While I was working as the editor in chief of the Woman’s Day special interest magazines, the advice most often requested from our readers was information on getting organized. A couple of months ago, my fellow editors helped me record a conversation I had with Fran Harris, a life coach, former professional basketball player, and the host of a new HGTV show called Home Rules. The premise of her show is to get the participants to clear up their “inner house,” meaning their psychological and emotional issues, before they earn the right to embark on their “outer house,” or home renovation projects.
I recalled my conversation with Fran recently while cleaning out a kitchen drawer, which was filled to the brim with utensils, many of which I didn’t use and didn’t need. I’d begun the clutter-clearing effort in anticipation of my own kitchen renovation project, which I hope to complete in the coming weeks, and remembered Fran’s good advice on getting past the psychological roadblocks that keep a person from getting their stuff in order. She told me that the most common excuse she hears from people who avoid clearing their clutter is lack of time. I’m sure I qualify for that category. But she doesn’t buy the idea that there aren’t enough hours in a day to do what must be done to keep your outer house in order.
Here are five of Fran’s top tips for getting your inner and outer house into shape.
1. Tally up the time you spend on every activity daily. For too-busy-to-get-organized people like me, Fran suggests making a log of exactly how much time you spend doing everything each day and examining the areas, such as surfing the Web or emailing friends, where 45 minutes could be squeezed out to make time for managing your physical space.
2. Understand that your surroundings reflect your state of mind. Look at your physical surroundings and note areas that are out of control for cues that reflect emotional issues you need to deal with. If you don’t open bills for example, you may be avoiding financial problems, says Fran.
3. Observe the pint of ice cream rule. Fran’s approach to getting organizing chores done is to begin them in less time than it would take for a pint of ice cream to melt if left on a counter. In her mind, that means addressing the issue within five minutes.
4. Shorten your to-do list. My to-do lists usually run about 30 actions long. Fran says 5 or 6 will feel more manageable. She also says you should add time and date targets for completion to each item.
5. Give yourself credit for your accomplishments. Fran says she gives herself a high-five every time she completes a goal. From her basketball days, she remembers that it was the good feelings of success that made the hard work feel worthwhile.
Click on the highlighted link to download and listen to a portion of my conversation with Fran Harris.wav.
P.S. After eliminating every duplicate utensil in the drawer, I found that the one utensil I lacked was a pasta server. Now that the excess has been eliminated I have room for the missing piece—and the one I have happily acquired is the sleek utensil from Oneida pictured above.
