Tag Archive for: Green Organizing

Checklists

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productivity and checklists

 

My motto is “why reinvent the wheel?”  There are lots of repetitive tasks and routines we do in our home and office, with our kids and our assistants.   Here are some ideas for check lists that make a difference.

Leave the house check list

  • Post this on your child’s mirror and at the back door
  • Include the “must have” items for the day, including homework,

Family routines check list

  • Post this on the refrigerator or where every one can see it
  • Include a column for each day of the week, and a row for each family member
  • In each block list the responsibilities for the day
  • Create partnerships so everyone works in pairs to get jobs done

Grocery Shopping Check List

  • Post on pantry door
  • Download your list from your favorite grocery store

Home maintenance check list

Work checklists

  • Pay the bills checklist
  • Make the deposits checklist
  • Assistant’s daily or weekly checklist
  • New employee checklist

General lists for smartphones

  • Evernote
  • Toodledo

Find lots more free checklists at www.familymanager.com! A plethra of checklists are available at www.listplanit.com!

Conscious Donation and Goodwill Industries

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Many thanks to industy leader Lorie Marrerro as a cheerleader, educator and spokesperson for Goodwill.  Not only does Lorie challenge us to join her in a new movement of Conscious Donation, Lorie also shares with us information on what to donate.  My clients often ask me how to determine what to “bless others with”.  I encourage reuse of most items, except in the case of damaged or broken items. But even the smallest of items can be used by others.  

Lorie wants to “create a culture of Conscious Donation, and have people consider where they are making their donations of belongings as carefully as they would consider where they are making a financial donation.”  Going beyond an aweness, we want to be mindful of how our donations can make a huge difference locally.   For Goodwill, your donations create jobs.   Goodwill’s Job Connection Centers serve individuals who are unemployed or underemployed and are ready, willing and able to be productive citizens in meaningful, self-fulfilling jobs.

 In this post by Lorie, she shares what Goodwill takes.  These also apply to other donation resources. 

http://www.clutterdietblog.com/2010/07/donating-dos-and-donts.html

Another part of the Goodwill donation site is the donation calculator.  See what your donations do for people!

http://donate.goodwill.org/

So won’t you join us in conscious donation?  I am committed to it!

Green Organizing Baby Steps

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Reduce, reuse and recycle are the buzz words for all of us.   Everyone is recycling these days! It is no longer just a trend.  It is what we are focusing on as we are all away of the limited resources and overconsumption.  How do we take this to the next step in green organizing? Here are a few baby steps for being even more environmentally friendly.

Set up your command center with a recycling bin right there.  How easy this makes recycling!  Have a paper and a shred bin right at that spot.  

Turn off your computer each night and lights during the day.  Save energy and money!  Check out this site for the costs and savings.  Thanks to the www.simpledollar.com for this enlightening post!

http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2007/11/18/how-much-money-does-turning-off-the-lights-really-save/

Wash laundry with full loads of clothes. Using this sorter, you can see when it is time to do a load.  This keeps the load together, ready to go.  http://www.containerstore.com/shop/laundry/hampers?productId=10000486

Establish a regular routine for recycling.  Have a bin for plastic, a space for paper, and a garbage can for aluminum.  Set these up in the garage right near the door.  Take your recycling out to the curb or to the center weekly.  

http://www.crateandbarrel.com/family.aspx?c=14458&f=34415

Eliminate electronics and make money too! Here are several resources for selling electronics.

www.gazelle.com

www.buymytronics.com

www.myboneyard.com

www.mygreenelectronics.com

What baby steps are you taking for green organizing?

Make a difference with Recycling

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recycling

The International Association of Electronics Recyclers reports that “Each year we scrap 400 million units of electronics in the US.”   Many times we want to recycle to make a difference and just don’t know all the resources.

This is a short list of ways to reduce, reuse and recycle.

www.houstongreenscene.org

www.newliving.net

www.executiverecycle.com  recycles computers and technology

www.collectivegood.com  recycles and donates pagers, pdas, and blackberries

www.recyclefree.com  recycles empty inkjet and laser cartidges

www.earth911.org offers recycling and reuse information

www.freecycle.org giving and getting stuff for free

www.costco.com

iRecycle (for your iPhone)

 

 

 

Make a difference with Cell phones for Soldiers

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I am passionate about making a difference. It can be the simplest things that can make a big impact.  Here is one baby step to make a difference for people who are sacrificing for us and our country.  The program Cell phones for Soldiers takes donations of used cell phones and sells them to fund phone cards for our people serving our country.   Not only are you keeping items out of landfills, you are recycling your cell phones for a great cause.   Check out www.cellphonesforsoldiers.com to learn where to send the phones and more.  Happy Independence Day!