At one point or another, some of us face a mountain of clutter that we have to sort out. For some, it may be their desk at work, for others, it may be a messy room at home. Regardless of where the clutter is, be it home or work, it can take its toll on you in one way or another. The most obvious cost of clutter is being unorganized, which leads to massive amounts of wasted time searching for misplaced items and documents. This wasted time can eventually lead to monetary losses. This is especially true of clutter in the work place. The amount of time wasted searching for documents lost in the pile on ones desk adds up to lost productivity and ultimately money for you and your employer. The time spent looking for lost papers and documents could be much better spent on activities that would generate income for you or revenue for your business. While the time wasted each day may seem minimal over an entire year, the losses can add up to a figure that would make anyone reconsider their poorly organized spaces. How much money is clutter costing YOU? Post your answer in the comments.
November 30th, 2009
Hoarding is a topic that has not been talked about much in the past, but in recent times has become a commonly discussed topic. A&E has a ‘Hoarders’ program dedicated to the issue; Oprah has had segments dedicated to the issue; and mental health professionals are talking more and more about the problem. What was once a family’s dirty little secret has come to light and as a result, hoarding is now more treatable than ever. With treatment, individuals who suffer from this problem can fix the issues that they have been dealing with in the past and also avoid further problems in the future.
Hoarding can cause more problems than simply aesthetic ones. While clutter does cause an unsightly mess it can also be the cause for much more serious problems. Families are torn apart, homes are lost, and childhoods are ruined because of hoarding. In serious cases the problem gets so bad that homes are deemed unlivable by the city and families are forced out. Children in extreme cases have been taken away from their parents because the home is no longer livable. This is an issue that is much more serious than most think and needs to be fixed in the early stages before the problem progresses to the point where the earlier mentioned problems arise.
Those who need help with hoarding should begin by seeking help from a professional organizer who deals with the mental/medical causes of hoarding. This is the best place to start when attempting to cope with the problems that hoarding can cause. The next step is to get organized and de-clutter. A professional organizer who specializes in dealing with hoarders would be a great person to contact in regards to this. The professional organizer will help you sort through the mess and separate what should be kept from the items that need to be discarded. The organizer will be a wonderful resource and can objectively look at the items without emotions coming into play. The organizer will help sort the items and help prepare for the next step which is removal of the excess items. This is where a junk removal company such as College Hunks Hauling Junk would come into play. The professional junk removal specialists will come in and remove the excess items so that the home/space can be clutter free and livable.
November 16th, 2009
The death of a loved one of family member is a topic that nobody enjoys thinking about but is inevitable for all of us. When this does occur there are many things that need to be taken care of and the cleanout of properties is one of the most stressful and time consuming. It is also hard in many cases for the family of the deceased to look at their loved ones items objectively making it hard to decide what should be thrown out, kept, or sold. Having a third party who can look at the items objectively and make some of those decisions for you can be a big help in the process. A junk removal service can come in and get the property cleaned out quickly, efficiently, and respectfully. They will help assist with making decisions about what should be sold or thrown out and have the resources and man power to get all of this accomplished in a timely manner so the problems can be resolved as quickly and painlessly as possible.
Here are some more tips from an article in Women’s Magazine, provided by Liz Canavan, a professional organizer in Boulder, CO:
- Depending on how long ago you lived there, make sure to get your stuff out first (i.e. 13 years of yearbooks, framed diplomas and a pair of colorful wool socks that should have stayed in year 1996). If you’ve already done this over the years, count yourself ahead of the game.
- Coach your parents on what to pass onto someone else. Do they love it, use it or need it? If yes, keep it. If no, pass it on. Challenge them on this step, because they might want to keep a lot more than they’ll ever take care of or use.
- Remove the stuff. See the full article for more info.
November 9th, 2009
Nearly everyone has acquired books throughout their life than they know what to do with. In many cases, the easiest solution to get rid of these unwanted books is to throw them out in the trash. While that is an environmentally incorrect option, there are multitudes of other ways to get rid of books that will benefit others and divert these books from going to the landfill. One option is to use an online reseller such as www.bluerectangle.com/buyback. This resource will buy old books back from you; they even pay for the shipping. This option not only will allow you to get rid of those books but also to make some money in the process. Other options include many charities and other non-profit organizations that books can be donated to. These organizations will then make good use of these by donating them into the hands of those who can use these old books. So, next time you are looking to get rid of old books don’t throw them out, recycle them!
November 2nd, 2009
