In this episode, I introduce you to Devin R. who is married with three children; two are bonus kids that came with marrying her husband. They have 2 dogs and two cats. In 2018, Devin was looking for help to get organized. She was mowing her lawn when I caught her ear mentioning that I lived in the Cincinnati area. Then Devin’s life hit rock bottom with her work insinuating that she was not a good teacher and then she and her husband decided to separate. She could resonate with my story from 2012.

Devin looked at her life and decided she needed to get control of her life. Once she grabbed a bag and gathered all the papers she felt better. It was like since her physical chaos was getting under control her mental chaos could be addressed. We had a great discussion that all marriages go through rough patches and Devin was vulnerable to share a little bit about her marriage and how they are reconciling after about three years of separation. She shared how her mindset has shifted about organization. She looks around and asks what do I have? Why is it here? And do we even need it? She remembers making her daughter’s lunch recently and didn’t have to trip over the cat to get the things for the lunch. It was all in the lunch making station.

Devin had tried other systems but they never felt like life long solutions to her. The podcast and videos work as reminders to keep up with the systems. They are like a life partner to the systems. And they help with the cognitive load. We talked about the Sunday Basket® and how when you have Prospective Memory and you write something down it’s cognitive off loading to free up your working memory. This is something Devins struggles with because of MS but lets her neurologist know at each visit how much the Sunday Basket® helps and how it could help others with her diagnosis. And then we got into the weeds a little bit about qualitative studies that I want to do based off the information from my (unbeknownst to myself when I started) unofficial quantitative or phenomenological study AKA the Wednesday Transformation episodes.

Devin has been on her organizational journey for about three years now. She’s coped with her MS diagnosis, separated from her husband, and is entering the coaching years of parenting. Because of all her systems, she has more time to really invest in her daughter and being present. She really wishes she knew someone taught organization sooner and found Organize 365® sooner. It takes time to get organized. Devin pointed out that she values the Power of Positivity episode. “Life is not happening to you, it’s happening for you.” With the right attitude you can apply positivity to all journeys, not just organization journeys, no matter how insurmountable they seem.

Devin started working upholstering for her sister after she left teaching. She shared how she got the Friday Workbox®, worked on it with Monique at a paper retreat and how it helps her to stay organized on customers' jobs. I got to offer a little advice on how she could slowly incorporate a part time worker for her to get back some CEO time. A good balance of responsibilities is to spend 80% on production and 20% on admin and lead generation. With the addition of a part time worker, she could add another client and make money to cover the hours of that part time worker.

Devin’s advice is, “Jump in one step at a time. Listen to all the podcast episodes and then the videos from The Productive Home Solution™”

EPISODE RESOURCES:

• The Sunday Basket®

• The Productive Home Solution™

• Home Planning Day

• The Friday Workbox®

• Sign Up for the Organize 365® Newsletter

On the Wednesday podcast, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365­® community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps and triumphs along their organizing journey. I am grateful that you are reaching out to share with me and with this community. You can see and hear transformation in action. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at https://organize365.com/wednesday.

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media!

The world is getting ready for back to school and then we find ourselves in the 10 most productive weeks of the year. Since you will naturally be in high productivity energy, it makes sense to walk you through what to expect in The Productive Home Solution™. Are you ready to have your home organized in 52 weeks? Most people believe organization is a learnable skill and yet aren’t organized. Why? They need a plan and here it is from my last webinar.

Fall

We kick off fall with Planning Day at the end of August. That sets us up for tackling your personal spaces for 5 weeks. Once you get your closet, bathroom, and bedroom organized you will feel the decision fatigue lessen and that will be by the beginning of Oct. Then you’ll move onto your spaces you use for your household administration. And you’ll tackle some of the more invisible spaces like your phone, email, computer, passwords, and etc. I’ll invite you to do the Holiday Blitz and new to The Productive Home Solution™ is a couple weeks devoted to all things holiday like wrapping paper, gifts, and cards. You’ll end the year in your storage areas.

Winter

Now that almost 120 days have passed, it’s time to have Planning Day again at the end of December. This 120 days focus around communal spaces because you will have the highest amount of organization energy during this time of the year. You roll into the kitchen for three weeks. Now each section has a way to fast track. If you find it’s a section you don’t want to do or don’t need as much time allotted, there are fast track tasks so you can possibly get organized in 9 months instead of a year. I’ve added a week to do family memories. And you all get to do taxes with me in February during the Superbowl. Come on, just try it with me!! Next you’ll think about and organize your spaces that guests would be, like, your spare bedroom or bathroom or your family/living room. We finish this section with information about having a garage sale, spring break (breaking down a meaty project) and your on the go spaces like your car or travel strategies.

Summer

It starts with another Planning Day on Mother’s Day weekend. Then we focus on outside spaces. There’s a Memorial Day Blitz and then we spend 2 weeks on each of the areas of the four binders from The Paper Solution®. Now even if you don’t have the resource binders, there are still activities to complete. You can expect the Back to School Blitz and that is not just for school aged children. Then there’s a deep dive into the Sunday Basket®-the foundation for you as the household manager.

You end it all with Embrace On Demand. I recently heard in two podcasts that these women had “free time” and you know what they did? They took care of their homes, they nested. In the 50’s the marketing firms started to put these lies in our heads of what our homes should look like. And if they looked like that, it meant that the homemaker was organized. LIES! Like I have said for years, our homes are holding us back. The two women in the podcasts one got their homes organized and then decided what to do next in life and the other lady did it so she could get focused on being productive. This is your time to get your home in order so you can focus on what you are uniquely created to do. Don’t know what that is? With all your extra time you can take yourself through Embrace and figure that out! It’s time for self care, caring for yourself. “First things first, I’m first.” You must align your home environment for the phase of life you are in for the goals you have for yourself and family.

EPISODE RESOURCES:

• The Sunday Basket®

• The Paper Solution®

• The Productive Home Solution

• The Complete Home Organization Bundle

• Rewatch Webinar

• Webinar Worksheet

• Sign Up for the Organize 365® Newsletter

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media!