Peace of Mind Organizing

Announcing the Peace of Mind Budgeting website and blog!

15 June 2023

I’ve been working on building a website for my new YNAB Budgeting Coaching business for the last couple of months. Today I’m calling it done! I’m sure it’s not perfect, but it’s definitely good enough to meet the world.

Here’s the link: Peace of Mind Budgeting. On the website, you can read my new blog, learn about my own rags-to-riches YNAB story and sign up for free Discovery Call (or skip right to booking a paid service).

I started Peace of Mind Organizing so long ago (18 years next month!) that there weren’t automatic schedulers or other automations to help with client management side of things. So I did everything (and still do) manually, so to speak. For my budgeting coaching practice, I decided to use Paperbell, a platform specifically designed for coaches, to make the workflow easier. (That’s an affiliate link.) Clients can schedule sessions and pay without my direct involvement. Fingers crossed I’ll work out the kinks easily!

I’m very excited about this new venture. Please understand, though, that it will not affect Peace of Mind Organizing in any way. We’re busy helping clients create order in their homes! For the last year or so, I’ve been managing the company and letting my amazing employees and contractors do the client work. (I still do some of the consults, though.) My budgeting coaching will be done on specific days of the week (right now now it’s Sunday afternoons, Tuesdays, and Wednesday afternoons) over Zoom.

If you have any interest in budgeting coaching, please do check out the website and schedule a free Discovery Call!

Worth repeating (once again): Making a move easy(er)

5 June 2023

It’s moving season again! Moving is one of the more stressful things we do, but careful planning can go a long way toward making it less stressful. I think the tips in this post, which I wrote in 2014, are still helpful, so I’m running it again. If you’re in St. Louis and planning a move, check out Operation: Relocation. We’d love to help!

A supply drawer we created while unpacking a client

Moving is stressful. There’s pretty much no way around it. Even if an employer is paying for the move and you have the movers pack you, there are a lot of details with which to contend and it’s a hassle. Working with a professional organizer can help, but even so, the process is stressful.

I’ve recently helped several clients settle into their new homes by bringing in teams to unpack and organize their belongings. All of them were packed by the movers. Observing how the unpacking and organizing process went, I’ve identified a few ways to make the move easier:

• Start early. It’s easy to procrastinate on decluttering, packing, and making logistical arrangements. But the more time you can give yourself, the less stressful the process will be—and the more likely you are to avoid last-minute crises.

• Declutter before the move. If an employer is paying for the move, you might be inclined to delay decisions about letting go of stuff until after you see how it might fit into your new home. But believe me, by the time you’re in the unpacking phase of the move you’re going to be tired. And the fewer decisions you have to make when you unpack, the happier you’ll be. Less stuff = easier move.

• Go through the unopened boxes from the last move. If you’ve been in your home awhile and there are still unopened boxes in your storage area, don’t just move them. Open up those boxes and find out whether the items inside merit the space you’re giving them and the effort and money involved in moving them.

• Categorize before packing. If each box contains a category of items, unpacking is much more streamlined, and less frustrating. It can also make it easier to find an individual item before you’ve finished unpacking. If you don’t organize before you pack, you’ll end up with a hodge podge of items in each box, which can create headaches when you’re unpacking.

• Mark the boxes for the destination room. If the layout of your new home is different from the old one, try to mark the boxes for delivery to the appropriate room in the new home, rather than the room it came from. That way you’ll be able to stay in the room that you’re unpacking.

• Try to unpack as much as possible as soon as you move in. I’m typically a big fan of little and often, and if you need to break down unpacking into tiny chunks in order to get it done on your own, so be it. But if you can power through the unpacking process so that you get rid of boxes and get settled, the transition will be easier.

• Unpack the kitchen first. I think it’s hard to get a semblance of normalcy until your kitchen is unpacked. When you can make coffee in the morning and fix yourself a snack, life is better. Eating off of real plates rather than paper plates will make you feel like you’re home.

• Let go of perfection. Don’t get bogged down in the unpacking process trying to decide the perfect place to store items. You can always improve on it later. Just choose a location and see how it works.

• Enlist help. Unpacking a home on your own can be overwhelming. Enlist the help of friends, family or a professional organizer (or organizing team). In the last two unpacking jobs we did, we were able to get the entire homes unpacked in two days. It felt like a miraculous transformation—from a sea of boxes to a comfy home in two days. The clients still had tweaking to do, certainly, but they were able to get in with their daily routines.

Yes, moving is stressful. But it doesn’t have to be a nightmare. With a little planning and forethought, you can make it relatively easy.

Worth repeating: Putting Profit First

24 May 2023

I wrote this post in 2017, after I’d been using the Profit First methodology for 18 months or so. Now, six years later, I’m as enthusiastic as ever about the method. A couple of things have changed for me since 2017: I now use YNAB (that’s an affiliate link) rather than separate bank accounts for the various allocations and I make those allocations with each deposit, rather than twice monthly. Also, my percentages are have been updated to 5 percent for profit, 20 percent for taxes, 40 percent for owner’s pay and 35 percent for operating expenses. I have built a profitable, sustainable business and I have Profit First (and YNAB) to thank for that.

In the spring of 2016, I read the book Profit First by Mike Michalowicz. I had heard a talk about the Profit First concept from Cathy Sexton of The Productivity Experts who gave a presentation about it to the St. Louis chapter of the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals. I was intrigued so I bought the book. After I read the book, I decided to implement the system. It’s been wonderful for my business and for my financial security.

The basic premise of the system is to pay yourself first and also put away money for taxes and profit, before paying operating expenses. Most people pay operating expenses first and risk running out of money for taxes or for paying themselves. Michalowicz calls it “reverse engineering your profitability.”

I set up a spreadsheet in which I enter each payment I receive from a client. In the spreadsheet I designate how much of that deposit was paid out in wages and materials. The difference is my Real Revenue. In the spreadsheet I allocate 15 percent of Real Revenue for taxes, 5 percent for profit and 50 percent for owner’s pay. The remaining 30 percent is for operating expenses. According to Michaelowicz, if I can’t afford to pay my operating expenses from that 30 percent, then I need to cut my operating expenses.

Twice a month, I tally up my taxes, profit and owner’s pay amounts and transfer them from default Operating Expenses bank account into the appropriate bank accounts. This means that I have four bank accounts (Operating Expenses, Owner’s Pay, Tax and Profit), rather than the two I formerly had for my business (Checking and Savings). Once the tiny bit of work to set up those accounts was done, it became very easy.

This shift in thinking has been revolutionary for me. My revenue, like that of many professional organizers and small business owners, fluctuates. By consistently transferring 50 percent of my Real Revenue into my Owner’s Pay account and then transferring a set amount from the Owner’s Pay account into the joint account shared by my husband and me, I avoid suffering because of that fluctuation. During flush times, the balance of the Owner’s Pay account grows, creating a reserve for the lean times.

When it’s time to pay my quarterly estimated taxes, the money is waiting for me in my Tax account. Watching my Profit account grow is a real joy. Even more enjoyable is the quarterly bonus I give myself. Profit First mandates that you take one-half of the amount you transferred into your Profit account each quarter as a quarterly bonus. (The rest stays in the Profit account as a reserve.) You’re not supposed to use the bonus for your business. It’s supposed to be used for something fun, like a vacation.

In my case, I purchased tickets to see Hamilton, my favorite musical, in Chicago with my bonuses. I’ve now seen it twice! I can spend a hefty amount for this pleasure without guilt because of Profit First. That feels amazing.

If you’re a small business owner, I heartily recommend reading this book and giving serious thought to implementing the program. There are detailed instructions, including what the appropriate percentages for your business are. A second edition came out earlier this year, which I purchased I read. It’s so worthwhile!

PSA: Get your shingles shot!

19 May 2023

If you’re 50 or over and haven’t had a shingles vaccination yet, I’m writing today to encourage you to get the Shingrix series. In 2011, my husband had a terrible case of shingles. So as soon as I turned 50 I worked hard to get vaccinated against shingles. (It wasn’t easy, believe it or not!) And then in 2017 when the new, improved two-part Shingrix vaccination came out, I got that.

Shingles are caused by the same virus as chicken pox. If you had chicken pox as a child, the virus is lying dormant in your body. I understand it usually comes out as shingles when you’re immune compromised or under stress.

Here’s the thing: The Shingrix vaccination doesn’t necessarily prevent you from getting shingles (though, according to the CDC website, it is 97 percent effective in preventing the disease in healthy adults aged 50 to 69). But it does it make it less severe if you do get it. And that’s what happened to me a couple of weeks ago. I had a painful, itchy, oozy rash on my scalp and neck. Because I’d been vaccinated, I didn’t even consider that the rash might be shingles. I didn’t feel at all sick and I was very busy, so I just kept going without giving it a lot of thought, though I couldn’t let any clothes touch my neck. (That was tough because it was right where a shirt’s neckline would hit…I ended up wearing a reversible v-neck dress backwards for several days.)

Six days after the rash started, and after it was starting to dry up, I went to the chiropractor for my tennis elbow (getting older isn’t easy!) and she told me it was shingles. It was too late to take the anti-viral. Several days later the rash was all but gone and had stopped itching.

I am so glad I had the Shingrix vaccination. If I hadn’t, a really busy, stressful week would have been disrupted and that would have been a real challenge.

So I’m here to say that if you’re 50 or older, please consider getting this vaccination. When I got it, the second vaccination made me feel like I had the flu for the day after the shot. But it was definitely worth a day on the couch!

For more information on shingles and the Shingrix shot, check out the CDC website.

Worth repeating (again): Put yourself first

5 May 2023

I came across this post, which I wrote in 2014, and wanted to share its message again. While I’m no longer leading organizing teams (my younger and more energetic employees are!), I’m dealing with some good and bad stress in my life that is having an impact on my own health. (Hello, shingles!) In a week’s time when some of the challenges are behind me, I plan to block out time for myself on my calendar for a much-needed break.

Many of us in helping professions have a tendency to put the needs of those we help before our own. It’s so easy to do.

But, as I’ve discovered recently (yet again), it’s really important to make sure that you are taking care of yourself, so that you can, in fact, take care of others.

I absolutely love the work I do leading organizing teams to create fast, significant change for my clients. I love it, but it drains me. By the end of a session, I am physically and mentally exhausted.

I learned earlier this year that two successive days of leading organizing teams is my healthy maximum. Yesterday, I completed a third day in a row of team organizing. (It was the fourth team job I’d led in five days.)

When I got home, I sat in my recliner with my laptop and finished writing the number of the words I needed to meet my daily quota for my novel. My husband was making a delicious dinner and by the time it was ready I’d rested enough to be able to get out of the recliner and come to the table. During my resting time, I renewed my resolve to not work more than two days in a row leading teams.

The trouble, of course, is that people want help and there are only so many days in a week. But I reminded myself that good self care means putting myself first on my schedule. I have marked days on my calendar with the label “No clients” so that I don’t try to please someone by making an appointment at the expense of my own physical and mental health.

What about you? Are you putting yourself first in your schedule? If not, perhaps you can mark out days on your calendar for yourself or let go of some volunteer commitments. Maybe you can delegate some responsibilities. Whatever you need to do, please take care of yourself first so that you have the energy and resiliency to help others.

Photo by Taryn Elliott

Read my spicy advice on ConsumerReports.org

26 April 2023

My advice isn’t necessarily spicy, but it is about spices! I was interviewed recently by a writer for Consumer Reports’ website for an article on spice storage and organization. You can read my advice, along with that of fellow professional organizers Rashelle Isip, Robyn Reynolds, Aline Lau and Schae Lewis (complete with our product recommendations!) in this article: 7 Ways to Store Herbs and Spices, According to the Pros.

Worth repeating (again): Why decluttering is so important

20 April 2023

Today I’m rerunning a 2016 post that feels as important and relevant today as it was when I wrote it back then!

I met with a client recently who explained all the storage solutions she and her husband had attempted in an effort to create order. They have three kids and a small house and it felt to them like their home was bursting at the seams. Yet their storage solutions hadn’t solved the problem.

My comment to her was that one way to get things to fit better into their home was to have fewer belongings.

Decluttering is an important first step in the organizing process.

Decluttering should be embraced, not skipped, because when you let go of those items that don’t serve you, it is so much easier to organize what remains.

I was reading some old blog posts this morning and came across one from eight years ago in which I detailed some organizing projects in my own home. My 2016 self started twitching when I read this sentence, “Last weekend, I started doing some shifting of closet contents in order to help alleviate some clothes storage problems.” No, I thought! Don’t shift things around. Get rid of things! I know that in 2008 I had a lot more clothes than I have now. And I know I still have more than I need.

When we own fewer items we have less to manage. When we distill our items down to those things that we use and love, then we can easily find what we need and put it away. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again:

Life is easier when you have less stuff.

Next time you have the itch to organize, see how much you can let go of before you start the actual organizing. Don’t move things around, move things out. Resist the temptation to buy organizing supplies or storage solutions before you declutter.

If you declutter prior to organizing, you set yourself up for success. When you have fewer items to organize (and manage), everything becomes easier.