THOUGHTS FOR DECEMBER: Make it a month of Gratitude and Gratefulness
By Sue Crum

With December upon us and all the hype of Black Friday, Cyber Monday and now Cyber Week, please take a moment to pause and reflect.

Some large chains couldn’t wait to open their doors on Black Friday, so they began at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving Night! Those employees did not get a holiday from work, a chance to be with family and friends and reflect on the blessings of the year. They had to be at work, or suffer the consequence of perhaps losing their job.

After a Thursday of gratitude and kindness toward one another, people waited outside of stores for hours in anticipation of getting the best deal, the most deals, the perfect deals. In at least one large store two men got into a fistfight over who got to an item first. So much for kindness and thankfulness.

With the leftovers behind us we now turn to December holidays. Whether it’s Christmas, Hanukkah, or Kwanza the end of the year can be a frenzy of frantic behavior. I’m suggesting we all slow down a bit, catch our breath, and put our holiday shopping on pause.

In my work as a professional organizer and clutter clearing coach I have an opportunity to help people create space in their homes so they can enjoy them more. What I often find is in their quest for happiness, retail therapy has kicked in;

I’m not so happy right now – I know if I buy_______________(fill in the blank) that will make me feel better.

By the time they call me they are overwhelmed, exhausted, or just plain miserable because of the upkeep of all the clothes, toys, and things they’ve accumulated.

It’s like their houses are filling up and sucking life out of them. Over a period of work sessions my clients come to realize that more does not make it merry, in fact, just the opposite. They are surprised and upset that they have filled their homes with so much stuff. Together we work up an action plan and a vision of how they want to live with more calm, enjoyment, and breathing space.

So before we all rush out to the mall or jump onto the internet for the latest and greatest gifts, let’s take a look at what anthropologists found out observing 32 families from California, in their book, Life at Home in the Twenty-First Century:

• The average home contained 438 books and magazines and 139 toys.
• In the United States we are purchasing 40% of the world’s toys, yet we have 3.1% of the world’s children.
• Having to manage the volume of possessions seemed to increase the stress hormones of the mothers, but the fathers didn’t really pay much attention to the clutter.

Here are some gift suggestions to consider, instead of more stuff:

1. Gifts of time, gifts of activities,
2. Handmade gifts from the heart, and
3. Gifts in someone’s name to a charity of your choice.

When we reflect back over holidays of the past, often what we remember is the experience of the holiday-who was there, what we did, and how we felt. Those are the memories that put a smile on our faces and take us back to a simpler time.

Sue Crum, Ed.D., is a professional organizer and decluttering expert who consults in person or virtually, helping busy people organize, redesign and transform the way they live and work. She owns the R.E.D. team,  and is the immediate past-president of the National Association of Professional Organizers – San Diego Chapter. As a motivational speaker Sue inspires others to clear out their chaos and clutter so they can lead more successful lives. Call TODAY and schedule your free in-home consultation.The life you deserve is waiting for you. 760.803.2786

Read more about Sue Crum at www.theredteam.com

Make THIS year your best holiday season ever!

By Sue Crum

Ready or not – here come the holidays!!

Are you thinking joy or jitters?

Desire or dread?

Are you envisioning fantasies of fun or…

Fits of fright and fatigue?

Whatever your experiences have been in the past – the good, the bad and the ugly – set them aside and look forward to making this the best holiday season ever!

How?

With

• a clear vision,
• reasonable expectations and
• prior proper planning.

Just like Goldilocks, it’s important to create a holiday season that’s just right for you, right now.

TWELVE STEPS TO A SPECIAL HOLIDAY SEASON:

1. Let’s start with that vision. Sit quietly with a notebook and imagine it is January 12, 2013. The holidays are behind you. If everything went smoothly, how would these have been? Write a scenario of everything going perfectly. Be sure and include how the holiday season made you feel.
2. Convene a family meeting if you live with others and have each member write a succinct paragraph of their vision of the best holiday season. With little ones, have them draw a picture.
3. See how these visions are similar or dissimilar. Get to the core of what’s important for each family member and write or chart a family vision for the holidays. You might be surprised at what other family members envision for the holidays to be happy.
4. Get a 3-month calendar that shows November, December, and January.
5. Mark out specific days, such as Thanksgiving, your religious holidays in December, and New Year’s Day.
6. In your notebook make a list of all the tasks and events you can think of: don’t worry about prioritizing.
7. Now with that family vision of what’s important, go back over your list and rank as follows: A’s – your big rocks: if nothing else gets done this season, these are the most important to you.
8. Now go through the list again and think of your B’s: these would be nice to include, maybe you’ve done these before or you’ve thought about adding them to your holiday traditions, but never have.
9.  Put a C by what’s left. Recognize these tasks are also nice but not necessary to your vision or your family’s vision.
10. Go back over the list and make sure you have a letter by everything.
11. Decide to let go of your C’s and not do any unless you have completed your A’s and B’s.
12. Calendar in your A’s right now. Look at other commitments of work, family, volunteerism and decide when you can do the A’s. Some have multiple steps so be sure and create enough time in your schedule to see projects to completion. Keep your eye on that vision you created and let some of the B’s go.

No time to create that beautiful 3-day recipe of homemade heavenly heath bars your grandma used to make?

What could you do instead so that YOU are happy, healthy and in a heavenly mood for the holidays?

Make that vision your gift to yourself!!

Sue Crum is the owner of the R.E.D. team and the Immediate Past President of NAPO-San Diego, the National Association of Professional Organizers. She helps busy people turn their house into a home, make better use of space and get organized for good. She takes a nonjudgmental approach to any organizing project. She is compassionate, confidential and competent, passionately focused on helping people lead happier and more balanced lives. She loves speaking to groups about de-cluttering and organizing for healthier living. Sign up to receive her latest RED Hot etips at www.theREDteam.com. You can reach Sue at 760.803.2786.

Hi Folks,

Well it’s that time of year again! The Holidays are again upon us. Not sure how they always seem to sneak up on me…

It seems like yesterday I was letting you know about the 4th of July closure!

It’s also hard to believe that it has been an entire year since I re-built the Total Secure Shredding website to include this blog and the long copy format webpages I wrote to go along with it.

I’ve gotten a ton of fantastic feedback from you my customer. It might not seem like much, but the little “You have a really nice website” comments really help justify all the work I put into it.

I have some new ideas for the website so be sure to check in between now and the new year so see the changes.

So, consequently, I extremely grateful and thankful to all our thoughtful and faithful customers over the past year. Thank you for all your support.

However, no matter how thankful I am, I’m still closing down the shop till Monday… I’ve been looking forward to this four day weekend for weeks now and I need to recharge.

We’ll be closed tomorrow for Thanksgiving, Friday, and Saturday.

Bright and early Monday November 29, 2010, we’re back open for shredding.

Have an excellent Thanksgiving weekend and I’ll see you again on the flip side!

And, as always, keep Totally Secure,

Mike

Hey Folks,

Hard to believe its almost time to say goodbye to 2009.

The good news for us is that January marks the beginning of the Paper Shredding Busy Season. (Thank You New Years Resolutions!)

The bad news is that usually means we are slow in November & December because of the holidays.

In order to Bring Balance to the Shredding Universe, I am going to make a Ridiculous Offer to everyone on my email list…

Those already on my list, you don’t have to do anything. (Not sure if you’re on my list? I sent out an email yesterday to my list about our Facebook Fan Page. If you didn’t receive that – you’re most likely not on the list.)

To get on the list, all you need to do is put your Email Address in the box provided at the top of the side column over on the right.

The email I will be sending  has already been crafted and is waiting in queue to go out at exactly 12:00 pm on Tuesday December 8, 2009.

On that email, there will be a link to a Secret Web Page outlining all the details for this offer.

Here are a couple of hints: Mobile Shredding, Extremely Limited Time

Only those folks who receive the email will be able to access the offer and get to the Secret Web Page.

Just to recap, in order to receive this offer, you’ll have to:

1. Make sure you’re on our mailing list.
2. Open the email next Tuesday to follow the link to the Secret Web Page.
3. Follow the instruction on the Secret Web Page.

This is a great opportunity to get a head start on your New Year Cleaning and receive an Awesome Discount while you do it.

Look for me in your email in-box next Tuesday Afternoon.

Until Then…

Keep Total Secure,

Mike

P.S. I will only send the email out once so you must be on my email list by Tuesday Morning. Enter your Email Address at the top of the right hand column right now… even if you’re not ready for this offer, you’ll be on the V.I.P List when it comes to Shredding Services.