Dear   ,    

Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer, especially here on beautiful Cape Cod! It feels as if we barely had a Spring this year, but whatever you call it, it's clear that graduations, buds in bloom, and longer, sunnier days provide a great opportunity to spend more time outdoors.  For those of you who have been thinking about holding a yard sale to get rid of all that stuff in the basement and garage, now is the time to do it!  Put up a table, stick up some signs, get a cash box and some change, and haul that stuff out to the driveway.  It will feel so good to pass those things out of your space and on to someone who may actually use them!

This month I'm featuring an article on a new book I think will be really valuable to all who are trying to change some habits.  Check it out below to get help achieving your personal improvement goals faster and more consistently.   

By the way, I have been featured in an article in Prime Time magazine this month.  The June issue is available for free at many supermarkets, restaurants and senior centers across Cape Cod, so look for the 20-year anniversary edition and the article titled "Bringing Harmony Home".

Finally, the first month of my 28-day success program, "Putting Paper in its Place", is coming to an end. People who subscribed have told me it has been very helpful, and has even been fun at times! If you missed it the first time around, click here to be taken to the sign-in form.  It is still available at the introductory price of just $28.

- Maryann Murphy, MSW

Changing your Habits One Day at a Time 

and in my scheduling ... RIGHT NOW!"  According to Stephen Guise, author of "Mini Habits: Smaller Habits, Bigger Results", this approach is destined for failure.  Guise bases this on psychological research as well as anecdotal information from his own and others' experiences. 

So how does this apply to organizing?  How about setting a goal to get rid of just one thing a day?  It doesn't seem like much, but I've been doing it for a few weeks, and noticed that this

one little commitment is getting me to think throughout the day about what else I can get rid of, what else I don't need.  Some of the days I've done just something "stupid small" (his term) like getting rid of one old bottle of nail polish, but other days I've found several DVDs, pieces of clothing and magazines that had started to accumulate, and once I got rid of the one piece required for success, it seemed much easier to find a second, third and fourth piece as well.

"Mini Habits: Smaller Habits, Bigger Results" is available on Amazon.com for $5.99 on Kindle.