Live talk recap: Best Ideas for Getting Organized

Yesterday's live talk at The Motherhood may have been an even bigger inspiration to me than to the attendees. Chatting in real-time is special, especially when we're talking about organizing challenges we all share. We ALL struggle with handling the paper inflow, decluttering and organizing our homes, and juggling tasks while managing interruption. And we all have helpful ideas to contribute even when we don't have it all figured out.

My co-hosts, Christine Koh of Boston Mamas, and Meagan Francis of The Happiest Mom, brought creative, practical expertise without a whiff of perfectionism. The three of us agree: getting organized is a means to an end -- a calmer, more efficient life -- not a goal in itself. Also: organization is a skill anyone can learn, not a talent one either has or doesn't have.

We talked about paper management, organizing tools and apps, tricks for dealing with overwhelm and fear of "what's hiding in the pile," storage ideas, and more. Great stuff, some of which I'm writing up in more detail and will post in the next few days.

• Talk Summary
• Full live talk transcript
• Organizing tips and resources I gathered for talk attendees

Thank you to all who attended, and to The Motherhood for making talks like these possible. Let's do it again soon!

More: Hacks about getting organized

Comments

[Anni]

Asha, I just wanted to tell you how helpful Parent Hacks has been to me personally over the last couple of years. I also just spent some time looking at the "organizing tips and resources" (link above) - totally awesome!! I love how down to earth you are and your recommendations have also been terrific. I know I found six o clock scramble, simple mom and the clutter diet through you which have also been a huge help to me. Thank you, thank you! As an "older" mom (ok, 44) of younger children (6,3 and 18 mo), I feel like a late bloomer in learning how to run a house and cook since my pre-kid days were spent working and eating out a lot. Anyway, thanks so much for being honest in your struggles and taking the time to put truly helpful tips out there!

[Asha Dornfest]

Anni! Thank you so, so much! I can't tell you how happy your comment makes me. The slightly sick joke about all this is that I understand the big picture of organizing, and I've applied many principles to my life...but in continues to be a stop-and-start process. I am continually having to notice when I slide into old habits and reboot. But hopefully, sharing my non-straight-line progress helps show that it's never an all-or-nothing proposition. Also, that there are so many sources of inspiration and good advice out there! Big props to you for all you're doing with little ones at home. It will get easier as they get older, especially if you involve them in the task of organizing as they grow.