Let's Talk Organizing

Organizing a Move

2008-07-17T19:40:00.003-07:00

You know, I move a whole heck of a lot! As a matter of fact, I have moved more times than I have years on my little life. Talk about absolute insanity! Not only do I HATE to move, I HATE to move in the middle of an Arizona summer. Moving in 115F degree weather with even the slightest bit of humidity is HORRIFYING!

So instead of bribing my buff guy friends with pizza and beer (because they would shut me down flat!), I am doing professional movers and multicolored packing tape!

Think about it...you seal each of your boxes up with a different color packing tape to denote which room the boxes go in.

Red for my room

Pink for Jorydn's room

Blue for Garrett's

Green for the living room

Yellow for the kitchen

Gray for the garage

Purple for the bathrooms

Voila!!! Solution solved for trying to figure out where the boxes go. I also will put the color of the room in construction paper on the doors of the room so the guys know where to place them. IF some of them get misplaced, at least I know where they will live. Especially since the kids will be out of state during our little jaunt around the block.

If you have any moving tidbits of helpful information, definitely let me know! Oooh, did I say that they already have garage cabinets for me to store all of my goodies in!? Oh how exciting is THAT!?

Happy Organizing!

Suzanne Babb

Organizing is "Like a Box of Chocolates"

2008-07-12T19:23:00.004-07:00

Forrest Gump nailed it on the head when he said the infamous line, "Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you are going to get." And how true is that? Well, not only is life like a box of chocolates so is organizing.

Not in the traditional sense of not knowing what you are going to get, but quite the opposite. Let's take a look at your normal every day box of chocolates. You have your toffee, the caramel bites, nougat filled delicacies, maybe even a chocolate covered cherry. Regardless of what kind of yummy treats that came in your box of chocolate, there are always your favorites. The ones you snag before anyone else gets to it. For me, it's the toffee. I LOVE the toffee! Then I try and find the all too familiar square and hope to God it's the caramel ones. The rest, well, I'll leave those to others.

Not only will I be "generous" enough to leave the candies that I don't like :) I also stay away from the gold foil covered chocolates. A little too scary for me. I am not really into the unknown. I'm possibly the biggest wimp the world has ever created. Give me what I know and what I like.

The same holds true for organizing.

Think about your favorite chocolates. Mmmmmm....

Now think about some of your favorite organizational systems that you already have in place.

What do you like about them?

What works for you?

What makes you all giddy and tingly inside?

Now, go back to your favorite chocolates again. (can you feel the extra pounds wracking up on your backside yet?)

Other than the pounds that they will cause, don't you wish you had an entire box of your favorites? The same pretty box. The same cute little chocolate cups that hold your mouth watering confections. Seriously, don't confuse my taste buds with all of the other mystery crap, give me the good stuff!

Ok, Suzanne, you seriously need to go and grab the Dove chocolate bar that Chris bought you and chow down because you are seriously whacked!

But let me explain my twisted rationale about chocolates and organizing.

We already know your favorite chocolates (your favorite methods of organizing).

Now think of the other chocolates (some other organizational tidbits you have read along the way). You look through the box and veto the chunky thing that looks like it is growing hair, you bypass the round one because last time you ate one you very nearly tossed your lunch, but there in the corner is something that looks like the same milk chocolate that you crave, it's square and non assuming, and you decide to try it and hmm, it's actually pretty good. So you take another bite and you start to really enjoy it. You may even decide to put in your chocolate favorites database. (You read some great pointers and it matches some of the other qualities that make your other systems a success and you implement and have fantastic results! It is definitely a keeper.)

As for the hairy thing that looks like a chocolate covered cockroach, I would either pitch it in the nearest trash or give it to someone I don't really like. :o) (Just because a popular TV show host says, "Everyone will be able to get organized with THIS easy step", doesn't mean it's all cracked up to what the hype is. Go with the tried and true....YOUR tried and true.)

Now we get to the mystery chocolate covered in gold. Most people will instantly go to this shining beauty! It's gold. It's wrapped. There is only one of them. It must be Yummy! (Oh, a new product came out and all of my organizing woes will miraculously disappear and I will be one happy organized camper!) WHATEVER! Personally, the gold wrapped mystery meat scares the living daylights out of me! Same holds true with all of the latest organizing hype. I'm sorry, but just because it works for Oprah, doesn't mean it will work for me.

Listen to yourself. What organizing style are you? What has worked for you in the past? What works for you now? What is so flawlessly simple for you when it comes to your own organizational solutions?

THOSE are your favorite chocolates.

THOSE are the things that make your mouth water and beg for more.

THOSE are the solutions that will make your life organized!

You just need to realize what those favorites are and since you are going to be doing a lot of work, why not go and get yourself a box of chocolates to make it less painful? Now where is that chocolate bar? (Thank God for great boyfriends!)

Happy Organizing!

Suzanne Babb

Getting Out of Your Element

2008-06-28T04:17:00.002-07:00

Being someone who NEEDS routine, getting "out of my element" is a scary proposition for me. Trying new restaurants or new kinds of food is traumatizing. (Just ask Marcia and Dion when they talked me into eating at an Indian restaurant in Stirling)

The whole reason why I don't go to the gym has nothing to do with my own laziness (which I am), but it also stems from the fear of the unknown. "What if people laugh at me? I don't have the stamina to stay on an elliptical machine for more than 3 minutes (on a good day!). I look like a frikken moose for crying out loud!"

The crazy part about my own personal fears are they sound a lot like those people who want to attempt to get organized.

"What if I fail?"

"What if I can't maintain it?"

"I'm so afraid of change."

Well, if I can eat some kind of Indian "Coma" Chicken, albeit because I had two encouraging South Africans holding my hand the whole way, you can get out of your element as well. Sometimes having a friend, a coach, or someone else encouraging you along the way helps out tremendously!

In the last two years I haven't worn a short sleeved shirt (not even in the 120 degree Arizona weather), but in the last 4 months you will be hard pressed NOT to find me in a cute little shirt perfect for the heat. Mostly because I have finally had someone convince me that it isn't THAT bad.

If you would have recommended going to the batting cages at any point in my life, I would have laughed so hard I would have pissed myself! Last month, not only did I attempt to swing a bat I actually hit 80% of the balls shot at me!

I got out of my little apartment life and even joined a bowling league! Talk about CRAZY!

Of course, I can't take all of the credit for stepping a little out of the boundaries of the norm, that I owe to the guy who brings me flowers on a weekly basis just because he knows how much I love them. When I braved the batting cages, he let me watch him do it, we talked about timing, he let me miss the first few balls, and then he gave me just a few little pointers until I figured it out all on my own. Talk about feeling triumphant!

Not only have I found some new found fun, I also discovered that I am quite competitive! My little bowling team is first place for the summer league, I am bound and determined NOT to have to wear the Jake Plummer Denver Broncos jersey, and I am having a ball doing the things I was terrified to try.

If you are afraid to get out of your element, just find a couple of things that may be easy to achieve. Have a friend, a loved one, or a coach help encourage you along the way or even go with you. Beyond anything though, just enjoy it!

I knew no one would believe that I tried the Indian food so I just HAD to take a picture of it! Along with a bunch of the other things people won't believe I actually did!!!! Why not take your own pictures along the way so you can remember the satisfaction of a job well done!

When You Just HAVE to Write in the Margins

2008-06-27T09:38:00.002-07:00

How many times did you fear writing in the margins when you were in school? You take out a book from the library and as you are studying you make a quick note, underline a few words, and then before you turn it back in you erase like a maniac! You just know the library police are going to come after you and rip your fingernails out one by one because you wrote in the margins.

Then as you graduate into the lovely world of having to buy your own college text books, you rejoice in the freedom of writing in YOUR book as much as you want! Even when you don't necessarily HAVE to it's just a glorious feeling of self gratification that you CAN.

Now as professionals, we have elevated ourselves up to this plateau of regal margin writings, but sometimes it looks just a bit tacky scribbling in pencil on our beautiful books. Not to mention, when we share our books with friends and colleagues, do you really want to lend out your own personal musings?

Well! My dear friends at Levenger have come up with the perfect solution for all of our maniac margin musings by creating the Margin Maker!

Can you just say "Ingenious"!?

You simply pull off of the roll as much as you need, place it into your book, write away all of your wonderful thoughts and ideas and it looks absolutely stunning! Plus, you can even find all of the places you actually left a note quite easily. If it's time to lend out your book, you can simply peel away the marker and lend it out. Life is Good!

Happy Writings!

What's in a Name? - Properly Naming Documents

2008-06-26T15:43:00.002-07:00

One of the wonderful tasks I have had the extreme pleasure of assisting with is organizing resume and interview processes. In my own naive little world, I honestly thought that those wonderful people in the recruiting and HR world had it pretty nice. You post a position, happy folks who need a job apply, you find the perfect person, you hire them and they live happily ever after.

~ Yes, I should be smoking crack!

Other than living in dreamland with my initial assumptions, I really have only found 3 beefs with prospective employees. Two of them fall into my lovely realm of organizing and the other annoys the shit out of me so much that I had to laugh uproariously when the offending McDonald's Commenteer solicited ME unbeknownest to his pea-sized brain...but we'll get to that in a moment.

Properly name your documents in the computer. Not only does it apply to job seekers, it does truly go for everyone who ever saves a single thing on their computer. When it comes to a resume; "resume_version_1" does NOT help anyone...including yourself. Suzanne_Babb_Resume has a heck of a lot better ring to it. Same goes for any other document. If you lose a document, it will be a lot easier to find if you have named it logically.
I don't know you. No one else knows you. Why in the world would I open a "resume_version_1" file attachment with NOTHING in the email itself? Hello! Does it take very long to type a short little, "Hi, I came across your job posting and I felt that my qualifications would fit perfectly with your expectations?" Are you TRYING to get a job, people?!
Number 3 involves my "Aaron McDonald's Lover". When you think you are randomly sending pissy emails to companies trying to hire an entry level position and you want to comment on the rate of pay by comparing it to being able to work at McDonald's for more money, you may want to remember that it is a small world and you have NO CLUE who is actually reading the emails.

Mr. McDonald's Man was so offensive in his hourly attacks on the job posting I wanted to send him the dried up french fries I found under the seat of the car with a note stating that I would much rather pay the french fry to design brochures than consider him to wipe the dog feces off of my shoes. (I didn't, but I wanted to!)

However! The Powers that Be had something else wonderful in store for Mr. "Don't hide your name in your email" McDonald's Man. I typically get a 5 or 6 solicitations in my email from local promotions companies, graphic designers, web guys, and other small business services. Nothing too terribly exciting, but it happens. Several days after being completely annoyed by the ungrateful piss-ant who, seriously sent over 25 emails to the hiring company, sent ME an email!

Not because of the job I had posted on behalf of a local business, but because HE wanted to discuss with me the possibilities of working with me on MY graphic needs! He was emailing me BLIND! OBLIVIOUS to my evil plots to annihilate his computer and cause him to go color blind.

I considered emailing him right away BLASTING him for his unprofessional behavior, but then I erred on the side of caution and waited a day. Then I CALLED him.

We spoke on the phone for a few minutes and he was regaling me with stories of all his wonderful high end clients, how passionate he was in his work, how he prided himself on his professionalism, and how much he was looking forward to showing the world a new and improved image for Let's Talk Organizing. Then he wanted to know about my budget. :o)

I very innocently told him that my budget was definitely on the scale of an hourly wage similar to that of a McDonald's employee.

There was a long silence.

I had a grin from ear to ear trying hard to stifle my cries of triumph.

Then I said that it was a small world and he should take a bit of that "professionalism" he touted and it apply it to the emails he sends.

I hung up.

Did I mention that I felt SOOOOO good? Did I say that I did a happy dance of extreme joy? Did I say that I LOVE karma?

So, the moral of the story is:

Your name, good or bad, can either open the doors of progress or slam it shut.

So...

Save your files with logical names.
Be sure and say a few words in the emails you do send.
And for the love of Pete, don't send nasty emails to people, you never know WHO is reading them.

Happy Organizing!

Taking Advantage of Kid Time

2008-06-04T16:26:00.001-07:00

The summer has officially started for the kids. They have been out of school for a little over a week now, but today started their summer bowling league today. Oh my dear Lord! What have I subjected myself to?

Let me just give you a little insight into what I am going through at the moment. I am sitting in a bowling alley listening to "Man Eater" while 55 6 to 14 year olds bowl, cry, and become indignant because they can't start when they want to. Not to mention the sounds of the balls hitting the lanes, the temper tantrums when the balls go into the gutter, and the bumpers going up and down for those kids who need assistance.

The funny part is, I have two 14 year olds and a 10 year old trying to bowl with all of the chaos. So amid the screams and the cries, you hear my crazy crew hooting and hollering whenever they get a gutter ball. (Oh ya, my crew is AWFUL!)

So for 3 hours every Tuesday this is what I get to endure…I think alcoholism is in my near future!

Since I am not really ready to go down THAT road…yet, I have decided that I am going to take advantage of the 3 hours and turn off my cell phone and just concentrate on blogging and writing my podcasts. I can't hear squat in here anyways and if the noise gets too bad, I am just going to pick up my laptop and move into the lounge and tell the kids to fend for themselves and they can tell me when they get a strike or a spare…I may be waiting for that for a long time to come!

The good part about spending the summer at the bowling alley is it is cool! We have already started going into the 100's here in Arizona and I can't think of a better place to spend my summer mornings.

Other than blogging, the possibilities I have for getting other mundane tasks done are endless!

1. I can do:
2. My grocery list
3. Do bills
4. Catch up on my reading
5. Plan our summer vacations/side trips
6. Figure out what movies I want to rent from Netflix (so important during the summer!)
7. Clean out the files on my laptop
8. Rename all of the pictures on my computer
9. Spend way too much money on the kids snacks and drinks while they bowl
10. Put together my "goal" list for the rest of my life
11. Get in trouble from my daughter for not watching the spare she just bowled! (oh, I'm so in trouble!)
12. Plan summertime BBQ's and Sunday brunches
13. Mindlessly search the internet for the answers to the cosmos
14. Give myself a reminder to take Advil BEFORE I leave for the bowling alley in the morning

Oh yes, the possibilities are endless of what I can do on Tuesday mornings now.

What sort of fun things can you get done while the kids take swimming lessons, go to dance class, bowl, or other fun summer activities? (and if this little girl next to me screams in my ear one more time I think I just may lose it!)

Happy Organizing!

Getting Ready for High School

2008-05-31T20:25:00.004-07:00

Being a mother of a future Freshman, the summer months are a combination of excitement and anxiety...for both of us! Starting high school is:

An exciting new part of life
Heavier homework load
The start of a VERY active social life
Finding new friends
Parting ways with old ones
BOYS! (AHHHHHHH!!!!!)
Learning to handle LIFE

High school is definitely where you start to learn who you are, what you like to do, make some of the hardest decisions of your little life so far, and the place where you learn good and bad habits. As a parent, I have already had the whole "sex" talk, no drugs, no smoking, no boys in your bedroom, you can't stay out late, don't even think about turning your phone off when you leave this house, and the "if you honestly think I don't know what you're thinking you are sadly mistaken little lady" lecture. (Being a mom is great, isn't it?!)

Although the above are all of the things that have been passed down from generation to generation, there is one other little tidbit of motherly know all that I am passing down to my little 14-year old...getting in the habit of an organizer!

One of the little fun goodies that I got from uCreate is a Student Planner for the new school year. Talk about appropriate! Now, I could just hand it over to Jordyn and tell her to have at it, but I am sure it would find it's way to the very bowels of her closet and never be seen again. Instead, I am getting her ready for it NOW!

She has a pretty busy summer planned so we are going to start with writing down all of her Orthodontist appointments, spending the night with friends, going to the movies, times and dates of her trip to Alaska and to Washington, and any other piddly poop fun stuff she has going on.

Not only will this get her into the habit of planning and organizing her time, but when she comes to me in the middle of July and says that she didn't do ANYTHING this summer I can tell her to grab out her planner and give her the old mom, "Oh really?" look. (That's really the reason behind getting her into the habit of doing this now!)

Bottomline, if your child, your spouse, yourself, whoever needs a little extra encouragement of getting some new positive habits start it out small, simple, and fun! It will amaze you what results you will end up seeing!

Happy Organizing!

Suzanne Babb

Pictures from Scotland Trip

2008-05-28T15:58:00.002-07:00

Well, these aren't all of the pictures from my trip, but they are some of my favorites! (did I mention I love flowers?)

Enjoy!

Suzanne

I Want Your Two Cents

2008-05-26T13:00:00.002-07:00

In September I am going to be speaking at a National Convention for Insurance Agents on Taking Control of Your Inbox. Although I have information on the topic as it's a pretty typical speaking topic, I feel like I need some more info and other people's perspective on some of the finer points. Which is where you come in! :o)

If you could post a comment on the following topics:

What is your biggest email Pet Peeve?
What drives you absolutely insane about your inbox?
What inbox solutions work best for you?
When do you send an email versus calling someone on the phone?

I would greatly appreciate it! As a special "thank you" I will go ahead and send the corresponding eBook for the conference to you...as soon as I have it complete, of course! :o) Be sure and post your name so I can properly credit your solutions and other tid bits as well.

Because Anaheim, CA here we come!

Happy Organizing!

Suzanne Babb

I'm Back!

2008-05-25T20:09:00.003-07:00

Well my must sought after trip to Scotland is finally over! And I have almost 300 pictures to remember it by! Which have already been developed, printed, and I even did up a hard bound coffee table style book to display my favorite pictures in! Marcia, you and Dion made the first 4 pages!

There were definitely a few things I learned on my trip and a few lessons as well.

1) I went out and downloaded a slew of songs on my iPod before I left. THANK GOD! I had a total of 24 hours of travel time between airport waits, delays and cab rides and having a full repertoire of music helped tremendously! Especially with drowning out the blood curdling cries of infants on a 12 hour flight!

2) I packed away all of my lotions, shampoos, conditioners, etc. into one of the plastic zippy bags from my curtains and thank God I did! As my shampoo blew up during the flight and got all over everything...inside the bag!

3) Bring an extra suitcase to pack all of the goodies you bring home with you! :o) Marcia's husband, Dion, carried one of my suitcases up to my room and commented on how light it was...he he he, that's because it was practically empty! Of course, it wasn't that way on the way home.

4) Bring a comfortable bag with you for shopping. I brought one of my mother's creations, the Bunky Bag, and it was a life saver! I dragged that sucker to the top of the Wallace Monument (all 246 steps of it!), across Bannockburn, to the top of Stirling Castle and everywhere in between! It held my bottle of water, yummy Walker's Shortbread cookies, my umbrella (just in case), my picnic mat, and the purchases I made that day. I never had to worry that it would rip and it was comfy to carry.

Of course, now that I am back, unpacked and my bed has clean sheets on it I think I'm ready to get back into the groove of blogging and podcasting again! WOO HOO! Some times a girl just needs to regenerate to get the creative juices flowing.

So between a nice vacation and coming back to two dozen flowers given to me by a most wonderful man, I think I can safely say life is getting back to some semblance of normalcy!

So until next time,

Happy Organizing!

Custom Planning for Your Day

2008-04-27T09:00:00.003-07:00

Several months ago I went back to work full time, although it broke my heart to put "Organizing" on the back burner sometimes we have to do things for the greater good. Of course, it doesn't mean I have to give it up completely. If anything it has been a great experience at finding new and fun organizing solutions for my current role of Account Manager.

Feeling the pain of not having an office and living out of the car has given me tremendous insight and some fabulous ideas for those of you who are in similar situations. Finding my "groove" has been a painstaking effort, but I finally have it all down pat! THANK HEAVENS!

Over the next few weeks, I am going to sharing some of the organizing solutions I have come up with and the tools that have helped me along the way.

The first one is my customized system for planning my little day.

I thought I would enjoy going back to the days of Day Planners, but I was sadly disappointed when I realized that my current job didn't really fit into the parameters of a Day Planner system. I was even more devastated to learn that I did not have a laptop, computer or Outlook to help me in my position. (Ya, can you believe THAT CRAP?)

Instead, I was given a Blackberry Pearl and sent along my merry little way. For the first couple of weeks, I was pissy, peevish, and down right indignant over the lack of tools to do my job. Ok, maybe a little bit more than pissy and peevish, I was beyond annoyed. I felt like I was being set up to fail and that there was no possible way to succeed in the position if I didn't even have what I needed to do the actual tasks assigned. I was not a happy camper.

Now I had the Blackberry and it has a little calendar in it and a task list, but for the love of Pete, typing with my thumbs all of the things I needed to accomplish in a day was out of the question. The bulk of a big planner was just ridiculous to even contemplate and since I spent 95% of my time in a car I needed to be able to write down notes while driving 70mph on the freeway. (Scary, I know!)

My organizing epiphany arrived the day I received my box of goodies from uCreate. Abundant in color and my extreme desire to use all of it to brighten my day, brought me back to the basics.

1 - uCreate Simply Silhouette Notebook
1 - Matching uCreate pen
1 - uCreate Post It Notes
1 - uCreate Post It Flag
1 - Pink Highlighter

I took the pink notebook that had the elastic band and I started labeling each page with the Day of the Week, the actual Date, made a section for To Do's, and a little section for Appointments. Toward the end of the notebook I sectioned off two chunks of the notebook for Notes and for Voicemails and labeled them with my Post It flags.

Then I got busy with writing down everything that I needed to do. The main reason for the bigger section for my To Do List versus appointments is because I have more action items than I have appointments. I don't necessarily HAVE to be anywhere at a specific time. It's mostly "popping in", which is why a Day Planner system didn't make sense. I do, however, have to put together marketing materials, pick up supplies, check in with graphics, create pricing, update promotions, etc.

Here is what my typical Day Page looks like. I have all of my To Do's listed and as I finish them I strike them through with a highlighter. Same goes with the little appointments at the bottom. As soon as I am done, I mark it through. You will also notice that I have a note on a Post It off to the side. This is because I was driving down the freeway at 75mph and I had to make a quick note to follow up on a client. I quickly wrote it down and when I stopped I just slapped it on the page. Why duplicate my efforts?

You will also notice a nifty little flag at the top of the page. This is a visual reminder that I have things that I did not accomplish from the day before. This way I don't have to rewrite my To Do's on the next day and I can just flip through and see what I didn't get a chance to finish. As soon as I have finished with everything on that page, I will remove the flag.

The Notes section in my notebook is for meetings I have with clients or my boss. I like having everything in one notebook because I just don't want to carry a ton of crap with me and if we are reviewing a meeting I had with a client I can just flip to it without having to worry about it. It's all contained in one book.

Of course, I can't do anything without having my Voicemail Log. I originally started out with just using a separate Composition Book, but this is working out quite nicely. Although I do prefer the separation, this just makes a ton of sense at the moment.

I have only been using it for two weeks and I am sure that I will run into some snags when the notebook gets full and I have to switch to another, but I can always label the notebook by the dates in the planner section and tuck it away at my home office. But for right now, this little system is saving my life and I am loving it! Blackberry be damned!

If you have created a customized system for yourself, please share!!! I would love to hear about some other ideas and what you use!

Happy Organizing!
Suzanne Babb

Quite Remiss But Busy Busy Busy

2008-04-18T15:18:00.002-07:00

I have been absolutely horrible at blogging over the last several months and I am quite sorry for ignoring all of you! Well, almost all of you!

A couple of weeks ago a blogging buddy of mine came all of the way from New Jersey to Arizona to meet with me...ok, not JUST to meet me. Her sister lives here....AND she had work in San Diego...AND a cool scrapping store to check out...not to mention that her sisters favorite sandwich place was a few miles from my home, but we did get to meet up! :o)

Krys was one of my first little blog readers, she gets my newsletters, she won my Let's Talk Organizing give-a-way back in October when I opened my new office, and she is the FIRST blog reader I have met. We had such a wonderful time chit chatting, laughing, getting in a few moments of organizing talk, and just enjoying the company.

Next month, I am meeting up with another one of my blogging friends, Marcia, in Stirling. We are both going over to Scotland for vacation in May so we are going to spend a couple of days tootling around Stirling and enjoying the time together. Of course, I am not sure that I warned her that I am totally laid back and relaxed when I travel to Scotland. She is bringing her list of things to find on our walk and I'm just bringing my camera. :o) Of course, Dion and I may drag her into a few churches and abbey's along the way.

The crazy part about me is before I travel I am an organizational freak. I make lists, I schedule when to pack, when to shop, when to get my hair done, I have this huge notebook of maps, train times, things I want to see, plan out every minute of every day. However, as soon as I get there, I shove into the bottom of my suitcase and I don't take it out again. It's CRAZY! I think it's just the action of controlling the trip that makes me feel more comfortable traveling alone.

Of course, today I DID find out the B&B I was staying at in another small town in the Borders cancelled my reservation due to a wedding...NOT HAPPY! So, the southern portion of my trip has been completely erased from my little book and I am now having to figure out Plan B for last 4 days of my trip.

If anyone has any suggestions, I would LOVE to hear them! Plus, I need to find some place else to stay whereever I am going.

Until next post,

Happy Organizing!

Suzanne Babb

Organizing Goodness

2008-04-18T15:14:00.002-07:00

Look at some of the beautiful goodies I got in the mail today from uCreate! You can see what else I am doing with all of this fun stuff over at my other blog! Marcia, the little books on the right with the purple and blue spines are COMPOSITION BOOKS!!! Yippee!

The Things You Hate Most

2008-04-13T21:49:00.002-07:00

There have been a slew of changes in my little life in the past 6 months and with change comes new routines, new organizing styles, and new garbage that I HATE to do. Some of the things I abhor doing have been easy to eliminate from my life, but others are a necessary evil.

Let's look at the items that I banished from my very vocabulary. Yard Work. Ya, hate it. Don't do it. Not going to start now. When the kids and I moved earlier this year, I had the choice of renting a home or renting an apartment. Although my son would have loved a backyard to play in, I opted for the "Mom isn't going to mow the yard and neither will the kids" option. So, we moved into an apartment. Not only do I NOT have to do yard work, I don't have to change the A/C filter either! SCORE!

Of course, the same can not be said about my other little "chore" that I hate doing. Not that I was doing it before, but it was something that I needed to start doing. Working Out. YUCK!

I have been trying everything in the world possible to get myself motivated to work out and some of the solutions have been a bit excessive but the end result is quite impressive.

The basic recipe and ingredients of my little weight loss goal can be transformed into any organizational project or personal goal you may have.

First, I needed a motivator to work out. SCOTLAND
Second, I needed an accompaniment to get me into the habit of doing something religiously like working out, but something that would be completely easy. TANNING (I am just so pale and I rationalized that I would "look" thinner if I had a tan. I know, I need therapy!)
I got myself into a ROUTINE of going to the "Fake and Bake"
The instant RESULTS were encouraging and I was starting to feel better about myself.
I decided that I was too self-conscience to go to the gym so I borrowed my parents treadmill and I put it on the patio so I was overlooking the park and I started walking on the treadmill for a mile every morning while the weather was still cool. COMPROMISE
I GAVE UP Coca-Cola. (Ok fine, not if there is rum in it!!)
I have saved up money and scheduled a shopping date with my girlfriend for the weekend before I go to Scotland. REWARD

So far, I had a week of being cranky, depressed, and a full blown headache. BUT I have the beginnings of a great tan, I have lost 12 pounds, I am going to Scotland, and for the first time in 8 years I own a sundress!

How can this be transformed into turning a nightmare into organizational bliss? EASY!

Let's take laundry as an example of something you want to put into a routine and organize a bit better. You are tired of staying up until midnight on Sunday to make sure your clothes are dry for work/school on Monday morning. You would also like to actually have a Saturday that you can spend doing the things you WANT to do versus being up to your eyeballs in dirty underwear!

Find your motivator. Let's throw spending Saturday mornings at the park as your motivator.
Let's find a quick and easy accompaniment. Clean sheet Sunday! (Can you tell this is my favorite?) Start washing your bedding on Sunday's the habit will be easy and it doesn't take a lot of time.
Your routine is the Clean Sheet Sunday. Every Sunday morning, take off the sheets instead of making the bed. Throw them into the washer first thing and enjoy your morning.
The instant results will be the way your bed feels and smells on Sunday night when you crawl into your nice clean bed!
Instead of doing all of your laundry on Saturday morning, make specific times throughout the week to do it. Tuesday wash towels and fold them during Boston Legal. Wednesday do Whites. Thursday is Colors.
Your reward is going to the park on Saturday and not having a single article of clothing to wash, switch, or fold!

Finding YOUR perfect combination, solution, and reward will help you combat your organizational frustration and transform it into organizational perfection!

Happy Organizing!

Suzanne Babb

12 Steps to Better Team Organization with Ron Holohan

2008-03-31T20:18:00.004-07:00

Several weeks ago, I was approached by Ron Holohan from pm411.org to do an interview for his Project Management podcast. I was quite giddy by the request and as I read the email I couldn't help but smile ear to ear over the possibility of doing the podcast interview. Then in the third paragraph of the email he said something that just made me say an instant "yes!"

"I think the episode would provide some good insight for my listeners and I am sure that your humor and sassiness (yes, I said sassiness!) would be welcomed by my listeners."

He he he, he said sassisness! How can I refuse an offer from someone who so pinpoints the fact that I am sassy?

Last Thursday, Ron gave me a buzz, I laughed my fanny off, and we recorded the podcast. Tonight, after a Sunday of busting his butt to edit all of the laughter from our call, Ron has posted the podcast.

The podcast reviews different suggestions and techniques for Project Managers and their teams to become more organized and efficient. If you would like to take a listen at some of my quirky sassy antics, be sure to check out Ron's podcast and listen to 12 Steps to Better Team Organization!

Thanks, Ron, for the interview! I had an absolute blast and good luck with Guitar Hero! Oh, and say hi to your mom for me! ;o)

Happy Organizing Everyone!

Suzanne Babb

From Old and Ugly to New and Beautiful

2008-03-29T21:06:00.004-07:00

The transformation of my bedroom office continues! Now that I am absolutely ecstatic with the layout of my bedroom and not minding the intrusion of my desk in the room, I figured a little updating was in order.

I have been using a little tiny 4'ft table as my desk. It's short enough to fit inbetween my bed and the window seat, but it is hideously ugly! It had that faux wood finish and it was peeling off everywhere and I just couldn't handle it any more. So today, I ran out to Target and found a beautiful wrapping paper that would look nice with my bed. Then I hopped on over to Staples and grabbed a clear desk protector to place over the wrapping paper. This way it wouldn't get all nasty when I worked at the desk.

A simple cut, some double sided sticky tape and a pretty hat box later I have a beautiful new desk that makes my room look stunning!

Inside of the hat box, which I also picked up at Target, I have my headset for my podcasts, the cord for my camera and iPod and an extra headset for my phone. :o) It is PERFECT! Plus, it is a fantastic extension of my gorgeous bed!

With Organization Comes Reward

2008-03-27T15:06:00.003-07:00

Yesterday, I bought myself flowers! Yep, a full dozen of golden roses just for little ol' me! Other than the fact that I deserve to have fresh flowers, the reason behind the glorious beauty is none other than I earned those babies!

This past week and a half has been a busy one! I went out of town with a couple of girlfriends, I bought a new car, I rearranged my bedroom, I organized my new little office space, I cleaned the apartment, the kids had spring break, my son turned 10, we went bowling and to the movies, finalized my trip to Scotland, spoke to an old friend and I still had to find time to help a client out with her Outlook calendar and work! All of that in the last 10 days! I sure as hell deserved the roses!

The main obstacle I set out to complete and one that has been driving me insane, kept me from getting a GREAT nights sleep, and one that nearly disabled my poor organizational empowered brain was my bedroom and the make shift office that has violated my space.

Talk about disabling! My room was no longer a sanctuary instead it was turned into a living nightmare and one that kept me from feeling at peace when I went to bed. I couldn't work at my desk, I couldn't sleep peacefully in my bed, and it was driving me nuts!

So I decided to take a bit of my own advice and reorganize my space. (Hmm, an organizer who organizes? Who would have thunk?) Sunday, the kids were off at their Dad's for Easter and I stayed at home and dug into the mess of my desk.

One of the things that was driving me insane about my bedroom was the fact that instead of looking at the gorgeous bed I have, you saw the nasty desk and computer monitor. Not that it was right in front, it was just dark and depressing and it drew your eye.

I also had an issue with space...I had very little! My bed is ginormous (a word I love to make up and use) and it leaves little for anything else. However, there was a 4 and a half foot space and a window seat that was on the side of the bed in the corner. I decided to squash my desk up against my bed, put the end table lamp on my desk and use the window seat as extra space for my printer.

On the wall that used to house my nightmare of destruction, I put a tall skinny table with my beautiful roses on it!

Sunday night I slept like a dream!

The best part is, now when you walk into my room, my desk is hidden behind all of the big poofy pillows that are on my bed and you don't even notice the computer monitor because your eye is following the nose and the warm scent of roses in bloom!

If you are finding that you are completely overwhelmed, unmotivated, not sleeping, not wanting to even look into the laundry room, take a few hours to yourself and really clean out, rearrange and organize your space. It is amazing what a few hours can do for your emotional well being. Besides, it's a great excuse to buy yourself something nice!

Happy Organizing!

Suzanne Babb

What in the World is Chronic Disorganization?

2008-03-27T10:02:00.004-07:00

Now, my friends and family will gladly tell you that I am notorious for pulling wacky off the wall b.s. from my ample keister. Quite frankly, it's a gift. However, every now and again I humbly tip my hat to someone with actual knowledge on the subject and send people on their merry way to find the truth that lies at the end of a question. (It doesn't happen often, but I have done it!)

As a matter of fact, I am going to make my one Hat Tip for the year today!

Ariane Benefit over at Neat & Simple is having her very first tele-class tonight and it's all about Chronic Disorganization! The woman is amazing PLUS she's the expert!

Here's the little blip about what she will be discussing on tonights call.

We'll be discussing what chronic disorganization is, why it affects so many creative people, and we'll also discuss some ultra-simple strategies and principles to help creative professionals become more organized using systems that are super easy and don't take a lot of time to maintain.
This class is for anyone who:

believes their creativity contributes greatly to their disorganization
believes that disorganization is a "side affect" of creativity that can't be helped or improved
believes that to become more organized would be too difficult, too rigid, too time consuming or too expensive.

There will be a handout and participants will receive a discount code to purchase my e-books for 5$ off!

The call does take place tonight, March 27 at 8:45pm EST and if you would like to sign up, please go to Ariane's blog and click your way to organizational bliss!!

Happy Organizing!

Suzanne Babb

10 Weird Things About Me

2008-03-23T20:12:00.002-07:00

My latest traveling buddy, Marcia, tagged me in her blog and challenged me to only come up with 10 weird things about me. Talk about tough! Only 10? So I have been wracking my poor little brain to come up with my top 10 weirdo quirks.

I get quite cranky if I don't have my morning Coke in a 16 ounce styrophome cup with Reddy Ice so I can crunch it throughout the morning.
I don't sweat...not that I don't I just don't do anything that requires me to sweat.
I eat the same things at every restaurant. i.e. When I go out for Mexican, I always have a bean and cheese burrito enchilda style with no garnish. I do not EVER change. If I go out for a traditional American meal, I always get a naked hamburger cooked medium with ketchup and mustard ONLY. Nothing else.
I park in the same parking spots at all of my local places.
When I crawl into bed at night, I slide under the blankets, take a deep breath and just let it all out. I need to have at least 2 minutes of quiet "me" time to enjoy the feel of my bed. (I LOVE my bed!)
I do NOT camp, pee in the woods, or swim. Not going to happen and if you try and make me I will make your life a miserable existence. Needless to say, this has only happened once.
This is a new recent weirdness, my dad and I now compare miles per gallon we are getting with our new cars. The bastard is beating me! Grrrrrrrr.
I swear like a sailor...even at church. (I know I'm going to get struck down one of these days)
When I am flying in a plane, I am SILENT. I don't talk. I barely ask for a water or a Coke. Of course, that is the only time I am quiet.
Pizza, Movie, Popcorn night is SACRED!

There are a ton more weirdo quirks about me, but these are some of the wackier and more audience friendly quirkinesses. :) (I also like to make up words!)

To find out more about some of my little friends and their wackiness, I am going to tag Allison, Vicki, and Kelly.

Organizing Scholarship

2008-03-23T07:27:00.003-07:00

The school year is fast coming to an end and the kids are beyond ecstatic! They just finished up with Spring Break and although they are excited about going back to school to see their friends, they also know that it is one week closer to SUMMER! As exciting as summer tends to be, my daughter is looking even a bit further beyond the blistering heat of Arizona...High School!

Yep, my baby girl is going to be a freshman next year and although I am still in shock that my fat little Charlie Brown baby is one year away from being able to drive and 4 months away from high school, she is actually thinking ahead on this one. Jordyn has a horrible time in math and always has. She struggles to keep a D and if she does manage a C we throw a party! The poor kid hasn't had her cell phone all year and when she dipped to an F, the laptop was snagged as well. So, when she came home with her selected electives for high school and showed them to me, I just about had heart failures! She is taking French and Forensics as her two electives.

Internally I am screaming to myself, "Are you frikken kidding me?! You don't study for tests now, what makes you think you are going to be able to pass French and FORENSICS!" (Internally I was saying that!) Externally, it was what is motivating you to take Forensics and French? (We live 2 hours from Mexico so I was thinking Spanish.)

Then Jordyn did something that shocked the hell out of me. She explained that she would like to be an Egyptologist. She did some searching on the computer and she needs 12 years of college, she needs to know 5 different languages, the forensics will help her enhance her knowledge of research and public speaking, and she would like to get a jump start on it in high school and not wait for college. Apparently, only a few people are selected for the Egyptologist program and you need to be the best of the best. Her dream goal is to be in the position of if someone has a question regarding Egypt and its history, they come to her first. (Did I mention she is 14 and doesn't clean her room?)

As I was wondering who this child was in front of me and trying to figure out who to call to explain that my daughter was abducted by aliens, she spit out a small request. Can I buy her something to help her learn French before school starts? She knows she is going to struggle with the language and she wants to be prepared and know a bit more than the other kids and build up her confidence.

Talk about me being speechless! When I finally recovered from the shock, I uttered two statements. "Yes, I will buy you a computer program to help you with French." The second of the two statements..."You had better get a ton of scholarships, because I am not paying for 12 years of college!" :o)

Although this is a nice little ditty about the practicality of a teenager, what in the world does this have to do with organizing? A lot actually!

Not being organized is a lot like having an 'F' in Math. Things are in disarray, you are stressed beyond all belief, you don't want to have company over because your house is a wreck, your office looks like a war zone, and if your mom saw in your closets you would be grounded for life!

However, you can pull it up to a 'D' by hiding clutter under the beds, in the closets, out in the garage, etc. Depending on how motivated you are, you may even be able to get that bad boy up to a C with a little more effort and concentrating on completing the projects you start out on.

To get a 'B' or an 'A' when you are coming from an 'F' is the hardest of all! It's not about getting it one time, it's about maintaining that 'B' or an 'A'. For that, you are probably going to need some help! Like in Jordyn's case, she wants to start out before French with some software to help her learn the language. In an organizing sense, you will probably need to do some surfing around the internet and find sites to read about organizing specific projects, there are also some nifty books out there that will probably help you as well. Although these tools are helpful in a way, is it specifically assisting you with the areas that are unique to your situation?

That is where the "tutor" comes in at. You are going to need to adjust habits, create routines, have someone hold you accountable but also encourage you to keep on going. Constantly reminding you of the end goal! That is what an Organizing Coach is for. Your Organizing Coach is going to be the one to show you HOW, keep you motivated, give you the Cliff Notes, and help inspire you to keep on going!

Once you have achieved and maintained your 'A', the reward is the scholarship! A clean and organized home or office!!! Of course, just like a scholarship, you are still going to need to maintain your grade point average and you will definitely need to maintain your organizational routines. The best part is, you will always a back up and the reinforcements to help assist you! A study buddy aka Professional Organizer! No matter where you are in life, a Professional Organizer can come in and help you get through the chaos and show you a little bit of the light at the end of the tunnel. They can clear away what is bothering you most so that the task doesn't seem as daunting.

And after "12 years" you too can be the expert in your field where when they have a question they will come to you first! (She had better get those scholarships is all I have to say!)

Happy Organizing!

Suzanne Babb

Creating Work Instructions

2008-03-13T18:39:00.002-07:00

I met a wonderful woman today who has overcome a ton of obstacles, she is raising three beautiful girls and she has started her own business as well as expanding it to other moms throughout the country. These sorts of stories are beyond inspiring and I can't help but smile from ear-to-ear in favor of a little independence and a lot of dreaming!

One of the things Julie was wondering and fretting about was how to duplicate her processes so that she can encourage other women to use what she has essentially perfected. The simplest answer is, Work Instructions!

If are even remotely thinking about branching out, selling, hiring managers, selling franchises, etc. start creating your work instructions now. What works out best for your business with each process? What are the best steps to take in order to get from spot A to spot B? What marketing initiatives did you determine make the most sense for your industry?

All of these things have a value. Not only in the business and organizing respect, but in the monetary role as well.

When creating your Work Instructions, keep them simple and in bullet point format.
No need to go into such detail as to overwhelm the person who is ready them.
Make them so simple that even someone who has no idea about your business or industry can follow and understand them.

Once completed, finding the right binding system is going to be key.

Binder
Flip File
Comb binding
Book bound
Electronic vs Paper

What makes the most sense?

Do you need illustrations, diagrams, graphs to help get your point across?

As long as you remember to keep it simple and get started before things get out of hand, it won't be as overwhelming once you get into the rhythm of things. Besides, you can always go back and tweak it once you are all set!

Remember, keeping it simple, keeping it together, and keeping it organized is key to your organizational perfection and to your sanity!

Happy Organizing!

Suzann Babb

Have you sent an email to Ariane lately?

2008-03-11T06:21:00.003-07:00

Have you met Ariane over at Neat and Simple Living? She is an amazing organizer who works wonders on people who have ADHD and want to become more organized. Of course, it is no wonder that she works miracles since she also has ADHD. Do think it stopped her from becoming a Professional Organizer, author, friend, wife, and a truly amazing woman? Not on your life! This lady is truly an inspiration and do you know why?

It's very simple. She recognized her weaknesses, she applied her strengths, and she is ON FIRE! One of my favorite steps that she has taken is to actually have an auto responder on her email. When you send Ariane an email you get a very nice auto response telling you all about her email timeline and how to reach her if it's an emergency.

What we can learn from someone like Ariane is figure out your own weaknesses, realize your strengths and then merge the two together in order to make you successful, sane and a super woman! (or man)

Keep up the wonderful work, Ariane!!!!

Obtaining Goals to Achieve Others

2008-03-09T15:53:00.002-07:00

Lisa, one of my blog readers, made a dead on accurate statement today regarding motivation and I just had to share it! I have been putting together a blog post on the topic and her comment today inspired me to get it out!

"I find that I'm most motivated when I have a deadline.. ie. people coming over to my house. My son is having major surgery this week and he will have tutors coming to our house for the school that he will miss while at home for the next 6 weeks. That will motivate me to clean up the living room, family room and kitchen, since they are all connected.... UGH!!!! I will be happy when it is all clean, but getting to that point will be a major chore!" - Lisa, Michigan

How true is that?! What major goals do you have right now that you possibly have accomplished that set in motion a dominoe effect to achieve other goals?

I actually am noticing a few for myself. I wanted to go to Scotland for the last 5 years and now I am going. Achieving that goal has set into motion a few other goals that I was unmotivated to accomplish.

Losing weight - One of the hikes I am going on is 10 miles round trip....hello, I am 30 pounds over weight, drink way too many Cokes in a day, and I haven't walked farther than around Target a few times looking for my wayward children! I need to get my fat ass in gear if I am going to go to Sweetheart Abbey!
Saving money - I am HORRIBLE at saving money. If I have it I spend it. Mostly on stuff for the house and the kids, but I still spend it. But I have two months to save up for and budget for my trip to Scotland so this is going to force me to do that.
Taking some time for myself - As a parent, have you ever noticed that the extra time you do have you are spending the energy catching up with laundry, cleaning the house, finishing up some forgotten projects? I haven't been on a relaxing vacation in 6 years and I am ready to just take some time just. for. me.

The best part about all of the goals is my main achieved goals is FORCING me to accomplish them. Lisa likes deadlines and they motivate and push her to accomplish hers. I am very similar, especially with the things I don't want to do. Not only do I have deadlines, but I also have an incentive. Get into shape and go to Sweetheart Abbey or be a lazy fat slob and sit in town at the pub for two days. :o) I can do THAT at home!

When You Get to an Organizing Roadblock

2008-03-09T10:29:00.002-07:00

I am sure that we have all hit a giant wall at some point in time where we are not motivated to do a dang gone thing, even though we know we have a ton of things to do! Cleaning out the garage, doing spring cleaning, taking things out to storage, cleaning out the closet, yuck! All of these things involve CLEANING! No wonder we aren't motivated to do it! I am not even going to go to the whole "excercise" routine! Makes me shudder to even go there!

However, when I am totally and completely unmotivated and when I need to get my butt in gear I do a couple of things.

I check out some great organizing websites that help to inspire me and give me some great ideas!
I throw on some great up beat music! Van Morrison, CCR, Bon Jovi, my Irish Jiggies!
Trip over my sons scooter that he left in the middle of the floor! - Nothing like a little pain to motivate you to clean!

Music is pretty self-explanatory. If you have some fun up-beat music that you absolutely love it can't help but put you in a wonderful mood.

As far as websites go, I have a couple that REALLY inspire me to clean and organize!

Undiscovered Scotland - You need to have something fun and personal in the ol' motivational bucket!

Whether it's cleaning, organizing, working out, yard work, etc., try finding some favorite sites that you enjoy looking through, that help get your mind relaxed, and motivate you to get the show on the road! Save them all in your Favorites and create a special Motivational folder and store them all there. This way, when you need a boost you are all ready to go!

Happy Organizing!

Using Lists to Communicate with Co-Workers

2008-03-06T21:09:00.002-07:00

I am definitely a list freak and a notebook freak. For whatever reason, they both calm, ground, and get me back into focus; which is a good thing! But when you think of making a list, what comes into your mind first?

Grocery list
To Do list
Christmas present list
Chore list

Notice how all of these lists pertain to what YOU must do. Or maybe it's a list FOR your kids or spouse. But how about a list that helps you communicate to those you may not see every day? Perhaps a co-worker?

I have been working on a nifty little project for a business development team and we have come up with some great tools to help keep everyone on track, in the know, and keep the VP of Business Development in the groove without having all of those annoying and time wasting meetings.

First, we designed Command Central or our Communications Board. Which has been working out great with keeping the department up to date on a lot of the marketing projects. However, what we ran into was the actual steps for the projects.

Take for example the Tradeshow one of the gals was working on for the President and Vice President. There was a ton of marketing materials, booth designs, product to be shipped, etc. etc. etc. It was absolutely crazy and the Communications Board was quickly filling up and looking rather cluttered. (Yikes!)

So, we came up with a check list! We created the check list in Word using those great little boxes, listed everything that needed to be accomplished and she pinned it up on the board. As she finished a task, she crossed it off in the check box and it was easily readable and everyone knew her status. It was PERFECT!

Next, we looked at some of the other projects that were going on to see if a list could help those processes and sure enough, they did! Now every project has a To Do List that each marketing manager is in charge of. They get posted on the board and when Nick needs to get a quick update he just walks into the office and checks it out.

There are a couple of reasons why I am falling in love with this system.

You get to make a list!
It eliminates meeting overkill.
You get the information you need, when you need it.
Keeps everyone in focus.
It is extremely simple AND streamlined!

Don't just think of a list as something that is only for you. A list can be a powerful communication tool to help save your sanity!

Happy Organizing!

Suzanne Babb