Challenging Disorganization and Hoarding Expert Ellen Hankes

The Myths of Lists

1. I kept hearing about a movie called The Bucket List. Movie-goers tended to rate the movie higher than the professional reviewers. Maybe the critics missed their mark on this one!

Central to the movie is a list. We organizers just love lists, so it was no surprise that I liked the film which stars Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman.

I don't want to spoil the movie for anyone, but since the word LIST is in the film title, we can certainly talk about lists here. Click to learn more about the Myths of Lists.

Promotional Piece Purge

Tall and thin. Short and pudgy. There are coffee mugs of all kinds from various vendors. Each office has its unique collection, depending on the generosity of its vendors and other business associates.

A Minnesota company found in its offices over 18,000 promotional items including mugs, paper pads and pens! What did they do with than many advertising pieces?

New Life to Tucked Away Treasures

How do we incorporate the beautiful glass dishes of yesterday with today's casual lifestyle? As part of my presentation on Organize to Downsize, members of an Omaha, NE area women's group shared their stories with me this week about how they are transferring the joy and beauty of special collections to family members.

One of the group members related how she and her daughter carefully hand washed the cherished collection of long-ago-collected glass plates and dishes. As the holidays approached she tried to decide what to do with these lovely dishes that she no longer had the occasion to use. Read more to learn the fate of these dishes.

Organize to the Beat

If you are looking for a little motivation to get some routine tasks done, put on some good old rock & roll or other favorite music. Treat yourself to some tunes you haven't heard for a while.

You'll find the task gets done quicker. The beat of the music can help you move through the dreaded task with a beat of your own.

In the book Fidget to Focus Dr. Roland Rotz and Sarah D. Wright review many kinds of sensory strategies for people with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). They relate the story of Ted whose became much more productive when he started listening to white noise, a type of background sound.

Have you had a similar experience? I would like to hear about it. Just use our comment form below.

Game Tests Organizing Skills

Thanks to my nephew Keith, I got on better speaking terms with my new PDA/cell phone combination. Until his helpful consultation, I was not a happy camper when it came to learning to use this new wonder tool. The 2.25 x 4.5 inch electronic device has the ability to display satellite maps, manage my contacts and email, serve as a mobile phone, and annoy the user. Most of those functions were what I expected from this new device when my old PDA bit the dust and I changed mobile phone carriers to get better reception at home.

What I did not anticipate were the extras installed on the device such as Bubble BreakerTM. When I could not find rules or directions for the game, I figured out that it was just like Organizing Principles. Keep reading to learn why.

Communicating with Our Elders

Recently I read David Solie's fascinating book How To Say It to Seniors: Closing the Communications Gap With Our Elders. What he had to say about how we communicate with senior citizens is valuable reading for anyone has older family members, friends, co-workers or clients. Elders who are struggling to find their voice as a senior member of today's American society will find in this book a level of understanding not readily identified elsewhere.

The need to maintain control over the multitude of physical and life changes and the simultaneous need to discover a legacy is what drives our elders in this society according to Solie. His book is full of examples of how we, as middle-agers, tend to direct communication with older people according to our needs as opposed to truly listening to the older generation. While there are certainly changes in the physical bodies of aging people, a corresponding mental disability is simply not a reality.

As an organizer, I often get questions from adult children who are concerned about a parent's ability to maintain a too-large home. The two generations find it difficult to discuss and address next steps. Keep reading for how we can communicate in a way that helps our elders maintain control and perhaps discover a legacy.

Leadership—It’s In The Bag

Why do some community members always seem ready to serve in leadership positions? How can they manage to keep track of all the important information like membership lists and schedules? Here's one of their secrets--they keep all their materials for each organization in separate briefcases or bags. Papers and other materials related to the organization are kept together in one tote bag or briefcase.

Since I am an active member of Toastmasters International, I'll use that as an example. Everything that might be needed for a Toastmaster meeting goes in one bag. Weekly meetings roll around quickly and no time is wasted trying to find needed manuals or schedules if it is already in the bag. Material for routine parts of the meeting and reference items are helpful when sharing information with others or filling an unexpected role at a meeting.

Continue on to learn what to include in your Leadership Bag.

Collections Create Space Challenges

We find the hobby of collecting like things interesting. Collecting is like finding variations on a theme.

What do you collect? Over the years I had collections of aprons, family wedding gowns, and autograph albums. Since I come from a family of collectors it is always fun to find additions to other people’s collections.

Sometimes our zest for collecting outpaces our space to put the collected items. What begins as one or two well-placed items on a shelf suddenly has dozens of companions that barely can be seen. What started as a small knick knack or two now requires space for more curio cabinets.

Here are some ways to keep the collections from overtaking their due space:

• Be selective. Many collectors first go for quantity. As their collection grows they become more discriminating and seek qualities such as specific colors or rarity.
• Share with others who admire your collection. Give, trade, or sell your duplicates to other collectors or as gifts to those who would appreciate them. Our family was delighted when Grandma gave each of us one of the beautiful syrup pitchers from her extensive collection.
• Select the finest few to display. The display of a few may be more interesting than the larger quantity.
• Be creative in displaying collections. For example, a handkerchief collection can be shown in table settings or used with china displays.

How have you corralled your collections? Do you have a unique way of keeping your collections? I would like to hear your stories.