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Chaos Eradicated! Aggravation Abolished! Overwhelm Obliterated!
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Greetings!
 Happy New Year to everybody! Out with the old and in with the new! It's no coincidence that January is National Get Organized Month. Although losing weight seems to always top the lists of New Years Resolutions, getting organized always seems to be in everybody's Top 10. Other entries are huge, open-ended things like Reduce Stress! Get out of Debt! Save Money! Be Happier! You can make major strides towards any of these big goals by getting your house in order (or your office, your files, garage, etc), or even by talking with someone about your life's goals and long-term plans.
And speaking of New Year's resolutions, Read on
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Out with the Old . . .
Get out in front of it! The first step to get your finances ready for tax-time is eliminating file clutter. The IRS requires you to keep 7 years worth of tax records. After 7 years, you only need to retain the tax return itself. There are records you should hold indefinitely: life insurance, investments, paperwork on the properties you currently own, and estate planning documents are some of these subjects. The following links as well as your accountant will give you more specific guidance IRS.gov, Bankrate.com.
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News:
- Gift certificates for my services are now available on my website. If someone you love is in need of help taking that first step towards getting organized, this is the most caring hint you can give them. Turn-around time is about 1 week. Buy Gift Certificates Here!
- January is National Get Organized Month -
- Statistics below provided by the National Association of Professional Organizers:
Of 400 adults polled in a November 2008 public survey:
- 96 percent said they would save time every day by becoming more organized
- Among
those 96 percent, 15 percent felt they could save more than an hour
each day-for a total of more than 15 days per year-if they were more
organized at home. And 30 percent felt they could save at least 30
minutes each day-or more than an entire week per year-if they were more
organized at home
- 65 percent of the respondents noted that their household was at least moderately disorganized
- 27 percent said they felt disorganized at work
Given
such data, it is clear that the general public could benefit from the
services of professional organizers and the information shared during
GO Month. - Your local NAPO chapter is having an event at IKEA in Conshohocken in March, I will have more information for you next month.
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Away with the Old . . .
If you're putting off putting away holiday decorations, it might be that you can't stand the thought of throwing everything back into those same old boxes. January is a time for sales on all kinds of holiday items, including divided boxes for ornaments and other fragile items, spools for lights, etc. And do yourself a favor for next year, and separate the decorations by room or how they're used. And, as always, before storing, separate what you don't use and donate. Holiday organizing containers are available at your local big box store as well as many resources online: christmasworld.com, frontgate.com
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In with the New . . .
January is also a great time to embark on new projects, please start with a plan. What is the ultimate goal? What are the steps that will take you to that goal? Ok, now break it down to even more detail. Will these steps take you to the original goal? Take your time, you will get closer to your goal!
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January Success Story
This is not like most of my "Success Stories," but I find this very inspiring nonetheless. "Margaret" is a client of mine who had left corporate America to start her own consulting business out of her home. Her children had grown up and recently moved out, and she had a lot of ideas about reorganizing and redecorating the house, but could not seem to get started.
At our first consult, we discussed her goals, and I gave her a few ideas to get started. "Margaret's" enthusiasm was infectious. When her children came home for the holidays, she got their support to help her declutter several areas of the house. Everyone was involved, her husband cleaned out his closet, her son was driving discarded items to the dump, her daughters cleared the clutter out of their old rooms. The next time I saw her, there was already a visual transformation in several rooms in her house! A great way for this family to start the new year!
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(cont'd from above - New Years Resolutions!)
please don't overreach. The fitness centers that are packed this month will be at half capacity by April because we all try to do too much, too fast. It's worth a little time to sit down and list your goals, see what you really have time for, in order of its importance to you personally. Completing smaller steps towards a larger goal will provide encouragement to move on and ensure long-term success.
Peace and joy to us all into the New Year,
Anna Sicalides
The Organizing Consultant LLC Back to Top
Please forward this newsletter to anyone you know who may appreciate it.
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