Pea Organizing Services - organize clutter, simplify, Charlotte NC

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Newsletter - March 2006

Greetings!

Welcome to the Spring edition of the Pea Organizing Services Newsletter! This information will be helpful as you organize your home, office and life. If you have an organizing question that is not answered in this newsletter, please feel free to contact us. Thanks for subscribing and have a peaceful and organized Spring!

Kristin White del Rosso, Pea Organizing Services

Tax Season – Paper Management Tips

Some people maintain ongoing record-keeping systems – this is the preferable method. Others stash receipts and wait until the last minute.

Whatever your personality, everyone should have A SYSTEM to avoid penalties and save paying Uncle Sam too much!

The benefits of an ongoing system include: being ready to file taxes on time without as much stress; making better financial decisions throughout the year; and making it easier to prove your deductions if audited because you’ll have the documentation on hand.

The following are some tips for managing an ongoing record-keeping system:

Make, and keep, appointments with yourself to maintain records - daily, weekly or monthly as needed.
If you forget something, don't give up on the system. An imperfect system is better than no system at all.
File records such as deduction receipts and W-2 forms as soon as you get them. You may use an open box filing system on your desk or in a drawer so you can easily throw them in as you get them.
Be sure to create a new folder at the beginning of each year to immediately file records away for the following tax season.

Are you the type who throws all of your information in a box and waits until March before sorting through it? Don’t fret. You can still get it done. Just understand that rather than spending a few minutes a day or week you will have to spend several hours up to several days at one time in the month before April 15th. It’s up to you on how you want to spend your time. The best way to tackle this box is to take all collected records and sort them. Label each pile clearly. Then, take one category at a time to process them.

What about keeping your past records? Be sure to identify space such as a designated box in a secure place to store your records. The general rule for keeping back-up documentation is seven years, as the IRS can audit you back six years, assuming there is not a case of fraud. To organize these past records, create a file by year with categories by deductions such as medical, taxes, etc. Keep your tax returns permanently.

Get Organized with Technology

The advent of technology and its myriad of tools and gadgets have made a tremendous impact in the world and in our lives. They are also essential to being productive and organized in the workplace by helping keep us from being buried in papers.

Research shows that the average worker spends 150 hours per year looking for misplaced information and that an average of $250 is spent in recreating a lost document. There are three areas in particular where technology can make you more efficient and be more productive so that you don’t have to spend countless hours searching for documents.

File Management Solution: Whether you need to keep from getting buried in a mound of papers or you need to manage papers that have already been filed, a great technology tool is The Paper Tiger software, which organizes documents and information using a numeric filing system. The Paper Tiger helps users easily find documents and tame the paper clutter.

Contact Management Solution: Need to keep track of contacts, potential clients or create a user friendly database? Products such as The ACT! by Sage Product Family, which can be purchased, or Microsoft Outlook, which comes free with most computers, are great tools to manage your contacts, appointments and to-do reminders.

Financial Management Solution: Say good-bye to folders and calculating spreadsheet formulas. Consider using financial software such as, Quickbooks/Quickbooks Pro, to help you keep track of invoices and other key areas of your business and personal finances. This type of software is user friendly and its uses can be customized to your specific needs. It makes getting ready for tax season a lot easier too.

While technology tools are useful and can be fun, use them wisely. Be sure they actually save time and help you stay in balance. If you spend time fixing errors, learning unneeded skills or playing games, it is not a good time investment.

The Top 10 Myths Heard by Professional Organizers

In my six years as a professional organizer, I have heard my share of perceptions about this profession and reasons why someone may be resistant to hiring a professional organizer. The folks at CoachVille put together the following list of the 10 most common myths about professional organizers.

1. My mess is the worst you've ever seen. We have seen it all, from guns to pornography to rodents to food left in the fridge for 20 years. There is nothing that will surprise or daunt us. We welcome a challenge and don't see mess. We see an opportunity to help you break old habits that no longer serve you and to establish new ones that will help you live a simpler and less stressful life.

2. You're going to make me throw out all my stuff. No we won't. We help you decide what you use, love, and want. If you have 15 vases in a closet, for example, and you like/use only 5 of them, why keep the other 10? Display the 5 you love and donate the rest. That space in the closet can be used to store other things, you enjoy your collection every day, and someone else can benefit from your generosity.

3. You can do this without me here. Sure, if you don't mind my deciding what is important to you. It would be easy for me to remove everything from a space and put back only what I think should be there, or recycle all of the files in the cabinet, but I don't think you want me to do that. What if I donate the ancient sculpture that Aunt Millie gave you when you were 5 or shred the deed to your house?

4. It will look like the shows on cable TV when we're done. Only if I bring in a team of 12 other consultants and construction professionals. You and I work together over several sessions to establish customized systems that work for you. That may mean the solution still looks messy to an outside party, but for you it is what works best. Organized does not necessarily mean neat.

5. You're going to pass judgment, yell at me, and make me feel bad about keeping everything. Not a chance. Professional Organizers go into the field because we have a genuine desire to help other people become more comfortable in their lives. We have the talent, training, and ability to organize and want to impart these skills to our clients. I always joke that you are a wonderful person, you just have too much stuff.

6. Your place must be perfect. Not so. I am a normal person with a family, including two young children, a home-based business, and several outside responsibilities. Having systems in place allows me to function effectively, even when life gets extremely hectic.

7. It will cost a great deal. Professional Organizers charge a fair hourly or per- project rate based on our experience, training, and specialty. We come to the profession from various backgrounds. Mine is public accounting. Factor in what we bring to the table and how much peace of mind, less stress, and more time is worth to you, and we are a true bargain.

8. Getting organized is an end result. Getting organized is a continuous process. Clients schedule several sessions, during which we work on different aspects of a home or business, until we get to the point where we can maintain the systems we implement. We're never actually finished. We constantly refine the systems we establish, so that they always meet a client's changing needs.

9. You're going to go telling everyone you know about me and my private affairs. Never. A quality Professional Organizer who is a member of NAPO, the National Association of Professional Organizers, is bound by a code of ethics that covers our interaction with our clients, the public, and one another. It would be a poor reflection on us if we bad-mouthed a colleague, spoke ill of a client, or discredited the profession to the public. Trust is essential to the Professional Organizer-client relationship. Personally, I am also bound by a code of ethics that covers Certified Public Accountants.

10. There is a one-size-fits-all organizing solution. Not so. Every person or business is unique. The process of getting organized is similar regardless of what area is being addressed (a closet, a filing system, etc.), but the ultimate solution must be customized to the needs of the user. That is why the personal interaction is essential to a professional organizing engagement.

Copyright 1997 - 2003 CoachVille

Spring Dates to Remember

March 10: National Organize Your Home Office Day
March 20-24: Clutter Awareness Week
April: Stress Awareness Month
April 18: Owner Kristin del Rosso will speak to the Mecklenburg Medical Alliance & Endowment Group on getting organized
April 17-21: Organize Your Files Week
May 6: Scrapbook Day

ADD/ADHD Information

Find my listing and those of other ADHD service providers in the National ADHD Directory, which is hosted by the national non-profit organization ADD Resources. Their Web site, in addition to the Directory, has numerous articles written by national ADHD authorities as well as adults with ADHD. They also offer membership which includes the 138-page ADDult Reader; an 8-page quarterly newsletter, ADDult ADDvice; and access to their lending library with over 450 ADHD titles in books, audiotapes and videotapes.

Quotes to Ponder

““Nothing is particularly hard if you divide it into small jobs.” – Henry Ford

“A complete and accurately defined list of projects, kept current and reviewed on at least a weekly basis, is a master key to stress-free productivity.” – David Allen

Recommended Reading

Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices by Peter F. Drucker

Confessions of an Organized Homemaker by Deniece Schofield

The Pea News Updates

[December 5, 2005] CHARLOTTE - Kristin White del Rosso, president of Charlotte-based Pea Organizing Services Inc. and fellow local professional organizers Karin Solomonson and Julie Kourie are co-hosting a “Party with a Purpose” for their non-profit organization, The Butterfly Bin.

[December 12, 2005] CHARLOTTE - Kristin White del Rosso, president of Charlotte-based Pea Organizing Services Inc. has been chosen as the "Self Zone Expert of the Month" for The Organizing Network, Inc.

[January 23, 2006] CHARLOTTE – Frances D’Amato, Organizing Consultant with Pea Organizing Services Inc. was the featured speaker at a United Way of Central Carolinas, Inc. meeting, where she discussed how to keep clutter from running your life and gave organizing tips and strategies for work and home.

[January 30, 2006] CHARLOTTE - Kristin White del Rosso, president of Charlotte-based Pea Organizing Services Inc. has become a member of the National Association of Professional Organizer's (NAPO) Golden Circle.