The 123's of Organizing

I wanted to explain the 123's of organizing just about anything. I will feature before and after pictures from Megen's quilt studio. Below is the row of cabinets that line one wall of her studio.


The first step is to create a plan for your space! Ask yourself questions like, "What is this space to be used for?", "What would this space look like if my dreams came true?", "What activities are going to happen in this space?". Plan out "zones" for the different activities that will take place in the room. Try and keep supplies and furniture for those activities in their "zones."

One of Megen's dreams for her studio was to have her beautiful colored fabrics displayed on shelves. Currently they were in these cabinets and hard to see, find and remember what was there.



The second step is to sort! We sorted through all of the fabric, supplies, projects, and miscellaneous things. Create piles all over the room. The great thing about sorting is that you don't have to make any decisions. Don't worry about what you should keep or get rid of. Just sort.

The third step is to go through your sorting piles. Ask yourself, "Do I need this?", "Have I used this in the last year?", "Do I love this?", "Does this make my life better?", "Does it fit with the "zone" I have planned for this space?". You will work through this step with ease if you have thoroughly completed step one.

Steps four and more entail finding a home for your things, containing them, labeling them, and planning a way to maintain them.

We proceeded with step three on Megen's fabric and Works in Progress (WIP). Now, seeing them all in front of her, she could easily decide what to keep and what to donate. We contained all of her projects in the containers that she already had. We labeled them and made a master list that she could refer to when deciding what project to tackle next. These WIPs took up three of the five available cabinets. Pictured is one of the three cabinets.


Removing all of Megen's fabric freed up a lot of Megen's cabinet space. Because her second grand baby was on the way, she was changing her guestroom to a grandchild room. This entailed cleaning out a closet where she kept all of her scrap booking supplies. We planned a "scrapbook zone" for the last two cabinets and continued through steps 2, 3, 4 and more. Now, whenever Megen wants to scrapbook, she can use a table by the cabinets and have all of her supplies at her fingertips.



Think about a project that you want to organize. It can be something as small as your purse. Start with step one: plan. Continue with step two: sort, step three: go through each pile, steps four and more: decide on a home, contain, label and make a plan to maintain. You will be amazed how easy it is when you follow the 123's of Organizing!

Personal Accountability

I just finished reading John G. Miller's book QBQ! The Question Behind the Question. Everyone should read this book and everyone should start applying it to their daily lives. When you read the book you will understand why that sentence is so funny.

Mr. Miller teaches us about personal accountability. He explains how the questions we ask ourselves cause us to blame, complain and procrastinate OR, if we are asking QBQ's, they help us practice life-transforming personal accountability.

On page eighteen he gives us three simple guidelines for creating a QBQ that I must share now so you can begin:

1. Begin [your question] with "What" or "How" (not "Why," "When," or "Who").
2. Contain an "I" (not "they," "them," "we," or "you").
3. Focus on action.

Lets relate this to your organization needs... You may be asking yourself, "Why can't he/she ever put things back?" Instead of that question, which places blame, you could ask yourself a QBQ like, "What can I do to better understand why it is so hard for him/her to put things back?"

Here is another example... You may have said, "Why am I such a loser? I can't even get this little project accomplished." That places blame on yourself and doesn't accomplish a thing! Instead try the QBQ method and ask this, "How can I break this project down and schedule a small amount each day?" This would be transforming! You would have an immediate focus, breaking the project down, and small goals, scheduled small steps each day, to accomplish the project.

Practicing QBQ trains your thoughts and narrows your path toward accomplishment and accountability...truly life transforming!

I will close this by asking myself, "What can I read next to make me an expert in the organizing field?" Hmmm... Organized for Success - Top Executives and CEOs Reveal the Organizing Principles That Helped Them Reach the Top by Stephanie Winston.

Award Winner

Certain people can accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. It takes motivation, focus and determination. I had a client recently, Megen, who did just that!

We had finished an organizing session and at the end of the session we had decided on some things that she could do before we met again (her "homework"). THREE days later she sent me pictures of the things she had completed! I was blown away and so impressed at how much she accomplished in such a short time! She earns the Simply Squared Away's Award for "Above and Beyond Homework Completion."

I wanted to share the before and after pictures. Megen had a wonderful space that she was using as her sewing and quilting room. She was ready to organize it, display her fabrics and create a system to know what projects she was currently working on. She wanted the room to have a creative, put together feel to it. Here is part of it before:


Her homework was to paint a dressing table that she already had. It would replace the current embroidery table. She also needed to paint the peg board that was in her garage and put those things in place. Remember, THREE days later she sent me this picture!

I love the "clean" feel I get when I see this finished area! I told Megen that it made me want to come have a cup of tea and learn how to quilt with her! We could probably get an entire quilt done in less than a day!

Hopefully you will be inspired to accomplish a project of your own today!