Deb Lee contacted me yesterday, wondering why I had not included her post in the Professional Organizers Blog Carnival for March. When I checked to see whether I’d received it, I discovered that somehow I’d omitted all of the tax-related posts! I sincerely apologize for my oversight, but as they say, better late than never!

I’m still trying to figure out how this happened. Do you think I have a subconscious fear of dealing with taxes?

I actually received four submissions on the topic of financial organizing specific to taxes:

• Master Cruz: Two Things Certain in Life…
• Stephanie LH Calahan: Consider Donations in Your Tax Planning
• Deb Lee: The Taxman Cometh
• Carmen Coker: Get Organized: Tax Prep

On the upside, my delay in sharing these gave me a chance to include one more post which wasn’t yet available when the first part of this month’s Professional Organizers Blog Carnival was published!

In regards to budgeting, Audrey Cupo explained why It’s More Important Than Ever To Budget Your Money.

Don’t forget that the topic for April’s Blog Carnival is green organizing.

By the way, if I choose not to include a post you submit for any reason, I will email you to let you know, so please don’t hesitate to follow up with me like Deb did if I ever make this mistake again!

Please visit Organized Assistant to read and comment on Professional Organizers Blog Carnival for March 2010, Part 2: Taxes.

Welcome to this month’s edition of the Professional Organizers Blog Carnival! We have a lot of new people participating this month, so I’d like to welcome everyone and encourage you to read and comment on your colleagues’ posts. I’m sure you’ll find it to be a fun way to get to know one another while picking up some new ideas for your clients, or even for yourself!

When I chose this month’s topic of Financial Organizing, I was a bit concerned that we might have a whole bunch of similar posts, so I was really pleased to see the wide range of submissions that came in!

We have:

Budgeting tips from Christine Simiriglia in Organize Your Money and Save for What You Want and Joan Kosmachuk in Get Organized for the Holidays – Make a Spending Budget

Money management tips from Ellen Delap in Getting Organized with Your Money and Finances and Ramona Creel in Ten Steps To Financial Freedom. Ramona says,

Financial independence is well within our grasp — we just have to make a few fundamental shifts in the way we choose between instant gratification and future security.

Credit card tips in Playing Your Cards Right: How The CARD Act Helps Organize Your Finances from Julie Bestry, who says,

A major key to getting and keeping your finances in order is understanding the credit and debt infrastructure–the rules that determine how much interest you’re charged and the fees you are assessed. As they say, forewarned is forearmed!

Tips for filing financial paperwork from Michelle Deo in Files & Taxes, Margarita Ibbott in Homebox – One Spot Document Holder and Filing System, and Elaine Shannon in How to organize your Finances

Financial document retention tips from Angie Weid in Do I Really Need My Last 5 Years of Electric Bills?

And last but not least, some spectacular piggy banks for storing your change from Jeri Dansky, the product-finding organizer, in Piggy Banks That Aren’t Pigs: A Glyptodon, A Goat, and More.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this month’s Professional Organizers Blog Carnival!

In honor of Earth Day, the theme for April will be green organizing, and you are welcome to submit your post at any time.

For those of you who like to plan ahead, the topic for May will be organizing tips for busy moms, but no submissions will be accepted for May’s Carnival until after April 10^th.

If you’d like to suggest a topic for a future Professional Organizers Blog Carnival, please feel free to leave a comment or to contact me directly.

Please visit Organized Assistant to read and comment on Professional Organizers Blog Carnival for March 2010: Financial Organizing.

Here it is – the 7^th Professional Organizers Blog Carnival, and the last one for 2009. We have a record number of professional organizers participating this month, and I’d like to thank those who are joining us for the first time, as well as our regulars and everyone in between! Grab your favorite beverage and get ready to read and enjoy!

Since it’s the festive season, it’s no surprise that many of this month’s entries are related to holiday preparations.

In A Few Thoughts on the Holiday Season, Jane Veldhoven gets us thinking about what’s really important to us at this time of year, and how we can maximize our enjoyment of it.

Jacki Hollywood Brown has some great ideas for Clutter Free Gift Giving, and reminds us that:

The holidays can be one of the happiest times of the year as we enjoy the company of our family and friends. It is also one of the most clutter-generating times of the year. Take a look at these gift ideas to reduce clutter and save you time and money.

You can read additional clutter-free Christmas gift suggestions from Angela Esnouf in her special series, beginning with Angela’s Advent, Day 1.

Joan Kosmachuk tells us how to Simplify your Holiday Decorating with Live or Edible Decorations, and Lelah Baker-Rabe suggests a few simple things you can do to create a year-round gift wrap station to minimize stress and maximize efficiency, in her post Preparing for every day: Gift wrap station.

If you’re looking for a unique way to keep track of Christmas card lists for yourself or your clients, check out Jeri Dansky‘s Forget the Address Book: Use an Address BOX.

Of course, this is also a good time for making plans for next year. Elaine Shannon tells us all about her own Planning Day, saying:

I love organizing so much that I have organized some planning around my 2010 goals. Yes the organizer is organizing herself. So many people wonder why they are not moving forward in their business but don’t have a score card to compare it to. By failing to plan as we know you plan to fail. With a few strategies you can take charge of your new year and meet your goals..whatever they may be!

While you’re making those plans, you might find it interesting to read about other organizers’ success strategies. Anne Blumer tells us how she got to where she is today in her post, Ask the Organizer Panel, and Angie Weid shares The Story Behind Organized Solutions, saying:

This post is sharing a story of being kicked down, learning to stand back up and keep on working toward success.  My hope is that it encourages fellow organizers to be strong and succeed.

Lisa Montanaro offers some eye-opening information in Coopetition: A Fantastic Way To Boost Your Business, a sneak peek of “Don’t Go It Alone: It Takes a Village to Run A Successful Business,” which she’ll be presenting at the 2010 NAPO Conference in Columbus, OH.

Looking for interesting organizing resources? Be sure to read My Brain Book from Hellen Buttigieg and PaperBackSwap.com from Michelle Deo.

Janet Baker discusses the why’s and how’s of Indexing Your Document Management Filing System is Worth it When You’re on the Road.

If you’re curious about hoarding from the client’s point of view, you won’t want to miss Geralin Thomas‘ Anatomy of a Client.

Deb Lee tackles The Myth of Work/Family Balance, asking:

Is it realistic to think that work/family balance is possible?  Can you be a great parent and a great employee (or entrepreneur) at the same time?  Can a family where both parents work achieve this balance?

Janine Adams wraps up this month’s Professional Organizers Blog Carnival with a look at her favorite social networking site in Why I Love Twitter.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this month’s edition. As you visit your colleagues’ blogs, be sure to take a moment to leave a comment or two and get to know one another.

As the Carnival continues to grow, I’d love to know what you’d like to see in the future. Specific topics for each month? Two separate carnivals, with one dedicated to organizing and the other to business ideas? Or just keep it the same?

Please visit Organized Assistant to read and comment on Professional Organizers Blog Carnival – December 2009 Edition.

Welcome to the November issue of the Professional Organizers Blog Carnival! It’s exciting for me to watch the carnival grow, with new bloggers participating every month. Be sure to take advantage of this opportunity to connect with and learn from your organizing colleagues! There’s a lot to read here, so if you can’t get through all the links at one sitting, I hope you’ll bookmark this post and come back later.

We’ll kick things off with some posts about Working with Clients.

If you’ve been watching Hoarders, you might be wondering whether you have what it takes to work with clients with hoarding issues. Find out by reading Geralin Thomas‘ post, Cleaning a Hoarder’s Home: Not for the Faint of Heart.

Can you ever combine friendship and business? Lisa Montanaro says “yes” in Mixing Business With Pleasure: Professional Organizer + Disorganized Friend = Valuable Lessons.

Next, we have some Business Strategies in Deb Lee‘s post, The Entrepreneur’s Toolbox:  8 Things You Need to Get.

Effective Time Management is crucial to the success of your business, and this topic is covered by Christine Simiriglia in Thirty Minute Time Management Miracle and Margaret Lukens in The Jump-Start Meeting.

Alex Fayle says:

Many of us, even Professional Organizers, put off doing things because we think there will be plenty of time to do it later.

There won’t be. As author Mignon McLaughlin said: “Don’t fool yourself that important things can be put off till tomorrow; they can be put off forever, or not at all.”

Read more in his post Someday Doesn’t Last Forever. Procrastination is also addressed by Claire Tompkins in Why I Procrastinate.

Several bloggers share some great Organizing Tips that you can use with your clients or in your own life.

In Decluttering Adventure – the Roadmap, Angela Esnouf explains that

The Roadmap is just the start of a Decluttering Adventure, with more steps in the journey to follow.

Hellen Buttigieg explores the psychological benefits of decluttering in her post, Letting Go.

Preventing clutter is also important, and this topic is covered by Ramona Creel in Ways To Bring Less Paper Into Your Life, and Jeri Dansky in How to Shop So You Don’t Wind Up with Clutter.

In Organizing myth: Organize once and never do it again, Lelah Baker-Rabe explains that

Organization requires maintenance; there is no one-time “organization vaccine.”

Julie Bestry, AKA the Paper Doll, uncovers some eye-opening information in Who Knows Your Secrets? Part 2: Checking Up on Your Checking History.

We’ll close off this month’s Professional Organizers Blog Carnival with an announcement from Janet Baker about a “Smooth Sailing Document Management” contest drawing for a FREE 7-day Caribbean sailing vacation!

Thanks very much to everyone who participated this month! Please show your support by visiting their blogs and leaving some comments – it’s a great way to get to know one another! If you’ve never taken part in the Professional Organizers Blog Carnival, perhaps we’ll see you next month!

Please visit Organized Assistant to read and comment on Professional Organizers Blog Carnival – November 2009 Edition.

Welcome to this month’s issue of the Professional Organizers Blog Carnival, a collection of blog posts submitted by some of the organizing consultants who enjoy reading Your Organizing Business. I’m so thrilled to be hosting this monthly feature, and I hope you’ll take some time to read the various posts and get to know some of your fellow organizers.

As usual, we have an interesting variety of topics this month.

Home and Family

Terry shares some easy tips to get you and your clients thinking about Preparing For Disaster, explaining that

Preparing for a disaster is something that 90% of Americans know they need to do, but only 5-10% of them actually do.

Anne Blumer presents the first in a series of seven posts on organizing for Back to School. Other posts in the series will cover:

• Parents Need to Stay Involved
• Make Homework Routine
• Use Tools Wisely
• Teach Time Management
• Teach Project Management
• Help Them Find Their Own Way

Personal and Professional Development

In How to Manage the Chaos of Transformation, Alex Fayle explains that

Renovating the soul has more in common with renovating the home than you might think… a little planning and chaos control can help through the transformation.

Margaret Lukens shares Four no-excuses ways to exercise for better productivity.

Angela Esnouf describes The Journey to Expert, saying

I’m thrilled to be granted Expert accreditation and happy to share what got me there.

Collecting, Hoarding, Streamlining and Organizing All Kinds of Stuff

Geralin Thomas, who is currently appearing on A&E’s Hoarders, shares her expertise in Collectors and Hoarders: There is a Difference.

Jodi Granok answers the question, Do Professional Organizers Ever Need to Organize Themselves?

In What’s In Your Memory Box? Creating an Organized Home for Your Prized Possessions, Lisa Montanaro shares her tip on dealing with personal memorabilia, and says,

A Memory Box is a great tool to use with a client that wants to save sentimental items, and get them in one place. And yes, even us organizers have Memory Boxes too!

Lelah Baker-Rabe answers the question, Who needs a professional organizer? with a few warning signs that someone might be prone to overbuying and need some professional help.

Jacki Hollywood Brown offers three Alternatives to Owning that will help you and your clients keep your space clutter free, while using stuff you don’t actually own.

Janet Baker gives us 5 Ways to Deal with Paper using The Paper Tiger filing software.

Contest!

No, I don’t normally include my own posts in the Blog Carnival, but I want to make sure you know about my contest, as described in Recommend a Planner and Win a Free E-Book! I’ve received some great entries already, but you may have an even better idea!

As always, I’d like to thank all the bloggers who have participated in this month’s Professional Organizers Blog Carnival. This is a monthly event, so if you didn’t submit a post, feel free to join us next time! In the meantime, be sure to check out the above posts, leave some comments, and get to know one another!

Please visit Organized Assistant to read and comment on Professional Organizers Blog Carnival – September 2009 Edition.

As a professional office organizer, I found that the majority of people sought my help because of the piles of paperwork that were encroaching on their workspace. Some clients had basic organizing skills, and often a fairly decent filing system, but were simply not making time to file their paid bills, completed projects, and so on. For the majority, however, it was not that simple.

Many visual thinkers are quite insistent that their paperwork must be in view at all times. Sometimes a desktop vertical organizer will work well, especially if it is slanted so that all the file labels are visible, but if your client has a large number of active projects, or if the files are very thick, it may not be very effective. Under these circumstances, the organizing product I recommended most often was a literature sorter.

As shown in the above photo, it consists of a number of sections, similar to the mail slots frequently seen in large offices. You can assign a specific topic or project to each section, affixing a label to the front of the shelf, and when your client receives a piece of mail or other document, he or she can quickly and easily put it away in the appropriate section. This ensures that all documentation related to a particular project is kept together, without having to dig through piles of paperwork on your desk to match them up.

Because a literature sorter is only slightly deeper than a sheet of standard letter-sized paper, it can fit on most desktops without taking up valuable workspace, but if your client has a smaller desk, you may need to place it on top of a filing cabinet, credenza, or small table located within your work area.

I’ve found that a literature sorter works well for all kinds of people. It works for “pilers” because it allows them to continue piling, but instead of having unidentified piles all over their desk (or office floor!), they have neatly organized and labelled piles, which also makes life easier for any associates who may need to find information when they are not in the office. People who like more traditional organizing strategies also like this system, because they can customize the sections to meet their individual needs, and easily modify them as their workload changes.

Literature organizers are manufactured in a variety of materials, including cardboard, plastic, laminate, wood, and steel, and in sizes ranging from 12 to 72 sections. Some of them are stackable so you can expand the system if needed. To view some of the products available, visit Amazon.com or your favorite office supply store.

If your client isn’t convinced that they can adapt to this system, they may wish to start with a cardboard version, and then invest in a sturdier product once they’re sold on the idea.

Do you have any other strategies for paper pilers?

Please visit Organized Assistant to read and comment on The Perfect Product for Paper Pilers.

Welcome to the first issue of the Professional Organizers Blog Carnival, a monthly collection of blog posts submitted by some of the organizing consultants who enjoy reading Your Organizing Business. Please visit their blogs, read their posts, and leave a comment or two. It’s an awesome way to learn something new and grow your network at the same time!

To get us started on the right foot, Debbie Jordan Kravitz tells us why Organizing Rules Are Meant To Be Broken.

One of my favorite organizing topics is Technology, so I was very interested in Krista Colvin‘s review of the ScanSnap scanner. Krista says that it’s “easy to take with you when you go see clients,” and you can read all about it in ScanSnap me Baby!

Also in the Technology category, Lauren Halagarda has posted some great instructional videos that will benefit anyone who answers “yes” to the question Got PC Clutter? She tells us that “While the post is from 8/08, I still find it quite relevant. I find most of my clients don’t use a search engine or even really understand its value. This gives them the opportunity to read about them and see them in action.”

Amy Tokos notes that “It is travel season for families. Here are a few tips to help with the packing and planning. Enjoy!” Read Amy’s advice in Organized Packing for a Family Vacation.

If your clients’ travel plans (or your own) involve a road trip, be sure to check out Julie Bestry‘s trunkload of resources for Organizing Your Car Maintenance Records.

Lelah Baker-Rabe shares tips on another theme that’s especially important this time of year, Preparing for an emergency.

On a related note, Jodi Granok provides some valuable Emergency Information Resources.

Before closing, we’ll take a look at time management, as Janice Russell explains the benefits of timing activities in hosed in three minutes.

Alex Fayle says that “While often people suggest focusing on only a few tasks is the best way to get things done, I do much better working on a lot of projects a little at a time.” Learn more about his strategy in Productivity Marathons: Dealing with Too Long To-Do Lists.

That wraps up this month’s Professional Organizers Blog Carnival; I hope you enjoyed it!

We’ll do it again next month, so don’t forget to submit your post and join the party! Be sure to come back on July 10^th for the next edition.

Please visit Organized Assistant to read and comment on Professional Organizers Blog Carnival – June 2009 Edition.

When you think of organizing products, the first things that probably come to mind are those items which will remain at your client’s home or office, such as containers to store various large or small objects together and keep them in their proper place. Then there are other products which are designed to be used during the organizing process, such as the all-purpose file sorter.

I fell in love with the file sorter back when I was working in a large office environment, so when I became an office organizer, I was quick to add one to my toolkit.

When you have large quantities of paperwork to sort, organizing it into piles requires a lot of space on your work surface, and it’s hard to efficiently keep track of what goes in each pile. The file sorter addresses both of these problems.

Basically, you still sort the documents into piles, but instead of spreading them out on the desk or table (or the floor, if there’s a huge amount!), you simply slide them into the appropriate slot. The tabs are labelled several ways, so you can easily sort alphabetically, by day of the week, date or month, or by file number, and they’re staggered so you can still see the labels even when you’ve inserted lots of pages. Once everything is sorted, you can pull out each section for filing or further sorting.

Using the file sorter can minimize strain on your neck and back, especially on really large organizing jobs. One project where I found it exceptionally useful was with a client who used a full size binder-style Franklin Planner, in which he inserted his meeting agendas, itineraries, and any other paperwork related to his schedule. Each month he would remove the pages and put them in a pile on his shelf. By using my file sorter, I was able to organize all those pages and place them in order and in their appropriate storage case in a fraction of the time that it would have otherwise taken me – benefitting me physically and mentally, and saving my client money.

My file sorter, as pictured above, is Oxford model number 40652, but several similar products are available, including the C-Line 30526 and the C-Line 30532. The tabs on all three of these products are plastic, allowing you to easily slide papers in and out. If you prefer not to buy plastic products, Oxford also makes a pressboard version.

What’s your favorite tool for organizing paper?

Please visit Organized Assistant to read and comment on The Must-Have Tool for Organizing Paper.