Did you ever spend so much time researching different options that you were too overwhelmed to make a decision? I call this Analysis Paralysis. I pride myself on my thoroughness and am grateful to have the internet at my fingertips to provide me with endless sources of input on even the most trivial of decisions. However, I end up over-researching certain topics because so much information is available. I first thought of writing about Analysis Paralysis almost a year ago, right…
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After my father passed away at the end of January, my sister and I took two months to clear out our family apartment (as I described in Home is Where the Heart Is). Although most of our parents’ possessions were sold, donated, or discarded, I brought home a bag of things that I just didn’t feel right about throwing away. These things were not valuable or even of great sentimental value. They were simply items that my parents had held on to for many…
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I’ve never been a smoker, so my experience with using matches was limited to lighting birthday candles once or twice a year. In recent years, however, I’ve begun enjoying fragrant candles in my home, and I’ve noticed something about the process of lighting a match. If I approach the process with timidity, the match does not light. However, if I approach the process with confidence and assertively rub the match across the striking surface, I’m almost always assured of success. I’ve started…
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Do you have a pile in your home that represents something you never have time for, but wish you did? I’m talking about unread magazines, unwatched videos, unopened books, unstarted projects, gear for unpursued activities. When I ask my clients about those piles, I often hear, “I’m retiring in a few years,and I will read them/watch them/do them when I retire.” I find this a little puzzling. Yes, we all look forward to a time when we will have fewer…
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Like you, I struggle with paper. I no sooner get my desk cleared off than it gets covered up again with the next day’s mail. I’ve written about my struggle and my strategies for mastering paper in some of my previous organizing tips, most notably Divide and Conquer the Pile and What Color is Your Desk? Attacking a pile of paper is very intimidating. It can be time-consuming to figure out what needs to be done with each piece of paper. If you’re like…
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