January is GO Month! Get Organized Month! And here’s an easy way to start!
 
Take a peek in your closet or by the back door – do you have some gently used shoes that you just aren’t wearing these days?
 
Time to get them out of your space and feel great about donating them to Soles4Souls. Soles4Souls mission is to create sustainable jobs and provide relief through the distribution of shoes and clothing around the world.
 
How can you help?

1. Collect any shoes (any size) that you no longer need or want. Please double check for holes and clean off any mud.
2. Place shoes in a bag or box on your porch before 8pm on Sunday, February 3rd.
3. Contact me at maegan@shapespace.me or call/text 720-295-6478. Indicate that you are donating shoes and include your address.
4. You will receive a confirmation that the shoes were picked up.
5. Enjoy having just the shoes you love and use around you while helping out others in need.

I’ve really never had a boring conversation on a plane, have you?
 
This month I made two trips to Tucson and took with me “The Minimalist Home” by Joshua Becker. Neither trip yielded significant amounts of reading though. As I pulled out the book…conversation sparked.
 
The retired and adorably chatty baby boomer couple beside me proceeded to share their recent downsizing story.
 
Three grown children.
Deceased parents.
Zest for travel.
 
They longed for a more simple life. One that better supported this new phase.
And so it began...  
Sort. Purge. Sort. Purge. (Repeat).
And move.
 
Three years later – they now confidently live with just the things they love and use.
 
My decluttering-obsessed-brain was nerding out! I was so thrilled for them!
 
As we landed in Arizona, the woman asked –
What do YOU think is the one key to organizing?
(Whoa, pressure…)
 
I had to pause.
But not for long - my heart was clear.
 
It’s honesty. Pure, genuine, and sometimes veeerrryyy brutal honesty.
When we are honest, we can begin to accept.
And acceptance frees us to move forward.
 
Yes, yes, and yes! This made such sense.
 
Why? It’s exactly what I had to do to tackle my own home and life.
Get honest. Accept. Move forward.
(This is an on-going process by the way – let’s not kid ourselves!)
 
The woman nodded.
 
I could not agree with you more. I’ve been holding on to a whole set of my daughters’ Barbie’s. She didn’t want them back with two older boys who were long past interested.
 
I had to get honest and ask myself – what am I hanging on to?
It was so clear – I was holding on to my baby girl and the wonderful times we had playing together when she was little.
 
Once I recognized that, I could more easily let go of the collection. It became less about the thing, and more about the memory. - which I was never, never, going to lose.
 
(Are you crying yet? I was. It hit home.)
 
Sooooo…
What can you start getting honest about?
(Oh yeah, I went there)

• What's next for you?  Spiritually? Mentally? Physically? Emotionally?
• How do you want to live this next chapter or new phase?
• What “stuff” is supporting you and what “stuff” is holding you back?

 
Let’s talk! 

​Love yourself. Love your space. And make it happen!

• Did the holidays take you by storm? Do you feel overwhelmed getting the house back in order?
• Was the house never in the order you’ve wanted (because, hey, life happens)?
• Is it tough to finish projects or stay present and focused?
• Have you ever said to yourself, “one day I’ll get to that…(pile, room, closet, garage, playroom, etc.).”

 
Well, now’s the time!
 
Treat yourself, your family, your space, and your life to more freedom, clarity and manageability.

• Imagine saving time looking for things and instead knowing exactly where it all is.
• Be “guest ready” for the unexpected neighbor visit, play date, or spontaneous get together?
• Hit the reset button!
• Create space that supports where you are now, what you want to do, and where you will to go next!

​Shape Space decluttering and organizing services are 20% through February 15th. Buy as little as 3 hours, up to 24 hours at a discounted price. Hours purchased will not expire and can be used as soon as you are ready to make changes in your space!

Please call for a complimentary 30 min. phone call.
We can make a plan for calming the chaos!

Big question. Many answers. Here’s my take…
 
On New Years Day, I decided it was a good idea to attempt 6 loads of laundry while taking down all my holiday decorations! What on Earth was I thinking?!?!
 
As you can imagine this did not end well. In fact, three days later there were still a few holiday boxes waiting to go into the storage/crawl space area (because we all love going in there). Oy! I know better than to bite off that much chaos in one day, especially with little humans running amuck and the daily dose of general crazy that comes with being mom. So, I spiraled and by the end of the night, I didn’t know whether to fold clothes or bubble-wrap the nutcracker (legit, first world problems, right), so I did neither and fell asleep watching Netflix on a pile of socks – don’t judge!
 
Why did my brain short-circuit? For many reasons. I was tired from holiday activities, having the kids home full-time, hosting, wrapping, unwrapping, packing, unpacking and all of that jazz. But the true kicker was that my brain kept thinking of more things…writing thank yous, exchanging a few items, the grocery list, this little to do and that little to do. All my attachments and thoughts around my things led me to more and frankly my vacation-pajama-wearing-brain just didn’t have enough gas in the tank.
 
So the next day I literally had to hire myself – WWPOD – what would a professional organizer do? First of all, I would have suggested doing only one of those activities. Get the laundry done and put away because clean underwear is a non-negotiable. Holiday décor can stay up another day (even-though I was dying for it to come down) – it will be ok.
 
BUT, because the mess was already there, how should I approach it? By category – just get the clothes done – focus everything on getting the clothes done, then take a deep breath. Then attack the next thing.  It seems so simple, it’s laughable, but when we get stuck it is oh so real. It’s incredibly easy to get overwhelmed and not know where to start and therefore not start at all. In my case, it was only two small-ish projects, fairly doable, really. When it’s most of your house in chaos, it can be unbelievably paralyzing.
 
If you can relate to any of this, that is why you hire some help. As a professional organizer not only can I come in and see a clear direction for getting the project done, but I also have no personal attachment to any of your things, so I’m able to be a support to you through the process. For example, filing your office paperwork does not remind me of other work objectives, because it’s not my stuff. It’s just paper that needs a place and I can find that place. Plus I’m so excited for the outcome and positive changes that we move fast and I will help you stay focused. Staying on task (not multi-tasking) and seeing things logically are some of the top reasons a professional organizer can coach you through the overwhelming feelings of your space.

Need a recommendation? I have one!
Happy New Year from Shape Space!

Take a peek in your closet or by the back door – do you have some gently used shoes that you just aren’t wearing these days?
 
Time to get them out of your space and feel great about donating them to Soles4Souls. Soles4Souls mission is to create sustainable jobs and provide relief through the distribution of shoes and clothing around the world.
 
How can you help?

1. Collect any shoes (any size) that you no longer need or want!
2. Contact your neighbor and organizer Maegan at maegan@shapespace.me or call 720-295-6478 to coordinate a pick up time.
3. Enjoy having just the shoes you love and use around you, while helping out others in need.  

COLLECTION ENDS at noon on Monday, December 3!

Shape Space is participating in this large shoe drive in collaboration with Soles4Souls and the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals (Colorado chapter).