A Life Less Cluttered

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Whether we're talking about our homes or our schedules, most of us could live with A Life Less Cluttered and at some point most of us have wondered how, with all our shortcomings and weaknesses, we can make that happen. How do you face those fears? How do you build the kind of character it takes? How do you stay motivated to live the principles you've learned? We can all achieve the uncluttered life we're seeking and my good friend and professional organizer, Christine Rice, the Organizing Muse, is here to teach us how in her new book A Life Less Cluttered; Expert Secrets to Your Own Organizing Epiphany.

Christine sent me a copy of her book and I was happy to read it. So happy that I underlined something on almost every page! I'm sure she won't mind my using it as an outline for my organizing seminars for now on. That's how good it is. It helped me see some things about myself that I didn't even know I knew!

For instance, Christine talks about the labels we use in our lives whether we're labeling containers or people.

"Labels have to be meaningful and accurate in order to be helpful, and "slob'" or your own version of the same, is neither."

Before I first started getting organized nine years ago I probably called myself a slob 20 times a day, every day. It's funny how calling yourself a slob doesn't really help you get yourself more organized! It just makes you despise yourself every time you say it. I finally stopped beating myself up and started giving myself permission to change. Sometimes the old labels you're using don't allow for change, something we should give ourselves, and everyone around us, room to do.

"Becoming better organized is more about creating a new lifestyle than it is about clearing out clutter."

I think we all know that but we don't want to believe it. We want to take a magic pill that changes our life and makes everything easy. This is one of the reasons I don't like organizing shows on television. In what universe can you go into some one's house, get rid of the clutter, organize everything, and expect it to stay that way? It's not happening folks and we all know it so let's stop pretending it is!

Along with getting rid of clutter you have to make changes in your life; changes in the way you shop, the way you schedule your time and the way you handle your things. That is a lot of changing and it doesn't happen over night. It's the reason I started Smart Habit Saturday, a way for me and others to make positive changes in our lives.

If you are looking for your own organizing Epiphany you will enjoy Christine's book. Reading it may just change your life.

Good news! Christine is going to give away a free copy to one of you lucky Organizers out there. Just leave a comment telling me at least one positive label that you are going to start using to replace an old ineffective label. I'll go first...

I am efficient! I'm not a slob, I just like to keep busy and busy tends to get messy. I know if I slow down I can stay organized and work more efficiently.

I'll leave the comments open until some time on Sunday. I will notify you if you are the winner (make sure you leave me with a valid e-mail address) and Christine will mail you a book!

Keep checking back because I have more books to give away and also some fabulous Organizing Bags. You can't wait, can you???