Organizing and productivity

Aug 16

Gym Bag Essentials Checklist

By Sherry Borsheim Blog, Checklists, Closet Organizing, Home Organizing, Time Management No Comments

Have you ever gone to the gym, worked out, showered and realized you forget to bring your towel? Ooops, that’s no fun trying to dry yourself off with your sweaty workout clothes or sweaty gym towel. Yuk! Or have you ever forgot to bring body wash, realize your shampoo bottle is empty, forgot your flip flops, hair brush, blow dryer or the one thing you hope never happens to you, undergarments (oh my that’s uncomfortable). A gym bag essentials checklist saves the day! I’m sure you can relate one way or the other. I know I can. “Been there, done that” as they saying goes!

Create a Checklist for Routine Tasks

Going to the gym at 5:30 am is very early for me and I’m hitting the snooze button a few times to squeeze every last minute of shut eye that I can possibly get before I need to jump out of bed, get dressed, brush my teeth, grab my gym bag and go. Just ask my husband. I know I’m not alone on this one. Maybe you can relate to this as well.

Use Checklists for Routine Tasks

Since going to the gym was a new routine and I didn’t like wasting time in the morning or having a really bad hair day, the logical side of me decided to create a gym bag essentials checklist. One of my top tips on how to organize your life is to create checklists for routine tasks you do on a regular basis, like packing your gym bag three times a week.

So I sat down at my computer and created my first gym bag essentials checklist and you can download it here and create your own. It’s super easy when you have something to look at and follow. So take my Gym Bag Essentials Checklist and make it your own.

Create Multiple Copies

Getting organized is easy when you know what to do and how to do it. This leads me to another one of my top organizing tips when using checklists. Create multiple copies and place them where you’ll see them. Place a copy of your checklist in your gym bag, by your toothbrush and in your toiletries bag. These are all logical places and great reminders to help jog your memory so you don’t forget to pack what you need in your gym bag.

Time-saving Workouts

Organizing your gym bag is one thing to accomplish, it’s another to actually go and work out! Driving to the gym, working out for an hour, then driving back home or to work can take 1.5 hours out of your day and frankly who has that kind of time when there is so much to get done today. Thankfully there are some very effective workouts that you can do at home or when you travel. My favorite workout is JJ Virgins 4×4 video’s that I can watch on my laptop, iPad or iPhone if I really wanted to. JJ’s Fit Clut 4×4 video’s pack a whole of of workout in 15 minutes and you can modify them when you’re travelling.

Gym Bag Essentials Checklist for Peace of Mind

The next time you forget to pack something, ask yourself “do I have a checklist for that?” And in case you’re one of those people who are always running late and dashing out the door wondering if you forgot something, take 15 minutes now to create a simple checklist for certain routine tasks. Checklists are one of the best ways to getting organized and will give you peace of mind that you’ll have what you need when you need it!

Mar 25

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Take Control of The Dreaded Hall Closet!

By Sherry Borsheim Blog, Closet Organizing, Quick Organizing Tips No Comments

If you were to pick one area of your home that you know is completely disorganized, and that you have put off tackling, chances are it would be the dreaded hall closet. This small, cramped, and often over-used space is filled with any number of things – from bulky winter coats and boots to sporting equipment, a stroller, toys, to that quality wool coat that you got from your mother. The running joke in your house is that if that door is opened, an avalanche will occur. In public you laugh at the joke. In private you cringe at its truthfulness.

It’s time to take control of that hall closet. Here are some simple, easy and straight forward steps that you can do to get the job done.

Step # 1: Clear it out and Assess What You Have

Yes, the one thing you dread most of all is the first step to taking control. Open the door, step aside and let the avalanche commence. Once the bombardment is done, remove the rest of the stuff you stored there and take a look at what you have. How much of the material do you need? How many items can be stored somewhere else?

Now that you’ve determined what you want to go into the hall closet, take a look at the closet itself. Do you have the right amount of space? Take your tape measure and get the actual dimensions of your closet. In most cases you’ll be surprised at how much room you actually have. Remember that you can use the door, the floor, and the walls of your closet as storage space as well. Maximize every square inch as best you can.

Step #2: Assess What Your Need

If you hall closet is to be used primarily for outerwear and shoes, make sure you place the hanging rod in a position that will keep the coats off the floor. In some cases, use double-hanging rods on one side of the closet, shelves in the center, and another rod on the other side for longer coats. Shoes can be easily organized using shoe racks, or even a few dish drying racks with a rubber mat underneath. That way, if they come in wet and dirty, you’ll be able to allow them to drain and dry without damaging the floor. If your family insist on using the hall closet for their personal storage, simply hang a few baskets on the inside door, one per person. If you decide that you need additional shelving, remember to utilize the space above the hanging coats with one or two shelves. The choice is really yours.

Step # 3: Let Everyone Know About the New Hall Closet

Once everything is set up, it is important to let everyone know about the new closet and how it is used. This might seem like an unnecessary step, but believe me, taking a few minutes to explain things to your family can save a lot of headaches in the long run. Make sure they know what is to be kept in the closet, where the shelves are, what the bins are for if they have one and the reasoning behind everything. No more “I’ll just put it here for now!”

Aug 09

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Does a Messy Desk Make You More Productive?

By Sherry Borsheim Blog, Business Organizing, Closet Organizing, Free Articles, Home Office Organization, Home Organizing, IABO Weekly News, Inspiration, Organizing Paper Files No Comments

Well, the verdict is still out on this one and I’m not sure that having piles of paper and stacks of stuff around makes you more productive. I know for me, that a clean desk is a calm mind and I’m less distracted and more focused on the task at hand. But on the other hand, if a messy desk can lead to make employees more productive, than maybe there is a lesson to be learned here. So I stuck my neck out on this one, held my breath and waited for your response.

What’s your threshold for clutter?

For the past 25 years, I’ve worked with 1000’s of business owners, executives and employees who range from being very creative, spontaneous, most things last-minute to clean desk, highly organized and looking for ways to improve their systems even more (they don’t like to waste time). What I know to be true is everyone has a different threshold and tolerance for the amount of clutter and chaos they allow to pile up on their desk, in their homes, and in their life. When they hit the breaking point, they call me for help.

Cookie-cutter solutions don’t stick

Another lesson I’ve learned as a Productivity and Organizing Consultant is there’s no one-size fits-all solution to organization and time management. That’s the reason all my products, programs and hands-on services are personalized to the way you think, function, and use your environment. I will share several ways to organize something and you decide what works best for you and then personalize it. No cookie-cutter solutions here!

It’s about the journey

The truth is, organizing is also a journey (which we really don’t like to hear) and in the process we all learn about ourselves, our habits, our choices, and we grow as a person expanding our skill base and knowledge. It’s our choices that determine our reality. Let’s be realistic here, the piles didn’t magically happen overnight, and they won’t magically disappear by the wave of a magic wand. As much as I’d like to wave a magic wand and make all the piles and chaos go away, keeping your desk clean of stacks and piles takes daily maintenance. Just like your clothes won’t magically pick themselves up off the floor and hang themselves on hangers in your closet, or the dishes in the sink won’t wash themselves. The same is true with getting and staying organized, and achieving your dreams and goals – it’s about choices and taking action.

Also, there are foundational best practices and systems that need to be in place to effectively run a business or household, otherwise you’ll be:

Wasting precious and valuable time looking for things
Losing money on missed opportunities and duplicate purchases, and
More than likely, unfocused and not as productive as you could be

Time-tested Productivity and Organizing Solutions

Before I recommend any products, systems and processes, apps, software or referrals, I personally test and use everything myself. For software, apps and all things technical, it must pass the strict scrutiny of my technical team. After it’s passed all our tests on ease of use, functionality, durability, esthetics and so on, then we share the productivity tools and organizing systems with you. We take our job seriously because we know that you put your trust in us and our recommendations.

So when I read this interesting article written by Rob Waugh “Messy desks in the office can actually lead employees to think more clearly, say researchers” my thought was to put this research to the test myself and get your feedback. Even though there was some hesitation on my part at first to share this article, I thought who better to provide feedback than my clients, customers, and followers.

The comments came back on my Facebook Page that a clean desk is preferred to be more productive and confirms what I’ve been training and implementing over the past decade. The reason I started my business back in 2001, was I realized not everyone has the natural organizing skills that I was born with and I’ve learned how to pass those skills onto others. So, my purpose in life is to serve others with my gift of organization, to be fully alive and present, to love and appreciate others and to learn and share my gifts, so that I inspire others to live more fully and make a greater difference today. I’ve seen the results of helping a mother who’s very creative, frantic, anxious and always last-minute learn organizing skills to calm the chaos in her personal life, household and family. Then pass on the organizing skills to her kids. It’s life-changing on so many levels. And, as a result of getting her life and home organized, it gave her the freedom to live her purpose and make a huge impact in the world today!

What’s your preference? Messy Desk or Clean?

If a messy desk and piles of stuff works for you, then that’s ok, we’ll set up systems that work for you and purge a little in the process. If a clean desk and a clear and focused mind is what you want, then we’ll close the gaps and create systems that work for you too. Either way, it’s all about you and how you want to use your time, space and life to make a greater difference in the world.

On a personal note, thank you allowing me to share my passions and gifts with you. I truly want the best for you and your families. Now it’s your turn to post your comments below.

Do you prefer a messy or clean desk? How does clutter impact you personally, professionally, physically and/or psychologically? Would love to hear your comments on this. Post your comments below this article.