ASK JULIE
Q: I always have trouble getting out the door in the morning. There’s never enough time and someone always ends up forgetting something! How can I get out of the house without missing a beat?
A: Getting out the door in the morning can be hectic and stressful for anybody! Morning madness beleaguers even the most organized households; coordinating bathroom, eating, and exit schedules is no small feat.
Throw a Successful Garage Sale
Garage sales can be an amazing way to shed items that you no longer need while bringing some monetary value back to you. First you need to start with de-cluttering your home, to create your inventory of valuable items that are in good condition and should not be recycled/trashed. Once you've decided what you're selling, you can dive in with my tips (and supply list!) to make your garage sale smooth and a success!
What's Causing the Clutter?
Most people who desperately want to get organized are held back by hidden obstacles they don’t understand. Too often, people are convinced that their clutter is the result of their own sloppiness, laziness, or incompetence. Not true! Thinking that way inaccurately puts the blame and shame on you- and prevents you from finding the right solution...
Impeccable Service
Last week, I arrived at a small midtown cafe for a breakfast meeting with a prospective client. As I walked through the door, the host enthusiastically greeted me by name, (though I had never been there before), confirmed who I was there to meet (also by name), and escorted me with authentic familiarity to the table. His warm and engaging style made my prospect and I feel like old friends, and set the tone for an incredibly productive meeting...
Organize your Business for Success
I’ve been a small business owner for 26 years, and when I first started my company, you can bet that I was wearing almost all the hats. I juggled marketing, sales, administration and service-- all of which generated SO much information and material, that I quickly realized that without an impeccably organized system, I would lose time, clients and ideas.
Trading Perfection for Presence
In my early days as a professional organizer, my company was called Task Masters — with the tag line “we do life’s drudgery for you.” One year in mid-December, I got a call from a new prospect who wanted help preparing for the holidays. There were 2 weeks until Christmas, and she hadn’t had time to decorate her house, shop for gifts, wrap, send cards or prepare for Christmas dinner. We worked non-stop 8 hours per day for 8 days, and by December 24th everything was flawless and ready for its closeup
Thank the Old, Embrace the New
I am about to move, and it’s been an emotional journey. I love the apartment I am leaving. It’s the first place I ever bought. I purchased it when I became an empty-nester, as a platform for the next chapter of my life. My goal was to expand my social life, enrich my work-life balance, and give more space to romance than I had as a single parent.
Reading Socks
As an organizer, I’m in the business of helping people organize their spaces and lives, which often get filled with things they don't use. Because of that, I am particularly aware of excess and clever marketing traps. Some might even say that I am on a constant plight to ensure there is no unnecessary clutter in my life, nor anybody else's.
10 Tips to Organize Your Garage
Garages are notorious dumping grounds for things you used to use, thought you might use, or didn’t know where to put. It's an everyday eyesore, the door you slide past while giving friends the grand tour of your home: “Ohhh, that’s just the garage.” The financial implications of the wasted space and money spent on dormant objects, amount to a crying shame.