How do you get started with so much stuff?

Never underestimate the mood lifting power of a good tidy, so immediate, so satisfying. You can become a better parent when you get yourself organized. No convincing any child of anything!

These are tips I give new clients, in no particular order. Try one now and save some for later.

Start left to right or top to bottom. Getting started can be the hardest part. If it's your stuff, it's covered in psychic goo that can stop you in your tracks, you over think it. To cut through your crazy, start in one corner and move, in order, to the next corner. If you have a stack of papers, go top to bottom. DO NOT DIG FOR SOMETHING MORE INTERESTING, EASIER OR MORE COMPELLING (I was, in fact, yelling at you, but in a loving and supportive way).

Set a Timer. The Pomodoro Technique is my go to timer app, and there are lots more. We can't clean out the whole closet, but we can show up for 25 minutes.

Buffer in time to "To and Fro": Add in 5- 10 minutes to put things right. Take out garbage, load car with donations, put items where they belong.

When de-cluttering use black garbage bags for trash (they are bigger, stronger and you can't see through them), white kitchen bags for donate (smaller, easy to write on if you are taking them to more then one donation place or giving hand me down clothes away to different friends), paper shopping bags for books (about the right size for the amount of books I can easily carry).

Buy nice hangers. Nice hangers promote a nice closet. A nice closet gets tidied more often. A tidier closet speaks gently and with encouraging words. Messy closets can be judgey and mean.

Organize 2015 taxes now. Create the files you need, 2015 Income, 2015 Estimated Taxes, 2015 Charity. Set an appointment every other week to update and categorize your banking and credit cards. While it's fresh in our minds, fix some of the perennial problems we have with keeping our finances organized.