Does the countdown for the big ball drop fill you with dread? If that dread has more to do with your New Year’s resolutions than finding a pair of lips to kiss- you are in the right place. Watch this video for some strategies and videos you can use to set and accomplish your resolutions for the New Year.
(Click here to watch on YouTube if you can’t see the embedded player. Or watch the video at http://bit.ly/TCD2013.)
Transcript:
Hi. I’m Lorie Marrero, creator of the Clutter Diet book and on-line program, and today we’re going to talk about our top 10 things that you can do to be more organized in the New Year. Now, most of the tips I’m going to share with you today have a corresponding video that we’ve already done that goes with it, so we will have the links for those videos right here for you on the screen.
Number one, I would love it if you would use on-line banking. I’m always so surprised at how many people still don’t use on-line banking. It’s a great way to keep tabs on your accounts very quickly and easily. You can pick up identity theft issues really fast. I’ve actually done that myself. And of course, you can automate payments, and you can just skip the stamp and you can stop mailing checks around, which is safer as well for identity theft. So use on-line banking.
Number two, set up a destination station in your home. This is a place where you enter and exit the house most frequently where you’re going to need to put down things when you come in the door. So your keys, your purse, your briefcase, kids’ backpacks, you might have shoes here, you might have errand items that need to go out when you leave the house the next time. So set up a station like that for yourselves for smoother mornings.
Number three, I want you to pick something that you don’t like doing, and outsource or delegate that this year. So whether that’s doing laundry, or mowing the lawn, or changing your oil, or whatever, household chores, or even doing your taxes, get someone else to do that or pay someone else to do that this year. Life is short. Focus on what you do best.
So number four is to clean up your contacts or your address book. Right now, it’s just after the holidays, you’ve received holiday cards from a lot of people, possibly with corrections and updates to their address and information about their families. So it’s the perfect time. Gather up all that information, update your address book, and be all current for the new year.
Number five, I want you to think this year about prevention. Being more mindful about what crosses the threshold into your home in the first place. Think about what you’re purchasing, what you’re acquiring, what you’re allowing into your home and being more judicious about what that is, so that you don’t allow clutter to be created in the first place.
So number six, I want you to organize your primary wardrobe closet. It’s the first place you spend time in the mornings when you’re getting dressed and it’s the last place you see when you’re getting ready for bed at night. So, you might as well make this a space that is pleasant for you and choose clothes that only fit and flatter you today. Don’t have a lot of stuff in there that makes you feel bad. You want to start your day out right. So get that primary wardrobe closet figured out, and you’ll have a much better year every day.
All right, number seven is to do your Sunday planning. Once a week, we recommend Sundays for most families, but it could be any day of the week for you, take 15 or 20 minutes to plan your week. Sit down with your calendar, figure out who needs to be where and when, what they need, figure out meals for the week and a grocery list, and you will be so much further ahead.
So number eight is to pick one, and I said one, calendar or planner and stick with it. Be consistent with that system. We see people all the time that have multiple calendars going on. They’ve got something on-line, they’ve got a wall calendar, they’ve got a pocket calendar, they’ve got their smart phone calendar, and they have their information and time management stuff spread all over different systems. So centralize all of that, and stick with it.
All right, number nine is to make one positive change to your morning routine. Whether that’s getting up 15 minutes earlier, fitting in some exercise, maybe having breakfast, if that’s not something that you normally do, adding in a healthy habit or something that helps your morning go more smoothly so that you reduce your stress for the New Year.
And finally number 10, get help from our organizing experts. We have free help everywhere. We’ve got these videos every Wednesday, we’ve got our Twitter Tip every day, we have our blog, we have our Facebook page, and of course we have our Free Tips Newsletter that is a digest of everything we’re doing, every Thursday, that you can sign up for at https://www.clutterdiet.com/freetips. And, of course, you can get personal direct unlimited consulting on-line from our team of organizing experts in our on-line program, which is also free for 14 days. You can find out more about that at clutterdiet.com/learnmore.
See you next time, and may you always be happy and grateful for having more than enough.
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