You guys are doing GREAT utilizing my 5 cleaning games! I love the feedback! Although it feels like Southern California did away with spring and jumped straight to summer, you cannot use that as an excuse to postpone SPRING CLEANING!!
Spring is the best time for garage sales and donations. There’s just something about this time of the year that gets us motivated! So, as I told many of you, here the answers to your questions, additional tips, and a way make some cash in the process!
Is spring a good time for garage sales, or is that more of a winter thing?
Spring is a GREAT time! Winter is cold and the rain is unpredictable (not so much in SoCal…but you know what I mean.) A lot of my clients just FEEL like winter is the best option because they’re cooped up inside more and most likely made a visit to the storage unit for those holiday decorations. I’m not quite sure when the wheels start turning, but at some point, we all get cabin fever and start tackling drawers. Get some boxes and start packing up sale items! Hold on to them and when you are DONE with the house, go around to your neighbors and see whose interested in joining the movement! The more items you advertise for men, women and children alike, the more traffic you will get. Start early in the morning and give it at least two days. Anything left over gets donated.
I start with good intentions, really, I do! But I lose momentum when I try to organize and clean! What can I do?
Believe me, I have my weaknesses too when it comes to this! Here are some simple tips to follow!
- Ladies, tie your hair back!
- Open the windows and let some light in! If it’s a nice day, let some air in too.
- Get a cold beverage ready and stay hydrated! (Taking a sip of cold water or an icy soda will make you feel like a new person!)
- Get in comfortable clothes, and if you’re not worried about the carpet, put some tennis shoes on. (Good for going in and out of the garage or backyard.)
- Put on some MUSIC! Not TV. I tell myself I can just listen to the story and focus on cleaning, and then I catch myself staring at a screen after I’ve already wasted 5 minutes. You WILL get distracted. By all means, prove me wrong and email me if you accomplish this feat!
- DO NOT sit down! Not at the kitchen table, not on the foot of the bed, not even on the floor to fold clothes! You’ll get comfortable and not want to get back up. You will spend more time resting then you think.
- Set a timer. 30-40 minutes of cleaning. *DING* Set it for 5-10 minutes of break. Repeat.
- Eat before so you don’t have to stop to make something. Make it light and you can snack on your breaks.
- If your spring cleaning actually entails some MAJOR cleaning, go to Home Depot and get a large paint bucket and organizer. I can’t tell you how much I love these things for making my cleaning supplies easy to find, my brushes sorted by task, and the best part is you can still utilize the bucket! Use it for trash or miscellaneous items you come across that you can deal with after the task you’re already working on. Shop around for a good deal on it and get multiple ones for car wash tools (untie it to use the bucket for soap and water), outdoor work, inside jobs and even scrapbooking!)
Should I invest in a feng shui expert? Some people tell me that helps with organization.
While we don’t feng shui every client automatically, we offer our two cents to those who ask about it.
Here’s my little anecdote about applying it automatically: I went to a consultation with a former employer. We’ll call the client Carrie. We entered the Carrie’s home, new and at the time, unfurnished, and rather than exchange greetings, my employer gasped at the beam in the ceiling and apologized for Carrie’s impending divorce. I was mortified! Not only was she wrong about the placement and meaning of the beam, Carrie didn’t believe a word of feng shui and didn’t want it brought up again. As we continued through the house, she kept forcing feng shui on Carrie. “This shows you want to be a single woman in life.” “This shows a loss of childhood or ill health for your children.” “You’re stinking up your career by taking your shoes off at the door.”
Bottom line: it’s not for everyone. Go into (almost) any financial planner’s office and there will be a round table in the middle of their office. This signifies that there is no “head” or “leader” at the table, but that you are all equal partners with the same side of a table. There is some psychological aspect behind it, and they all use it to their advantage.
As far as the furniture arrangement, I don’t think it works 100% of the time. My last client had applied feng shui to her room and her bed blocked the entire closet because that was where it was called for. However, there are other elements to it such as having a small fountain in your room for wealth and prosperity, but it depends on what area it is in and many other factors. I just find the sound of water calming! Do some research to see if it is right for you and contact us if you need any assistance. It is a very detailed guide and can sometimes get confusing. We’ll be sure to send out someone that can easily guide you through it.
