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Efficient Spaces Blog

Is Procrastination holding you back?

So last month, I wrote about why we all procrastinate. The next step once you figure out why you are procrastinating is to ask yourself what resources you need to get the job done.

Outsourcing. It is a wonderful word, because it frees me up to do the things that I do best, the things only I can do. Each of us has talents and skills. Some you were born with or come naturally to you. Others you developed through hard work and persistence. Organizing a pantry may be something you enjoy doing, for example. Maybe your mother taught you how to rotate food and label shelves. But, say you dislike filing the bills after you’ve paid them every month. Does the “to file” pile bother you? Ask yourself– is the effort of procrastinating a task worth the time you spend thinking about it? How does the guilt of NOT filing that file affect you? Has it gotten to the point when it demotivates you? In other words, do you avoid opening that drawer to file what needs to be filed? If so, it is time to take action. Find the expert that will put a stop in that “leaky faucet,” that drain on your time, motivation and productivity.

I have started being proactive about some of the things I’ve been putting off. I’ve scheduled a meeting with a virtual assistant, Audrey Isbell, to help me with my social media duties because 1. Time is scarce and 2. I don’t want to do it. I believe it will be an hour well-spent.

Take stock of your situation: what is your goal for your business or your life? Would hiring a bookkeeper, a virtual assistant or an organizer free up the time you need each week to reach some of your big-picture goals?

Any time one of my blogs helps you, please take 30 seconds and forward it to a friend who needs to hear it! That’s how my business grows. Thanks and take care!

Jenny Morin

A Lean, Clean File Cabinet

Organizing Files

A lean, clean file cabinet. . . Yes!

You know the saying about a painter’s house not getting painted, a cabinetmaker’s kitchen not getting finished?  Well I am a professional organizer and it’s been 2 years since I purged my files.

My motivation: I finally got tired of looking at those 2 metal filing cabinets in the dining room. I needed to change our files over from the metal filing cabinets to a new wooden one in the office. We had file drawers for my husband’s business, my business, our household, and topics of interest like crafting and genealogy.

I’d like to give you some organizing tips for getting this project started and staying motivated.

Here are some tips for you:

1.  Schedule a day.

2.  Purging is necessary. That means discarding what you haven’t used or looked at within a year.  The exception to this includes:  legal and financial documents, family history info, photos, and other memorabilia.

3.  Pace yourself: It takes me approximately 1 hour to purge files from  one legal-size drawer. A reasonable goal would be one drawer per day.

4.  Have a large flat surface to sort things as you take them out of the file (the floor will do, but a large table is better for your back!)

5.  Assemble your tools. Make sure to have recycling, trash and a shredder right there.  It  is more efficient because it saves you steps and time.

6.  Motivation. If music helps you, turn it up. Or anything that helps you stay focused like a picture or snacks.

7.  Plan time for cleanup.  Do it right away.

Now, I took the whole day to purge and reorganize 4 very full legal-size filing drawers.  I discarded an entire 30 gallon trashcan full of papers, essentially the contents of 1 file drawer.

I’m not sure I would recommend purging files for 5 hours in one day.  It depends on your work style. But if you are really motivated or the thought of having an unfinished job really bothers you, go for it! I find it hard to leave a job unfinished, so I reorganized all my files in a day.  What a big project! I am relieved to be done!

I believe if you follow my tips, your file purging project will be easier and smoother.

If you get stuck, give me a call or email me. I’ll help you put your files in their place!

Jenny

jennym@efficientspacesco.com

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