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Be A Better Version Of You

a woman at her desk multi-tasking

Want To Be More Productive? Use Task-Layering Not Multi-Tasking

By Be A Better Version Of You

Everyone wants to be more productive. We want to get more done in less time, so we multi-task. But do we really get more done when we’re multi-tasking? When we’re busy doing so many things, do we truly accomplish more? We like to think that we can do multiple things at once. Multi-tasking has become a buzz phrase of sorts but are you really more productive when you multi-task? Research says that you are not. This article from the Cleveland Clinic in March 2021 reports that multi-tasking can reduce our ability to focus intently on one task and our ability…

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A fearful emoji

3 Ways of Reducing Your Fear of Donating Belongings

By Be A Better Version Of You

I read this quote the other day when I was working out at the gym: “Everything you’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear” by George Addair. I wonder how many people are letting fear prevent them from getting organized and donating excess belongings.  There are so many fears which we associate with the organizing process. One of the fears I often hear is implied in the question: Is this the most disorganized or hoarded home you’ve ever seen?  I’m not a therapist. I’m a professional organizer and as such I can tell you that most people are…

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a woman ready to cope with unexpected events

How To Successfully Cope With Unexpected Events & Stay Organized

By Be A Better Version Of You

I know. No one organizes their day considering unexpected events. Honestly, when you organize your day, you are simply hoping your plan works out. None of us knows for sure that nothing will interfere with what we plan. Or at least, no one I know can see into the future. We make our plan based on the information we have at the time. Since the unknown is, just that, unknown how do we successfully cope with unexpected events that occur in our day and stay organized. What is unknown? Let’s think about the common unexpected events. These include lengthy phone…

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How To Leave The Past Organizing Mistakes Behind

By Be A Better Version Of You

A friend of mine reminded me a couple of weeks ago to stay in the moment and not dwell on past mistakes. You see, I was stressing over the fact that I was making mistakes during the filming of a video for the NAPO 2022 Conference application submission. My friend said to leave the past in the past. There’s nothing you can do about it now, so move on. This was great advice! I did just that, focusing on the moment and doing my best at that time. That’s all anyone can ask. There’s lots of talk right now about…

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kids playing soccer

3 Reasons Why Kids Playtime is Important

By Be A Better Version Of You

Kids are just as busy as we are. Gone are the days when children would come home from school, deposit their lunchbox and backpack, grab a snack, and dash back out the door to play with their friends. Something happened to our kids’ playtime. They are involved in activities from dawn to dusk in part to provide childcare because both parents work. Also, because parenting is easier when the children are involved and not left to their own devices. You never know what kids will get into. Organize your home so that kids can have free play when they are…

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Fourth of July

My Top 10 Ways We Are Free

By Be A Better Version Of You

We are so very lucky here in the United States. We can express our freedom every day from the time we get up to the time we turn out the lights. It’s rare that we even think about most of them.  Every day we are free to make all sorts of choices for ourselves. I have listed some below.     1. Free to say what you want. Although sometimes saying what’s on my mind gets me into trouble. Does that ever happen to you? Do the words slip out of your mouth before you’ve had a chance to think about…

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a beautiful woman hugging a pillow in the shape of a heart and smiling

Show Love for Yourself on Valentine’s Day & Every Day

By Be A Better Version Of You

It’s St. Valentine’s Day and love is in the air. Have you ever wondered about the origin St. Valentine’s Day? I learned that St. Valentine’s day started out as the Roman Festival of Lupercalia. This festival celebrated the coming of spring among other things. Pope Gelasius replaced it with St. Valentine’s Day at the end of the fifth century. It was celebrated as a day filled with love and romance during the 14th century as it still is today. We often talk about love and romance in terms of couples on Valentine’s Day but today, I’m talking about compassion, forgiveness,…

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5 Valuable Lessons Learned in 2020: It’s a Wrap!

By Be A Better Version Of You

I’m wrapping up 2020 with this final blog of the year by sharing with you some of the most valuable lessons I learned during the course of 2020. Valuable Lessons Learned Flexibility Some of you may know that I love to dance and am a competitive amateur ballroom dancer. As such, I exercise and stretch almost every day.  I am limber and very flexible which helps me tremendously when I dance. This year one of the valuable lessons I learned was to be very flexible in my planning. Initially, I had planned to visit my son and his sweet family…

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a woman doing the best she can do to climb a ladder

Ask Yourself: Is This the Best You Can Do?

By Be A Better Version Of You, How to Organize Your Life Blog

Do you ever ask yourself, Is this the best you can do? I do. If I’m stuck and feeling frustrated with a project, I sometimes throw my hands up in disgust and ask myself, Is this the best you can do? When the answer is, no, I give myself a little talking to, think about my purpose, and keep on working. Hopefully the answer is, yes and I give myself permission to stop, reward myself, and walk away. Since I am a professional organizer, I’m talking about organizing projects. What does the best you can do mean? Doing your best…

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a young woman celebrating success

How to Make Your Day a Success When Your Plan Fails

By Be A Better Version Of You

We’ve all been there, I’m sure. You make a plan for the day. You know exactly what you’re doing and then something happens. Your plan fails. You have to throw your plan out the window. When this happens, you have a couple of choices. You can wallow in despair or you can shift gears and make your day a success anyway. The choice is yours. This exact thing happened to me this week. I made a plan to get something done and arrived at the appointment on time but the person who was working with me arrived almost 3 hours…

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