The language of decluttering

I love the language of decluttering….. some of my favourites are:

• gone baby, gone!
• chucked
• piffed
• gone to god
• send out to the universe
• kiss it goodbye
• let go
• relinquished
• demoted
• done and dusted

I’m sure there’s more ways to say goodbye…… what are some of your faves?

Organize Magazine

I have a year’s worth of Organize magazine to give away. They are pre loved – I have enjoyed scanning them, but now they are just CLUTTER in my office! To win all five copies, all you need to do is tell me what area of your home or office you absolutely must get under control in fifty words or less by posting your comment here! (Bear in mind that if you submit an entry under “anonymous” I won’t be able to reach you if you’re the winner!) One entry per person please. Most creative and unusual entry wins. Entries close 5pm Friday 5th June (Australian EST). Good luck!

STOP PRESS: I’ve extended the closing date by a week – you can now enter up until Friday 13th June (5pm (Australian EST).  Cheers!

Need to declutter your office?

 

Here at SORTED! we’re big fans of Traveller’s Aid… they do some great work (check out www.travellersaid.org.au).  I am hoping you might have some furniture cluttering up your office that you need to donate…. check this out….  YOUR DONATION CAN ALSO BE A TAX DEDUCTION!

 

Schools unclutter the curriculum

I LOVED this story I heard yesterday on the Triple J news. The Australian Primary Principals Association has announced that the curriculm is fat and it needs some attention.

APPA President Leonie Trimper says their new Charter clarifies primary education “without the curriculum being cluttered by activities and issues that were more the role of parents, special interest groups, and other government sectors.”

“In essence, the Charter says that there should be four core elements to the curriculum:
• English literacy.
• Mathematics.
• Science.
• Social Education.”

She said that the core was not intended to imply that other learning areas were unimportant. “All learning areas are worthwhile, but the Charter argues that substantial involvement in the other learning areas depends on the critical and prior importance of ensuring that all children make satisfactory progress in the core areas.

I love that clarification, simplification and decluttering applies to so much more than the physical world.

Read the full article here

Say what?

I bought some Ansell rubber gloves yesterday. As I was discarding the packaging, I noticed the text on the back on the packet. It actually says “Retain this packaging for future reference”.

Are they serious? What would I need to do that for?!

have you noticed… we’re drowning in clutter?

You may have seen the piece in the Herald Sun’s Sunday magazine commenting on the book “A Perfect Mess: the Hidden Benefits of Disorder” by Eric Abrahamson and David H Freedman.

The book states: “When we are being ruthless about ridding ourselves of what naturally accumulates around us and about meticulously straightening out what remains, we are in a sense tidying our identities. The truth is, we are all at least a bit of a mess — and all the more interesting for it.”

The same issue of Sunday Magazine also ran a feature on the “perfection bug” with a defining list that included
“do you consider people who don’t label the outside of their drawers slobs?” and
“do you consider one thing lying on a table clutter?*”

What do you reckon? Does meticulous and tidy result in zero personality? Or does messy and manic cloud personality and only add to the confusion, masking the personality? Or is it possible to be a bit of both and keep the balance?

(*for the record, one thing lying on a table is not clutter. The definition of clutter is anything you don’t love, don’t use or don’t need.)

The Chaser’s War on clutter

God love those Chaser boys…. they are even warring on clutter! I love that chucking an old fitness video makes the news. It’s time to go Tae Bo!!

Is there some old fitness stuff lurking in your cupboard or shed? How do you justify hanging onto that stuff for when it’s only dragged out every two or three years? Is it worth it?

welcome!

Hi, I’m Lissanne. I’m a Professional Organiser based in Melbourne, Australia. I run a company called SORTED! organising & decluttering. I help people organise their space and create more efficient homes and offices. I love getting rid of clutter but am a big fan of balance… it’s not about living a minimalist life!

I have a book called sorted! due for release in October 2007. I share many organising secrets: tangled power cords? managing mail and paperwork, systems for paying bills and many simple philosophies that will get you organised and free from clutter!

You might like to check out my website: www.sorted.net.auIn this blog you’ll find tips, ideas and discussions all about organising (or organizing!). That includes stuff about the dreaded curse of clutter, efficiency and making the most of that precious resource: time. Another precious resource is money…. so here’s a question…. does being organised save you money? Or is it overrated?