Category: Podcast

Let’s talk about garage sales!  Garage sales can be a great option for decluttering and making some extra money.  But how do you make them successful? We covered tips on how to get people to come to your sale, how to make the most of the sale, and alternative ways to sell your items if your garage sale doesn't go as planned.

(Original Episode 22 Air Date: June 19, 2023)

In this episode we talk about:

• Pros & Cons of garage sales
• What to consider when hosting a garage sale
• How does the reselling market impact garage sales?
• Are Garage Sales right for you in your organizing journey?
• How can you turn a poorly attended garage sale into a positive experience?

Mentioned in this Episode:

Episode 039: Should You Keep it, Repair it or Throw It Way?

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/27-step-6-evaluate-step-back-evaluate-your-organizing-system

Episode 006: Should You Do-it-Yourself or Outsource It?

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/6-should-you-do-it-yourself-or-outsource-it

Blog: Virtual Sell/Buy Marketplaces Blog Post 

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/virtual-sell-buy-marketplaces

Think your community or group of friends could benefit from a Community Garage Sale?

Get our  “Community Garage Sales Made Easy Handbook”  in our shop!

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The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

Review the Transcript:

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:00:00]:
This week, we've got something a little different that we haven't done before. We have not had any repeats since the beginning of this podcast back in January of 2023. We've had 72 amazing episodes that are unique and each have been new every single Monday. This week, though, I am, for the first time, bringing an oldie and a goodie from last summer because we are talking about garage sales during this time of the year. And the garage sale, rummage sale, upcycling market has grown, but there's also quite a bit of hesitation from buyers to buy and. And we are in a moment in time where there is a lot of people that are retiring, downsizing, trying to get rid of their stuff, and it hurts my heart. And I see the numbers, and I see the data that is coming out as to how much stuff will end up in the landfill. So I am on a bit of a mission to just give people the awareness that there's a lot of really good stuff out there for you to buy and that you can you don't have to buy everything used.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:01:11]:
And many times, people that sell their stuff is in perfect condition. They just never used it. They're just looking for new homes. So I am on on a little bit of a mission right now to help the sandwich generation, those people that are responsible for multiple generations, above them, below them, younger, older, to help them realize that there are other ways to get rid of your stuff outside of just throwing it all away immediately. That might be the answer ultimately, especially for those of us and those of you who have a lot of stuff. Right? And you you're under a very specific time frame. You need to get, a solution for all this stuff. So I get that.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:01:52]:
Sometimes that's just the way it has to be. But there is also going to be the problem of spending money to store it. So I'm trying to give solutions to this generation, to the people who are requiring a lot of stuff and letting them know that, hey. There are events like a garage sale, like a rummage sale The could be of benefit to you and help you find additional value in The stuff that you have. So we are doing a recap or rerun of last year's episode because it is a a classic. One thing that I would like to highlight that I didn't talk about as much in this episode was the virtual resale market. We will have a separate conversation about that, but what I would like to add for this year is that when we talk about garage sales, don't forget that this also means the virtual version of a garage sale or a rummage sale. So you can host and on different apps like Poshmark right now, in 2024.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:02:56]:
It's still very relevant. Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, thredUP, you got a whole number of them, which I will put in the show notes. And that also applies to the garage sale concept. It's just the virtual, you know, cousin of it. So, don't forget, you also have these tips will be able to be applicable to the virtual version of a garage sale. Alright. Without delaying it, here we go. Here's the original episode from last year on the benefits and drawbacks of hosting a garage sale.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:03:30]:
Enjoy. Welcome to the Organized and productive podcast with The Organized Flamingo. I am your host, Stephanie, a professional organizer and productivity expert. Ready to explore the right organizing and productivity solutions for you? Yeah? Well, then let's go. Be honest. What do you think about garage sales? Do they make you cringe? Do you get excited when you go and wake up early and head to a garage sale weekend? Like, how do you feel about them? The reason I'm asking you this question is because I know in the last couple of years, garage sales in the reselling market has gotten kind of a bad rep. There has been a lot of innovation around reselling apps and resell marketplaces, which I love. But as a whole and as a society, whenever I talk about garage sales, I usually get a little bit of a cringe effect or factor or commentary.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:04:30]:
Now you all know that I'm all about the and, so I have not officially made a survey or compiled any official information about how people feel about garage sales, but this has been my own take being in the industry where when I talk to a client and I say, hey. Maybe you're a good candidate to host a garage sale. I and of get this little pushback of, oh, I don't know. Oh, it sounds like a lot of work. Nobody wants my trash, and I get that kind of feeling. Now I'm assuming that there will be a couple of you who were attracted to this episode because you are garage sale pros, and you know your stuff. So, obviously, I'm not talking necessarily to you, but I hope you will stick around because we are going to talk about some tips and some observations that I have seen being in the organizing world that hopefully will help you as well. But as a whole, as a society, I think especially here in the US, we just don't really have a very positive connotation to garage sales.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:05:31]:
It's usually the people are getting rid of their stuff because they're downsizing, and it's looked upon as it's somebody else's trash. And it's not always the case. And so we're going to talk about the pros and the cons. We're going to talk about my observations of what I have seen, some of the successful garage sales that I have been a part of and that I put together, and give you some tips for you to consider if maybe garage selling is the right avenue for you in your organizing journey. Okay. So let's get started with a little bit of the garage sale 101 and what it is. A garage sale is in this terminology, we're talking about the reselling of items that you already possess. So they could be brand new items you're reselling.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:06:15]:
Maybe you never used The, or they could be used and you are now, you know, getting rid of them for whatever reason. So this is a sale that you have personally put together. This is not like a company, brick and mortar. This isn't a store. This is a personal reselling of items in your possession. So if you're interested in the history of where garage and yard sales came about, it's a term that we use here, especially in the US, where you hold, like I said, those sales, the the privacy of your own home, your garage, if you will, something that came about in in the 19 around The 19 seventies where garages, were starting to be more popularized and you could like The sixties, seventies, and you would host the sales in your yard. Before that, they were called rummage sales, and those were mostly held by charities, churches, and groups like that that would then sell the items to benefit their association or their nonprofit. And even prior to that, there is some history, which we can dive into in on another episode, but there's some history there with it being a nautical term from ramage, which was the cargo that was packed into the hold of a ship.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:07:26]:
And the rummage sales at that time were held at the docks, and the cargo that was unclaimed or damaged would then be sold at a discounted rate. And they were that was The rummage. And then from there, it just became the garage sale. So one thing led to another. So it's a little bit of a fun history for you and for you history buffs. And I also wanted to shed light on The history of it because as most anything, things have evolved. But this one in particular, this type of sale really has stuck to its roots. Right? It's things that are no longer needed, wanted, that are being sold for the for a fraction of their their original price.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:08:04]:
And that's the beauty of this type of sale. The seller is getting rid of items that are no longer used to them, and the buyer feels like they're getting a good deal. And in today's age, that we're keeping items out of the landfill, so it's a win win when you host these types of sales. Now there's cons to it, and I'm not saying that a garage sale is for everyone, which we will explain some of the pros and cons, who is a right fit for this type of event. But as a whole, it's supposed to be a win win for all parties. And the reason I am a big fan of this type of sale in an organizing journey is because there is that win win factor. It is an emotional win for the seller knowing that the items are going to a new home where the item will actually be used. Many of our clients, especially if you, are more you have more hoarding tendencies and you're emotionally attached to items, you can't let go of something or the items that are accumulated in your home, in your household, in your space because there is this fear that you didn't get to use it or that it was a waste of time or money or effort purchasing the item.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:09:18]:
Or if it is an emotional, maybe family heirloom, that you are breaking the tradition of keeping that item alive and there's a lot of guilt associated with it. So to relieve that guilt a little bit, when you know that it's going to a good home and for someone that actually will be using it, it becomes a win for you, the seller, or the person who will be selling the item. And that contributes to long lasting organizing and long lasting decluttering habits because it gives you that really good feeling. Now on the other end, for the seller, they, of course, feel like it's a win because they got something that was much better priced. They know they're keeping it and out of the landfill. And so it just becomes a really good understanding between the parties that it was a good day to buy the item and then, you know, to buy and sell. So it's a win win. So let's talk about the pros of having a garage sale.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:10:15]:
So I already talked about the emotional pro, which is finding a better home, the next home for the item. But this is a great opportunity to declutter and organize your living space. It allows you to go through your space, open boxes maybe that you have not opened in a really long time. So it gives you that chance to declutter and organize. The other is it gives you a chance to make some extra money by selling the items that you no longer need and are taking up space. Now what kind of money you will get for the item will vary on what you're trying to sell. I have a whole blog post, which I will link into the show notes, and you can, also download our checklist on how to, have a successful garage sale. So in in one of those, points on that list and in the blog post talks about, yes, making extra money, but also being realistic about what you're selling, getting some second opinions, asking friends, going online and seeing what something is worth.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:11:11]:
Because just because something, even if it's a brand new item and you bought it for a $100 and you think that you you know, it's never been used, it's brand new, the person who is buying it does not have the same emotional attachment to that item. So what you are going to make on that item is probably not what you think you will, so just be smart about that. But you will make some extra money, and that item sitting in your basement or your closet is probably not making you any money. So, you know, this is one of the other pros. Big disclaimer here. We are not talking about, collectibles or valuables. Some of you are professional collectible, collectors or people that know what something is worth. And if that's you, then you understand that, you know, you're storing it for the long term, value.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:12:01]:
So that's a whole that's a whole another episode. This is just talking about everyday items. Some of the other added benefits, which for some of you, you may like, except for some of you, you may not, and there is a way around it. But I think it's a pro, and that's the engagement with the local community and the potential to meet new people. A garage sale is a great way for you to meet your neighbors. And maybe even if you're not social, this could be a really good opportunity to hear you know, see get some recommendations on where to donate things. Where can I sell this? Is there a better place? Maybe someone will tell somebody that you have a thing that they needed. So that engagement really helps you get rid of your stuff and find new homes for your things.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:12:43]:
Now this is my favorite, this next pro, and that's the sustainable practice of recycling and reusing items rather than throwing them away. I this is my favorite. This is very close to my heart. I host an annual community garage sale here in my neighborhood. I've actually have done garage sales for many, many years. I've also done them for clients, but this is one of the number one reasons why I love doing The. And it's finding new homes for things that may have ended up in the landfill. And like I said, it's a win win.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:13:13]:
People feel like they're getting a good deal. And to me, it just it's my way of contributing to the keeping items away from just laying in landfills forever and ever when I know sometimes The can go to better homes. This next tip is not for everyone, but I added it as a pro because I know some of you get a thrill out of this. I will say that I am not one of these people. So if you are listening to this next tip and you're like, nope. That's not me. I hear you because I feel the same. But it's the process in getting that in getting the thrill of negotiating and negotiating prices.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:13:53]:
I know some of you live for this, especially as a buyer, if you enjoy going to garage sales and that thrill of getting a good bargain. Oh my gosh. I know that that goes a long way. So if you enjoy that piece of it, you know, somebody's saying, I'll give you $2 for it, and you say a dollar. And then you meet in the middle for a dollar 50, and you think that that's a win because you thought you were going to get 50¢ out of it, and that's, like, a win for everybody. I get it. So I did add it as a pro because I know a lot of you really enjoy that part. And if you've never done a garage sale before, try it out and see if you like it.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:14:29]:
You know? And if you don't, then there's plenty of tips, that I talk about over on the blog pay on the blog post that I mentioned earlier that will be in the show notes. But you don't necessarily have to negotiate. You can put up a sign that says every you know, it's nonnegotiable. You can put price tags on things, and you can just let people know The is what it is. Now there is a little bit of a subculture and a understanding that in garage sales and flea markets and things like that, in the resale market in general, that there is room for a bargain or just to, you know, offer another price. So just know that there's a little bit of that norm, but you certainly don't have to say yes. And you can absolutely put in your ads and in your signs and in your pricing that it's nonnegotiable. Okay.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:15:14]:
So now let's switch over to the cons of having and hosting a garage sale. Now these aren't necessarily negative things, but just things for you to consider. So I added them as a con because they're important to note and that this one of these cons may be the reason that a garage sale may not be right for you. Okay. So one of them is the time, the most important. It's the time and the effort involved in planning, organizing, and promoting this this type of sale. Like I mentioned earlier, I have hosted community garage sales, which, also, if you're interested in having something like that, I do have resources for you down in the show notes. But if you're having and individual, like a personal, garage sale, it still takes some time and effort.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:15:58]:
Right? You have to plan a little bit. You have to plan a date, set time for that date. And once you announce that date, because people need to know that you're having and, then you, you know, you're basically committing yourself to that that time, that date that you told people that you were going to be there. And in addition to that, then there's a little bit of a planning. Even if you're not a planner and you're just more of a fly by the seat of your pants type of person, you just grab and sell, there's still a little bit of planning because you you just you know, you have to go grab The stuff and take it out, and, you know, and put it up on tables or or just on your driveway or wherever area of your in front of your house. So there's a bit of time and effort involved, and that is something that only you know if you have time and the ability for. We recorded an episode here that could help you, where we talk about things to consider when you're outsourcing. So should you do it yourself, or should you outsource it? And that is a great episode if you're contemplating if doing this type of, like, a garage sale is right for you.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:17:02]:
I'll put that in the show notes as well. The next one is all about the weather, something that you really just can't help. I put it as a con because it makes people nervous, not knowing what will happen. Like, you know, finding that perfect date that's, like, the most beautiful weather, not too hot, not too cold. But it's a it's not under your control. And you can plan as much as possible, knowing that, you know, wherever you live, maybe you know your weather patterns and you know that it's just better to have it in June, maybe to have it in August, whatever it may be. Only you know The. But just know that if the weather is not great, you do need to make alternative arrangements, especially if you're you did a lot of preplanning, like advertisement, like, you set up your tables ahead of The, and you did all of that.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:17:48]:
Like I said, I do have a list of all, like, how to have a really good successful, garage sale, and it talks about the preplanning process. So there's effort involved in that. And if you get rained out or something to that effect, well, now you have to make some plans for another date. And if that makes you a little bit nervous, then or you have to have the garage sale that weekend because you're moving the weekend after, then that is something that, you may not love and something that you just need to consider. The next one is about an emotional con, and this is a tip that I just I give and that I wanted to talk about because this could happen, especially if you've never done a garage sale before. And that's the possible disappointment if items don't sell or they don't get the price that you want. So that is a con. If you're an emotionally attached person, that may surprise you that when somebody tells you they'll give you, you know, a dollar for it and you bought it for a $100 or it's a family heirloom and you could potentially feel almost whether embarrassed and or you may get defensive over it, then a garage sale may not be right for you because people there are trying to get a bargain.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:19:05]:
And it's not personal to you, but you may feel that way. So if you're in a sensitive, emotional place, a garage sale may not be right for you right now or for those items that you feel very emotionally connected to because, well, you know, the people that are trying to buy it are in a different place. They don't feel your emotions. So that's another con for you to think about. I feel like this one can be worked around as long as you prepare yourself that that may happen, but I also understand that many of you have items that would be very difficult or you would find offensive if somebody offered you much less than what you thought you were going to. So, you know, keep that in mind. The last tip is all about getting people to come to your garage sale and potentially having the disappointment of not having enough people come to your sale. So that's not even about that you can't even sell things.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:19:58]:
This is about people are not even coming or stopping by, and especially if you're not in a highly visible place or corner or house or area, then if you don't have a good strategy of getting people to come to the sale, then they won't even be able to buy because they don't even know you're there. And so that could be a con. If you don't have a good strategy on, advertising for this or a good reach, then or a good reach of somehow, whether it's through your social media The you're if you feel uncomfortable about posting or you don't know how to do it, that may be a con for you. Because if not enough people, not not enough traffic comes through your sale, through your garage sale, then there's no way that they know that you're even there, and that might be disappointing. Now I do have some tips in that blog post that I just talked about about trying to avoid that piece. Because so I don't necessarily think it's a con as long as you're prepare prepared. If during your sale you find your if you did not go do a good enough job advertising or you just didn't have the time or or, honestly, it was just a bad day and people are not walking by your neighborhood and therefore not seeing your sale, there's a couple of alternatives, that you have and that you can turn this event into a positive because you can just take pictures of the stuff that's out there already and post them on online social media platforms, marketplaces like Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace and and Poshmark. I have a whole list of online resellers that you can post it to.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:21:31]:
So even if that becomes the downside of you having the garage sale and and you just don't get enough traffic, use it as a moment of exposure because everything's probably out in the sunshine. Right? Outside. Good lighting. Just take pictures and post them on social media, like I said, all these other marketplaces, and still get some good usage of the time that it took for you to put this together. So that could definitely be turned around if you have, if you're a little bit prepared. So to end our episode today, I wanted to share some feedback that I received from a neighbor. She was one of the participants in our community garage sale this year, and it was just really heartwarming to me, what she said. So let me let me read it to you.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:22:18]:
For our first and last garage sale, it was so great. Now in parentheses here, I just got to share with you. They are moving to their forever home. So in theory, this would be their last garage sale. And they had never hosted The before, so last in first. Then she continues, enjoyed meeting neighbors we never knew. Everything is gone. Planned to make a run to the local charity, but gave everything away at the garage sale.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:22:47]:
So many happy faces. We love that some of our treasures found new homes and a new life. Hope the community continues The tradition. And for the sake of our landfills, this was a great idea. Great lesson to teach the next generation. Hugs. Thank you for listening to the Organized and Productive podcast with The Organized Flamingo. If you enjoyed today's episode, I would love it if you leave a rating and review on your favorite podcast player.

Stephanie Y. Deininger [00:23:15]:
It helps with letting people know that we're here. For full show notes and resources, head on over to the Organized flamingo.com/ podcast. Happy organizing.

This week we get into Part 2 of the “Sandwich Generation” discussion. We are sharing practical tips for navigating the challenges of caring for both children and aging parents, or those in similar roles. This episode focuses on the options you have when handling these inherited items.  Tune in to explore these tips and gain clarity on managing this complex aspect of life.

In this episode we talk about:

• Explanation of the different “sandwiches” within the sandwich generation
• Tips for managing inherited items with pros and cons
• The emotional aspect of selling & donating

Mentioned in this Episode:

Episode 071: Organizing Tips for the Sandwich Generation: Part 1

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/71-organizing-tips-for-the-sandwich-generation-part-1

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The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

This week we talk about the evolving professional organizing industry with Dr. Carrie Lane, an expert in the field of American Studies and the changing nature of work in the United States. Dr. Lane shares her insights into the professional organizing industry, shedding light on why more individuals are turning to organizers to manage their belongings, homes, and workspaces in our modern society. Through her extensive research and teaching experience, Dr. Lane explores the factors driving the rise of professional organizers and offers valuable perspectives on how they are reshaping our approach to organization and productivity.

In this episode we talk about:

• Reasons individuals seek the assistance of professional organizers
• How pro organizing services can best support individuals in managing their time and space
• The evolution of pro organizers in the United States

Mentioned in this Episode:

Book: “More Than Pretty Boxes: How the Rise of Professional Organizing Shows Us the Way We Work Isn't Working” by Dr. Carrie Lane.. Chicago, IL: Chicago University Press, 2024.

https://amzn.to/4dhFW65

Learn more about Dr. Lane:

Web: https://amst.fullerton.edu/faculty/c_lane.aspx

Dr. Carrie Lane is a Professor of American Studies at California State University, Fullerton, where she studies the changing nature of work in the United States. Professor Lane is especially interested in the ways Americans go about trying to simply and improve their lives in the face of overwork and overwhelm. She earned her PhD in American Studies from Yale University and a BA in Anthropology and Women's Studies from Princeton University. Her new book, More Than Pretty Boxes: How the Rise of Professional Organizing Shows Us the Way We Work Isn't Working, comes out with University of Chicago Press in fall 2024. She lives with her family in Los Angeles.

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The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

In this episode, Julie DeLucca-Collins, TEDx speaker, business coach, and bestselling author, shares her expertise on habits and their significance in personal and professional growth. Drawing from her experience as a certified Tiny Habits coach, Julie provides actionable insights on implementing small changes for lasting impact. With a track record of empowering women in entrepreneurship and holistic coaching, Julie's dynamic approach to habit formation offers listeners practical strategies for achieving success in all aspects of life.

In this episode we talk about:

• What is a habit exactly and how it relates to our everyday success
• Habit creation and how to track it and  should you?
• Examples of tiny habits and their impact

Mentioned in this Episode:

Book: “The Gap and The Gain: The High Achievers' Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success” by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy https://amzn.to/4aWLtxq

Book: “Be Your Future Self Now: The Science of Intentional Transformation by Dr. Benjamin Hardy” https://amzn.to/3Qp7Cw8

Learn more about Julie::

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/julie_deluccacollins/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/goconfidentlyjulie/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jdelucca

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@juliedeluccacollins

—

The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

This week we are doing a quick check in with you on how your organizing system is going. We provide you with helpful questions that you can be asking yourself as you organize and declutter your space.

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

In this episode we talk about:

• The importance of tracking progress in a tangible way
• Uncovering what's not working and areas for improvement
• Examples on how you can be tracking your progress

Mentioned in this Episode:

Episode 027: Step 6: Evaluate: Step Back, Evaluate Your Organizing System

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/27-step-6-evaluate-step-back-evaluate-your-organizing-system

Episode 001: 7 Steps to Organizing *Almost* Anything

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/7-steps-to-organizing

—

The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast

This week, we explore the often-overlooked aspects of organizing for a local move. In this episode, we bring you our expertise from years of facilitating seamless moves. We go over five things that go overlooked with local moves, shedding light on practical strategies and essential steps to ensure a smooth relocation. Whether you're downsizing, upgrading, or simply relocating within the same area, this episode equips you with the insights and tools to orchestrate your move with ease. 

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

In this episode we talk about:

• Things you may not have thought of when organizing for a local move
• How local moves differentiate from long distance moves
• How to determine how much stuff you have

Mentioned in this Episode:

Episode 001: 7 Steps to Organizing *Almost* Anything

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/7-steps-to-organizing

Episode 014: Should You Do It Yourself or Outsource It

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/?s=14

—

The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast
Download your FREE “Should you Keep It or Toss It?” decision tree https://organizedandproductive.com/keeportoss

This week, we sit down with Kendra James Anderson, CEO of The Finance Femme® and co-founder of Minted Lanes, for an insightful discussion on organizing your finances and the documents that are associated with it. Kendra's wealth of experience, from her corporate background to her entrepreneurial ventures, provides invaluable insights into streamlining your financial management. Together, we'll explore practical strategies and simple steps to help you take control of your finances and pave the way for financial success. Tune in and start your journey to financial organization!

In this episode we talk about:

• Defining Finance vs. Accounting vs. Bookkeeping
• Common misunderstandings on what you need to keep
• How to pick a finance online tools or platform to help you stay organized

Where to find Kendra James Anderson online:

Web: https://thefinancefemme.com/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/TheFinanceFemme

Podcast: https://thefinancefemme.libsyn.com/

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The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

Letting go is easier said than done.  So this week, we chatted with guest, Colleen Blake-Miller, about the importance of letting go of old beliefs and physical stuff.  

In this episode we talk about:

• Tips on how to let go & identify when it's a problem. 
• Common challenges individuals face when attempting to let go, and how can they overcome these obstacles
• Exploring how letting go of physical items is different from letting go of emotional clutter

Where to find Colleen:

Colleen, a Registered Psychotherapist and dynamic speaker, brings over 16 years of experience to her mission of helping individuals conquer anxiety, depression, and self-worth issues. She is the founder of My Wellness Village, a virtual community that empowers women of faith in their mental health, physical fitness, and personal growth journeys.

As a passionate advocate for holistic well-being, she inspires women on their path to personal transformation. Beyond this, Colleen thrives in panel discussions, where she provides diverse perspectives alongside colleagues and friends in the mental health field. Based in Atlanta, GA, Colleen travels internationally to share her wisdom, foster healing, and make a positive impact. 

You can find more of her here:

Website: https://colleenblakemiller.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colleenblakemiller/

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The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger.  For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

Review the Transcript:

Stephanie
Hey community and listeners. Welcome to our next episode here at organized and productive. I'm Stephanie, your host, and this week, we've got a very special guest, we've got Colleen Blake Miller, she is a psychotherapist and speaker, she is going to walk us through and talk to us about the power of letting go. We do address letting go, in general. And we do talk about specifically letting go of physical things. So you will get to hear both perspectives and how they're related. So we will talk about organizing stuff in the podcast in the episode. But we also talk about just in general, letting go and that whole concept. So she has spent over a decade guiding individuals towards health, wellness and personal growth. She specializes in the area like identity, self worth, depression and trauma, helping both women and men in her community, overcome emotional hurdles and achieve their highest success. So with her background and experience, we thought she was the perfect person to walk us through that power of letting go and what do you do about it? How can you go through the process when you are ready, or if you are identifying that you're needing to let go, but you don't know how. So she's just so perfect as a psychotherapist and speaker. She, she understands where what people are going through. So I thought she was the perfect person to talk about that with us. So I met her a couple of years ago through some mutual friends. And I'm a big fan of her work. She actually guided me through some stuff that I needed to let go for my business a couple of years ago, and she was phenomenal. So I thought you know what she is going to be perfect for our community. I think you're all going to really appreciate her love her content. And without further ado, you know how it works, we get straight into the conversation with our guest, so we don't waste your time. And you get to some actionable steps and inspiration. So here we go with Colleen Blake Miller. Welcome to the organized and productive podcast with organized Flamingo. I am your host, Stephanie, a professional organizer and productivity expert, ready to explore the right organizing and productivity solutions for you. Yeah, well, then let's go. Hi, Colleen. And thank you so much for joining the episode this week. I'm so happy you're here. been a huge fan of yours since the day I met. And I'm just so excited that you're here. So as our audience knows, we get straight to the nitty gritty. The title of today's conversation is the power of letting go. And more specific to our physical items is as we we've discussed before. So let's get right into it, shall we? Yeah.

Colleen Blake-Miller
Thanks for having me, Stephanie. Hey, awesome.

Stephanie
Okay, so let's, let's start off with the framework, or at least a reference point. So people know what we're talking about. What is the concept of letting go entail? And how does it relate to mental health and well being? Yeah.

Colleen Blake-Miller
So this is such a great question. If you the listener, or anything like me, I see the beautiful before and after pictures are the videos, I think, man, like, that's what I need, I need to just get like a remake or a redo of my space. And maybe we don't talk enough about the challenge of that process of actually releasing items, because every item that we have, holds some kind of significance, and some things hold more significance than others. And so this idea of letting go is letting go of the emotional attachment that we sometimes have to particular objects, so that we can create spaces that are serving us, you know, when you talk about mental health and wellness, I believe that our physical space 100% is going to impact on our stress level, our our mental, you know, space, if it's cluttered and disorganized, then it's going to it's going to affect how we feel internally, it's going to affect our inner dialogue, you know, we're going to be having conversations with ourselves, like, why can I sort this out what's taking me so long, like I'm so sick and tired, you know. And so it's really important in the process of working through organizing our spaces. We got to go through this process of letting go of things and also a part of that is releasing are like kind of severing some of the emotional attachments at least, you know, we've connected to some of these inanimate objects that we have in our spaces,

Stephanie
so to speak, you know, Have that between me your studies and your own personal experiences with clients? And what in your work? Why do you think that is? Is it because we're such a visual? A society like, and we just embrace it? Like, why do we feel so overwhelmed when our space is overwhelmed as well? Like, why can't we just separate the two?

Colleen Blake-Miller
Well, I think because we're holistic beings, you know, what I'm seeing, I have a script or a narrative playing in my mind about it, you know, you're sitting in, you're sitting at your desk at work, you're not just thinking about work, you're thinking about all the other responsibilities. You're having all these different dialogues, you see something, and then you you have a conversation in your, in your thoughts about that thing. And so if I come into a space, and I am not, I don't identify with a cluttered space, like if I don't really see myself as someone who is, uh, you know, disorganized, or messy, or has stuff everywhere, if I don't identify as that person, like, if I see these beautifully curated spaces, and that's what I identify as, like, no, that's who I am. That's, that's the real me. Then when I see the clutter, and when I see the disorganization, I'm having like an internal kind of battle within myself. Why is this? Why am I allowing this, like, who's responsible for this, these are really real conversations and experiences that we're having. And a part of the stress, I think it overwhelm is not acknowledging that enough, and entering into that dialogue, like interrupting some of that automatic dialogue that's happening, and just being with ourselves and figuring out okay, like, what are we going to do here? That's

Stephanie
so good. Yeah, it's like that, do you? You're not matching what you're seeing with what the reality is? Yeah. So let's talk about letting go of physical items versus emotional items or like clutter, I should say, physical clutter versus emotional clutter? Is that the same? Is it differentiated people, the listener, treated as two different types of clutter? I know, you mentioned there, they get, they get connected at some point. But what are your thoughts?

Colleen Blake-Miller
Well, you know, letting go of physical items, involves decluttering. And simplifying our environment. And I think in some ways, it's seems like it should be easier for some people, maybe if you're, if you have people in your space, that can help you along the way, like, I'm that daughter, that if my mom goes away for the weekend, and just let me at that pantry, and I'm getting rid of that stuff, you know, you may have a hard time with this stuff, but I don't. So I'm getting rid of it. So it's a matter of just physically decluttering a space, it could be easy, or it could be hard, letting go the motional clutter that I think is a lot trickier, right? We're talking about negative emotions, we're talking about beliefs, we're talking about past experiences, traumas, things that really weigh you down. And the other thing is, some of these things have very deep roots, right? Some of these things, some of the emotional kind of clutter that we are carrying, has come from our very birth, like it's passed down from one generation to another. And so it really is not as simple as inviting, you know, a team, like, like, like yourself in to just fix up the space. And okay, now that it's now that it's that it's organized, I just have to follow the system, it's a lot trickier than that it's more complex. So we got to offer ourselves grace, I think when we are sorting through, and really addressing emotional clutter that we are contending with. Does that make sense? It does. Absolutely.

Stephanie
And which if I don't know if this is too general of a question to be asking, but where people start with the emotional hardship or the physical, if they're if they understand like, they've come to the acceptance that there's something's happening here and they need to, you know, declutter, figuratively and literally, where, like, where do you suggest people start both at the same time one or the other, like, from your experience? What has worked fairly well? Yeah. Well,

Colleen Blake-Miller
if we were to wait to clear through and organize all of the emotional clutter Stephanie we He would be hard at work, you know, with the inner stuff. But our spaces would just be just sitting and waiting. Because to me, our life is a journey of sorting through. And sometimes the more that you do the work is the more that you discover. So I would say in conjunction with, I think you can do them both. I think sometimes what you really do need is to trust an expert like yourself, you know, to say, Come and help me do the work, coach me through doing this work. And then you could talk to, you know, your coach, your therapist, your mentor, your people about how hard some of that stuff was, or a particular aspect, because I believe we'll always have work to do, even when our spaces are perfectly curated. And you know, like looking like magazines, we're always gonna have work to do. Oh, I

Stephanie
love what you said. It's like life is a basically it's a, it's a journey to process. So if you wait, it's, yeah,

Colleen Blake-Miller
don't wait, don't wait, do what you can do today. And I feel like sometimes when will for me when my spaces are organized, I feel lighter, I feel more empowered to do the difficult work. I remember when my son, my son is actually celebrating his 60th birthday today. My eldest, and I remember when he was just an infant, that was the one room in my house that was organized and perfectly like curated, and I worked so hard on on that nursery, I remember being in labor, and I was like, pleated and finish painting, the, you know, the, whatever, whatever area it was, or the running was something in the ceiling, and on the ladder, in labor, trying to finish it, my husband's like, Please, stop down, we gotta go to the hospital anyways, I would sit in the room. And I would just be filled with a sense of peace. And I would say to myself, Okay, I would love for every place in my house to be like this. But at least for now, this is the space that I can come to and find that sense of peace. I remember days, you know, sitting in that rocking chair and crying about other matters, you know, but it was like a safe space. So I feel like yeah, don't wait, find a way to just start doing a little bit of the work. Because it's never an end. Yeah.

Stephanie
And a place you can control that doesn't have feelings, right? A space is so it's there. It's a space. It's a physical item versus you and your brain in your heart. Yeah, yeah, that makes sense. Okay, so let's talk about fear. Speaking of emotions, and I think it's, this is kind of that natural. Okay, right, fine. I'll also get started. But now the fear starts to set in, have regret of, you know, if I let this go, like it just had this guilt, this fear of what will happen if I make this really drastic change in my life, which is decluttering, and letting go the you know, having that power to let go? How could that manifests itself in someone's behavior? Patterns? Like, how can that be coming out something that maybe they should be watching out for it?

Colleen Blake-Miller
I love that question. It's so empowering because it's giving the listener some like, yellow and red flags to look out for. So one, let's normalize the fear. Let's not feel bad, let's not, you know, internalize any kind of judgment. Other people may judge you look at let that be their business. Don't collude with them and start to judge yourself. Everybody feels different emotions. Fear is a natural emotion that we're going to we're going to feel because it's hard. Sometimes letting go of things is really hard. Practically speaking, letting go, the fear of letting go, excuse me may manifest as resistance to change. You know, like, you know, second guessing the decision to make a change or coming up with excuses for why I can't do it today, even though you blocked the day off of your calendar at work to do it. And I know, you said you're doing it, we're doing it today. Okay. It might manifest as clinging to familiar things, you know, even though you've not looked at it or touched it in years. It's like it belonged to my great grandmother and it belonged to so and so. And it's clinging to the familiar. It's this idea of perfectionism. Like if I can't get this perfectly situated, if I don't have enough time, if I don't have all of the In the system's all the bins all of this you know all those sorting solutions like the organizational stuff, I can't do it. Sometimes that perfectionist kind of desire for it to look perfect. That sometimes is your fear manifesting itself. Sometimes it's the avoiding uncomfortable emotions, it can definitely lead to feelings of anxiousness, you know, feelings of insecurity, feelings of stagnation, you want to be paying attention to when these types of things are coming out? Because at the end of the day, it is this idea of, well, what will it mean? Or what will happen if I actually release and let this thing go? Or these things go? Yeah.

Stephanie
So I'm looking for that. I mean, to face all that, yeah, it can be scary. Okay, so let's kind of like, come back and give people some help. Because there's a lot and some solutions for all of our listeners to take away. Let's discuss some of the potential benefits, of course, like what like, what are the pluses of letting go you talked about at the beginning, but what what changes have you seen and people that you work with, when they truly like go not just superficially, but when they do let go? Like, what are some of those positive feelings that you have seen come up? And on that same topic, are there any mindful exercises our listeners can be working towards? To facilitate the process? Yeah,

Colleen Blake-Miller
so to me, the word that comes to mind very quickly is this idea of lightness, feeling lighter, you know, when we're over, kind of, whelmed with all of the stuff, that's the physical stuff, as well as the emotional stuff, it's so heavy, it's exhausting, you know, to be carrying all of that. And when we are able, are courageous enough to do the work, lean into the discomfort and let things go, then we experience a lightness, we will experience a clarity, in terms of what actually matters the most, I think about I had an event last year in November, and one of the women who attended tragically, her home caught on fire. And I think about oh my god, like the loss of just everything. You know, she escaped with her life, she escaped with her child. The thought of losing all of our stuff, I think would devastate all of us. However, if you had certain things, you know, like your life, your health, your loved ones, you would be thankful for those things, I think letting go helps you like doing the work of letting go helps you to figure out what matters the most at the end of the day. You know, we live in a world that's very materialistic, you know, that's why we have to limit what we let in, you know, I actually am someone who stopped watching HGTV many years ago, because what I found was, although I was inspired, I became discontent with my space. Every time I watched a different program, it was like, oh, I should do this instead. Or I should do that. Or I should, you know, start saving for this or that. It's like, wait a second, I want to be at peace, feel settled, and be satisfied with what life looks like now. And these are some of the benefits of of learning to let go doing the work. There's no quick fix, there's no pill to take, there's no letting go pill. It's it's a it's it's a journey. You sometimes take baby steps along the way, but show up and lean in and do the work. And over time, you're going to notice a lightness, you're going to notice clarity, you're going to experience peace, you're going to you're going to experience contentment not to say things don't need to change in your life. But even you know, while you're waiting for certain things that need to change to change, you can still feel content, you know, and at peace. So those are some of the things I think that's

Stephanie
great. What are some exercises that you would suggest or if you have some great, you know, prompts and things out on your, you know, like on your Instagram and some of your sites. But what are some of those things that that you've seen work for people or you would suggest as an exercise? Yeah.

Colleen Blake-Miller
So you talked about mindfulness. And so this mindfulness, in really simple terms is just this idea of being present. Being present, being in this moment. You know, even a In a cluttered space, or what seems like a chaotic space, you can really experience the benefits of mindfulness. It's this idea of being present, being in the moment being in the here and now pulling yourself away from that mental clutter inside as well as that external, you know, the noise from the outside. And just noticing like, okay, like a breath, even, how amazing is it to be able to inhale and exhale, noticing that, all right, it feels like everything is crumbling down. But everything is actually not crumbling down in this moment. In this moment, I'm actually okay. In this moment, things are actually okay. And, and it's it's exercises and practices that will help you to really remain in that present moment, you could do that through deep breathing, you could do that through guided meditation. You can do that. I mean, you could mindfully walk in nature, you could mindfully Enjoy your meal. And every time you notice yourself, your mind kind of leaving that moment and going off to concern itself about all the other things, you just come back, bring yourself back to the present, say no, no. Right now I'm enjoying my coffee. Okay, right now I'm enjoying this afternoon breeze. And just kind of say in that moment. So mindfulness is I mean, that's a whole other like podcast episode, you can go so deep with that. Other ideas are things like journaling, actually getting some of those thoughts out of your head, and putting them on paper. That can be a wonderful sense of release and relief, as you as you do that, you know, so you could do some mindfulness exercises, you could do some some journaling. I mean, you could talk to someone, you could talk to a professional, if you find that you really do need that support. I'm obviously I'm an advocate for therapy, I think it's really helpful and beneficial, and even the people in your life, finding the people who really genuinely care for you. And meanwhile for you, and giving them permission to speak words of life and encouragement and to you, those are some of the things that can I think, really help you practically, as you are leaning into the difficult work of of letting go.

Stephanie
And if you didn't grow up without that permission, or practicing this skill, I can see how what you said is something like working with someone or allowing yourself to practice that, like somebody allowed me know that receiving it and then practicing it. So I can see how the more you do it like skill, especially if you didn't grow up with it, how can be helpful? Yeah, well, you know, I take a deep breath, because speaking of deep breaths, because you mentioned such, they're not easy, but they're things that you should know about your mental health and being able to do these exercises that are simple, but yet we don't do them. So I think you're just such a great reminder, that doesn't have to be overly complicated. Like it doesn't have to feel like you said that you're going to go take.

Colleen Blake-Miller
Yeah, there's simple You said it, you hit the nail right on the head, Stephanie, they are simple things. But they are not easy things, especially in the context where we find ourselves, right? We are in a world that we get messaging every day we wake up, unless you are like off the grid. Okay, so if you're off the grid, and you're like out, you know, and like the elements, you know what I'm saying? Like, then you probably are listening to this podcast. And the first one is but, you know, every day for many of us, we are bombarded with messaging, visually, audibly. You know, the people in our lives, they've got demands, they've got expectations, we have put all these demands and expectations on ourselves. You know, we look at the calendar, we look at the time we're like, oh, my gosh, I'm running out of time. So so we really do have to slow ourselves down. It is simple things that are going to help to allow us to have optimal mental health, but they're hard to do, partly because of the bad habits that we have, you know, picked up along the way. And we're trying to do them within us. system that I feel works against us so much of the time. Yeah, I'm saying.

Stephanie
Yeah, yeah. Thanks for grounding us. Okay, so now as we unwind from the episode, because I could be going on forever, I'm looking at you like, Oh, my God, we're not done. But I know our audience. And they're already putting all this stuff into practice. And they want to just pause this and go do their things. So we are going to do that. So a couple things. First, we have our three questions we ask of all our guests. The first one being, what is something that you would want people to take away from this conversation?

Colleen Blake-Miller
I would want you to take away from the conversation, just one encouraging nudge, to fight for your peace. Okay, in the midst of whatever life looks like, right, whether you're on track with your organizational plan, or you've like forgotten all about the what you said you were gonna do. And you're like, in the like, right in the middle of what feels like chaos. That piece is available to you. And this is an encouragement to say, you know, fight for it today. What is going to bring me peace in this moment. That's my encouragement. Fight for that.

Stephanie
Fight for your peace. I love that. All right. The second is we always ask our guests what their favorite magazine is, or blog to read. Either business or pleasure in why we'd love to be like that. Oh, it gets to learn a little more about Yeah,

Colleen Blake-Miller
she's my fellow torn, I think for entertainment. While there's an entertainment, entertainment slash inspiration. I do like, oh, geez, now I'm trying to blank. Oh, Better Homes and garden. I like better homes and garden, because the digital magazine because it has like, just about everything, like, covers mental wellness, it covers practical things, that as a mother of young kids, I can, you know, try different recipes. I, I in my mind, I am a DIY er, there were there was a season of my life when I had more capacity for that. But in my mind, I'm totally the do it yourself, girl. So I love watching and seeing those those things. So there's that. And then for just sharpening myself, and helping and supporting my community. I do like psychology today as well. Lots of practical articles that can help to promote mental health and wellness. So those would be two.

Stephanie
All right. So it's before we end the conversation, though, let's hear where people can find you. Loved this conversations for listener love the conversation, where can they find more information on what you do? Where do you hang out on social webs out there.

Colleen Blake-Miller
I'm an Instagram girl. I'm totally an Instagram girl, I I invest a lot of my mental capacity, and then my practical like resources and stuff like that on creating content that I think is going to help to edify my audience and really build them up. There is more fate woven in these days. That's just the season. That's where I'm at being really authentic to who I am and what inspires me and what moves me and keeps me going. Yeah, so like there's I my assistant and I were just talking about my Lincoln bio. It's just kind of like, so full Ral I'm like, How can we compact this, like, it's just got so much going on in there. But tons of resources can be found in my Lincoln bio, to my website, my podcast articles that I've written. And or been, you know, like an expert or quoted in and that kind of thing and other fun things that I have going on. You could find it all via and stuff.

Stephanie
Awesome. Wonderful. Well, I'm a huge fan. And I hope everyone gets to check out all of your content out there. Thank you again for joining me and us today. Thank you for your time and to the listener. Thanks for being here at the organizing. Thank you for listening to the organized and productive podcast with the organized Flamingo. If you enjoyed today's episode, I would love it if you'd leave a rating and review on your favorite podcast player. It helps with letting people know that we're here. For full show notes and resources head on over to the organized flamingo.com/podcast Have you organizing.

We tend to think about closets and immediately think “clothes” or “linens”, but other things are stored in closets, too! This week we get into the topic of organizing closets that don't have clothes in them. We talk about different organization strategies and solutions and we share exciting news about upcoming celebrations and a new guide called “I'm Stuck: A Guide to Decluttering with Compassion,” designed to help listeners navigate cluttered scenarios. Tune in for our expert insights into transforming your non-clothing closets and get inspired to declutter and organize your space with ease.

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

In this episode we talk about:

• Common Items Stored in Non-Clothing Closets
• Advice on creating a system that makes sense for individual needs
• We talk about food closets, office closets, cleaning supplies closets, craft closets and kids closets

Mentioned in this Episode:

Episode 044: Let’s Organize Your Party and Home Decor Closet 

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/44-lets-organize-your-party-and-home-decor-closet/

Episode 005: Set Yourself Up for Success With A Capsule Wardrobe

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/5-set-yourself-up-for-success-with-a-capsule-wardrobe/

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Please note that we may earn commissions when you purchase through our links. We only suggest, refer and recommend products we actually use or would recommend to our closest friends.  

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The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast

Download your FREE “Should you Keep It or Toss It?” decision tree https://organizedandproductive.com/keeportoss

Review the Transcript:

Hey, listeners and friends. Welcome to our episode here. This week we are talking about closets. So we're just gonna get straight to it this week with some practical tips that I think will help you go out and tackle your closets. But more specifically, as you can see from the title, we are avoiding the conversation on closets and clothes. So these are closets, all the other closets that may exist in your hemisphere in your home in your space, that are not a hosting or holding everyday clothes. Okay, that's an entirely different episode, we actually did an episode on organizing your closet, capsule wardrobe, which I will put in the show notes. And so I wanted to talk about closets and organizing them. Because a lot of us have other things that we store in them. But we don't talk about it. And we don't talk and we don't we forget that those things exist in there. So I wanted to make an episode specifically for those items. And how you know, some tips that I have for you some things to think about. And then I'll just kind of give you what some of the like what what do people normally do when you know it's overflowing? Or what do people usually store in there? And how do they handle it so that things are not forgotten all in the closet, you know, and it goes into the abyss of the black hole. So let's get right into it with the tips. Welcome to the organized and productive podcast with the organized Flamingo. I'm your host, Stephanie, a professional organizer and productivity expert, ready to explore the right organizing and productivity solutions for you. Yeah, well then let's go.

Okay, so to get started, let's talk about the most common items, or groupings of items that are stored in closets that are not clothing. So what I ended up doing is I grouped the grouped five categories for you that are very typical. And so we ended so then I will talk about each grouping and put in tips for each grouping. You may have closets that have a combination of these groupings. And that's okay, I also addressed that in this conversation. But I know I know our community, you all have given me feedback, and you like it when I group things for you. So that you start to you know, get an idea and have a starting point. So it's not just so overwhelming. So I did just that I went ahead and grouped it. So the first type of items is going to be kitchen and or food. The second is home office. So think home office closet, you know, things like office stuff, very differently, though, is the craft closet. So we're tackling this in two different sections. And then the third is, or the fourth is cleaning supplies, or something like it. And then the last is the kid's closet. Because so even though you do store clothing in kids closets, I did separate it from clothing because you don't always store clothes and your kids clothing, right? So so that's why I am talking about it. But I'm not really talking too much about everyday clothing in the kids closet section. Okay, so All right, so those are categories. Let's start with the kitchen, pantry and or food for closets where you are storing food. Here's a couple things for you to consider and for inspiration. First, if you're wondering why people transfer their food from the original packaging container to another one, like a clear one, you know, became a trend for a couple of years, I think it's dying off a little bit more. But there is actually practicality to that. I'm not saying that this is a good idea for everyone. But I'm going to give you the behind the scenes as to why it could be a good idea for you. The concept is called a canteen. And what that means is that you are putting the items from its original packaging or box or whatever the package and then putting it into something else. It does a couple of things, it airs out some of the food that needs it to be aired out. And then of course, if you're transferring it to a bin that is well labeled, or the bin that fits in the area, you're trying to store it, it's great. So this is something that restaurants do quite a bit. People that make their own food or harvest their own food, right so you have these really big packages that it will be originally in and then you need something smaller you can actually carry move around and store in our kitchen closets or our food pantry type of closets. And maybe you have it in a like a basement or garage or something like that. Um, you can't always fit those really big sacks or big bins that you get from a big box store. So then you end up decanting it or putting it into something smaller, where it got out of hand and the trend started to just, you know, put a bad label to it. No pun intended.

It was when we started to dive into the aesthetically pleasing sector of the canteen where people just did it just for it so that it looked pretty, which is could be a great reason for you and if that is your path wonderful Have at it, but there is an actual there are good reasons for it. So I wanted to give the good side of it and how it's not just the trend that we know of. Now you know, this has been around for a long time. So the canteen could be a good reason and a good thing for you to put in your, in your closet of food. Because again, it just might be easier to grab and get and not as heavy to put on some of those shelvings that have you may have in that food area closet. Alright, so the second and third tip within the kitchen and food closet areas is the labeling and grouping things with you know with like I like items or categorizing it into and sorting into things, actions that makes sense to you. So I did a kitchen organizing episode, I've actually done a couple. And this is where you get to decide of course what what sorting what, what function will make sense to you. Some people organize their kitchens and those closet food areas based on what they bake the most what they need the most. So this is where you get to decide what makes sense to you, you may want to sort by colors, you know you are such a visual color person that you you like all the reds and the yellows and the whatever it may be all in the same sections. Because that makes sense to you. That's how you go grocery shopping. That is how you store food like items and based on the packaging, have added but just come up with something that's consistent, and group them and label it so that other people know how you group them together especially of course, if you live with other people that may not have been involved in how you organized this food closet. So the to the second and third tip are group similar items together based on how you gather and get get stuff from this closet. And then the third is label it so that it makes sense. And you remember how everything is being stored. Because with closets, those are the places that you're not necessarily accessing all the time. And you know, except for like a coat closet. And of course your clothing closet, which is again, why I didn't want to have why I wanted to have a different conversation. These are these are closets that you only go into when you need something every so often. So when you label it, you don't have to worry about remembering where everything and how everything was sorted to begin with. Okay, so let's move on to home office closet organization tips. The first is find a filing system. If you are a paper person, great you understand the power of a filing system. If you are not, you should also understand that there's a power to the filing system. Even if you're the most no paper person having some kind of system where how things will be filed is useful for you. So that if somebody comes and delivers mail or puts paperwork in your closet in your closet of that, you know the home office, they know where things go. So filing systems are really important I say this to everyone even again, if you're not a paper person have one in mind how is it going to be an action based filing system which is a retrieval is we also call it a retrieval type of system. So that means how do you retrieve things and that is the label in the sorting name. So you retrieve things on Mondays so you retrieve things on Tuesday when you know whatever the day of the week. So that filing system that will be labeled as such because it is when you retrieve the items when you need to take action of some sort. So a filing system very important. The second is it's all about furniture so picking the right Furniture and this tip is in particular is about having furniture that you can easily move around as needed. Especially in the home office. I also will talk about it in the Craft and Hobby closet area. Basically you that your system in bins or whatever it may be that you're using to organize those closets can be easily movable and functional because you're taking things in and out as you need them. So if there is going to be a closet where that will be needed like or furniture or bins are easily movable. It's going to be in your home office and in your craft and or hobby closet areas. Okay so fun fact with home office closets. This is actually one of the very first places I organized it was for a business that I was organizing the ribbons for and I went into their closet

it and it was just a mess. So I said, Hey, would you mind if I organize this like it would be my pleasure, and they were just so kind to me, and gave me all these referrals all the times and I said, you know, if to repay, repay you for just going above and beyond, I would love to, you know, organize this area for you. And that is really like how the spaces organizing sector of my business started. Because I was organizing events before, you know, producing events and helping people with that. And they're very similar types of

talents. So when I went to start to organize their closet, like their their office closet, I just immediately fell in love. And anyway, the rest is history. But the point here is that I have a lot of experience with these areas. And in home office, or even just business office closets in general, that is an area that is almost more like a community warehouse, a place that you really just go for whenever you need something that you're running low of. So you probably have your pens and your sticky notes and the paper or whatever it whatever else. Most likely you have that within your desk or somewhere outside like in your in the actual office. Even if it's like your papers, they're probably in a filing cabinet and not necessarily in the closet most of the time. So in the home office in business office closet, I would or I would recommend some kind of area where you're filling in what your what you're running low on, or having some kind of system that tells you I'm running low on this. It could be if you're if you're a tech person, you know you do a every month you do an inventory check and then you put that in your notes so that when you're at your local store or you're ordering through whatever online platform, you can go and refill for the items that you need, especially when it comes to maybe paper for printing paper or if you're creative that is always printing things like labels and things like that and your rent low. And this is where the inventory really comes in most closets you should have some kind of inventory. But our everyday closets we don't write because it's not really like a little mini warehouse you're not really shopping for things that are running low except for your like food and home organize excuse me and home office business office closet. So Inventory section pad reminders, very useful to to help you remember what you need, and you're not buying too much of it so it doesn't become so cluttered in there. So that is my my last tip here on this section. Next up, we've got the cleaning supplies closet, this is one of my favorites as well. It's really fun that to categorize all these cleaning products. I don't know why just they just it always has been but anyway, the one of the biggest tips that I have for you is to keep the the items organized in caddies or some type of removable pad or removable bin or box or tray. Because as we all know, sometimes there's a spill, of course there's toxic could be toxic stuff down there. And you don't really want it to be ruining your shelf, your closet, your carpet, whatever, you know, however your closet is designed. So this is one of those areas that I would I would recommend you do that also that way where you can take the cleaning supplies wherever you need it. So if it's in a caddy, you can just grab and go and and clean up whatever section of your house or item or whatever you need it for. But primarily one of the reasons I give this tip is because of the spills and the damage that these items can do. So it's just so much easier to do the cleanup when they have some kind of caddy bin situation type of thing. That will help you get organized down there. Okay, tip number two because most of these cleaning supplies are heavy, you know they're water. So they're just heavier type of items. This is where a tear type of system works really well like underneath your sink or wherever the closet is going to be like you if you do have an entire closet for it. Having some kind of like tiered where the heavy items go in the back and then the lighter stuff in the front but so that you can see what is in the back there is this tiered type of shelving unit. Sometimes it's a shelving unit sometimes it is a they make them actually we'll put the Amazon storefront in the show notes but they do make almost like a spice of the spice rack type of of tiered shelving that you can just put on the floor of the closet and so that way, you know you can see what's bought like in the very back and then this heavier stuff can just be in the bottom

and easy to grab and you don't have to put that in shelving and shelves in the closet which can weigh down the shelf. So storing bulky items.

At the bottom are very sturdy, high shelves, and things like that also in a closet where you're keeping cleaning supplies, hooks, this is where hooks are amazing. Anything that where you can just, you know, think vertical space, like the door, the side of the closet, where you can just hang them up the broom that whatever it may be, sometimes even the rags like this, this type of closet is the perfect candidate for hooks, and anything that adheres to the vertical space. So that you can just grab and go grab and go, and then you know exactly where it belongs. Last tip on the cleaning supplies closet is having this is a really good place for you. And for you to do like a

like a label system as to where things are meant to go back into or tape so that the tape of the shape. So I'm actually going to talk about it more in detail in the kids closet in just a second. But basically the shape of the item, almost like the parameter, tape it with some painters tape so that you know it belongs there and other people know that it belongs there. And it just kind of gives you this visual parameter of what's supposed to be there. So this is a really good place to do that. I wouldn't necessarily do that in a closet where you're keeping, you know, other things like you're definitely not your clothes. I mean, there's just other places there just doesn't make sense. But in a cleaning closet, it does. Okay, so let's talk about the Craft and Hobby closet. So this is the place of that my number one tip is just to sort and declutter regularly. I mean, this goes without saying for all closets because like I said, at the beginning of the episode, this is black hole of spaces, this is where you go and you know, someone came over. So you just shoved everything in the closet. This is the place where things go and get forgotten. So it's just the abyss, it just definitely gets lost. So this should be for all closets. Declutter regularly clean him up regularly. But in the Craft and Hobby closet, it's even more more important because this is where you you finished a project like for a hobby or whatever. And then a really gets forgotten for a long, long time. And it's not, it's a hobby, so it's out of necessity, so you're not thinking about it all the time. So this is a place where I just say go in and make sure that you're sorting what you do have that when you finish that last project, that it didn't just spill over everywhere. In that way, you know, you have so through clutter regularly in the space. But let's talk about storage solutions that I would recommend pegboards great place for you to be using them because you can hang things you can you can easily hang things that it looks visually more appealing than maybe just like a simple

hook, you know. And so I mean, hooks are great in that area, just like the cleaning closet. But pegboards are just making it some what a little bit more appealing to your creative mind is great for this type of closet. This is where the clear containers also come in handy so that you can see what you have, especially if your hobby or your crafts or small pink beads or buttons and things like that, that you indoor whoever is using that closet, you can see what's inside. So anything that's clear, or anything that you can easily label, it would be wonderful, especially for the very little things that tend to get lost in there and you didn't even know you had. All right. So last week got a B children or kids closet, this is an area that well things really tend to just kind of get shoved in some of you that are super organized, you have your bins in there, and it's just well labeled. And that's awesome high five. So some of these tips, I think will still be useful because this hopefully will get you more inspired to create a new system that can work with your children as they get older. And as or just as things you know, move and change around. So the first thing is pick a storage solution like the bins that I just talked about, that are big enough to store both little things and of course big things. So don't just have the really big totes, where things tend to get lost. And I'll tell you why. I think you know those little itty bitty parts that come with the little car or the Legos or building blocks or whatever it may be that you know the accessories to the toy. There is nothing worse than having those really big totes that you have in your closet and then having to dig really deep in the tote to find that one little piece that you need it. So this closet is the perfect place for you to have a mix of small bins for the accessories and then the big one, and then you will match them together. So you will do so when you do the label outside of the bin. It will say been one of two or if this is a very a particularly large type of toy like like maybe a doll house or a playset right that has different parts. You'll have the bigger parts in the big bin and then the smaller parts in the small bin sometimes a small bin will go into

Big Toe two, it'll be nested in there awesome. But if it's not, then that way, you know, it belongs to the rest of, you know, there's other parts to this assembly line. So topes, big, small and nesting is very handy and very helpful in kids closets, to is the labeling and pictures. So because you know, you hopefully are encouraging the children to help you put away stuff and also be organized because it's their stuff ultimately. So putting some kind of label system that makes sense for them, and their learning ability and age appropriate. So everything from labels to pictures to color coding so that they know where things belong, super helpful. And that way, they just know, okay, this is where it belongs. And I can just close it. And then you know, that that's that. And then the last is the lecture, there's two one is the rotating toys. We actually talked about this, and maybe we've talked about this in me and like just in general, right, you should always be looking at your closet on a fairly consistent basis, not every day, not weekly. But probably I would say every quarter is a good, happy medium, maybe every six months even. But just doing like a really good purge of those areas works great especially in in toys, where they may be outgrowing them. And there's new ones coming in, because of the holidays or giveaways and then you know children's parties and their birthdays or whatever. So that is one of those areas where they're consistently changing in development and development. So you need just to be careful to not be keeping everything because then you will start to spill over. So definitely do declutter per gene or

schedule for that area. And then the last is installing hooks and rods, or anything that is also age appropriate. So here's what I mean by that. closets are amazing because you can, you know, you hang things, you can stack things up, you kind of design it however you want or need, according to what it you know, the space you're working with, right. But when it comes to kids in their, their age, their you know, sometimes are shorter or longer, and they need to be able to reach so the top sections sometimes don't get utilized as much because only the parent or the person, the caretaker is the only one that can reach it. So this is a really good place for you to have some kind of stool that is within the boundaries that you need them to be. And then everything else and rods and everything else that should be within their height. And then everything above that is either off limits. So you know you work through that I like to suggest to people that the lighter stuff goes at the top, or the stuff that you just put very clear boundaries like stuff that's locked in, there are bins that come with like a lock in them. So maybe that's the

the bins where it has like the the toys that they're not getting until their next birthday. So anyway, off limits area can be the top and then the bottom can be for the children so that they can access it easily as well. And then have some kind of stepping stool so that you when you do need to get the stuff from the very top, you can safely do so. Alright, so those are the fast tips on things that I think you should consider. Or maybe think about that could be helpful in organizing your closet that is not just for clothing. So think about those things that are super handy. I'd have put a couple links down in the show notes, so that you can just click through and get some visualization. I know I'm a very visual person. So sometimes when someone says to me use this or like this, I want to see what you mean. I want to see a product example. And then I can do my own shopping from there. Just remember that anything that we may earn commission is of no additional cost to you. And we always put that next to the link so that you know not all the links are associated with a commission based type of storefront some of them are that's just the way some of the websites are handled. But just know that anything that we recommend to you or that we want you to click on is something that we actually use we trust and could be a good option for you. But definitely do your own shopping definitely look around look at local marketplaces and see if they have a version that you can get locally or from the thrift store or from a market online marketplace where somebody else is selling it that is in great condition. So definitely consider your options. But if you're a visual person like me and you need to see examples then head on down to the Amazon storefront. Also a quick note. It notice here if you made it past this, it means that you are probably part of our community and and you know you enjoy seeing and hearing about the behind the scenes. Number one, we are celebrating five years at the organized Flamingo this between this month and next

We registered in March. And then we opened the doors officially in April. And with it is we're starting some, like sweepstakes and some things that you can enter to win, like gift cards and stuff like that. So you will get, if you're listening to this within the March April timeframe of 2024, then just know that that comes into the email newsletter. So you will want to subscribe to that. If you are listening to us pass that not a worry, then I'm so glad that you're here, you can always subscribe to our email newsletter, where we're always celebrating different things. And we're giving you all of the behind the scenes of what's going on with our brand. So head on over to our email newsletter link, which is also in the show notes. And lastly, we do have a new guide that we're offering to you, it's called will tentatively as of the recording, okay, but by the time this is live, you will for sure know what it's called. But we're calling it unstuck a guide to decluttering with compassion. And it's an easy to follow guide prompting you to take compassionate actions to critical messy scenarios in your organizing journey. So it's scenarios that I have outlined for you, about 20 of them, and then responses that we think are going to be helpful either for you to respond to yourself or to a loved ones. And we also have actionable tips within the response like what can you actually go do about it. So head down to the link, I'm so excited about this guide. This is something that's been in the works for a really long time. There's 20 prompts and scenarios to start off with, and it's completely free. And this is something that you that has come directly from all of you, you know, you've given me scenarios that you've been under, and I have helped you through the process. This is some from some of our clients. This is from our community. And I think that these universal prompts will at least help you to create an action plan and get you one step further to living a comfortable guilt free life with when it comes to your stuff. So I'm excited. Check it out. Let me know what you think. And yeah, until next week, happy organizing.

Thank you for listening to the organized and productive podcast with the organized Flamingo. If you enjoyed today's episode, I would love it if you'd leave a rating and review on your favorite podcast player. It helps with letting people know that we're here. For full show notes and resources head on over to the organized flamingo.com/podcast Happy organizing.

This week, we dive straight into the topic of decluttering and mending items that we often struggle to let go of. We address two types of people who hang on to items in need of repair and provide valuable tips and resources to help listeners take action and move forward.

Join us for an engaging and informative episode as we empower listeners to make conscious decisions about the items they hold onto and take productive steps towards decluttering and mending.

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In this episode we talk about:

• The importance of deciding whether to fix items ourselves or outsource the task
• The distinction between preservation and hoarding
• Learning when to let go

Mentioned in this Episode:

Episode 006: Should You Do It Yourself or Outsource It

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/6-should-you-do-it-yourself-or-outsource-it/

“Should you Keep It or Toss It?” decision tree (Free)

https://organizedandproductive.com/keeportoss

How you can work with us:

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/services/

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The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

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Review the Transcript:

Hi organized and productive community and listeners, welcome to our next episode here, this week, we've got a fast and get to the action piece of it type of episodes, which means we give you some tips on the subject of today, which I'll mention in a second. And it's all with a goal that you will implement some of these tips as quickly as possible or in the most efficient way, so that you actually go and get it done.

And you are not always on this planning phase, which is why I'm getting straight to the point. But before I do get straight to the point, after the episode it just know that I have some news and updates for for just us I think, you know, every couple of months, I just give you some updates on what's going on at the organized Flamingo so that you know where to find us what to do and all the links and all this stuff. Okay, so stay tuned if you're interested in that. All right, so this episode is dedicated to all of you who there's two types of people that people that either do declutter, you know, they declutter, often, and they have this section somewhere in their house and their space that says, to fix or to mend, meaning you declutter it, you don't need it.

And you pulled it out of your, you know, your space, like your everyday space, like your cabinets, maybe or maybe your, your closet, or whatever it may be, but you didn't fully let it go. Because you have intention of fixing it, of mending it, of altering it and saying things like, if this was not missing a button, I would wear it. If I could glue this together, it could work beautifully. And then you just kind of didn't do anything about it, because you don't know how to do it yourself, or you haven't been able to find somebody to do it for you. So that's one type of person, right? Like you are ready to let go, that's not the problem, it's just that you would like to give it one more chance. And then you've got the other camp, another types of people who do have these items. And it used to belong to somebody like a loved one, or you inherited this piece. And it's, it's with a lot of sentimental value that you're not ready to let it go to. But you also don't want to use it yourself.

Maybe you want to resell it, maybe you want to be able to see if there's another party that would want it. But they will need to fix it. And you don't want to necessarily let it go without it being fixed. And knowing that it works. Okay, so but but you don't want to wear it and you don't necessarily want to fix it for yourself. So those are the two types of people that normally we see hanging on to things in this pile of to fix and to mend later. And so this episode is all about giving you some of those resources and tips on how to move forward. So they get out of that bin out of that corner, and you actually do something about it and start the journey, whatever that stuffs journey is that is beyond the corner that is collecting dust.

So let's get to it with our tips. Welcome to the organized and productive podcast with the organized Flamingo. I am your host, Stephanie, a professional organizer and productivity expert, ready to explore the right organizing and productivity solutions for you. Yeah, well, then let's go.

Okay, so just so you know, if you are part of our community over on Instagram, you probably know that we have a series going on out there. Right now we're at the beginning, like this is February 24. But we will continue this years for a long time. And it's basically the series of, oh, I didn't know that that's how something worked, or Oh, I didn't know that you could fix it this way. And so we're showcasing different artisans and trades and people who have a very specific niche and a skill that can help you make something better. And by fixing it by giving it new life.

And that series is very short reels, you know videos, where I showcase different trades and whatnot, and how they work and where you can reach them. So head on over to Instagram also put it on our show notes on how to get to that series. But that started inspiring this particular episode. And the other inspiration was a lot of our clients, like I mentioned before, it has you know, they have this like pile of well intended things that they want to do something with, and they just haven't been able to find what to do with it or actually go and do it. We have an episode that is called should you do it yourself or outsource it. Also, we'll add it to the show notes. And that one gives you a framework that we've worked with before that makes you just question things about is this something that you're passionate about? Is this something you have the resources for? And then I give you this like YES and NO FLOW discussion, so that you can determine if it's even worth doing yourself or if you should find somebody else to do it for you. And so this is like a really good companion covers that one is a very good conversation companion to this one.

So this whole conversation Shouldn't is all about finding somebody that can either teach you how to do it yourself, and then figuring out if that is worthwhile for you. Or if you should just outsource it right? Because at this point, you're ready to take some action. So that would be my first tip. Figure out if this is something that you want to explore and do yourself, or do you in? Are you ready to just outsource it? And have somebody else do it for you? Don't think about necessarily the How much will it cost? Just right now, okay, for this particular tip, this is more about do you even if you had all the money in the world? Would you want to do it yourself? And, or the opposite? So that's my tip number one figure out, oh, man, if I had if money was not an issue, what I want to do with myself? Or would I rather just outsource it myself, because I think sometimes we get stuck into the, I'll just do it myself because we want to save money.

And then then the long run, you end up spending more time and more resources, because you are not a qualified person to do it. You're yourself anyway. And it just ended up costing you more headaches, and just more and more effort. Okay, so that's why I don't want you to focus on that for this particular tip. So answer that question. Tip number two, finding and figuring out what to do with that that stuff that you want to fix is remember that when you are fixing something that will become part of the story. And I think that is sometimes why we hesitate about having somebody else fix it like a tailor or a pollster, because once you give it to them, it may take a while you do have to be a little patient. It's not worth that is not one of those fast fashion order. And it'll be there next day. And if it is most likely, you will pay a premium price a very fair premium price because that person is now taking on your emergency.

And now they're dropping other things so that they can focus on fixing something for you or making it better. So that's rightfully so right. But as humans, we'd like to save money, we don't want to necessarily spend extra money in wait extra time for something to get fixed. So then what do we do, we ended up just not fixing it at all and figuring that, hey, you know what I can just keep go get a new one. And that's fine and dandy until you come across an item that is of sentimental value that belonged to a loved one that is an antique or vintage item that you cannot order again to buy with a click of a button. So that is where this next tip comes into play. And that is being patient and knowing that something is going to take a little longer, but that it's part of the story. I have seen so many wonderful stories and clients and community members that have told me that they're so glad that they fixed that they took the time to find someone to fix whatever it may be actually more specific, I'll get to some jeans.

The particular story here that I'm thinking of is a good friend of mine has a lot of genes I'm talking graffito, a full closets full of just jeans very big on that. But but some of them are just not fitting anymore. And so we talked about hate some of her options. And she did end up going to a denim specialist who cut some of those jeans that she already had that just were not fitting the same way. They fit up beautifully. Now she did spend, you know the money and the resources for it. And it wasn't immediate, it took a couple months for for some of them to be ready. But now that she has them, they fit like a glove, I mean, literally like a glove, it's just to her body tight. That's why you hire like a tailor, in this case for her. And it was a tailor denim specialist. So remember that this is part of the story that you fixing something is is it requires a little bit more patience. But it's part of the love and the story behind the item. So don't give up so easily. Don't think that you know don't lose your cool as they sometimes say like just because something is not done immediately.

Don't think that it's not worth it, it is it just may take a little longer and just make that a part of your story. Now my third tip is know the difference between trying to save you know the trying to save the story because you want to preserve this item. Know the difference between that and trying to save that heavy go into the trash. I mean, like we always say in most of our episodes decluttering does not mean throwing it away. I have this just side note for just a second. Most many of you know I have this love hate relationship with the word decluttering because for people when I say clutter like the declutter or just clutter itself, they immediately think that you have to throw things away. It's like this equation that somehow somewhere this interpretation happened along the way. That's not what it is. decluttering just means learning to let go of things that don't serve you and that letting go is very important because the letting go does not mean just the trash. It could be You, but it could also be, you let it go to somebody else, you donate it, you sell it, you do whatever it may be, it doesn't always just have to be throw it away, you could also store it, if you have the resources to store it and the money and the patience and the time, and you think it's worth it all power to you, and you know how to find it easily when you need it.

Well have added, it doesn't mean you have to throw it away. But for this tip, I want you to explore that about yourself. And know the difference between, I'm keeping this because I have a I really want to save this, I know there's a better life for it, there's another entire person or life that would appreciate it, whether it's yourself or somebody else. And I have the resources to do that it's not getting in the way of my life of other people that I live with, it's not becoming clutter, unnecessary clutter. And knowing the difference between that and when something is just add its last leg, it really should not be fixed, it really just should, it's time to truly throw it away, donate it or let it go. Some of these items can include sentimental items that are not causing us they're causing us more pain than happiness or relief in some way.

Sometimes it's just especially with those like, you know, related older like love letters, relationships, things like that, that, you know, that got wet or something or they got some kind of damaged and you're trying to you know, salvage it. But water damage causes mold and causes other things. And since in sometimes you're trying to keep it you think you can fix it, you can tape it together, you know, sometimes it's just time to let it go. Just knowing that difference. If you're not sure, and this is the place you get stuck, we do you have a handy dandy little keep it or toss it decision guide, it's free, I'll put it in the show notes. You can of course always call us or hire somebody or ask somebody that's an expert in that item is especially true when it comes to fabrics, clothing, especially vintage older clothing, old furniture, things that may have gotten damaged along the way, and you think you can put it together. But when you do, it won't work the same. And or it could be even more damaging. And so at that point, it might just be time to let it go.

There are some of these new siding note that I want to I want to touch upon, especially when it comes to vintage items and older items. Relics. If you find yourself with something that is truly very old, and you think that's a museum or somewhere, it could be showcased somewhere, you might ask that museum or a community of people that that collect these things and ask if somebody would want it to showcase it. Now that's an entirely different conversation. So I just I want you to make sure that you're when you're asking yourself, you know, is this even worth it? You bet you're being honest with yourself. And sometimes it's just time to let it go. Alright, so those were the three quick tips, because I want you to hopefully come join us either on LinkedIn, or Instagram where I'm talking more and more nowadays about things that could potentially be salvaged. And taking you on the journey of should you fix it should you not isn't worth it. And then taking action, which is a very important piece of it here, which is the taking action piece. And this kind of leads me into what's going on with the organized Flamingo here in our new phase.

The podcast staying this you know the same all things organizing and productivity, which I have absolutely loved the last little over a year, I'm talking about all these subject matters, you all have gotten back to me and just love that we're talking about the subject matters in different ways format. So that staying the same, but what's changing a little is that I will be focused more on the content of the sandwich generation of people that are now have now either inherited or are now in possession of things that they were not before that was not theirs to begin with. So this could be through loved ones where you had to help them declutter, and now you are responsible for all that stuff. It's the sandwich generation, which is the official term is the sandwich generation. And the definition is people that are taking care of older parents themselves, their family members and their children. I like to add that even if you don't have children, this is still your generation because you are still take care of taking care of your own life and your own self.

So it's really just more individuals that have that are caregivers that are having to take care of others and are now in possession of those things that they were not before. And that includes physical stuff. So I am really giving more content on LinkedIn and Instagram, our newsletter over those subject matters. And one of those subject matters is what we talked about today helping you find someone that can take ake those items that now are in your possession and figuring out if they're worth salvage gene, if they're, they could have another life with you. And sometimes they don't they sometimes some of those things don't. They don't belong at all in your life, you don't want them there. And so it's time to let go.

So we kind of go through that process. And I'm really focusing on that, because that is, I can see that that is something that our community needs. And you all have talked about it. So we are focusing on that with that also comes with some new services. So check out our new services page, we have some easy, just get on the call on a call with me so that we can talk about strategic plans of action. So not not just let's talk about it, but let's talk about it. And let's create a plan so that you can have a peace of mind with all this stuff. And at that, you know, have our workshops are going to look a little different, we were having these monthly workshops. Instead now we have our strategic calls. And then the workshops are going to be every couple months. So those are going to be a little different.

So check them out over on the website. But we are having free workshops for all of you now on the subject matters which I think you all will enjoy very much. So that's what's going on on in our world. And that's that's that I hope you enjoyed today's episode again, quick and easy. I hope that these quick and easy episodes that we have where I give you some tips for you to quickly implement things and answer questions. It's almost like journal prompts, and action items type of episodes so that you can kind of move on get you over the hurdle that you may be stuck in, so Okay, all right. Well, you know where to find us over on Instagram, the organist Flamingo all the places until next week, happy organizing.

Thank you for listening to the organized and productive podcast with the organized Flamingo. If you enjoyed today's episode, I would love it if you'd leave a rating and review on your favorite podcast player. It helps with letting people know that we're here. For full show notes and resources head on over to the organized flamingo.com/podcast Happy organizing

This week, we finish off the getting organized vs. staying organized three-party series.  We go deep into the topic of staying organized. If you've ever struggled with maintaining order and structure in your life, we provide valuable insights on the difference between getting organized and staying organized, as well as practical tips to overcome common hurdles. From understanding the importance of defining what staying organized means to documenting what works and giving yourself grace, we share our expertise on how to keep the momentum going in your organized journey. So, if you're ready to gain clarity on staying organized and finding sustainable solutions, then join us in this enlightening discussion.

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

In this episode we talk about:

• Why it’s important to understand the term STAYING organized
• How to avoid frustration when getting and staying organized
• Having your organizing journey fit into your lifestyle

Mentioned in this Episode:

Episode 053: Getting Organized vs. Staying Organized Explained

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/53-getting-organized-vs-staying-organized-explained/

Episode 011: The Science of Procrastination: Why We Do It and How to Stop with Dr. Susie Castellanos Hensley

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/11-the-science-of-procrastination-why-we-do-it-and-how-to-stop-with-susie-castellanos-hansley/

Episode 001: 7 Steps to Organizing (almost) Anything

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/7-steps-to-organizing/

—

The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast

Download your FREE “Should you Keep It or Toss It?” decision tree https://organizedandproductive.com/keeportoss

In this episode we welcome guest Dr. Lauren Cook to discuss anxiety. Dr. Cook, a clinical psychologist, author, consultant, and speaker, shares practical insights on handling anxiety in the context of organizing and productivity. The episode explores Dr. Cook's book, “Generation Anxiety: A Millennial and Gen Z Guide to Staying Afloat in an Uncertain World,” emphasizing the importance of empowered acceptance and taking tangible actions to live a meaningful life despite anxiety.

In this episode we talk about:

• Empowered acceptance, emphasizing the need to accept and navigate anxiety while still pursuing a meaningful life
• Tips for those dealing with generational anxiety and explores the complexities of setting boundaries and maintaining self-care in caretaker roles
• Tips on how to embrace discomfort when letting go of possessions, and making intentional choices

Mentioned in this Episode:

Book: “Generation Anxiety: A Millennial and Gen Z Guide to Staying Afloat in an Uncertain World” by Dr. Lauren Cook – Amazon Storefront  HERE

Where to find Dr. Lauren Cook online:

Web: https://www.drlaurencook.com/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/dr.laurencook/

—

The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

Review the Transcript:

Stephanie
Hey friends, and welcome to our next episode here at organized and productive the podcast. I'm Stephanie, your host, and today we have a very special guest, Dr. Lauren Cook, she is talking to us all about anxiety, and what to do about it when that comes into play. More specifically, of course, since we talk about organizing and all things organizing and productivity, she is talking to us about what happens when those feelings arise, what is something that you could be doing about it? When those feelings do come up? She is a clinical psychologist, she is an author. She is a consultant, and speaker and talks all about the mental well being of people of when we are in just in our everyday lives, right. And so she's a very practical person, she understands that these things happen and are happening to us. And so she and with us, and so what can we do about it. So she just wrote a book as well called Generation anxiety. If you haven't read it, I would highly recommend it. Even if you're not the generation that she she talks about the most in the book. The book is it's the subtitle is a millennial and Gen Z guide to staying afloat in an uncertain world. And even though in the book, she does focus on that generation, I promise you, all generations can get something out of it. She's just such a practical person. And she was just perfect for this episode. I met her a once upon a time back in the app called clubhouse came across her her content and her values and the way she approaches these very, very tough conversations and very tough feelings. And I loved her approach. And I think she's a wonderful person to be talking to our community about this. So check out her book, I, you know, you have those books that you read, where you highlight the important quotes, and especially, you know, since I do the podcasts and stuff, so once in a while, I'll highlight things that I want to bring to you. And this is one of those books that I swear I could have just highlighted the entire book. And then you know, which would have defeated the whole purpose of highlighting, but that's how good it was just because she gives so many good examples that I think are relatable for, from what I have heard from clients from the community. So I hope you enjoy the conversation with Dr. Lauren cook. Welcome to the organized and productive podcast with the organized Flamingo. I'm your host, Stephanie, a professional organizer and productivity experts ready to explore the right organizing and productivity solutions for you. Yeah, well, then let's go. All right, wonderful. Well, as everybody knows, we dive right into with our guests. And I'm so happy that you're here. Dr. Cook, this has been a dream of mine to have you on the podcast, even before I had the podcast, to be honest, are just so amazing. So we are just going to dive right in it. And the first question I'm going to have for you is What does inviting mean to the average listener? listener? And when is it a cause of concern? Like, let's talk about the elementary version of anxiety,

Dr. Lauren Cook
literally. So anxiety really, at its core, it comes back to control and a fear of not being in control. Right. And sometimes we can want to control so many different things, whether it's the possessions in our house or relationships. But in essence, working through anxiety is realizing oh, there's a lot I actually can't control in my life and that journey of making peace with it. Now to your second piece of the question, when do I know if it is maybe problematic, or I might need help for this. Really a hallmark of it is the worrying feeling out of control. We all have worries, right? We all have things sometimes that keep us up at night a little bit. But when the worrying feels out of control when it's affecting our sleep, when we're noticing it's been happening longer than six months, that it goes beyond just a life change. If we're noticing more restless, we're on edge. We're noticing physical symptoms, right? Like oh my gosh, we could talk so much about like GI issues and stomach issues that relate to anxiety. Anxiety often very much manifests physically. So if you're noticing physical symptoms, these can all be cues, the anxiety is running amok, and we might benefit from some support.

Stephanie
Okay, all right. So that's where we're at. We're gonna start from here. So how can someone differentiate between disorganization due to a personality trait? Or you just don't know how, and disorganization because it's either anxiety induced or it's or vice versa, whichever comes first, like, how can anxiety affect people's organizing journey and decluttering or any of those?

Dr. Lauren Cook
So one of the biggest features of anxiety is that it leads to avoidance because anxiety is uncomfortable. We don't want to feel it right. And especially with something like organizing, we have to actively face that discomfort, right? Even though we know on the flip side going through that process, it can feel really good But starting out on the journey can feel very uncomfortable. So a lot of us we avoid we put off, let me not deal with this. And then the piles just build up and up and up, right, and then it feels even more overwhelming. So this really leads into a very negative feedback loop for people where they see that the more avoidance they do, the harder it feels to begin the organizing process. And then it just it cycles from there.

Stephanie
You mentioned in your book, which we'll talk about in just a second, too. But you mentioned in your book, the OCD piece with anxiety. And can we talk a little bit about kind of the relationship between all of these, I guess, sides or silos?

Dr. Lauren Cook
Yeah, yeah. So we were just talking about this before we hit record, right that it's really interesting. You look at the DSM, the Diagnostic Statistical Manual that we use for diagnosis anxiety has its own section, right? That's where you see things like social phobia, social anxiety, in essence, generalized anxiety, panic disorder, agoraphobia, people who struggle to leave their homes or be in big spaces. OCD is actually in a whole different set of the DSM, where we also see things like skin picking, body dysmorphia, hair pulling, and data hoarding disorder. So there's a framework that is happening here. And that's that's not by happenstance that we see that really in essence with OCD, obsessions, compulsions, you see the brain really getting into this obsessive state, right. And it can be all kinds of different things. And then we often want to carry out this compulsive behavior, and that we think is going to relieve our anxiety make us feel better. But the problem with this is that it just perpetuates the cycle even more. And this is what can happen with hoarding, for example, where people can feel these obsessive thoughts, right, they feel like I need to keep these things. There's so much attachment to these things. If I let go of these things, I'm going to have a lot of pain with it, right? And it's really wanting to avoid that pain. So so much of the work is teaching folks, we can sit with the distress of this, it is okay to feel discomfort in our brains and bodies. We've been so socialized I think, especially in the last 50 years with everything from McDonald's Happy Meals, be happy, right? Don't feel uncomfy discomfort. And yet a lot of life is about experiencing discomfort. So so much of the work I imagine you do Stephanie with your clients is helping people learn that it's okay for us to feel a little bit of that uncomfortableness. When we're making some changes and adjustments. That's how you really start to break that reporting cycle. And also that OCD cycle, in essence, it's sitting with discomfort, so good,

Stephanie
okay. And if they're sitting with uncomfortableness look different. And I'm assuming it can, but what, with different generations? And if so, how? How does that different between the different generations, like if you're younger versus older? Oh,

Dr. Lauren Cook
I mean, it's different generationally, it's, so everybody has their own unique flavor of anxiety, right? Interestingly, the most common anxiety diagnosis is actually phobias. So, and I, myself am very open about my own experience with a meta phobia, which is a phobia of vomit, it's real fun to work with. But, you know, it does look so different for different people sometimes, like, especially as we're talking a little bit about recording today, the anxiety can be very much attached to physical things, right to possessions, we can attach a lot of worth and meaning to the these things. And actually, we can get a lot of comfort out of these things. So to not have them can feel very threatening to our psyche. And in fact, I heard the other day 40% of people, adults have some kind of security blanket cuddly that they sleep with. I may be guilty of this myself, Stephanie, you too. You too. Okay. I feel less alone, when I heard that. I was like, kind of makes sense. So we can attach a lot to that, right? A lot of times I see folks where their anxiety is very physical. I mentioned that in the beginning of the show where they may experience panic, they may experience a lot of nausea. I mean, we see that 60% of people with IBS also have generalized anxiety disorder. That's not by chance, I don't think and then you have books where the anxiety especially for young adults, it can be much more social. They have anxiety about speaking up in class, they have anxiety about dating. Fascinating trends right now happening within Gen Z, you see their dating numbers, plummeting, like the amount of sex that high schoolers are having right now is not what it was when you and I were in high school. A lot of that is tied to social anxiety and especially Gen Z not getting the same level of socialization and social skills that previous generations had. Yeah,

Stephanie
that is very interesting. And I can see. So I see it more in the the different generation, and then they're passing on their generational anxiety, which you talk about in the book. So how is that? How do you see this playing out with the generation now, you know, whether it's Gen Z, or just kind of the younger generations, I guess, and then passing the and then just having to be careful about passing it on? Or how, how do you see this all play out? Whether it's for physical stuff or not? Because I think sometimes they're tied together. Yeah,

Dr. Lauren Cook
I do write about this a lot in the book about generational trauma, and really interesting study that came out a few years back about how, you know, older generations are trying to protect younger generations by saying, these are all the things you should be aware of, these are the things you should be scared of look out for. And while this was done with very good intentions, what they found is that those kids who receive that kind of information, had worse mental health, because they were just on hyper alert all the time. And we saw that, you know, there was a lot of privilege that happened for kids, where maybe there was not generational trauma in their families, and they grew up kind of seeing the world a little bit as their oyster, you know, with their rose colored glasses. They actually had better mental health. So that's hard to sit with, right? Because you look at the realities of folks who have endured trauma. And we have to validate that experience, right? Like, it makes sense that they are trying to protect those coming after them and their families. And yet, we also, is there room for the both end of looking at the strengths of still holding hope in the world, right? That there can be good things that can happen there can be changed, that happens for the better, so that our kids don't grow up automatically assuming the world is at that place. People are not here to support me. And then they, you know, show up differently in the world. So that's, that's a really complex study. That is like, it's tough to sit with the realities of that. But I think we do need to take a look at it. And I would say like, also in this, we need generations to come together, we need more generational connection, you look at the fact that Gen Z like does not even want to answer a voicemail. Like if you knew the amount of times I give my clients exposures to just call their grandma. So we need more connection with you know, people of all different ages on both sides. I just heard today actually on an article that we are more likely to have global catastrophe in the next 10 years due to misinformation and disinformation than a climate crisis. And that tells me we've got to be having more conversation with each other so that we're seeing less of this division. Yeah, there's two

Stephanie
things that you talk about to in the book that are tied to this. And that's the different layers, like you just mentioned, that there's those cultural layers, whether you were in a bracket that you have extra layers to work to address this. And just not be naive, that it's like a one answer to all that there are different layers, way more layers now, whether it's cultural differences, generational differences, and all that. And that that is a thing. And to be aware of that, that I think for so long, we just always assumed it was when it was me know, my parents were like that they grew up in the grandparents, whether it's depression, or but that's like very, very cultural based. I mean, if you grew up with the parents that didn't grow up in the economic times of the US, or the United States, as we, you know, we live here, but if that didn't happen, they're bringing their own layers. And so I love that you talk about being aware of those things for yourself and your community around you. So I love that. And it's like, sometimes it's physical stuff and sometimes mental stuff. So that you address that. Okay, so as we talk about the kind of the lack of a better word baggage that may come from, from this and that people are carrying that could potentially be carrying physically, mentally, all that, what are some tips that you would have for people that are experiencing this really heavy load of I want to move and make progress in, in my organizing journey, but it's more than just stuff organizing, just like I want to be like feeling free, feeling lighter, which is really what organizing it is being able to find the things you need when you need it and you need that lightness to it right. What are some tips that you have for some people that are listening that are feeling this to their core that they have this type of anxiety? Or what are some resources if they if they're listening, thinking I think it's deeper than just the declutter Quick Fix decluttering session? Yeah,

Dr. Lauren Cook
yeah. Okay, few things here, I write about this a lot and generation anxiety. And this this idea of empowered acceptance, which is very counterintuitive to people, a lot of people are so set on trying to make their anxiety go away. And they may even be using organizing to try and do that, right, what is one more thing I can do to stop my anxiety, and then feeling so disappointed when that doesn't work? Right. So it's actually learning to accept, you know, what, I do feel anxious sometimes, or a lot of the time, and that's okay. A lot of my work with folks is actually walking them through the grieving process of that. Oh, you mean, I'm gonna feel anxious, like throughout a lot of my life. And I'm sure you have those conversations with your clients, too, of like, oh, organizing may not always be a quick fix to the discomfort. It's learning to accept, like, yeah, I feel anxious, I feel sad sometimes. And I can still live a meaningful life. Like that is the key message. Do not let your anxiety stop you from living your life, right? I write a lot about that of like, my anxiety around, you know, with vomit around being pregnant and having a baby like, and if you don't struggle with this, you can listen to this and be like, Girl, what is your issue, get over it. But anxiety is not rational, right? Hoarding is not rational, this anxiety can be so powerful that it defies logic sometimes. And it's really saying to ourselves, you know, what, I do feel this way. And I still choose to do this next other thing in my life, that's where the Empowered piece is really important. You have to take action. I'm a big behaviorist as a psychologist, mindset is not enough. You can't think yourself into organization, you can't think yourself into just taking that next goal that you want to do, you have to actually physically do the steps. And so that's where I'm always inviting my clients of like, what are the tangibles we can do, because that's how we actually get the brain to buy in that we can make chains. It's where we actually show ourselves that we made the change, like

Stephanie
the actual doing, where would you recommend people? Okay, if they feel that this is clicking? What are some resources? Where would you send people to just get that either whether it's diagnosed or help, and of course, I know you're available and your book is available, but like, what are some key words that people could look up or go to? If they're feeling like this is a trouble spot for

Dr. Lauren Cook
them? So many good things, okay. And yes, I am in the process of right now just licensed in California, but it's really cool. You know, women psychology, we have this thing called sai pact, where you can get your license in other states. So that's exciting how we're starting to see telehealth totally transformed the field of psychology, Psychology Today, therapy, Dene, lots of really great search engines to find providers. So I really recommend people do that. If people go to my page on Instagram at Dr. Lauren cook, you can see all kinds of different resources listed there that I really recommend people check out. I will say this, because I think within the field, it's very westernized, right of like, go to therapy or get medication. And both are obviously great things. But I think we're missing so much of talking about generational wisdom and cultural wisdom, different things that work for different people, right? Everything from acupuncture, chiropractor, sound baths, all these different things. Use these to your advantage. I will tell you, the person who helped cure my panic attacks, not cognitive therapy. It was my naturopath, Dr. Sarah Norris, I give her shout outs all the time, because she really helped me get my body and my gut back in check. And so much of anxiety is so physically based. I mean, the research coming out about the gut brain connection, everybody read this as your brain on food by Dr. Money I do, if you struggle with this, we're just at the precipice. I think they've seen, what we eat, what we drink, how this affects how we feel in our bodies and our anxiety. So it may even look like for you talking to a nutritionist, talking to a naturopath, getting your bloodwork done all these different things to get data on your body. It's not just healing the neck up, we want to do a holistic approach to our healing.

Stephanie
I mean, I'm over here if you're not watching us, I'm just like shaking it. Yes, if I had a pom pom, I would be raising that as well. Yes, yes. And it's finding so much about yourselves. And since we have quite a bit for one of our last questions here, since we have quite a bit of caregivers, caretakers not just as a rental role but also caring for Um, elder generations, you know, the sandwich generation, if you will, since we have quite a bit of less listeners, a question that I got asked, that came directly from them was, okay, you know, I'm in a good spot with my journey. But now I've either inherited or I'm inheriting things we help quite a bit of people with with that, whether their loved one is alive, you know, or, you know, has has passed, but the feeling of anxiety from other generations like is that some so if your children or your parents need help, because they've got the anxiety? Is this something that you would suggest they approach? You know, if you'd like some quick tips, I know it probably we could go like, that's a whole episode of its own. But if they're if it's the caretaker, what is like an advice that you would give them so they could just start this journey in their, their health

Dr. Lauren Cook
a little more? Yeah, we could talk about this one all day. And let me just start by saying it is complicated. It is not a one size fits all approach here. Every relationship is different, right? Because you may be trying to set boundaries with, you know, the person you're helping taking care of, and they're like, No, you can't do XYZ, and then you kind of feel like your hands are tied, right? So Oh, yes, sure, we can see on the surface set boundaries with your loved ones. We know realistically, that is hard to put into action, right? So a lot of times, it looks like the self care for yourself, sometimes having what we call a little bit of a healthy detachment. And knowing that it can change and will change as the relationship as time evolves, right? But having a healthy detachment of like, okay, I want to help you in this. I want to respect your autonomy in this too, right? And how can we still kind of meet in the middle in a way where I'm not getting overly enmeshed in this relationship, I'm still looking after my own self care, but also not feeling taken advantage of at the same time. And that can mean some uncomfortable conversations. But I will say this in all of it, don't avoid, because a lot of times, we can avoid having these uncomfortable conversations, because we don't want to make someone mad. But then if we don't even have the conversation to begin with, then we're not getting data about what we can do to move forward. Right? And it may not be the answers we want, but at least we know the answers. A lot of us were playing these conversations out with our loved ones without actually having them. So give yourself the chance to at least have the conversation and then you can adjust based on the data you're getting. If all of that I don't know if any of that makes sense. Oh, Trump knows.

Stephanie
I just could think of so many examples where like, you would have been like, did you even ask them? Did you you know, I've, you know, had so many amazing clients and people I'm in and they have like, these thoughts, which are all very valid. But I can now with you saying that comment, I couldn't even see you saying, Well, if you ask them, they may be ready to release and let go and get help. And you just are so you know, you're so careful about asking or, you know, whatever may have happened in the past that you don't want to and you have no data to go off of. So

Dr. Lauren Cook
people surprises all the time. Yeah.

Stephanie
That's so good. Okay. Well, we could go on forever. So in for anyone that doesn't know. So she, she, I love for you to talk about your book really quick, and what the book is all about which I kind of give some hands in the intro. Just so everybody knows, I basically highlighted the entire book. This is one of those books that it was pointless for me at some point to just highlight because I just wanted to call it like, you know, highlight and sticky note everything. And at that point, it was just so good that that it was just worth my highlighter, like being all yellow. So what is the book all about? And then we'll head to our favorite questions that we get to ask all of our guests.

Dr. Lauren Cook
I love it. So generation anxiety. It's called the millennial and Gen Z guide to stay afloat in uncertain times. But I really think this book has value no matter how old you are. It's really teaching people how to implement this idea of empowered acceptance, taking action in your life in a meaningful way to still live the life you want to live. Even if you feel anxious, and it's also really breaking down why are we so dang anxious right now? You're not imagining it we are seeing more people struggling with anxiety than ever before. I will say to the book is all about holistic healing like I was mentioning earlier, it is not just taking a cognitive heavy approach which I very much still value, but it's really healing holistically which gets me very excited. So I hope this will be a helpful resource for people. You can buy it wherever you like to buy your books.

Stephanie
Oh, so good. Okay, so awesome. Okay, let's talk about your have a favorite magazine or indoor blog. We're just gonna go right into the fun things here. What is a blog or of Paper Magazine? If you still like the paper that you just have always loved and read no matter what, oh,

Dr. Lauren Cook
this one. So I am a huge tea fan. I love drinking tea. My mom subscribes me to this magazine called Tea Time. And my mom and I grew up, we would always go to teas together. It's still something we love to do. So this magazine, they send you like tea recipes, and oh, it's so much fun. So really get yourself coffee a tea time?

Stephanie
Yeah. Is it? Is it a monthly?

Dr. Lauren Cook
I think it's quarterly but very much look forward to when it arise. How fine

Stephanie
okay, I'm looking it up. I do love my tea, too. So I'm looking that one up. All right. What is it? What is something that you would want people to take away from this conversation?

Dr. Lauren Cook
To embrace the discomfort, all its capacities, the discomfort of tough conversations, the discomfort of letting go of things, right, the discomfort of seeing something we want to buy and not getting it for ourselves, right of really asking like, yep, that dopamine hit when I bite is going to feel so good. Do I really need it and leaning into the discomfort that that comes in all its different ways and seeing how that can actually be such a good thing for us. So good.

Stephanie
Well, Dr. Cook, this has been lovely. I am so excited for everything that's to come. Where can people reach you? Where can they find all of these goodies of information that you have to offer? Yeah, so

Dr. Lauren Cook
I'm at Dr. Lauren cook.com. I do a lot of speaking with companies teams. So if that's something that you want for your group, let me know. All kinds of fun free goodies on Instagram and Tiktok at Dr. Lauren cook.com. But say hi, give a shout out. I'd love to get to know your listeners. Stephanie. I'm a longtime fan. We go all the way back to the days of clubhouse. So this is just so so thrilling for me to get to spend some time with you today.

Stephanie
It will thank you again for your time. And until next time, everybody. Thank you for listening to the organized and productive podcast with the organized Flamingo. If you enjoy today's episode, I would love it if you'd leave a rating and review on your favorite podcast player. It helps with letting people know that we're here are full show notes and resources head on over to the organized flamingo.com/podcast Happy organizing.

In this episode we explore the difference between “getting organized” and “staying organized” concepts, concentrating on the GETTING organized side.  We offer insights and tips for navigating through the common pitfalls and challenges when trying to get organized. From creating designated holding spaces to trying out different organizing systems, we provide practical advice for viewers looking to start and finish their organizing projects successfully. Tune in to gain valuable insights and strategies for effectively tackling your next organizing project.

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

In this episode we talk about:

• Dig deeper into getting and staying organized
• Tips on how to avoid or fix common pitfalls when trying to get organize
• Why it’s important to distinguish between GETTING organized and STAYING organized

Mentioned in this Episode:

Episode 053: Getting Organized vs. Staying Organized Explained

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/53-getting-organized-vs-staying-organized-explained/

Episode 011: The Science of Procrastination: Why We Do It and How to Stop with Dr. Susie Castellanos Hensley

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/11-the-science-of-procrastination-why-we-do-it-and-how-to-stop-with-susie-castellanos-hansley/

Episode 001: 7 Steps to Organizing (almost) Anything

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/7-steps-to-organizing/

—

The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast

Download your FREE “Should you Keep It or Toss It?” decision tree https://organizedandproductive.com/keeportoss

This week, we're celebrating the podcast’s first year!  In this special episode, we're tackling YOUR most burning questions about organization and productivity. 

Want to get notified when our episodes come out and our pro tip of the week?

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

In this episode we talk about:

• When your feeling overwhelmed by the mountain of “stuff”
• What storage solutions should you use
• Sustainable systems for long lasting order
• Digital Clutter vs. Physical Clutter
• Dealing with family resistance to organizing

Mentioned in this Episode:

Episode 001: 7 Steps to Organizing (almost) Anything

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/7-steps-to-organizing/

Episode 024: Step 5: Contain. What Types of Containers Should You Get?

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/24-step-5-contain-what-types-of-containers-should-you-get/

Episode 053: Getting Organized vs. Staying Organized Explained

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/53-getting-organized-vs-staying-organized-explained/

Episode 007 Digital Space vs. Physical Space Organizing

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/2-digital-space-vs-physical-space-organizing

Episode 016: Living with an Unorganized Partner: How to Avoid Frustration

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/16-step-3-decluttering-decluttering-your-home-for-a-happier-healthier-you/

—

The Organized & Productive podcast is brought to you by The Organized Flamingo and hosted by Stephanie Y. Deininger! For those of you who love the thought of organizing & being more productive, but don’t know where to start or constantly up against hurdles that don’t let you advance the way you want to, this podcast is for you!

Review full show notes and resources at

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/podcast

Join our weekly email newsletter for all-things organizing & productivity delivered right to your inbox

https://theorganizedflamingo.com/quicklinks

Download your FREE “Should you Keep It or Toss It?” decision tree https://organizedandproductive.com/keeportoss

Review the Transcript:

Hey there, welcome to our one year anniversary episode. Okay, if you are counting and following along, you probably noticed that this episode is labeled episode 54. And there's 52 weeks in the year. So how is this the one year anniversary episode? Well, we are calling our air date or episode, anniversary date, and that was January 30, of 2023. And this one is airing on January 29 2024. So this is as close as we get to the official one year of the podcast being released. So that is why this one is the one year and I'm so excited, I cannot believe it's been a whole year really, truly just went by so fast. We have now recorded 54 episodes, all original, we have not had any reruns. So truly, this entire year has all been original material. And we have we had 14 Total guests, we did a showcase of all of our 2023 guests back in the episode that got aired earlier, actually later in 2023. So you can go back to that. And it gives you a glimpse of all of the guests that we had for 2023. And there are topics for the entire year. So if you want a quick rundown of what topics we touched with our, with our guests, then you can head on over there and listen to that episode. I'll also put it in the show notes. So for this episode, since we already did a showcase of all of our guests, we're actually doing the top six questions that I had been asked in the last year from our community, people that messaged us to from the podcast, all of you listeners, some of you will message us and ask us for either tips or follow ups from some of the conversations. And so I picked, I basically put them all in one worksheet and then grabbed the top six ones that were asked the most. So I'm going to read through the questions, real quick questions, and then give you my take on that. And that's how we're going to celebrate this one year anniversary episode. Thank you all so much for being here. And being part of our community. And being a listener. We are a top 100 episodes, podcast in our field and in our industry, which is so exciting. And every week, I see the downloads just growing and growing. So I am forever thankful for all of you who have been here from the get go, but also the ones that have shared our episodes with your family, friends community and have joined us along the way. So thank you so much. You can always find us at the organized Flamingo over on the social media webs interwebs and say hello there. And hope I get to meet some of you in person as well. All right, so let's get to our top six questions that have come from all of you. Here we go. Welcome to the organized and productive podcast with organized Flamingo. I'm your host, Stephanie, a professional organizer and productivity expert, ready to explore the right organizing and productivity solutions for you. Yeah,

well, then let's go. For our first question, we've got the one on one of organizing questions, the one that I get asked the most, not just from the last year, but probably throughout my entire career. And the reason most people you know, end up hiring us, but even if they don't hire us, this is the part that really where people get really gets stuck. And that is where do I even start? And my answer to this is that this is such a classic for overwhelmed clients and people that are new to the organizing process, that I would suggest to break down the big task, the one that's overwhelming you. And big really is whatever it biggest for you. For some of you. A big organizing task is physically large, like a large room, a large area, like maybe a garage or a whole basement, maybe you're decluttering for your family and you're downsizing, big can be also a drawer. So whatever big and overwhelming feels to you that is something you're going to break down in smaller manageable steps, and then prioritize those projects based on what your needs are. We have here at the organized swimming go, we have our seven steps of organizing almost anything. And it is our framework that helps you answer this very question like how do I even break this down? So I am putting the seven steps of organizing almost anything in the show notes. Please listen to that episode if you if this question was relevant to you. And then from there, each of the steps we have seven steps. Each one has its own podcast, a podcast episode devoted to it. So step one, assessing step two, step three, all of them will have its own entire breakdown. But if anything, at least listen to the overview one and that will help you figure out So how can you break down this really large task and make it into more manageable steps? So it doesn't feel so overwhelming, and then go from there? The second question that we get asked the most, and God asked the most last year was, what storage solutions should I use? Oh, my goodness, if I showed you my inbox, especially the social media inboxes, where people will, you know, kind of just message you on a whim. You would be not surprised, maybe surprised at how many people ask this very question like, Okay, what is your most favorite? If you had to choose one? Storage Solution, one container? Which one? Would it be? Oh, my goodness, I cannot answer that in just a simple answer. Because it really depends, as a whole. So in the seven steps of organizing almost anything, we devote an entire step to containers and storage solutions, because of this very top question that gets asked, the short answer is, of course, that it depends. But just know that your storage solutions can and will probably change throughout your your life. Okay, so don't get so stuck on having one thing. What one of my top tips that I have for this, though, is because knowing that most people do change, organizing sort of illusions and containers, sometimes because they just wither away, especially in those areas, maybe outside areas, I mean, we hope that you get a really good item, right that like lasts forever and ever. But because a lot of these products do wither away my top, my top tip is just get something that is of good quality. Because even if they wither away, it's going to last you a long time. So that's a plus. But even if you are ready for change, and you don't necessarily need it to live a long life, that way you can resell it, either resell it or give it away and it just won't end up in the in the trash or landfill so easily. When you have a good quality product when it comes to storage solutions, you can at least get it get some value back in some way, shape or form, whether it's because you resold it, or you gifted it or gave it to somebody else that could use it again and again. So that would be one of my top answers for this. Get something of good quality that is within your budget that is within your needs. But that will last you as long as possible. The third question is how can I stay organized in the long run. So this actually came in very timely because we are doing our get versus stay organized series. As as I'm recording this, there is a concept called getting getting organized versus staying organized, which is two very different distinct actions when you're getting organized. Where getting organized is more project based. It's it's a short. It's a short project, I mean doesn't, it could be a long time project. But it's it has a middle, beginning, a middle and an end, right. It's a project where versus staying organized is all about habits and staying organized in the long run. So it's less project and more habits and more light, like the way that you live your life, the everyday actions that you make to stay organized versus just like a quick fix. So listen in on that it should be we are airing this in the one year anniversary and the get and stay organized series is within these episodes. So you should be easily able to find it. I'll also put it in the show notes. But to answer this question in this short episode, it basically has everything to do with developing sustainable systems that fit within your lifestyle, which is also known as habits, things that are very organic to the way that you move the way that you live. So what that means is don't necessarily force a system or a it's like something that you're trying to be if it doesn't feel natural, and if you don't think it's sustainable for you to keep up the habits. An example of this is we just talked about containers, right? Sometimes for trend, you know, for trend purposes, there's going to be a container or a style that's very, very popular. And let's say clear bins right for a long time, and those have been around for a long time. But they became they really got popularized in the last couple of years and so everybody loved them. But if you are someone that gets overwhelmed easily with visual clutter, then for you that might not work because that's just a lot a lot for you to to look at all the time and it overwhelms you instead of helping you get organized. Another example is for those of you who like having a labeling system that's very, that tells you where things go where things are supposed to go back to but for some People that is overwhelming, especially if you didn't create the system, then a label doesn't mean much for you, you have to actually embrace the label, understand what it means and then use it right or else that just won't mean anything. So that is my biggest tip for how to stay organized in the long run, develop something that is sustainable, that really works with your natural habits, and then build off of that over BJ Fogg in his book, and also atomic habits by James clear, BJ Fogg has the tiny habits. And both of those books are great books to pick up the top all about habit stacking, and really just doing little by little, which is something that we have tried and we understand, really is helpful when you build upon the habit like little by little by little, and then it just becomes part of who you are. Our first question is all about digital clutter. And someone like the someone specifically asked, How do I handle digital clutter. And then the other questions were a, like a branch off of that. So we'll just talk about digital clutter as a whole, right? digital clutter is very, very similar to physical clutter. And it means that you have so much stuff that you can't find what you need easily when you need it. And if you are at that place, then you have clutter, and it could be physical or digital clutter. And when it comes to digital clutter, it's such a, it's a hard one to see the, the red flags of you becoming clutter cluttered, because you can't see it, because digital files digital stuff doesn't really accumulate the same way visually, the way that physical stuff does. And there's actually an entire episode where we talk about physical clutter versus digital clutter. So I'll put that in the show notes as well. But because of that, you can really, really, that could like really start to accumulate in you don't even know it, there are no Telling Signs, until your program or your computer or your phone or your device says to you, hey, you ran out of storage, or something breaks because you just it's been running so hard. So how do you handle digital clutter, I would this is one of those places where I would really encourage you to have a maintenance calendar, and check in on your memory, and your hardware. So do this every quarter and commit to deleting say, you know, certain amount of files or getting to a certain amount of storage every single quarter. So let's say you know, your storage is one gig. So just make sure that every quarter, you are like no more than 75% of that, right. So that or whatever that magic number is depending it works a little different if you're using your phone versus your computer and stuff, but come up with something that that works for you and do a maintenance every so often and make sure you're under that threshold. So it doesn't all of a sudden surprise you and then you feel like you have to throw stuff away that you weren't even prepared to do so. And then also so it doesn't creep up so fast. And you can actually see where all your files are, you can do some quick decluttering by going to what your biggest files are, and then delete from there. That's obviously a really quick way you can also look for duplicates, of files of words, and then you know, declutter from there. So that would be my biggest step, have a maintenance schedule for your digital files, because those are the things that you don't see until they become a problem. Okay, the next question number five, was, and is one of our top questions. But I'm not fully equipped to answer it. But I'm including it in the podcast because we have a podcast episode from last year with Dr. Dar that talks about this, and we will address it again later this year with another guest. But the question is how can I deal with family resistance to change and the reason so we are equipped to work with the family unit. But once people hire us, it's because the family unit has agreed to get help. And to declutter and to clear out. We worked with a lot of families in that sandwich generation where there's a multigenerational decluttering going on, you know, they either inherited stuff from their family members are starting to inherit stuff, downsize, and they have their own stuff as well. That's the sandwich generation, you're kind of in the middle between raising your own family, yourself and then also your loved ones that may be like your older parents or elders. And so you're just kind of stuck in the middle and there's just a lot a lot of stuff. And when it comes to family resistance, so we we work with those types of families, but in order for all of the parties to come into a place where they're ready for this, there's a lot of pre work that happens and so that's why That's the part that we're not necessarily equipped to talk about. But I will give you one piece of advice that I have seen is very important. And the over 20 years of me doing this, right, and that is that you cannot force people to do things that they don't want to do. Especially if you're trying to make them change long term, you might push somebody to declutter throw away something in the near term, like in the short term, but their tendencies will come back, whether it's hoarding tendencies, whether it's, they just weren't ready emotionally to let go of stuff that will come back. And then you will be in the same cycle over and over unless you get to the root of the problem. So, you know, setting boundaries is really important telling your loved ones, hey, you know, these are my boundaries. But like I said, there is a whole episode where we talk about this with somebody who, who studies relationships and can guide you through that. But my tip as a pro organizer is don't force anybody do not hire somebody to help someone else that is not ready to get the help. When it comes to getting rid of their stuff, stuff has a lot of emotional value tied to it. So when they're not ready to let go of it, and you hire somebody that they don't even know, they may not be familiar with, that may make the whole problem worse. So I just don't want you to get stuck in that. So that would be my biggest advice for this question. The last question is, is there a magic organizing formula? And I chuckled. When I saw this question, it was the first time that I've gotten it, labeled like this, like, is there a magic organizing formula? And I chuckled, because I was like, I really like how that sounds, you know, just like this, like little magical, like God parent that comes in and just does it all? Okay? No, of course there is that. Here's the thing about organizing, organizing is sometimes mistaken as getting clean or getting tidy. Organizing does not mean you're clean, so that because of that, there's no just let's go and clean it all and make it sparkle. And it's all done and ready. Organizing is an action that will either need to be practice, you're not really born with it. Some of you have stronger tendencies to be more organized. Type as some of you call. And sure there is that. But to stay organized long term, it is a skill that needs to be practiced, learned and then practiced. So there is no one size fits all solution. There's no fairy godparent that comes in and just makes it all better. That's not quite how that works. Now organizers in our field and like pro organizers, we help you personalize and help you figure out something that will work for you. And that is our specialty, that is our talent. We find you know systems and create systems that will fit your very unique needs, which is something that sometimes you can't do on your own. So that's kind of like our magic, our magic formula, if you will, but it's not something that we can just bestow and it just goes away on like cleaning your stuff on like, getting rid of stuff just like that. I mean, that is just a junk Hall. And that is not organizing, that is a way to get to get more organized. But that is not organizing. So no, there is no one magic organizing formula. Some of us have created steps, like the seven steps of organizing almost anything that we have to help you. You know, break it down into smaller, smaller steps so that it just becomes easier to follow. But it's not a one size fits all type of

problem fixing here. Okay, so, So short answer no. But yes, some of us will have educational blogs and content that can help you so that you can understand it, you can embrace it, we can help you with some tips on how to get there on your own faster than if you were experimenting all over the place. So hopefully we can give you that and especially here at the organist when we know that is our hope for you to figure out a way that feels good for you that is sustainable in the long run. All right, so those are our top six questions of the year. Hope you enjoyed the this episode. A big shout out here to a couple of people really quick. This is like my academy award winning speech. So you know, feel free to stop the podcast here. But I think it is important. If you've been following us for a long time or even if you're new, just know that these are the people that make this podcast happen and the people that I'm really eternally grateful for who have supported us throughout the way and who encouraged us to keep going and encourage us to give you all of this amazing content, the first being Gaffin creative and Haley and her team who helped us out it and produce this podcast. They're just amazing. And we have Amanda Warfield who has helped me and introduced me to Haley and her team, but who has helped me with the content and just making sure that the content is what you want to hear and making sure that it flows and that it's relevant topics that are coming in, when you need them the most. So thank you so much, Amanda. And then, uh, my family and my friends, my husband, I mean, he, I think this whole process of recording a podcast is also something new for the people that are around you, especially to like, live with you, right? Because here, I am always telling him don't open the garage door, because you can hear it when I'm recording or, Hey, I'm recording between this and this hour, can you not use the internet, so make sure that the guest and I have the best audio, you know, all these things. So he is he's along on the journey with me. So thanks to him so much, and love import, and my besties who are always encouraging me giving me some new ideas on what to talk about how to talk about it. So thank you, thank you so much. Yeah, and to all of you, our awesome community that downloads the podcast that comes back and encourage us encourages us to keep going who head on over the blog post and read. You know all about our guests and about what we talked about. Thank you so much for your visits for your downloads for your encouragement. We are so excited here at the organized Flamingo to continue this podcast. For however long you'll have us and to continue helping you in your organizing journey. So with that being said, Have a great day until next week. Happy organizing. Thank you for listening to the organized and productive podcast with the organized Flamingo. If you enjoyed today's episode, I would love it if you'd leave a rating and review on your favorite podcast player. It helps with letting people know that we're here are full show notes and resources head on over to the organized flamingo.com/podcast Happy organizing