahead Planning Resources

by Filed Under: Organize, Paper management, Tips & Resources, Uncategorized 2 Comments

“Where I’m headed is a direct result of the ideas, goals, intentions and plans I create space for in my life.” -Heather K. Powers

year-ahead planning

I’ve come to love a few tools that I use over and over routinely. I’m including a round up of them below along with some new tools! Planning begins for me by selecting a planner. I went back to paper a few years ago. I’ve used quite a few planners over the years, including the Franklin Covey system, Filofax, Danielle La Port, and more!

Schedule time for an end-of-year review and year ahead planning in the last weeks of the year.

I try to keep it simple and don’t go all out Bullet Journal. I use a Moleskin planner and customize it. This includes categories and intentions, goals, tasks, and events on a daily/weekly basis. My regular habit of Journaling helps me get a lot of ideas out of my head and on paper. During that process I can move more concrete ideas to my planner. This works for me. I’m always re-evaluating and making small adjustments. Overall, I’m happy with this and can easily go back through my year to see my accomplishments. If you’re searching for some great planning tools, the first few below are ones I’ve personally used and love! The last couple are new additions. But I deeply trust the sources and can recommend them with full confidence you will find them helpful!

  • Susannah Conway guides us to reflect on your year in Photo’s (on Instagram) with December daily prompts. She has a beautiful tool called “Unravel your year”
  • The word of the year is a process that both Christine Kane and Susannah Conway share tools for discovering. I’ll be revealing mine early next year.
  • Ali Edwards shares beautiful tools for her One Little Word discovery. She also offers a year-long creative exploration you can join. She’s one of the first people I discovered the word of the year with!
  • Check out this free toolkit from Do What You Love
  • Moleskine Planners are still my favorite. Although I’ve tried digital planners and other newer planners, I keep going back to this great staple. I love the flexibility, lovely colors various sizes, and layouts.
  • Danielle Laporte offers her free Soulful Habit Tracker. She also sells a gorgeous planner and other great tools for inspiration for planning. I’m a long time reader and fan of Danielle’s!
  • Vision boards! This is such a fun project/tool for creating a visionary map of what you want to create in your new year. It’s a practice I began about 7 years ago and I’ve continued to make them and teach them almost every year! Join me for my next workshop here.

How do you do year ahead planning and reflect on your accomplishments? I’d love to hear your favorite tools and routines in the comments below! I know there are a lot of options out there so I’m only sharing what I know, trust, and have seen results from:) Happy, almost, New Year!

Your clutter action plan

by Filed Under: Organize, Paper management, Systems & Techniques, Tips & Resources

What areas of Clutter overwhelm you? It’s important to identify where you get stuck and understand why. This clutter action plan will help you establish order and bring clutter under control. If you’re not clear on this, check out my post on the muddy water metaphor to help you identify with the feelings behind your clutter…then hop back over here or jump in now!

Clutter Action Plan

Start with the least cluttered category. Whatever category on your list above feels easiest – small stuff or big stuff (clear a big space)-start easy! By starting with easier items we gain compelling momentum! You will move on to bigger challenges once you’ve made progress in easier areas.

Decide before you begin. Start with a category of items (my preference), ex. all books, all kids clothes, all papers, all kitchen stuff or work by location (one closet at a time etc). There are advantages to each. When working by category you need to gather everything in one place and when working by location you may have to go back to locate things that belong in other categories. Decide before you begin.

  • Schedule it. Block out distractions and give yourself a deadline (a day a week etc). Set aside the time you think this will take. Estimate it and give yourself a bit of extra but set a limit. If appropriate, schedule a donation pick up, this will motivate you to get it done by the time they come for the pick up!
  • Gather supplies. Such as bags, boxes, sorters, a label maker/labels, rubber bands, paperclips, a shredder etc and make sure these items are handy if not right by your side).
  • Create a work zone. This will serve for the duration of your clutter clearing project. Ideally you can leave things (supplies, unsorted stuff, donation stuff) in this location till you are done! Even better if you can close the door on them between sessions if you can’t complete everything at once (a day, a weekend etc).
  • Make it fun! Put on some great music, light a candle, some incense…whatever will put you in a happy place.
  • Sort it. Start with trash, toss items if they are broken, don’t bring joy or are otherwise not functional. Make a maybe pile if you aren’t sure. Start with what’s easiest, if you think it’s useful but don’t need it, donate it to your charity of choice! It helps to know your things will be loved and used by others-share your abundance!
  • Categorize it. (seasonal, where you use it, how often etc). This is where you begin to see your organizing systems emerge. What do you need based on what you have?
  • Contain it. If you can’t do this all at once the create an area to work through un-categorized items until you’ve finished every last item. It can help to work through one category at a time. Don’t stop till you’ve returned things to their homes (old or new), tossed the trash and donations are out the door.
  • Reward yourself and Repeat. For each category or location take the steps above to complete the action plan and reward yourself with something small (flowers, a meal out etc).

 When you have cleared all of your clutter, you can be of greater service to those around you.

-Michael B. Kitson

Is your clutter overwhelming you?

by Filed Under: Organize, Paper management, Systems & Techniques, Tips & Resources

As much as we all might like to live a totally clutter free life it may not be entirely possible.  If your is Clutter Overwhelming you, taking a look at what clutter categories are in our lives can help us understand what triggers our overwhelm.

 clut·ter verb ˈklə-tər

intransitive verb
: to run in disorder
transitive verb
: to fill or cover with scattered or disordered things that impede movement or reduce effectiveness

There are many kinds of clutter in our lives. Take a moment to evaluate each category and decide where you can reduce clutter. Know that it might get worse before it gets better...all that dirt that may emerge by way of emotions and literal mess might not be pretty! Hang in there and you will be rewarded if you are can be open to the process. As your thinking about each of these categories, imagine them as you want them to be-intentions are powerful!  

  • Mail-incoming and outgoing (try reducing it by removing subscriptions to magazines, junk mail and catalogs).
  • Kids-school bags, sports equipment, books, toys, clothes etc…get your kids involved and create a place for easy pick up and storage of transient items.
  • Office-paperwork, files, receipts, mail etc. Create one designated area and consider using a type of action or tickler filing system to corral it all.
  • Digital-photos (delete the impulse pictures that don’t turn out well and you would never print!), email (removed yourself from subscriptions and consider creating multiple email addresses for different purposes), digital computer files (create a file hierarchy similar to your paper file system).
  • Household-things that you have sitting around but don’t love (rotate displays or give items away to friends and charity with no strings attached).
  • Mental-those endless thoughts that run in circles in your mind, find a way to tame them by taking notes, writing in a journal and releasing them if the are out of your control!

As much as we all might like to live a totally clutter free that’s probably not realistic. Understanding our limitations and having realistic expectations can help us decide where to start. Once you’ve evaluated the clutter areas in your life, prioritize them from worst to best and get ready for action.

“Clutter is a physical manifestation of fear that cripples our ability to grow.” ~H.G. Chissell 

There are so many kinds of clutter in our lives.  Take a moment to think about each category and evaluate which areas trigger your overwhelm.
  • Mail-incoming and outgoing (try reducing it by removing subscriptions to magazines, junk mail and catalogs)
  • Kids-school bags, sports equipment, books, toys, clothes etc…get your kids involved and create a place for easy pick up and storage of transient items
  • Office-paperwork, files, receipts, mail etc.  Create 1 designated area and consider using a type of action or tickler filing system to corral it all
  • Digital-photos (delete the impulse pic’s that don’t turn out well and you would never print!), email (removed yourself from subscriptions and consider creating multiple email addresses for different purposes), digital computer files (create a file hierarchy similar to your paper file system)
  • Household-things that you have sitting around but don’t love (rotate displays or give items away to friends and charity with no strings attached)
  • Mental-those endless thoughts that run in circles in your mind, find a way to tame them by taking notes, writing in a journal and releasing them if the are out of your control!

Once you’ve evaluated the cluttered areas of your life, prioritize them in order of worst to best join me this month for the Clutter Purge Challenge! On day one we will release 1 item, on day 31, we will releas 31 things! That’s almost 500 physical manifestations that are holding us back! Click here to join the challenge, you can join in at any time!

“When you have cleared all of your clutter, you can be of greater service to those around you.”~Michael B. Kitson

5 mind map tools for a deep dive

by Filed Under: Inspiration & Education, Paper management, Planning & Goals, Productivity, Systems & Techniques, Tips & Resources, Wellness & Mindset 1 Comment

Mind maps tools are increasingly popular among companies, business owners, individuals, and educators. Using mind maps for a deep dive into a specific topic, project, or goal allows you to throw it out “on paper” and get the order of your ideas.

All mind maps have one thing in common. They have a central structure that radiates out organizing ideas by using lines, symbols, photos, and text to support and provide additional information for each big idea or topic. Mind maps can be either paper or computer-based, both follow the same structure, breaking a topic out from a central idea. The wonderful thing about the process of mind mapping is that you can dive deeper into a subject as you radiate out and continue to brainstorm. The mind map process is both intellectual and creative and is such a wonderful tool for individuals and businesses’ that are more hands-on and intuitive in their goal setting and brainstorming process. The key is to find out which method works best for you, your needs, and capabilities.

Paper Mind Maps

Paper-based mind maps are easy to create – you don’t need a computer, internet access, or computer chargers. All you need is paper and a pen, easy peasy! You can quickly jot down everything that comes out of your mind and map it out exactly how you’d like it. A paper mind map is great for those who need to get all of their ideas out quickly and allow for refining later. It can also be a helpful tool for organizing ideas and actions for teams.

Paper mind maps wick and easy to access anywhere, but there are a few downsides to using traditional pen and paper – it could easily get lost, crumpled, or get eaten by your dog! You aren’t able to change your ideas with ease unless you use a pencil, and if you are creating a large mind map you’ll need a lot of paper (which isn’t so ecologically friendly) and can take up a lot of space.

Digital Mind Map Tools

There are dozens of mind map software to choose from, these are just some of the most popular and user-friendly systems that I’ve used myself, with clients or heard good things about.

Coggle

Coggle is a web browser-based mind mapping software that makes creating a mind map simple, easy, and fun. This software offers both a free and paid version and it is an excellent investment if you create a lot of mind maps. It allows you to collaborate easily with a team. You can add text, hyperlinks, and images anywhere on your map with Coggle. The attractive branches can be customized with color, making these mind maps easy to follow.

Inspiration Mapsmind map tools

Inspiration Maps offers both computer and web-based software that has been newly introduced for iPad and iPhone. Its key features include the ability to create an unlimited number of maps and outlines, a user-friendly interface, and the ability to customize, add graphics and photos to any part of your map. You are able to choose from over 100 pre-made mind map layouts and hundreds of graphics within the app. With its autosave feature, you can be certain you won’t lose any of your data if the internet goes down and you are able to share it on a variety of platforms. It is very inexpensive for all the features and is worth the purchase!

Mind Meister

In addition to its catchy name, Mind Meister is another great software for creating mind maps. It is focused more on business and educational use and has a variety of features that support a lot of users at one time. It is available for download and can be accessed on any platform and has intricate sharing capabilities.

When making your decision take into consideration the pros and cons of each, the features, cost, ease of interface, accessibility, and most importantly that it suits your needs. At the end of the day, mind maps are supposed to be a fun, interactive tool that helps you expel all the information out of your brain. Don’t lose sight of that and have fun mind mapping all your great ideas!

Do you already use the mind map process? If so are you using pen and paper or software? What are some of your favorite things to mind map?

How to ask for Help & get what you need

by Filed Under: Organize, Paper management, Systems & Techniques, Tips & Resources

It can be really tough for some of us to ask for help when we need it! I’m guilty of not asking for help and I’d much rather help others than ask for what I need. Helping others is why I began my work as a professional organizer and it’s deeply satisfying to see others make huge transformations and shifts because they were courageous enough to ask for what they need.

Starting my business (especially as an organizer) has required and inspired me to ask for help on a more frequent basis. There’s a certain mindset about asking for help that many of us have learned, especially women! We often think that in asking for help we are showing weakness, we think we should be able to EVERYTHING ourselves…or some of us are taught to think this way.

This is an old programed mindset that we can all choose to free ourselves from.

[bctt tweet=”No matter what accomplishments you make, somebody helped you. -Althea Gibson” username=”hkpowerstudio”]

As incredible as it is to be strong, independent women (or men), it’s also totally necessary to ask for help in order to grow personally and professionally. Maybe we are afraid to ask for help! But living in fear means we are limiting our growth, freedom, creativity, health and future. So absolutely YES, being fearless means asking for help! My clients model that for me on a daily basis.

How to ask for Help & get what you need

Determine what project or task you need help with

Make a list of people who you can ask for help (identify individuals or types of professionals)

Match the task with the person

Make the ask and don’t do so in a way that belittles yourself, we all deserve to receive help!

Whether you are paying for help or someone is doing something just because they love you, remember that gratitude goes a long way so show it off a little or a lot.

Return the favor, pay it forward and go help someone else ASAP!

 

What kind of help are you most afraid to ask for? What help is easy to ask for?

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