Here is the most recent article for a new column I am writing for the St Croix Courier.

Whether you are managing and running a home or a business, paper management seems to be a problem with most people.

Is your idea of paper storage a pile of bags filled with bills, receipts and bank statements? Or are you using a paper management system that is the envy of all who know you? If you answered yes to the first question please read on, you need this information. If you answered yes to the second question, pat yourself on the back…I am sure that you are already enjoying the money you received from your income tax  return and have your papers in order for the accountant for tax filing next year.

From an organization standpoint your accountant’s main job is to make the most of tax laws so you can save money. By having all of your tax information organized you are not wasting your advisor’s valuable time and your money sorting and organizing your paper.

The best time to prepare for taxes is the beginning of each year.

With tax season just behind us you probably have a good feel for what you need to do next year to be better prepared. For anyone who is just getting at it the best time is the present.

Excellent paper management will help you to organize your home office or your business.  It will also keep you within legal and compliance requirements.

Set up a paper management system that works with your space and daily requirements.

A business owner would have more paper than a homeowner so keep that in mind when creating your system.

• Keep the day to day paper in your office, as well as the paper for the most recent year.
• Everything else can be labeled and put in envelopes or bankers boxes and stored in another location.
• Keep a good diary system so when the retention period for documents expires you can dispose of it, instead of it taking up valuable storage space. Follow Revenue Canada’s advise for retention of paperwork and you can free up valuable space by purging outdated information. Make sure to shred those documents that you are getting rid of; identity theft is nothing to laugh at.

Some suggestions for a paper management system:

-          Binder with plastic sleeves for each category, this is portable, lightweight and can be kept anywhere

-          Desk topper file organizer that can be kept on the kitchen counter top.

-          Storage tote with hanging folders, doubles as a portable office(see the product of the month below)

-          Filing cabinets with hanging files

Now that you have a system for the paper, take an afternoon and sort it. Gather all of the paper in to one space and deal with each item as it comes up. Use the principle of the three D’s.

1. D-estroy it. By destroying we mean send it to recycling or shred it.
2. D-eal with it. Give the item a home. Find a place where it makes sense to have this item. Does it need to be actioned or diarized for a future date?
3. D-eligate it. Is it your responsibility to deal with this item? If it isn’t then pass it on to its rightful owner.

Remember to:

- Open mail daily and shred all garbage mail, file or task what is remaining immediately

- File everything flat not folded, it takes up less space

- Don’t leave the paperwork too long, it piles up quickly. Ten or 15 minutes every day is better than hours at a time once a month.

By organizing your paperwork today you will save money, time and definitely reduce stress when it comes to filing your income tax next year.

Here is my latest article for the column Organize written for the KV Style paper that is distributed to the 20,000 plus households in the Kennebecasis community in New Brunswick, Canada. With Tax season approaching it is timely information.

Paper, paper everywhere… oh what do I do with all the paper?
Is the paper in your home localized to the kitchen counter or has it managed to spread itself throughout the house? Is it perhaps hiding in one of these spots?

• Bedroom closet, night stands, dresser drawers and floor.

• Family room cupboards, end tables and floor.

• Living room coffee table, chairs and under furniture.

• Dining room table is a great big flat surface that is most times used for paper storage.

• Mudroom cupboards.

Why does it do this? Because paper isn’t just one thing. It’s bills, it’s flyers, it’s magazines, permission slips, information sheets, calendars… and when something has so many possible storage places, unless you’re ruthless in maintaining it, paper ends up homeless and therefore shoved out of the way when company comes.
Tackling this issue is as simple as grabbing a laundry basket and collecting all loose paper; including magazines, newspapers, manuals, warranties, homework, and all other individual pieces of paper. This may take some time but is quite necessary for the new system that you are going to create for the storage and organization of the paper.
As you sort the paper that you have gathered use the 4 Ds of paper management to help with the purge.

Deal
Open all mail as soon as you receive it, or at least batch it and do it once a week
If the piece of paper has an action associated with it, do the action right away if you can
If you can’t do it immediately, schedule when you’ll deal with it and store the piece of paper in a “Waiting Action” file

Decide
Sort all paper (including the mail) as it comes into the home.

• To be dealt with

• Information only

• Pleasure

• Or whatever categories you’ve come up with

Deposit
Is it destined for recycling, or something that you need to file for income tax or legal reasons or do you need to do something with it?
As you deal with each item, store it where it belongs
Remember that some active papers (like magazines and school information) will be active but stored in the “Waiting Action” file

Destroy
Recycle junk mail and magazines
Shred anything that contains financial or address information that is not needed.
Whenever possible, use a one-in/one-out rule for your files, reducing the need for larger periodic purges. Things like old phone bills that you will have the last 12 months of.

For more paper wrangling tips, visit http://organizingconnection.com/paper-code

This past weekend I began a new chapter in my career. I am one of the latest columnists for the Saturday Community insert in our paper. KVStyle is a great read, it has everything from parenting to green living to…you got it organizing. I will be sharing my expertise every second week and am thrilled to be part of this awesome community resource. Here is my first article from the March 6th edition.

As a professional organizer I spend most of my days talking about space planning, storage and time management. I blog, do presentations, work one on one with people and  teach other professional organizers how to start a business. This column is another way for me to share my organizing knowledge and talents with the people in the Kennebecasis Valley.

Here is one of the most frequently asked questions I get. I don’t have enough closet space in my home, what do I do?

Lets talk about Vertical Storage. As the friendly giant always said look up…look way up.

Most older homes have a standard flat shelf with a bar that is attached underneath for hanging clothing.
When these homes were build wire shelving and the custom closet industry was in its infancy.

Are you living with a 30 year old…pre California Closet era design that does not incorporate great storage and functionality? Want to take advantage of all that vertical storage and jump into the new millennium?

By using this 6 Step Organizing System your closets will be functional in no time at all.

1.    Choose a closet that seems to cause the most stress and spend some time Dreaming about what the closet would look and feel like when it is finished.
2.    The Plan for the closet needs to include the budget for upgrades like a wire closet unit or baskets and hanging organizers if you are staying with the current configuration. The timing on when you will be doing the organizing and who will be involved are also important for this step. You can purchase items for the project inexpensively by checking out the local Canadian Tire for shelving units and the Dollar Store for baskets.
3.    Take everything out of the closet so you can Sort like with like. Gather all shirts together, pants, etc…
4.    The Purge is the hardest step in the system. Letting go of things that no longer suit our tastes, clothing that does not fit and sentimental items can stop you in your tracks. Questions to ask yourself. Do I need this item? Do I love this item? Can someone else use this item? Does someone need this item more than I do?
5.    Before you get at the task of Reorganization you need to install your new closet system or add the extra storage options with your baskets and hanging organizing units. When adding the closet items back think about items that are frequently used and keep them at your fingertips. Out of season items and sentimental items can be stored way up top.    By upgrading an average five foot closet you have just doubled or even tripled the square footage of storage space, depending on which configuration you have used.
6.    The last part is actually something that never ends, Maintenance. I like the one thing in and one thing out technique. Once you have your closet just the way you want it this trick will keep it free from clutter.

By revisiting your existing spaces you can reclaim and use the space that you have in a more functional way. Enjoy your new found storage and closet space!

Time to open the video vault again…

In this video you will learn the 3 easy steps to a more organized kitchen. By eliminating clutter and putting everything in its place you will have time for more important things in life…. like family and friends.

The first crisis of the day usually happens in this busy room…are you prepared!

This room has so many purposes…. its a Mudroom, recycling depot, homework center, restaurant….

• Be Prepared for the task as hand, have supplies on hand.
• Sort items asking these important questions. Do I love this item? Do I need this item?
• Give everything a Home.

Organizing Today Saves Time Tomorrow!

Yes there is an actual cost…real dollars that come from your bottom line if you are disorganized….I am not referring here to being messy…real organization means being able to find things when you need them.

The Cost of Disorganization comes right from your bottom-line!

Every minute you spend looking for something is time that you would otherwise spend on important company tasks like writing proposals, prospecting new clients, following up on leads…I think you know what I mean.

Disorganization has many costs:

• Money
• Time
• Productivity
• Your Health
• Your Reputation

Consider that the Wall Street Journal reports the average US Executive loses 6 weeks per year retrieving misplaced information from messy desks and files. The cost in salary and lost productivity is enormous.

Want to calculate the bottom-line impact of disorganization to your company…check out this calculator?

creak….can you hear the video vault being opened?

I have been known to get up on my soapbox as you have seen in the last few weeks and I also love a good rant….

If you are Canadian then you have had the opportunity to see Rick Mercer in action…well…he is the king of rants. For my non Canadian readers you need to bookmark Rick’s youtube channel this guy is funny, smart and he really gets you thinking.

For today you get my rant…I am Ranting on the recession, the election of a new president and overconsumption…Please, ignore the dark sunglasses, the wardrobe gal forgot my other ones…just kidding I don’t have a wardrobe gal..it was Kim and we were just so excited to do this segment we did not think of the glasses…ENJOY!

If it isn’t a chicken perhaps it is a shiny object. Or maybe its the telephone or the sound of the e-mails as they are arriving or the Crackberry that rings non stop or the mess on the desk that is calling you….oh there are so many distractions.

How do you ever expect to accomplish anything today?

Today I speak from experience and I want to help you.

I am highly distractable and I have a very long list of things I want to accomplish in my lifetime.

Knowing that these two things cannot co-exist I had to do something… and I did.

I put the distractions in their place by eliminating some of them and minimizing others, here are some ideas you can implement today to banish the chicken or at least minimize the damage;

• get call display on all your phones and only answer the urgent ones.
• turn the e-mail notification noise off.
• move all the work clutter you are not currently working on out of sight.
• take the crackberry off your hip and turn it off while working on important stuff
• for some more examples of potential distractions visit my previous post on Time Hijackers

I know this is not rocket science it is common sense, sometimes you just need someone to point you in the right direction….or call you on your stuff!

A shout out to  James at Men with Pens who inspired today’s post, thanks James for sharing and being real.

Becoming a WAHM(Work at Home Mom) certainly was not what Linda thought it would be…laundry…cooking… entertaining kids all day and worst of all….looking at the disorganization 24/7. What happened to the dream of making money while the kids were at school and meeting other women over morning coffee? Was it the fact that she could not see the kitchen counter tops or perhaps that she could not get at the computer to update her blog. It seemed that confusion swirled about her all the time.

Mary was lonely, in a way that her stuff could not satisfy anymore. The shopping was not filling the void. Actually the stuff was getting in her way, her cluttered existence was making her feel a bit embarrassed….embarrassed enough that she stopped having friends over. It was as if all her stuff had turned on her instead of making her happy it was holding her back. The comfort of the stuff had become the enemy…an enemy that was now holding her hostage in her own home.

Over the past six years I have had the privilege of helping women just like Linda and Mary women who are fed up and want a change, but aren’t quite sure how to get it or even where to start.  When people hit the wall I get the call, sometimes! I am proud to be in an industry that is in its infancy, with just  under 6000 members  globally, it is a community of experts that empower people like Linda and Mary every day. We are skilled, we  are compassionate, we care about people in a way that makes our hearts ache some day….

Here is the part that bothers me that I have to share… how many of you have hit the wall and can’t afford in-home services but need someone to show you what to do, and not just tell you what to do. Oh, you probably have a few magazines or books and have watched some TV shows where someone will tell you how to get organized by making it pretty …is that real? This is old school… it is a world where people tell other people how to live and what their house should look like. It is old school when you live your life with advice from people who tell you that they know what is best for you.

Want to join a Revolution? An Organizing Revolution?

Over the past two years I have seen the word revolution and not just in the news. In the June 2008 issue of O magazine, Oprah declared we’re starting a beauty revolution. Dove had the shocking youtube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYhCn0jf46U evolution which is one R short of a Revolution. I was glad to be able to share that with my teen daughter.

Are you tired of letting people drive the bus in your life? Want back in the driver seat?

Remember organizing is not necessarily how it looks…unless you are PMS-ing and yes the look will bother you in a way that could hurt people….but usually  it is how it feels and functions for you and the people you life with!

The time has come, the evolution of the internet, technology and a couple of  maverick Professional Organizers saw a need and felt compelled to fill it… there is a solution!

For the past five years we have researched and are sharing the solution! How would you like to have someone show you what to do, and not just tell you what to do?..in the privacy of your home, instantly, anytime of the day, when you are ready to take over the driver seat…in a way that is clear and concise…in a way that allows you to create the solution that is best for YOU!

Organizing Connection a company I co-own with Kim Eagles that offers just that solution…a series of instructional home organizing videos that will REVOLUTIONize how you get Home Organizing Help. These online videos will show you how to organize, not just tell you…so…I have to ask…are you ready to join a Revolution????

Not the Nirvana that “Smells like Teen Spirit” but the kind of Nirvana that Buddha described as ” the perfect peace of the state of mind that is free from craving, anger and other afflictive states”.  This may be a bit deep when the topic of organizing is on the table but really….perhaps it does go that deep?

Ok…warning….I am going to get all wordy here…I love words so humor me please.

Lets talk about the afflictive state, afflictive being something that is disruptive or troublesome.

Well hello…not being able to find your stuff, being late for everything and living in chaos…is that not an afflictive state.

Are you  absolutely begging for the “6 steps” that will bring Nirvana and banish the “afflictive state”?

Here they are in order; Dream, Plan, Sort, Purge, Re-organization and Maintenance…Simple words.

So how do you put these simple words into action…

On this last weekend of January I would like to share something with you that will help you to reach Organizing  Nirvana. Over the past 2 years I have been working on a collaberative project with Kim Eagles. We have created a series of Home Organizing Videos that incorporate the “6 Steps” that we use every day to help our clients.

Knowing  that geography, finances and privacy issues prevent many of you from being able to access the help that you want compelled us to create something just for YOU.

This series of videos is available today as a download at www.organizingconnection.com

Some of the rave reviews of this series…

had the opportunity watch the Kitchen DVD in the Organizing Connection series and was so excited to finally have such a thorough and straight forward resource to recommend to my blog readers and clients.  The DVD is professionally done and is refreshing and smart.  I so appreciate that it directs you to organizing success by walking you through the organizing process step by step using clear and concise directions.  It’s like having a Professional Organizer at your disposal 24 hours a day, you can’t go wrong! Laura www.orgjunkie.com

I got this question the other day on my Youtube channel.…Yes I have my own channel…yes with videos…and yes I am in them…Enough with the sarcasm please!

Anyhow this is how it went.

…”you have a lot of great ideas…can you do a video on maybe getting your kids (and husband lol) to help around the house more? I am always looking for ideas on that”

I had to bring my soap box out for this one…enjoy my response…remember my clients all say that I am Firm but Loving!