Regina Leeds - The 8 Minute Organizer: Easy Solutions to Simplify Your Life in Your Spare Time

Easy Solutions to Simplify
Your Life in Your Spare Time

REGINA LEEDS

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Copyright 2012 by Regina Leeds

Illustrations Christina Hernandez

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ISBN 978-0-7382-1588-4 (e-Book)

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DESIGN BY JANE RAESE

Text set in 10.5-point Linoletter

First Da Capo Press edition 2012

1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

FOR RUSSI TAYLOR AND WAYNE ALLWINE...

who model love, generosity, and wisdom with every breath they take.
Your friendship has enriched my life in ways I can never express.
Thank Heaven you needed a professional organizer and were open
to accepting me into your circle of friends in the process.
I am forever in your debt.

The life of the man who daily cares for those who come to him will never suffer povertys painful ruin. Wealths goddess dwells in the hospitable home of those who host guests with a smiling face.

TIRUKKURAL 9:83-84

Those who would climb to a lofty height must go by steps, not leaps.

ST. GREGORY THE GREAT

You live in a world that feels at times as though its moving at hyperspeed. Still, you have the best intentions when it comes to making your home a sanctuary, checking items off your to-do list, and creating more me time. But then the doorbell rings, an instant message dings, the baby cries, your spouse is cranky, your boss needs a transfusion of humanityall before noon. With more and more demands on our time each day, the goal of an organized home quickly falls by the wayside.

As a result, many of us live in homes that are cluttered and in need of attention. We become exhausted the minute we enter a room and are reminded of all the unmade decisions and unfinished business waiting for our attention. You want to organize your home but feel you dont have enough time. And when you do make the effort, your attempts at organization quickly tumble into chaos. You know exactly how Sisyphus felt with his eternal efforts to roll the same rock up that hill. Whats a person to do?

The normal response is the same old, same old. You convince yourself that a kitchen sink looks forlorn without a sky-high pile of dirty dishes. You wonder why you should make the bed when youre just going to tumble into it later. As for those piles that have sprung up on countertops and across the floor like weeds, you decide that they give the space character. But what if you could make incremental yet lasting changes in just 8-minute sprints? No, you wont turn into Martha Stewart, but you will get some relief from the demands your environment is making that add to the stress. And over time, your surroundings will be graduallyalmost magicallywhipped into shape.

Even professional organizers are not immune to the distraction that clutter creates. When I walk into a new clients home for the first time and view the wave of too much stuff, I lose my ability to think clearly. Then, after a few minutes, I remind myself that the whole of any project is overwhelming and the only task at hand is to take incremental steps to the desired end. For example, after I focus on a single stack of papers on a desk rather than the innumerable stacks all over the roomas well as the clothing tossed over the chair, the miscellaneous items stuffed behind the door, the debris on the bookcase, the crowded clusters of plants, and the torrent of personal photosIm good to go. I can easily give my client direction because I have no emotional attachment to any of these items. Organizing is in many ways like putting together a three-dimensional puzzle.

But when my clients stand in that same room, they have a different reaction, usually one of guilt or shame. Why did I let this happen? Whats wrong with me? Am I stupid? What must Regina think of me? Why do I have to spend the money to have someone else do this for me? These comments are the dialogue in their head. Their outside voice usually says, Tell me, Regina, have you ever seen a mess like this before? I assure them that I have seen scenes like it for over twenty years.

And while all these emotions are roiling, their stuff is talking. No, I dont mean it has a human-like voice that only the dog and I can hear. I mean it seems to emit a frequency that makes clear thinking virtually impossible, and it opens the door to all negative emotions, with guilt leading the parade. Each item has its own particular voice. Every piece of clothing piled on the chair wails that it belongs in a closet. The plants are screaming for water and repotting. Papers are particularly prolific and noisy little creations, reminders of bills that havent been paid, medical reimbursement forms that havent been submitted, and little Johnnys homework that hasnt been reviewed.