10 Oct 2018 by 4 Comments

What I learned from Spring into Organising

I ran (or tried to run) a Spring into Organising challenge during September.

It was mostly a failure in terms of getting other people to play along, but I thought I’d share what I learned from personally doing the Spring into Organising challenge for the 5 weekends in September.

  • Konmari has served me very well. I did the full Konmari in August 2014 and while I believe that you do have to do a little refresh now and again, it has been life-changing for me. Spaces are super quick to sort when you mostly have things that spark joy in your home.
  • I am happier with a leaner, streamlined home. I am not one of those people with a “we’re making memories and that’s why we have a messy house” mindset. I fully own that I like clean, orderly, clutter-free spaces because this is what brings me peace.

 

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  • Dedicated projects motivate me. I made a plan at the start of weekend 1 and I did all those spaces and then some. I ended up sorting out 17 spaces and it felt wonderful.
  • It sucks when you feel like no one else is doing a challenge along with you, even if they are. Just being honest.
  • Things are coming into our homes all the time (gifts, updates to clothes, etc.) so they need to leave all the time too. Someone asked me once on Instagram why I always have a couple of areas to sort, and my reply is still the same – I live with other people (D, the kids, and the nanny is here 4 days a week) and so even though most things just take a 5 – 10 minute tweak every couple of months, it’s still necessary. Just last night, I returned medication to our medicine cupboard and it was messy so it needed a sort. Popped on a podcast and got to it – 20 mins later, order was restored, old meds tossed out and all was well again.

It occurred to me that spring is not over yet so I’m continuing with organising bits and pieces around my home.

The printable is still available for free here – please do avail yourself if you want to get your home in order.

How do you tackle spring cleaning/ organising? On a schedule or as the mood strikes you?

Filed Under: Decluttering, Freebies, Goals, Intentional living, Konmari, Organising, organising children's spaces, Personal, Planning, Time management, Work with Marcia Tagged With: , , , , ,
19 Sep 2018 by 1 Comment

Just start – how to overcome procrastination


I’ve been doing the Spring into Organising challenge for the past three weekends and even though I know this, I’m reminded all the time that I need to just start instead of feeling overwhelmed or procrastinating.

It’s spring here in South Africa (although it feels like summer) so the weather’s hot and that could be my excuse. Or it’s book club next weekend and that could be my excuse.

But I’ve been tricking myself in my usual way and saying I only need to do 15 minutes. Which, in most cases, means I do carry on with the task. But in other cases I actually get the whole space done in that time, especially if I’m not doing instagram stories at the same time 😉

Have you tried just starting? Before you know it, you’re doing something. You take out the chopping board and next thing you’re cooking an entire meal. Or you open a browser on your computer and you’re scrolling Facebook an hour later.

You see, Newton’s Law of inertia works both positively and negatively.

Newton’s Law of inertia – An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.

Let’s be those “objects” that start in motion and continue staying in motion.

 

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What are some of your excuses? Which stories do you tell yourself about why you can’t start or get something done?

Filed Under: Decluttering, Goals, Intentional living, Organising, Personal, Planning, Time management Tagged With: , , , , ,
12 Apr 2011 by Leave a Comment

Spring into Organising

Have you been meaning to get your home organised this year but somehow there just isn’t enough time?

Does your home feel suffocating and claustrophobic because of all the stuff?

Do you not know what to wear on a daily basis because your clothes either don’t fit or you can’t find things to wear?

Is your home overflowing with paper? Bills everywhere, books spilling out of bookshelves, and paper on the kitchen counters that you wish you could get rid of?

I am here to help you.

 

Join me on Saturday for Spring into Organising and let’s get 4 of your problem spaces sorted, once and for all.

Read more here

 

 

Filed Under: Time management Tagged With:
5 Apr 2011 by 3 Comments

3 reasons why I need to work with a personal trainer

One of my goals this year was to hire a personal trainer to get me to my goal weight.

I’ll be honest – I was really loathe to do it at first but I’ve now accepted that I’m the type of person who has to pay for accountability otherwise it just won’t get done.

Two months in and I’m not there yet but am making good, steady progress.

When I mentioned my intention to people, they’d say things like, “oh, but isn’t a personal trainer expensive?”

My answer is, “depends how you look at it.”

I like to think of this as an investment in my health and fitness.

But that got me thinking about the main 3 reasons why I need to have a personal trainer:

1. He challenges me to go further and do more

My natural style is competitive which is why I’ve always loved group classes. There’s just something about the energy of healthy competition that makes me push myself more and stretch my limits.

If I didn’t work out with a personal trainer, I’d never do the exercises I should, simply because I’m weak and feel pain at the slightest thing.

He tells me I can do it and is my cheerleader through the pain.

2. I pay a month in advance

This helps me to not be a slacker when I feel tired or not in the mood for exercise. Or if it’s raining. (Traffic in Jhb is terrible when it rains and any sane person would stay indoors)

I know that because I’ve already paid, I need to get myself to the gym and use up that money.

3. He teaches me to do the exercises correctly

This is a big one. There are many exercises I’ve seen and done versions of in my 8 years of going to gym.

Apparently for a lot of them, I’ve been doing them wrong all these years. Who knew?!

Working out with him means he is checking my posture and making sure I do exactly what I’m supposed to, and that all my muscle groups and joints are correctly supported.

In the two months, I’ve worked with Frisco, Sara and Kyle and they have all kicked my butt. I don’t like it at the time but I do LOVE the results of a flatter, trimmer, toned tummy and centimetres off all over my body.

Have you ever worked with a personal trainer?

How are you working towards your health and fitness goals?

Coaching challenge:

Do you recognise your stumbling blocks with your goals as I had to with mine? It doesn’t have to be health and fitness goals; any goals will do.

How are you going to overcome them?

Do you need accountability and support? If you have organising goals, Spring into Organising is just for you.

 

 

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