Paper Doll

Unpacking: Paper Doll Explores a Video Game About Organizing

Posted on: November 8th, 2021 by Julie Bestry | 14 Comments

[Editor’s Note: This is not a typical Paper Doll post, but it is about organizing, so don’t worry that I’ve changed the focus of the blog. Also, if you click on any of the links in the first few paragraphs and get distracted playing classic games in your browser, don’t forget to come back and read the rest of the post!]

UNPACKING

I have limited experience with video games. Which is to say, I played the tennis-like Pong at a friend’s house when it first came out around 1972 and delighted in PacMan (and Ms. Pacman) while waiting for my Pizza Hut meal to be served, during my adolescent years.

And I even plunked myself down to play Super Mario Bros. when I was in graduate school and needed something obsessive and concentration-focusing to take my mind off what the heck I was going to do with my life when graduate school was over. 

But game strategy, manual dexterity, competitiveness, and the ability to bonk a cartoon plumber’s head upward onto a brick to make a mushroom appear (if I’m recalling correctly) — none of these have ever been my strong suits. 

In the past three decades, my interaction with video games has been limited to helping my clients pare down their video game collections, organize what they keep, and sell or donate the remainder. I haven’t played, or had any desire to play, any games until last week, when Australian game developer Witch Beam released Unpacking. My Google News feed knows me too well, and upon last week’s release, I was inundated with articles and reviews about this intriguing game.

The company describes Unpacking as a “Zen puzzle about unpacking a life.”

The game has eight chapters or levels, each corresponding to a move to a new “home” — a childhood room, a college dorm, one’s own apartment, sharing a space with a significant other, etc. — all for an unnamed, unknown protagonist. It starts in 1997 and continues forward to today. As players, we are never explicitly told the story of this character, but through her possessions, a certain  intimate bond is formed.

The game has been described as “part item Tetris, part home decoration.” You select digital cardboard boxes, open them, and through the game, put the items away. There are pre-ordained slots or shelves; the game is designed as a puzzle, and the goal isn’t to throw everything higgledy-piggledy but find the logical home.

To move to the next level, you need to generally put things where a reasonable person might think they should go. That said, as part of the accessibility features of the game, you can apply the “allow items anywhere” option to eliminate the puzzle element. With this choice, you can’t really put an item in the “wrong” place any more than you could in your own home. (Still, please don’t store extra pantry items or clothes in the bathtub; we professional organizers have seen that in the real world, and it’s just not a great option.)

So, just like at your house, you can put things in weird places. And while I haven’t seen a treadmill or Peleton in the game, I’m betting that just like in real life, you can hang your clothes on exercise equipment. As a player, you get to decide where things belong, but you have to obey the laws of physics and geometry. You can’t fit square pegs in round holes or ten pounds of whatever into a five-pound bag.

I find it appealing that there’s no competition and no timers counting down. But there are, apparently, 14,000 different audio sounds to go along with tucking items in nooks and crannies, setting a toothbrush in a water glass, arranging books on shelves and supplies in drawers, and so on. If you lift a T-shirt to a hanger placed on a rod, the shirt hangs; move it lower to a stack of shirts, and it self-folds. (If only actual unpacking, organizing, and indeed, laundry day, were so magical.)

In addition to putting things away (that is, giving them homes), you can change the color signature of the room, add some on-screen stickers to decorate, take photos of a completed room, and add those photos to a scrapbook, complete with a “handwritten” description of your move-in experience.

Here’s a peek at the game’s launch trailer:

Throughout it all, there’s a soundtrack from a BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) award-winning composer, Jeff van Dyck. If video game soundtracks are your thing (Yes, I’m looking at you, my friend Chris!), you can listen to Unpacking’s soundtrack on Spotify and purchase it in all the usual music-buying places like Amazon, Apple Music, Bandcamp, etc. (And no, Chris, I’m not listening to this in the car on any road trips.)

Warning: I should also note that, assuming you’re reading in North America, there will be some oddities in the rooms and homes in Unpacking. The refrigerators are not the full-sized ones we have, but those smaller, under-counter ones that are barely bigger than dorm fridges. The bathtubs have the glass half-walls I saw in Europe; I’ve yet to figure out how one manages not to soak the half the bathroom, but at least there’s no need to run any water in the actual game.

I’ve seen reviews calling the game calming and endearing, but also cathartic and moving. (Of which, I have more thoughts, below.) As a professional organizer, of course, I found this tweet hopeful:

 And for those who wonder how much detail is available to organize exactly how and where you want things to be, this tweet gives you a sign:

Unpacking is available for a variety of platforms, including Windows, Mac, Linux, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One and runs $19.99.

ACCESSIBILITY

In the real world, unpacking and organizing a new home, whether a dorm room, a studio apartment, or a multi-bedroom family house, can be a massive headache. Imagine how much more difficult is must be for those with physical disabilities or distracting cognitive challenges (ranging from ADHD to traumatic brain injury). This is just one reason why many clients call in NAPO or NASMM professional organizers who specialize in relocations to work some video game-like magic in setting up a new space.

I can’t be the only person who gets flashbacks to Bewitched watching this sped-up kitchen unpacking/organizing scene play out. Seriously, compare it to Samantha Stevens working her tinka-tinka-tink:

There are no in-game professional organizers, but Unpacking‘s developers prides themselves on its accessibility features.

For those needing visual assistance, the user interface buttons can be enlarged, and you can zoom in on the screen; if you’ve made a booboo, the red “invalid” outline (remember what I said about the laws of physics?) can be changed to a different color. And you can disable the animation feature for room-swapping (in case you unpack a box of kitchen items when you’re in the living room) to avoid motion sickness.

In terms of audio assistance, the game lets you operate soundtrack music and sound effect volumes separately, and there are no audio-exclusive cues for game play, so players who can’t hear don’t miss any of the essential game features.

For cognitive accessibility, the game has no penalties; there’s minimal text, and reading skills (in English or otherwise) are not required in order to play. And, as mentioned, you can turn off the puzzle angle to be allowed to put things anywhere.

There are also a variety of mobility-related accessibility features. None of the actions require pressing more than one button at a time, clicking-and-dragging, holding down buttons. Computer versions support playing via a mouse and keyboard, a game pad, or touch (“on supported hardware,” they note) and you can play one-handed with just a mouse. The Nintendo Switch version of the game supports (and I quote, because I have no idea what this means), “gamepad, touch, and gyro in two-handed and one-handed configurations.” Controls are re-mappable when necessary to support a user’s accessibility needs.

While Paper Doll is neither a gamer nor a reviewer, I think it’s important to accent accessibility features in products, and while this does not arise often when I talk about notebooks and storage options, I intend to be more cognizant of such issues in future posts.

UNPACKING THOUGHTS ABOUT UNPACKING

Having missed three decades of video game development, I am, at best, only peripherally aware that not all games are multi-player shoot-em-ups and car-racing (and crashing) extravaganzas. Certainly I knew about The Sims, a series of simulation games where players create virtual people, build them homes (and families) and play with their careers, activities, and moods and desires.

Apparently, this approach is called a sandbox game, an open-ended type of video game where players have a freedom of movement for their creations and there are no pre-set goals. (If only we humans felt that much ease in creating our lives and risking change!) The popular Minecraft, with it’s blocky 3D people and infinitely expanding world of raw materials, tools, and create-able structures is similar.

Unpacking feels like it belongs in a world tangential to these sandbox games; there’s freedom of movement, no timers or competition, and you can’t lose your character’s life by unpacking things in the wrong order or organizing things “wrong.” But like real life, there is a very solid goal for you as the in-world character: unpack in an organized way to live your life.

In Vice‘s Unpacking Is a Lovely Game About the Power of Seemingly Mundane Objects, Moises Taveras has created a great introduction to the game beyond the broad strokes. Through it I learned some spoilers and realized that there was more depth of insight to be had beyond how many frying pans could be fit into a cabinet:  

The “challenge,” a term I’ll throw around incredibly loosely, becomes finding where everything fits best. It’s a logic puzzle, so as long as you’ve been in a kitchen, a bedroom or bathroom, you’ll be able to sufficiently reproduce a functional home. … There’s a joy in getting it all right, but the greater one to me was playing a game that, in bits and pieces, understood the relationship we build with the things we collect.

But there’s more. After I learned of Unpacking, I started reading every review I could find, and what’s particularly gripping about the game is how you get to see the protagonist’s life unfold through her possessions (and those with whom she shares her space). It reminded me of Sam Gosling‘s book, Snoop: What Your Stuff Says About You.

N/A

Gosling, a professor of psychology, wrote, in an almost gumshoe detective approach, about how we intentionally and unintentionally create, define, and communicate who we are to the world through our possessions. Published in 2008, before we all defined ourselves via social media, it’s a fascinating look at how our stuff — the essentials, the practical items, the sentimental things, and the clutter — exposes who we are. It seems Unpacking is designed to do that, too.

Kotaku‘s Ari Notis posits, interestingly, in Unpacking Might Have the Worst Video Game Boyfriend of the Year, that there’s more to this game than pattern recognition and matching items with logical spaces. This was the article that really caught my attention, as Unpacking seems to reflect the more complex, nuanced aspects of organizing, the ones our clients struggle with, and the ones we professional organizers are brought in to solve.

The issue isn’t that the home is too small, but that the boyfriend’s items are fixed in place, leaving our protagonist limited in her options for her own things, including as to where she can put her framed diploma. (The review notes it only fits under the bed, but a commenter posits that one can, at least temporarily, place it on the wall above the toilet? Um, yeah. No.) The Kotaku review continues:

September 2010 is the first level in which Unpacking feels truly cramped. Your things—your dolls, video games, and battered kitchen supplies—won’t fit within the confines of the level’s default setup. Instead, you also have to move the dude’s existing stuff around to make room. (There’s also the sense that you’re invading someone else’s space, given the mishmash in aesthetic tastes.) You eventually fit everything, but you do the entire task all alone. It is off-putting, to put it charitably, that this dude who was fully planning on moving in with someone didn’t even bother to make an inch for his incoming partner.

As a professional organizer, I’ve worked with clients whose homes had more than adequate space, but (very) adult children had left behind all the possessions of their childhoods, dorm rooms, and even early apartments, limiting the space available for their parents to use. (This is why I tell clients, “Don’t become the curator of the museum of other people’s things.”) 

For years, I've warned my clients: Don't become the curator of the museum of other people's things. Share on X

And I’ve had clients who felt like (sometimes unwelcome) visitors in their own homes, like the wife whose husband had filled every closet with his own clothes and possessions, leaving her to hang her things on doorknobs throughout the house.

This is all to say that at first glance, this game might seem like little more than a slow-moving version of the afforementioned Tetris or those square, plastic, 16-tile games where you move the jumbled tiles to create the face of a lion. From what I can tell from these reviews and the game play videos I’ve watched, I suspect that Unpacking offers a robust, intriguing opportunity to self-soothe through in-game organizing, even if one struggles with organizing in one’s own spaces, while gaining insight into a fictional character through analysis of her possessions.

Apparently, video games have come a long way from when the plumber was trying to save the princess.

Are you intrigued, but you just aren’t the video game player type? I was surprised to learn that there are actual video of video game play on YouTube. If you don’t mind commercials, you can watch someone else play the game. This version runs two and a half hours (and the player has turned off the music soundtrack):

WHAT’S MISSING FROM UNPACKING

Granted, I’m not a video game designer, and I have zero idea what someone would find compelling in this or a similar kind of gentle, experiential video game. But I know organizing, and let’s face it, unpacking is about organizing from the ground up. Instead of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic, as organizing can sometimes seem when you’re overwhelmed, you’re beginning with a clean slate (but admittedly, a whole bunch of boxes of chalk).

However, as far as I can tell, Unpacking is missing a few essential elements that might make it better reflect the real world experience. Namely:

  • Paper — We start when the protagonist is a little kid, so I really wouldn’t expect much more than the putting away of books and maybe tucking some homework into a backpack or drawer. And perhaps it’s because I’m a professional organizer who specializes in paper, but I’d want to see how the character develops some method for unpacking and organizing the paper in her life to help make sense of it. Yes, she’s got that aforementioned diploma, but throughout her life, upon each move, she’d have leases and bills, perhaps a marriage license, and a mortgage or title. (Again, Unpacking is Australian. Maybe they have much simpler paper lives? Though I doubt it.)
  • Donations — Every possession that’s unpacked seems to be kept the goal is to find someplace for it; anything jettisoned seems to disappear in the unseen transitions between levels. Though it appears there might be a trash can in some rooms (and emptied cardboard boxes and packing paper magically go *poof* when tapped), but there’s seemingly no box into which to put castoff clothes, toys that are no longer age appropriate, or any of the items that no longer fit her life once she (and you) move to the next level.

On the plus side, one feature I’d feared missing seems to have been considered: continuity. When I began researching this post, I was going to note that from when the character sets up her childhood bedroom in 1997 to when she moves in with her boyfriend in 2010 to the end of the game, there are unrealistically few items that carry through. But perhaps my experience as a professional organizer, working with people who often have difficulty letting go of possessions, has skewed my idea of how much carryover from move-to-move is realistic. (Or maybe I haven’t grasped that the level of detail I see in people’s homes can’t be emulated in a video game?!)

According to Fanbyte‘s Natalie Flores in Unpacking Is a Zen Puzzle Game about the Joys of Moving in and Moving On, each of the levels of the game shows both an upleveling of the character’s possessions and a through-line of much-loved items:

As the protagonist experiences the many changes that life brings, I was glad to see certain items from her childhood — like her stuffed animals and game consoles — still show up in boxes I emptied years later in her life. I felt similarly as I saw her upgrade her small cassette player to a boombox, and her art supplies evolve in variety and sophistication.

I was also sad when the game indicated a portrait that was previously on display — and which I had assumed was still meant to be that way — now belonged inside the kind of cabinet destined to rarely be opened. I felt similarly, too, as I realized certain items she once undoubtedly cherished (and that I had unknowingly grown attached to) no longer accompanied her on the journey. Unpacking truly embodies the act of unpacking in the sense that you’re often surprised by what you take out of any given box. As well as what you don’t. That surprise is heartbreaking as often as it is pleasant.

Finally, perfectionists beware. Moving for a stranger can be as overwhelming as doing so for yourself. Tom Orry of VG247 wrote, in Game Pass Gem: Unpacking is the kind of game you wish you’d thought of, that he’d had no interest in unpacking or organizing before playing the game, but “I can’t believe I’m enjoying placing dishes as much as I am.” However, he quickly got caught up:

I’ve seen a fair few people talking about how Unpacking is a nice relaxing game, but I’ve found it anything but. For one, I want the rooms to look perfect. Books must be placed in order of size, shoes must be neatly placed together, jeans folded, buttoned shirts hung, socks all in one place. And that mark of the wall must be covered by a poster or a picture frame.

And good lord, please let me put all the tea and coffee making things together. I simply won’t abide having the sugar in a different cupboard to the coffee. And why do I have to choose which of my childhood toys get to go on a shelf and others hidden away? I’m thinking about one mistake I made as I write this. I think subconsciously I’ve become the person whose belongings I’ve been dealing with. Are they sad that I put the pig soft toy away? I think they probably are. I’m sorry. There just wasn’t room.

Before you consider playing, consider this a warning.

OTHER REAL-LIFE ORGANIZING AND LIFE MANAGEMENT GAMES WE NEED

Finally, I’ve been thinking about the kinds of “adulting” and life skills games people (like professional organizing clients) could use in addition to this kind of unpacking and organizing effort. Different areas of organizing one’s life take different cognitive and executive function skills, and I’d love to see game developed for these needs.

Financial Management — Years ago, Urban Ministries of Durham put up an interactive, in-browser game called Spent.

The point of the game is to challenge those who go whole hog on the concept of “You should pull yourself up by your bootstraps” to get a sense of the daily reality for some people. In this game, you must get a job and an apartment and deal with the unexpected challenges of illness (and hospital bills) and car repairs (and breakdowns). I have played Spent many times, and have almost always lost. The text-only game, with somewhat ominous music, induces stress. I think a money management “game” where you can’t lose, but can learn better options, would be a great opportunity for high schoolers (and grownups).

Time Management — The same kind of intriguing artistry and thought put into Unpacking could be used to create space in one’s schedule for work (or school), adulting skills (like laundry and grocery shopping), exercise, and relationships.

Paper Management — Come on. I’m Paper Doll, what did you expect?

Hey, video game developers, if you’d like some outside advisors, I know some great professional organizers to offer you advice! 

 

Let me know what you think of the idea of Unpacking. Would you find it soothing to unpack and organize these spaces, or would you get overwhelmed? What other life skills games do you think are needed? Please share in the comments!

Posted in College, Paper Organizing, Philosophical, Project Management, Psychological | 14 Comments »

Organize Your Writing: NaNoWriMo 2021

Posted on: November 1st, 2021 by Julie Bestry | 14 Comments

Photo of Typewriter by Patrick Fore on Unsplash

It’s November, and that means it’s time for NaNoWriMo.

Not familiar with National Novel Writing Month? You will be, by the time you finish this post. Not a writer? That’s OK, because many of the resources and concepts are applicable to your goals of getting organized at school, at work and in your life.

THE BASICS OF NANOWRIMO

Every November, NaNoWriMo participants commit to writing a 50,000-word novel between the first and 30th of the month. You’re encouraged to start planning and outlining in October, but all that matters is that starting after midnight (in your local time) on November 1st, you start writing a new novel (or a fresh rewrite of an old one), and aim to finish before the end of the month. Each day, you can update your progress and get cute little badges (if that’s your style).

There are plotters (people who create detailed outlines) and pantsers (those who prefer to write by the seat of their pants. (Not sure whether you’re a plotter or pantser? SkillShare Blog has some guidance.) And there are rebels, who aren’t writing novels at all, but screenplays, non-fiction, comic books (though, I suppose a graphic novel is nonethless a novel).

If you’re enough of a rebel to pick a different format, but not so much of a rebel that you’d independently write without thousands of others doing the same thing you’re doing, it’s OK. The NaNoWriMo police won’t strip you of a win if your creation looks less like a novel and more like an epic poem, Iliad & Odyssey-style. 

Once you have hit the 50,000-word benchmark, you can upload your novel and the NaNoWriMo website will verify your word count. If you hit that 50K, you’re a “winner!” (Whoohoo!) That means you’ll get a certificates and a banner you can display on social media and your website, and you can purchase a T-shirt in the site’s store. And you’ll have the righteous satisfaction of knowing you can write a book, even if you don’t choose to publish or even share it with anyone.

During the course of the month, you can benefit from a variety of writing and productivity assistance and accountability support:

  • Discussion Forums
  • Writing Groups
  • Regional Support
  • Writing Buddies
  • Pep Talks from Professional Writers (including past talks from lots of writers you probably already read!)

Of course, as a Paper Doll reader, you already know the importance of accountability, but as a reminder, you may want to peek back at:

Count On Accountability: 5 Productivity Support Solutions

Flow and Faux (Accountability): Productivity, Focus, and Alex Trebek

What really excites many NaNoWriMo peeps are the various special offers available to participants and to “winners” (i.e., those who hit their 50K goal). From discounts on writing software like super-platform Scrivener, to book-planning Plottr, to grammar-checker/style editor ProWritingAid, participation has its privileges.

A BOUNTY OF RESOURCES

In 2015, I wrote Organizing Your Writing for NaNoWriMo and More. I talked about creating a road map and preparing to write, setting a schedule, creating a theme song to psych you up for writing, conquering writer’s block, and staying motivated. I anticipated it would be a one-time kind of post, because organizing writing seemed like a narrow focus. Readers thought otherwise, and I kept getting request for most posts on the topic.

So, in 2017, I revisited the concepts of organizing your writing for a month-long series of NaNoWriMo posts. There’s a bounty of information and resources in these posts from the vault, and I’ve added some bonus information below; I’ve checked (and where necessary, replaced) the links and removed (or warned about) anything that’s no longer valid.

[Note: because the posts were originally from 2017, various software and services have increased in prices, and because we live in a world where capitalism abounds, those rates will surely go up again, so rather than chasing down price changes for each, I encourage you to check rates before purchasing anything.]

Of course, I’m not just going to tell you what I wrote about in years-ago posts. Halloween may be over, but there are treats below!

(I think this was my first attempt at create a graphic in Canva. A writer, I am. A designer, I am not.)

Paper Doll’s How To Organize Yourself to Write for NaNoWriMo 2017

This post covered how to:

Identify your goals — this is key to any project. You’ve heard of SMART goals, where it’s essential to create goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based? Well, with my organizing clients, I always make sure that the reason we’re working is based on SMARTY goals — that Y assures that your “why” is based on YOUR goals. Just as it’s hopeless to get organized to solely to please your mother-in-law or to lose weight so your significant other will pay more attention to you than the TV, your goals for why you want to write are as unique as you are, and the post lays out four possible ways to reach your Y/why.

Organize your inspiration — Some of us are motivated by the carrot, others by the stick. (Of which, more later.) Some of us, like my writer-pal Dava Stewart of Smiling Tree Writing, get motivated by embracing nature. Paper Doll, on the other hand, needs an air-conditioned, bug-free environment without the sound of crickets or frogs. 

Organizing your writing time — I teach my clients, “Don’t put things down, put them away.” The word away ensures that something has a home, where it lives. Just as with tangible items, tasks and projects require homes in your schedule if you hope to accomplish them. Remember, someday is not a day on the calendar!

Don't put things down, put them away. AWAY ensures that something has a home. Just as with tangible items, tasks require homes in your schedule. Remember, SOMEDAY is not a day on the calendar! Share on X

That post also offered some suggestions for seeking expert advice. If any of these issues resonate with you, that first NaNoWriMo post from 2017 is worth a visit.

Paper Doll’s NaNoWriMoMoMo (Novel Writing Month Monday Motivation)…Even for Non-Writers

This post was a compendium of advice about motivation. Everyone’s motivation has suffered over the course of the pandemic, and inspiration has been hard to come by. This post pulled from different resources to help amp up motivation to get started and keep going. Plus, who else but Paper Doll would offer up a post with Confucius, Kermit the Frog, and Hugh Jackman?

If your spirit is willing but your flesh is weak, sleepy, and full of Halloween candy, the above post should give you a motivational boost. (You could also send all your leftover Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups my way; sharing is caring, and what better way to be motivated than to share your bounty?)

Paper Doll’s NaNoWriMoMo(nday): Organize Your Writing Platforms for Maximum Focus

Sure, you can write the Great American Novel in Microsoft Word, but the truth is, most writers need a little more support from their writing platforms. This post covered the beloved Scrivener, which is probably the best-known and most beloved, as well as the most sworn-at writer’s software around. It has so many bells and whistles for organizing your writing and research and giving you the equivalent of surround-sound (surround-vision) of bulletin boards, note cards, and success-tracking that it can be overwhelming.

I also guided you toward the amazing resource of Joseph Michael, founder of Learn Scrivener Fast. Watch his Twitter account for announcements of his free webinars to get a taste of how much of a wealth of experience he has to offer to provide clarity about Scrivener. Today, I add the advice to get to know Anne Rainbow of Scrivener Virgin. She’s another tremendous resource for learning the best ways to organize your writing and research.

The post also reviewed a number of minimalist platforms designed to help narrow your focus and keep your eyes on the writing ball. These included IAWriter, Ulysses, Ilys (which literally keeps you focused by only letting you see one letter at a time, preventing you from editing and getting lost in writerly analysis paralysis), Zen Pen, and The Most Dangerous Writing App In the World. In terms of carrot and stick approaches to focus, the latter is the ultimate stick; you set the time frame (5 seconds? a minute?) but if you stop writing for longer than the amount of time you’ve allowed, everything you’ve written gets deleted. Permanently. (Prefer a carrot to a stick? Keep reading!)

Paper Doll’s NaNoWriMoMo(nday): 10 Tools to Organize Your Writing, Editing, and Proofreading

Writing comes from the heart, but creating good writing that people are willing to read means that you need to address the technical aspects. Ernest Hemingway said, “Write drunk. Edit sober.” And many of the solutions I offered were more for the post-NaNoWrimo editing stage of the writing experience.

I wax eloquent and gushed about my beloved Jumpcut, a (free) Mac menu-bar doohickey that lets you do the “and paste” part of cut-and-paste or copy-and-paste, even if you cut something six cuts ago and forgot to paste it. Jumpcut remembers. Unfortunately, it looks like the PC clipboard manager I suggested has gone to the website graveyard, other free solutions exist. If you tend to copy but forget to paste, or realize too late that you want a snippet you’ve written back again, Softclick has compiled a list of clipboard managers for Windows.

The post also covered proofreading and editing tools like Grammarly and Hemingway, to which I’d now add ProWritingAid for those wanting business-class editing support (and are willing to pony up $20/month or $79/year for a 67% discount, or $399 for a lifetime subscription). I also looked at online dictionaries and text expanders for automating your snippets of repeatable brilliance.

Paper Doll’s NaNoWriMoMo(nday): Writing Challenges, Dictation Tools, & Organized Writing Advice

This series-ender was a bit of a mish-mash. It looked at the concept of other kinds of writing challenges as well as writing support software and services for dictation, and rounded out the month with a stack of NaNoWriMo advice. (Stick around for more of that good stuff!)

But you didn’t think I was just going to update you on a four-year-old blog series, did you?

CARROT VS. STICK

In the original post, Organize Your Writing Platforms for Maximum Focus, one of the platforms (The Most Dangerous Writing App in the World) took the stick approach. That might work for getting your juices flowing writing what Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way, calls morning pages. But if the first decent draft of chapter 3 went up in a puff a smoke because you stopped too long to admire it, I suspect you wouldn’t be very inspired to keep writing. The stick may motivated, or it might  beat you into submission!

For some people, avoiding pain is the best way to spur them along. But others prefer the carrot — the reward. For them, consider:

The Official Written Kitten!

Are you having trouble getting going on something you need to write? Maybe a novel, but maybe a report for work, a long-overdue note of gratitude? Just plunk down with The Official Written Kitten in your browser. 

The setting are simple. Would you like to be rewarded with a new photo of a kitten, a puppy, or a bunny? And would you like your reward to come every 100, 200, 500, or 1000 words? Pick the adorable animal and number count of your liking, and start typing in the box. Once you hit your benchmark, a box to the right of your writing area will be filled with a “fresh” photo of an cuddly friend, such as Little cat with beautiful eyes looking at camera by shixart1985.

Once you hit your goal, be sure to copy the content to Word, Google Docs, email, or wherever your final destination may be to save your creation. If you click the share buttons under the photos, that pop up, your Twitter or Facebook followers will see the adorable animals (selected from Flickr), but not what you’ve written. 

MAKING GOALS, BREAKING THEM DOWN

50,000 words sounds like a lot, even over a month’s time. Divide that equally by 1667 words sounds a bit more manageable. (For a hint, that’s about half the length of a typical Paper Doll post.) And certainly, you could aim for 1667 words per day. But realistically, not everyone’s life rolls steadily along with an equal number of pockets of time available for writing. 

Certainly, time blocking is one solution. And for that, harken back to last February’s Playing With Blocks: Success Strategies for Time Blocking Productivity for a deep dive in how blocking your time will help make sure nothing falls through the cracks in your busy, busy life.

Pacemaker is one interesting resource for trying to organize your writing slots. It’s designed as a simple, flexible goal planner for writers and students to help making writing projects seem less overwhelming. Whether you’re NaNoWriMo-ing or trying to finish your thesis, Pacemaker can help you sort out the possible writing pathway. Pacemaker notes you can try one of multiple methods to do work in a set block of time (month, quarter, year, etc.):

  • Steady — With this pattern, you aim to write the same amount (whether that’s number of words or number of pages) each day.
  • Rising to the Challenge — Think of this as akin to how you build up your number of reps at the gym. While the number of words written starts out small, if you increase your word count quota each day, you’ll build up that writing muscle.
  • Biting the Bullet — For some people, baby steps don’t work; instead of rising slowly to the challenge, this method encourages tackling large chunks of your writing goal at the beginning of your schedule so that the pressure is off as the days taper down. Given that NaNoWriMo takes place in November, with Thanksgiving travel (in non-pandemic years, at least) and holiday prep taking up lots of the end of the month, this might be ideal for those with big end-of-the-month plans. 
  • Mountain Hike — Too freaked out to bite the bullet, too busy near the end of the month to rise to the challenge? This strategy puts the bulk of your effort at the center of your period.
  • Valley — This effort is the reverse of the mountain hike. Work hard at the start and the end, but give yourself some leeway in the middle.
  • Oscillating — This strategy mixes heavier and lighter loads, but in a regulated way.
  • Random — Some people function better when their obligations are a surprise. Paper Doll generally avoids surprises; I like to have everything neatly planned out. Surprises give me hives. But if not knowing what to expect revs your engine, perhaps being asked to write 500 words on Tuesday but only 27 words on Wednesday might be right up your alley. And Pacemaker notes that there are 20 million googol different ways to write 50,000 words in 30 days so if you pick the randomized route, you’ll never get bored!

(This is the random method; if you were looking at the actual graph instead of a screen shot, you could hover your cursor over any dot to see how many words you should write.)

Pacemaker lets you customize further by deciding if you want to do more, less, or nothing on the weekends. You can also select an intensity of work, on scale from gentle to hard core, and even reserve some number of free days at the end!

So, with Pacemaker, you set up a plan by naming your project and determining what you’re trying to accomplish. (While Pacemaker is writing-friendly, you can also set it up for a variety of other related or unrelated projects, from editing and proofreading to saving, spending, running, training, and more.) If you are writing, you can pick a project type, like novel, conference paper, dissertation, speech, etc.

Next, set your goals, including length and length type. So, you can pick 50,000 words to finish a novel for NaNoWriMo, or 250 stanzas for your epic poem, or 13 verses for your song to rival Alice’s Restaurant (another November tradition). Then note your start and finish dates.

You log your efforts as you go along, and then they’re displayed for you however you prefer: as a table, graph, calendar, or bar chart (though that’s a premium feature). Below is the calendar version of a randomized Pacemaker attempt at a novel in one month.

Check out their sample plans. Pacemaker is free, but there’s a premium version for $8/month or $72/year.

TRACKING YOUR SUCCESS

What we measure, we pay more attention to, and are thus more likely to improve. We tend to think of keeping score as a having a competitive purpose, but we need not compete against anyone but ourselves. Measuring the results of our efforts, and tracking them over time, gives us a reality check that helps us refine and tweak what we do.

When we’re watching our weight, tracking the numbers on the scale may help, or may demoralize us; noting whether we’re wearing the jeans that are one size up (or down) from what we wore last season may be a bit more compelling. Whether we’re tracking how much we’re saving for a big purchase (or paring down our debt), whether we’re tracking our scores on practice tests or our words written toward a goal, knowing how we did is a powerful resource!

Austin Kleon adapted a simple “Don’t Break the Chain” printable from his popular The Steal Like an Artist Journal to help make sure you keep up with NaNoWriMo (or any thirty-day challenge).

©2017 Austin Kleon

I like the fact that it doesn’t merely give you a chance to put “a big, fat X” through any day you’ve worked toward your goal, but there’s a choice of “carrots” (just like the kittens in Official Written Kitten) at the bottom to remind you how you’ll reward yourself. Kleon’s carrots are a “a taco dinner,” “a pony,” and getting your “life back” but there’s a space to put your own reward.

And once again, I want to encourage NaNoWriMo-ites (and anyone else) to investigative designer Dave Seah‘s free 2021 NaNoWriMo Word Counting Calendar.

©2021 David Seah

There are six different color versions; the classic PDF version is green, but I’m partial to the pink and purple, and there’s also blue, orange, and noir-ish black & white.

©2021 David Seah

ORGANIZE YOUR MIND FOR NANOWRIMO AND OTHER (WRITING) PROJECTS

Participating in NaNoWriMo this Year? Here’s How to Make it Through — My favorite tip is #9, to celebrate your wins and ignore your losses. However, sometimes looking at our losses gives us an opportunity to identify how we can improve on our efforts — at writing, but also at organizing, getting in shape, or handling projects — the  next time. So maybe we should celebrate our wins, not take our losses personally, but let them be instructive tools.

Write a 50,000-Word Pulp Novel Before Breakfast: My easy no-outline way of writing short novels in four weeks — Even if you’re not going to write a pulp novel, there’s good writing and project management wisdom here.

The NaNoWriMo Survival Guide: Advice from Past Winners

On Writing: The Only NaNoWriMo Tips You’ll Ever Need

Your Essential Guide to Completing NaNoWriMo in Evernote

10 Steps to Get Started with Scrivener for NaNoWriMo

And, finally, in case you feel like you need more training and inspiration in writing, Open Culture has a list of free online writing (and journalism) courses. They’re all MOOCs (massive open online courses) from US and international universities. From classes on creative writing and the crafts of character, plot, and setting at Wesleyan to advanced grammar and punctuation at UC Irvine, maybe feeliing like you’re back at school will help you get into the swing of writing. 

 

Whatever projects you work on this month, remember to make sure the goals are truly yours, that you block space in your schedule and break down the tasks into small, workable elements, and that you track your accomplishments to stay motivated.

Happy November, and happy NaNoWriMo from YoLoPaDo, your loving Paper Doll. 

Tags:

Posted in Paper Organizing, Productivity, Project Management | 14 Comments »

The Humble Index Card: Organize Your Life, Then Organize Your Cards

Posted on: October 25th, 2021 by Julie Bestry | 22 Comments

When was the last time you used an index card? Chances are, you don’t give a lot of respect to the humble three-by-five, but we owe so many of our systems, including almost every type of categorization and computerization, to what first got plotted out in a precursor of the little cards we know so well.

Index cards, of a sort, have been around ever since the 1760s, when Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus, the father of modern taxonomy (the science of classification), figured out that he could name, categorize, and keep track of animals, plants, and minerals. All that Latin nomenclature, with genus and species and sub-species, needed to be written down somewhere, and Linnaeus figured out how to square it all away.

I know, it’s hard to believe someone had to invent an index card, but realize that file folders weren’t even invented until the late 1800s, filing cabinets came to market in 1898, and paper clips showed up around 1900. If you crave more about the history of office supplies — and I mean, who doesn’t? — you might like to check out:

The Early Office Museum

A Place for Everything: The Curious History of Alphabetical Order by Judith Flanders (which is about so much more than just alphabetical order, and provides some eye-opening backward glances into how hard it was to organize information throughout most of recorded history).

N/A

The Perfection of the Paper Clip: Curious Tales of Invention, Accidental Genius, and Stationery Obsession by James Ward, which offers intriguing narratives (with a British twist) on how all our office supplies were developed.

N/A

In the world of Evernote and OneNote, of CRMs and productivity apps, the humble index card often gets lost in the shuffle (if you’ll pardon the card pun). But there are a variety of ways to organize information and knowledge to help you lead a more orderly life — inexpensively, easily, and without internet access.

I have nothing against using the web and all the magical apps available to help you achieve your goals, but Paper Doll would be doing a disservice not to note the old-school ways you can organize your life with index cards. And of course, while I’m at it, I’ve got a deep dive on options to help you organize those index cards to keep clutter at a bare minimum.

WHAT CAN YOU DO WITH AN INDEX CARD?

Think back. What was your earliest interaction with index cards? Was it Grandma’s recipe for your favorite cookies, perhaps with an oily thumbprint in the upper corner of a card covered with her curling scrawl? Maybe you learned how to do geometry proofs with each card bisected vertically? Or perhaps you studies for the SAT vocabulary section using index cards as flash cards?

In this digital age, you can still do so much with a package of 3″ x 5″ index cards from the dollar store. Off the top of my head, you can use an index card or stack for:

  • Address Collections – The problem with a print address book is that once you fill up a “popular” letter (M? S?) until all the blanks are filled, or if one of your vagabond friends has used up an entire page of one letter of addresses for her travels hither and yon, you need to acquire a new address book to make up for the oodles of scribbles and cross-outs. Sure, using the Contacts app in your phone is ideal, unless you’ve somehow failed to back your phone up to the cloud, in which case, one accidental trip through the washing machine can erase a lifetime of contacts. But index cards were a simple, inexpensive precursor to a Rolodex and continue to make an appealing alternative to digital address apps. Using one card per person/family lets you keep track of addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, the names of newly-arrived babies, and so on. When one card has enough cross-outs and re-writes, just replace it with a new index card rather than a whole new address book.
  • Customer Relationship Management (CRM) — Yes, a CRM software program is the gold standard for new businesses, and I wouldn’t encourage you to start a business by keeping this kind of information on paper. But if you’re the kind of person who just doesn’t embrace technology for everything, using an index card with your client’s name, phone number, birthday/anniversary, and key preferences might be a good way to help you get started. When your customer reaches out to you, or vice versa, you can put a date on the line, with a quick note about the conversation, letting you trace the history of the relationship over time.
  • Expense Logs — In the olden days, we wrote checks and then noted information about the transactions in our check registers. Paper Doll still uses a register for every transaction, but is prompted by receipts (from debit card transactions, mostly) to remind myself what to log. However, just carrying an index card in your wallet gives you an easy way to keep track of your financial activities in the moment. Write the date, the amount, and a one-line description of what you bought. If you tend to use cash, this will help you track your expenses without need of logging into your bank account; if you use your debit or credit card, mostly, this offers assistance for keeping tabs on your day-to-day spending (as using plastic doesn’t “feel” like money, and you may not realize how much outlay is going on).
  • Meals and Snack Logs — Are you on any kind of eating plan? (The word “diet” is so last century!) Whether you’re keeping track of protein grams and carbs for nutritional reasons, calories for health, or exact foods to figure out a mystery allergy, index cards offer a quick solution.
  • To-Do Lists — Start your day with your three most important goals on an index card. When you have only three inches by five inches of real estate, you’re going to be pithy and get to the point. (Sure, you can use a Post-it® Note, but lined index cards give you a little more formality.) I like to pick 1 big task, two medium-sized tasks, and three small tasks, but even these should fit on a “today” card.
  • Wanna-Do Lists — Yes, if your friend recommends a book, movie, restaurant, or podcast, you can pull it up in your phone, but only if your phone is handy. (And then, how much more likely are you to then be distracted by your phone and ignore your friend?) Keeping a running list on a card or two in your wallet or purse lets you pull it out when the context is right — when you’re trying to find somewhere to eat on Saturday night or roaming the bookstore (or even surfing online) to find something to read.
  • Flash Cards — I love my Duolingo for learning Italian, but to remember attraversiamo, già, and sempre, or to distinguish among ora vs. poi vs. allora, you can’t beat a flash card. Whether you’re learning bones and ligaments in medical school, national capitals and top exports in geography, or embracing those definitions for the SAT verbals, flash cards are inexpensive and easy to make, quick to shuffle, and require no battery charge. Plus, research shows that we remember what we hand-write, with greater context and nuance, than what we type.

  • Recipes — This one can’t surprise you. For a century, families have passed down handwritten recipes on index cards.
  • Household Inventories — Sure, you’ll create the best, most complete inventory if you video your possessions and log them in software like HomeZada or Sortly, or even in a self-created database in Airtable, but if you want to do a quick-and-dirty inventory of your space, noting descriptions, model numbers, serial numbers, etc., an index card inventory is a great start.
  • Research — Whether you’re writing a report for Social Studies or looking up some genealogical records, index cards provide a way of encapsulating information. You can use numbers and letters to code which things are related to what. My 7th grade English teacher taught us to create an outline (with Roman numerals and letters, breaking down each section), putting each bibliographic item on its own card with its own code, and then each fact or quote got a card, linking it to the outline and to the bibliographic source. Not only did I use this method (with small modifications) in college and graduate school, but I incorporated into research I’ve done for my ebooks and other publications. The size of the index card forces you to focus on bite-sized pieces of information.
  • Maps for Creative Endeavors and Adventures — Writing a novel? Use index cards to keep track of the essential traits of each character, and then map out your plot points, and put it all up on a bulletin board. (This method is actually the model for the popular Scrivener software.) Planning a vacation and can’t decide among all the options? Make a card for each alternative, with essential information like dates and times each museum or attraction is open, then sort by location (Paris, London, Madrid? Niagara Falls, Buffalo, Rochester?) and order by priorities. Bring the stack with you on your trip, and if weather or a venue closure blocks your plans, you’ll be able to pick the next priority in the stack!

SPECIAL USE OF INDEX CARDS: THE HIPSTER PDA

Have you ever heard of the Hipster PDA?

Back in 2004, Merlin Mann, writer and founder of the productivity website 43 Folders, (somewhat) jokingly turned his back on the increasing complexity of what we used to call personal digital assistants (like those pre-iPhone Blackberry and PalmPilot devices). He put forth the idea of using a small stack of index cards and a binder clip to gather essential information and keep it at hand.

Teo, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

While Mann may have been applying the concept with a bit of tongue-in-cheek goofiness, the followers of David Allen’s Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity (GTD) approach picked up the idea of the Hipster PDA and ran with it. In GTD, one of the focuses is on keeping context lists, so that when you’re at the office, you have an Office list; when you’re at the supermarket, you have a Piggly Wiggly list, and so on. 

N/A

While most people are keeping that kind of list in the reminders app of their phone, fans of the Hipster PDA have a context card for each item or task to be slotted where appropriate.

The Hipster PDA requires only index cards (used vertically or horizontally, as you prefer) and binder clips. If you want, you can use multi-color card packs to color-code different features or contexts. There are even crowdsourced templates all over the web (here’s a set at DIY Planner) and on Pinterest to help you use index cards to create the productivity approach of your dreams.

HOW CAN YOU KEEP YOUR INDEX CARDS ORGANIZED?

The answer may seem almost ridiculous. After all, a simple rubber band around a packet of index cards should be enough to keep them from spreading out across a desk drawer, a high school locker, or an office. But if you’ve ever come across an old stack of index cards, wrapped in a rubber band like that, you know that rubber bands dry out and break. That’s why the Hipster PDA uses binder clips.

For many, the main drawback to using index cards is the potential for disorganization or card clutter. However, there are a variety of solutions you can use, whether you want your card stack to be mobile or just neatly arranged on your desk our counter. I’ve gathered alternatives for corralling 3″ x 5″ cards, as they are the most standard, but you should be able to find similar solutions for 4″ x 6″ and sometimes even 5″ x 8″ index card storage. 

Note card rings — Don’t be tempted to think you can organize your cards with traditional keyrings, the kind where you have to pry the metal apart with your fingernails or a key. Use a search term like bookbinder rings or loose leaf binder rings. You want the kind that lets you push inward from both sides and then pull the sides apart to grant you access. Depending on the thickness of your card stacks, you might want to get an assortment of sizes. A few dozen rings (which you can always use for other purposes) won’t run you much more than $5 or so.

Index card binders — If you want your cards to have a little more protection, you can opt for a miniature binder, similar to the kinds of three-ring binders you’d use for loose-leaf paper. This Oxford Index Card Binder has a poly cover, two rings, and two poly dividers. It’s available in red, blue, or green for about $13.

Index Card Cases/Boxes — If you have small stacks of index cards you want to keep attractively but make portable, another option would be a poly index card case or box. I really like these colorful ones from DocIt. Each poly case (available in blue, pink, grey, or green) has a snap closure, holds 100 cards, and includes five dividers with adhesive label tabs. You can buy one for about $5, or packs of four ($12.99) or 24 ($35.99). 

 

If you want a greater variety of colors for a similar price, check out these four-packs from Emraw. Note that these aren’t accordion-style; I find that accordion-style index card cases hold fewer cards, and chances are you won’t need the kind of mini-sections they enable. 

Plastic Index Card File Box — This is probably what you used in school, and it’s a stalwart of the office supply arena. Plastic is water-resistant, durable, inexpensive, and won’t rust, and these kinds of card file boxes usually fit easily in a drawer or on your desktop, but are light enough (with secure enough closures) that you can pop them in your backpack. But, of course, it’s plastic, and not everyone likes petrochemical products. (Plastic = petroleum = dead dinosaurs.) You can buy a brand name version at any big-box store, or get one at your nearest dollar store for no more than $3-4 each, or try this Alfion set of four for about $16.99 from Amazon.

Metal Index Card File Boxes — I grew up with Paper Mommy‘s gravy-brown metal index card file box housing one set of her recipes. The metal version isn’t as lightweight as the plastic ones, and they usually lack a secure closure, making them poor options for mobile card storage. They also tend not to be very pretty. However, with a little creativity (and some paint, washi tape, or contact paper) you can make your card box match your personal style.

You used to be able to find metal card file boxes in the same size/shape as the plastic file boxes above, but in recent years, larger/deeper metal cases have become more popular. This Steelmaster card file box has a 900 card capacity and is 8 1/2″ deep; it costs $26.60 at Amazon.

Collapsible Card File Boxes — If your need for card file storage ebbs and flows, you might want to consider a collapsible index card file box. This one from Snap-N-Store holds 1100 3″ x 5″ index cards. The box is made of sturdy fiberboard with a water-resistant laminate cover, metal snaps and steel-reinforced corners. It runs $10 at Amazon. 

 

Decorative Solutions — While the above solutions are standard, you should be able to find a wide variety of “fun” options for organizing your index cards if you search beyond office supply stores.

If you want an old-fashioned wooden file box, perhaps as a gift box already filled with recipe cards, your best bet is to haunt Etsy or specialty craft shops; the search terms “wooden recipe box” should pull up something useful. I found this ArtMinds® wooden recipe box for $6 at Michael’s. 

I have to say, however, that my favorite index card storage option, from an aesthetic perspective, is the Oxford at Hand Note Card Organizer. Each metal organizer has a non-skid base to keep it in place and prevent it from squeaking against your desktop or countertop. It’s designed to hold 3″ x 5″ cards and comes with 25 matching dot-grid cards, but of course you can use any card style.

The Oxford at Hand Note Card Organizer comes in Charcoal Grey as well as three designer colors: Coral, Shoreline Blue, and Orchid Bouquet. They run $22.75/each, but must (unfortunately) be ordered in sets of 6 or 12 if you buy directly from Tops Products (Oxford’s parent company). However, you can get a single case in the Charcoal Grey and Shoreline Blue versions on Amazon for $12.99/each. (I’m still searching for a vendor selling just one in Orchid Bouquet, so please write in if you see them anywhere!)

 

Of course, there’s so much more to be said about index cards (sizes, styles, patterns), storage, display options, and uses, but we’ll have to save that for another time. Do you have a strategy for using index cards that I didn’t mention? A favorite storage solution for cards that I didn’t include? Please share in the comments below!

 

 

Disclosure: Some of the links above are affiliate links, and I may get a small remuneration (at no additional cost to you) if you make a purchase after clicking through to the resulting pages. The opinions, as always, are my own. (Seriously, who else would claim them?) For more information regarding how Best Results Organizing handles affiliate links, please see the affiliate section of the site’s Privacy Policy.

Posted in Office Supplies, Paper Organizing | 22 Comments »

Cross-Training for Families: Organize for All Eventualities

Posted on: October 11th, 2021 by Julie Bestry | 21 Comments

WHAT’S THE DEAL WITH CROSS-TRAINING?

The term cross-training appears to have originated in the fitness and athletic world. One’s usual sport strengthens certain muscle groups and develops a specific set of skills; training in different disciplines, allows you to address other muscle groups, gain and sharpen different skills, and create a more well-rounded overall performance.

Photo by Marta Wave from Pexels

Cross-training in business yields the same kinds of benefits. Let’s say you work for a widget-making company. (“Hi! I’m <insert you name here>. I work for a widget-making company!”) Your job might be to oversee the complicated machine that cuts out the widgets; your friend down the factory line has a complementary job, making sure that the widgets are quality-controlled to meet international widget-production specifications.

If your company is run smoothly, each employee must be crackerjack at his or her job. But what if there’s only one person who knows how to do a specific thing? What if that person wins the lottery and quits, or gets hired away by a competing widget maker? Sure, the company can hire and train a new widget quality-control specialist, but until that happens, a manager with prior experience might have to step in, reducing the time the manager can, well, manage.

But what if the staff were cross-trained so that in addition to knowing your own job up, down, and sideways, everyone had at least a little training at other people’s jobs? Wouldn’t that make things better?

When I worked in television, I was a program director at local network affiliates. My assistant and I each had our separate spheres of influence, but the truth was that on most days, I was handling managerial tasks (research, contract negotiation, meetings with syndicators, etc.) and my assistant was handling day-to-day operations (maintaining the film vault, overseeing satellite operations, quality-controlling programming tapes — because this was in ancient times, before programming all lived inside computers).

Ours was a two-person department; without cross-training on the intricacies of satellite operations and whatnot, my assistant would never have been able to call in sick, take a vacation, or move onward professionally without things grinding to a stand-still. Cross-training saves butts!

Photo by Christina Morillo from Pexels

Major advantages of cross-training in business include:

  • Better efficiency, because the more people have a good handle on how to do any one thing, the better it will get done.
  • Improved flexibility, because the organization as a whole can be nimble.
  • Clarity for emergency response planning. Back-up plans can save companies and that can save lives.
  • Better “coverage,” so that if there are greater needs in one area (like greater demand for boxing up widgets) employees from other departments can fill those roles.
  • Better integration and institutional knowledge across the company. If you only know how your department works, and are fuzzy on the operations of the rest of the business, not only does it hold you back from spotting potential problems and making suggestions (for the company’s benefit), it keeps you from achieving personal growth by seeing what other possibilities exist for you.
  • Better morale. The more you know how to do, and the better you are at it, the more self-confidence you’re going to have.
  • More satisfied customers. If you are involved in client/customer-facing work, cross-training means you can respond wisely, deftly, and quickly to questions, yielding more confidence in the company and in you as an expert.

Cross-training in your family, especially with regard to essential paperwork, information, and rituals, has the same benefits. Think about what happens when one parent is the main caregiver for a child but has to leave for a business trip or to help an ailing grandparent. The other parent (or other adult in the household, if there is one) needs to step in and step up!

Cross-training in the family has the same benefits as with companies.

  • Better efficiency, because the person who usually pays the electric bill, does the carpool drop-off, or renews the car insurance policies may not always be available without difficulty or overwhelm.
  • Improved flexibility, because the family as a whole can be nimble.
  • Clarity for emergency response planning. You back up your computer; shouldn’t you have backup for when you’re headed to give a career-defining speech and the school calls to say your child just threw up?
  • Better “coverage,” so that when one adult in the family is overloaded, the other can pick up the slack without having to explain what to do, how to do it, what the pitfalls may be, and who may complain (about the color of the frosting or how the sandwich is cut).
  • Better integration and “institutional” knowledge across the family. It’s not 1957; it’s unreasonable to expect that one member of the household is “in charge” of all things related to the kids or that one (other, or the same) person is “in charge” of all financial, legal, and organizational goings-on.* 

*This is a really complex topic. Being a caregiver for children and running a household, even when one works outside the home for pay, involves not only the physical labor but the mental load and emotional labor of anticipating cognitive, emotional, and other needs of stakeholders (but instead of CEOs and shareholders, it’s tiny humans and life partners). I’m excited to note that my colleagues Regina Lark, PhD and Judith Kolberg have written Emotional Labor: Why A Woman’s Work Is Never Done. It was just released, and deals more specifically with this concept.

  • Better morale. It’s a reality. The more active a part of your family you are (or your partner is), knowing everything from which lullaby scares away the monsters to which color notebook into which the teacher requires permission slips be inserted, the happier everyone will be.
  • More satisfied “customers.” OK, your kids and your spouse/partner, and maybe even other members of your household (like aging parents) want to feel confident that you’re a full-fledged member of the family, that you know what you’re doing and that you want to be there doing it.  

Cross-training rocks!

SO WHY DO PEOPLE AVOID CROSS-TRAINING?

If cross-training is so great, why do people groan and avoid it? (I’m so glad you asked!) The sticking points are the same at work as they are at home, though they are expressed differently.

Inertia

At work: businesses tend to focus on urgent priorities, so even if there are directives from on-high requiring quarterly cross-training sessions, management often finds a way to avoid taking time away from meeting deadlines to carve out slots in the schedule for cross-training.

At home: same deal. Your life is busy. Maybe you read a blog post like this, or your professional organizer calls your attention to a problem waiting to happen. 

Baby & Teddy Bear Image by StockSnap from Pixabay 

Or you hear a horror story about spouse who went on a business trip and the at-home parent couldn’t find the right sleeping stuffie, and so the child cried for two days straight. Or you hear about a widowed friend of your parents who didn’t pay the insurance bill because they didn’t know it came to the deceased spouse’s email address, not via mail. These are cautionary tales.

Focusing on the benefits rather than the inconvenience will help everyone acclimate.

Learning curve on new material 

At home and at work, nobody gets everything right on the first try. It’s human nature to avoid attempting something if you fear you won’t do it well. In the workplace, Impostor Syndrome may kick in, and an employee may fear attempting something outside the usual skill set, fearing the inability to get it right immediately might lead to firing. And at home, someone might feel nervous about being slow to succeed at a task one’s partner already does well.

When you invite your partner to join in household cross-training, acknowledge that you have different skill-sets and you may not be equally adept at everything. The point at home isn’t to be perfect, it’s to be perfectly satisfactory as a back-up.

Job security

At work: If you’re the only one who knows how to do something, you may feel like you have job security. (Of course, the flip-side of this is that management will tend not to promote you if you’ve convinced them nobody else can master your area.)

At home: While most people aren’t afraid that a spouse will divorce them if they don’t pick up right away on how to use the digital password manager, we all feel a little anxious about being seen without our halos. 

Fear of higher expectations, higher workload, and being taken advantage of

At work: It’s a reasonable fear that if you know how to do more, you might be expected to do more. To some extent, this can be a positive thing, allowing you to do your own rendition of “This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine!” This is your chance to step up!

But if your workplace tends to be firmly on one side of the continuum, anywhere from moderately dysfunctional to toxic, you’ll want to watch for signs that you’re being taken advantage of, and be prepared to negotiate for better pay and benefits (or depart for greener pastures with your newfound skills).

At home: Unlike in businesses, where capitalism is the basis of everything and mutual loyalty can be a dubious concept, families are based (or should be based) on love, mutual respect, and loyalty. The point of family cross-training is to strengthen the family, for the benefit of everyone!

Focus on how improving skill training and sharing knowledge will support the healthy growth of the partnership and create a financially and emotionally sound foundation for the kids, the parents, and everyone in the family.

AREAS FOR FAMILY CROSS-TRAINING

Your family is unique, so I won’t presume to know everything you should consider when cross-training. However, this list should get you started.

Organize financial paperwork together

Smead All-in-One Financial Planning Organizer

Get clarity on the status quo. Do both partners know the following:

  • What household, credit card, and other bills does the family receive?
  • What is the frequency of the billing? (Sure, most utility bills come monthly, but your water and sewer bills may be quarterly. Some insurance premiums are paid monthly, others quarterly; car insurance is often paid every six months.)
  • When do the bills usually arrive? (The partner regularly paying the bills may have a gut sense of these dates and know there’s something wrong if the Capital One bill doesn’t arrive by the 10th; with the postal service continuing a massive slowdown, the other partner might be in for a shock if the bill arrived days or weeks late.)
  • How do the bills arrive? Via U.S. mail on paper? Via email notifications prompting logging in? Are the bills auto-paid?
  • How are the bills usually paid? If you were in the hospital and your partner sat down to pay the bills, not knowing that a particular bill is auto-paid could lead to an expensive double-payment.
  • What’s the typical amount of each bill? If you don’t have a chat about these things periodically, you or your spouse might not notice an error in billing or a significant jump in costs.

This probably won’t be a one-time cross-training event. Discuss these issues, then consider spending one month with the partner who usually doesn’t handle the bills taking care of things and “reporting” back; alternatively, you can go through the process side-by-side. The key isn’t to micromanage, but to support one another for common financial goals.

Once your kids are tweens/teens, you might want to include them in some aspects of this cross-training so that they understand the complexities of household finance.

For more guidance on organizing financial paperwork, you might want to start with a classic Paper Doll post, Financial Filing—Scrapbooking snapshots of your money’s life.

Know your household computer set-up

Depending on your ages/generations, you and your partner might be a digital immigrant (a person born or brought up before the widespread use of digital technology) or a digital native. If one of you has discomfort with technology, you’ll need patience to approach these topics. If both of you are digital immigrants, consider hiring someone to help walk you through making sure you’re fully trained on how to achieve your computer-related goals.

Computer security image by TheDigitalWay from Pixabay
 

  • How and where do you keep the essential passwords? It does no good for your partner to be willing to pay the bills if, in an emergency, they can’t log into the credit card or auto loan account.
  • Are you happy with your password management system? (Do you HAVE a password management system?) Know where to find all the passwords that allow your household to run smoothly.
  • Do you know (and know how to use) your computer backup system? From family photos to your browser’s bookmarks/favorites to all of your documents, everything needs a backup. I recommend a belt-and-suspenders approach, with local back-up to an external hard drive and cloud back-up via one of the popular backup companies. (I use Backblaze.) For more on backup, you might want to read a guest post I wrote for Alexa Bigwarfe’s WritePublishSell.com called 9 Ways to Keep Your Writing Safe.
  • What about all your household tech? Do you know your DSL/Cable modem configuration URL (and the user name and password)? What about security settings for your internet router? If you (or your partner, or the internet tech) set up your Wi-Fi password eons ago, would you be able to find it to set up a new device?

Do you know the state of your estate?

From wills to beneficiary lists, from a Power of Attorney for financial decisions to your healthcare proxy, from your advanced care directives to how much (and what kind) of life insurance you have, chances are good that one person in your family took point and the other is only vaguely aware of what’s going on. Or, maybe you haven’t gotten around to squaring any of this away yet?

Either way, start with making sure you’ve both read up on the topics. You can begin with:

How to Replace and Organize 7 Essential Government Documents

How to Create, Organize, and Safeguard 5 Essential Legal and Estate Documents

The Professor and Mary Ann: 8 Other Essential Documents You Need To Create

Nobody ever likes talking about death. But talking about your estate documents, and maybe even working together to create them in the first place, is the first step to knowing that your family is safe and covered in case of the worst eventualities.

Other ways you can cross-train in the family

There’s obviously so much more than financial and legal paperwork and information to consider when cross-training. Your entire family might want to sit-down to brainstorm ideas. Some possibilities:

  • Medical issues — Does everyone (or at least every adult) have a working knowledge of what to do in a medical emergency? My friend has Type 1 diabetes, and her 10-year-old has known, from an early age, how to help his mom by fetching a juice box to raise her blood glucose. Kids should know how to make a phone call to 9-1-1 and how to identify themselves, their address, and some basic information to relay about their parents.
  • Medical care — Do you and your partner both know the pediatrician’s name and phone number? Where to find the First Aid kit? What medication you and your kids regularly take, so they can convey this in case of an emergency?
  • Parenting essentials — This could be a blog post (or a book) all unto itself. From favorite sippy cup to which kids (and the kids’ best friends) have specific dietary requirements and preferences, from the name of the kids’ teachers to how to contact their friends’ parents (in case one of the tiny humans independently decides to get off the bus and go to a friend’s house without informing you), there’s a lot of essential information and skills that go into parenting. The grownups in the house need to share that wealth of information with one another!
  • Laundry and household care — Are there sneaky tricks to getting household appliances to work properly? If something in the basement makes a weird, loud teapot-whistle sound, would you know that it was the sump pump having run out of distilled water? Does it do any good if your partner knows that and you don’t? (So much NOPE!)
  • Auto care — Does one partner always handle the interactions with the mechanic? Maybe you need to share the knowledge so that you can speak authoritatively when you’re pressed to make a pricey decision.

Photo by MART PRODUCTION from Pexels 

HOW TO PROPOSE FAMILY CROSS-TRAINING

You are the expert on how your family and household works. This post is just designed to give you an idea of how you can not merely share the load (and the information) but do it in a way that ensures your family’s immediate and long-term security. Whether the stakeholder is your toddler (who is sobbing that “that’s the wrong bedtime book”) or the finicky garden hose, the mortgage company or your partner’s grandmother, having a complete sense of what gets done — when, where, and most importantly, how — is essential. 

I encourage you to share the concepts of this post with your partner. Talk about the benefits: efficiency, flexibility, clarity for emergency response, better coverage when one family member is overloaded, more integrated family “institutional” knowledge, greater morale, and a happier constituency of family members.

But don’t just talk about the benefits. Speak honestly about potential fears and reasons for avoidance (including inertia, worries about learning curves, the sense of “job security” and higher expectations). Ignoring them won’t make them go away, but talking may be just what you need to conquer those challenges and support your family team.

WHAT IF YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN?

I get it; not everyone has a partner. There are a lot of single parents, widows or widowers whose children are “grown and flown,” and just random singletons (like Paper Doll). That doesn’t mean that you’re completely on your own. Think about who you’d call in an emergency. To whom would you reach out if you needed someone to watch your tiny human? Who would you trust to log into your accounts and pay your bills for you?

These may not all be the same person. You may need to do cross-training with a number of someones: your ex, a sibling in another city, a best friend, a professional organizer trained in financial organizing (whom you can find through NAPO and AADMM), an accountant, an attorney, a hoc nanny, and others. The key is to start thinking now: 

Who can be you when you can’t be you? 

Posted in Emergency, Office, Paper Organizing, Task Management, Time Management | 21 Comments »

A Professional Organizer’s Take on National Library Card Sign-up Month

Posted on: September 27th, 2021 by Julie Bestry | 18 Comments

September is National Library Card Sign-up Month, and I want to make the case that library cards are your passport to a better and more organized life.

WHY PAPER DOLL LOVES LIBRARIES

I love libraries. My first real job, from my sixteenth birthday until I left for college, was as a page at the Clearfield Branch of the Erie County (New York) Public Library. My job involved helping patrons find books (back when we had paper card catalogs and no computers) and checking books out (back when the system involved using an overhead camera to take a photo of someone’s paper library card and the “borrow” card for the book).

However, the bulk of my job involved shelving books and “reading” shelves. The latter involved starting at the beginning of a section (for example, non-fiction) and making sure each book belonged after the one before it and before the one after it, per the Library of Congress classification system. I often think that this was the ideal training to become a professional organizer.

Back then, local public libraries had relatively few types of holdings: books, maps, record albums, and a truly dinky collection of audio cassettes. Libraries have come a long way, baby!

I marvel at systems I learned then, which I now use professionally, like organizing toddler books in dishpans, with book covers facing outward (record store-style) so that little hands can flip each book forward or backward without destroying a bookshelf. Because toddlers can’t read, they have no use for the spines of books, but a series of dishpans (filled with vertically arrayed, face-out books) allows tiny humans to recognize and access their favorite titles.

 

I have seen many beautiful libraries in cities all over the world, but my favorite is the A.D. White Library at my alma mater, Cornell University.

For most of history, libraries were closely guarded bastions of knowledge, and access was limited to those whose religious, academic, or financial positions allowed them to be considered worthy, but few libraries of significance were truly open to the public. In general, most libraries were subscription-based, where one paid for access, similar to how we use Netflix and Audible these days.

And even though public libraries had to close their doors to the public for much of the first year of the COVID pandemic, they did not turn their backs on their patrons. Most libraries offered curbside pickup; you could reserve your books online and then call (or, if your library was really fancy, use an app) to alert the staff of which pick-up parking space you were using, and diligent, masked librarians would verify your card, check you out over the phone, and deliver your “borrows” to your car’s trunk or hatchback. Most libraries also continued to offer programming for students, seniors, and other constituencies virtually.

To my mind, one of the greatest benefits of modern society is access to tax-supported public library systems. I consider my library card, my voter registration card, and my driver’s license as three keys to my sense of freedom (of intellect, of democracy, and the ability to work, play, and have an empowered life).

I consider my library card, my voter registration card, and my driver's license as three keys to my sense of freedom (of intellect, of democracy, and the ability to work, play, and have an empowered life). Share on X

But that’s me. You’re probably wondering why you should care about libraries, and more importantly, what this has to do with organzing.

WHAT CAN A LIBRARY CARD OFFER YOU?

So, what magical powers does your library card bestow? Your library card, what bibliophiles and library peeps like to call “the smartest card in your wallet,” grants access to a vast array of offerings.

Items to borrow

Although some special collections and reference materials can only be read in-house, the majority of tangible items at libraries circulate. This means they can be borrowed and taken home for at least a week, and sometimes up to a month, including:

  • Printed materials (and no, it’s not just books and magazines anymore, though libraries still have huge collections of those):
    • print books (including large-print books for the visually impaired)
    • audio books
    • books on CD
    • books in Braille
    • magazines
    • trade journals
    • graphic novels/comic books
    • sheet music

You can reserve materials that are currently out (or at another branch). In most cases, if your library is able to send you a digital notification of a reserved item’s availability, there will be no charge; for older libraries still using postcard systems, your reservation may be about the cost of a postage stamp.

Also, your library is likely to be a member of one or more systems through which you can request an interlibrary loan. That means that even if your library system doesn’t have a resource you want or need, you should be able to have them request it from a different system, possibly even across the country! (See? Libraries are cool!)

  • Electronic entertainment and educational materials
    • vinyl phonograph/record albums (though these are often in library system archives, the hipster appeal of vinyl has librarians bringing these out for display)
    • CDs (whether music, language CDs, or books on CD)
    • DVDs (including movies, courses, exercise, and how-to videos
  • Digital materials — Your library likely gives you access to a variety of digital downloadable services through the web or a free app. So, whether you want to satisfy your insatiable desire for mystery audiobooks while you’re getting your 10,000 steps a day or suddenly need to borrow a stress-reduction video while you’re stuck in the airport when your flight is delayed, all you need is your library card number, digital device, and some decent WiFi. Not all libraries have the same services, though these seem to be the most widespread:
    • OverDrive offers an absolutely massive collection of premium audiobooks, ebooks, and music that can be downloaded to your smartphone, Kindle, tablet, or computer via your browser or the Libby app. 
    • Hoopla has collections of thousands of ebooks, audiobooks, graphic novels/comic books, movies, television shows, and music. You can download content to your device or stream it, and it works with computers, tablets, and phones. (Personal note: I downloaded Frommer’s and Fodor’s guidebooks to Italy and the UK to use when traveling, and it was amazing to have thousand-page guidebooks at the ready with no extra schlepping.)
    • Kanopy-affiliated library patrons can download or stream a wide variety of movies, including modern flicks, documentaries, foreign films, classic cinema, independent films, and educational videos.
    • Less common library offerings include AcornTV (classic and modern UK television shows and movies), IndieFlix (part of the library-friendly RB Media offerings) for independent films, and other services.

As with print resources, you can usually put ebooks and audiobooks on hold if there isn’t an immediate availability. You might be wondering why, if it’s digital, there’s not endless access. That’s because libraries purchase licenses to electronic media, much the same way you purchase an individual ebook or audiobook. Buying a license for each copy of a digital work ensures (or at least tries to ensure) that authors and creators get their fair share.

  • Digital educational platforms — While every library has different offerings, there are some particularly common and popular ones, including:
    • LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com) normally requires a paid LinkedIn membership, but if you’ve got a library card at a system associated with LinkedIn Learning, you won’t have to pony up any money for the technology and creative courses offered for current and aspiring professionals. Learn a language, gain computer skills, or study project management or leadership development, all from your digital device.
    • Infobase has collections of how-to and documentary programming, newsreels and archival films, speciality educational films in business and economics, social sciences, arts and humanities, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math), and health and wellness. Infobase also has career skill resources for creating resumes, interviewing, and finding jobs.
    • Language education  — While my library system uses Transparent Language, your public library may offer Mango, Rosetta Stone, or any of a variety of other platforms to help you separate your Ciao from your Shalom.
    • Academic and career preparation resources — My library system uses the Peterson’s prep materials for standardized tests and college and career searches. You may have access to other resources for the high schoolers and job searchers in your life.
    • Database Access — Public libraries subscribe to an amazing array of financial, medical, legal, and other databases (including LexisNexis, PsychInfo, EBSCO — even the Chilton Auto Repair Database!) which are made available to patrons. 
    • Genealogical support — I don’t know much about genealogical research. (That’s why I wrote Paper Doll Interviews the Genealogy Organizers.) But libraries have everything from maps and directories to digital access to resources like Ancestry.com’s Library Edition and state archives.

It doesn’t stop there, though. Just a sampling of some of the other things you may be able to borrow from your public library system, either for circulation or in-library use, include:

  • Museum passes — Call ahead to see what museum passes your library maintains and ascertain whether you’ll need to make reservations to borrow them.
  • Eclipse glasses — During the last solar eclipse on August 21, 2017, I was surprised to find that my library had arranged for loans of eclipses glasses. The next solar eclipse visible in North America will be April 8, 2024, so check with your library well before then to make sure you put a hold on yours!
  • Board games
  • Classic games, like chess, checkers and backgammon
  • Computer and video games
  • Video game controllers
  • Headphones — Because it’s easy to forget your ear buds before an impromptu library trip and nobody wants to wear borrowed ear buds (ew), so go old-school with the over-the-ear kind.
  • Tools — Over the last few decades, more and more public library systems have started a lending library of tools, ranging from socket wrench sets to power sanders, saws to stud finders, cordless drills to hedge trimmers. Take a peek at the visual tool catalog of what I can borrow from the downtown branch of my library. 

Free (and almost free) library services

Computer Access — Almost all public libraries offer computer access for free; you’ll only pay for pages you choose to print.

Wi-Fi and Wired Internet Access — Not everyone has high speed internet access. In addition to there being a huge economic divide between those who can and cannot afford internet access, there are also infrastructure issues. Many rural areas of North America lack dependable internet and even cell service.

Because of these issues, during the pandemic students were often attending their remote classes in the parking lots of schools and libraries (which remained shuttered, but there were employees inside, keeping the WiFi going). Remote workers also had a tough time accessing essential tools. Libraries are an inexpensive alternative to setting up your workspace at the coffee house.

Tech Support — Many libraries offer free courses in basic computer and web skills. Also, some librarians are able to provide guidance on common computer issues.

Homework Help — Librarians won’t do your children’s homework, but they’re fonts of information regarding selection of the appropriate resources. Many public libraries also have homework assistance hot-lines and online homework help.

Tax Prep Assistance — Libraries don’t supply tax advice directly, but AARP and other community organizations provide volunteer, pro-bono tax preparation assistance at most branches. And even though many people file digitally now, tax forms are usually made available to patrons who want to noodle the math with paper and pencil.

Delivery — Not everyone is able to get to the library. Elderly, housebound or disabled patrons can often request to have library materials delivered to them. Contact your local library for available resources and review the offerings of the National Library Service for the Blind and Handicapped.

Children’s Entertainment — Public libraries have story hours, magic shows, movies, puppet shows, arts and craft activities, and other events to keep children engaged while giving parents some breathing space.

Quiet Spaces — OK, this isn’t a service, per se. But sometimes, you need a place to go to center yourself, read, or just disconnect. Libraries are safe, temperature-controlled, and, unless you’re sitting right next to the children’s area, fairly serene. Obviously, this is more difficult when we’re in pandemic mode, but libraries were known for their shhhh-iness long before quiet cars on rail transportation existed.

Low-cost Services

In addition to free services, libraries provide a number of services are supplied at at limited cost. These include:

  • Printing
  • Photocopying
  • Faxing — Stop laughing. It’s shocking how often something like this crosses my Twitter feed:

  • Scanning
  • Notary Services — Call your library branch in advance to find out if and when the services of a notary public will be available. If a member of the library staff is a notary, you may not even be charged.
  • Passport Services — New and renewal applications for passports can be confusing. Many libraries provide assistance with applications and photo services by appointment.
  • Meeting rooms — Libraries maintain private rooms for not-for-profit endeavors, and the cost is usually limited to making sure the room bookings are serious. Rooms may be booked for:
    • Book Clubs
    • Game Groups for children and adults. (Pokémon card trading clubs having been going strong for decades!)
    • Community Meetings
    • Guest Lectures and Classes — Years ago, Paper Doll took courses in origami and in how to use the library’s electronic book borrowing systems to transfer books to Kindle and Nook. (I remain more proficient at the latter than the former. Folding cranes is hard!) I’ve also taught classes and workshops on organizing at public libraries, and chances are good that you can find one of my colleagues teaching similar workshops wherever you are.

Libraries around the country lend Santa suits and prom dresses, cake pans and artwork, knitting needles and selfie sticks:

18 Weird Things You Can Borrow from Your Public Library

200 Things You Can Check Out of a Library Besides Books

The downtown branch of my own public library has an entire floor set aside as a “maker space” with 3D printers, laser cutters, an HTC Vive virtual reality booth, a sewing lab, a soldering bench, Agile co-working spaces with white boards and projectors, a photography studio — and a state of the art recording studio!!!

This is not Marian the Librarian’s public library, and Chattanooga is not even a big city. It’s just one that values libraries. Check out (pun intended) what your own library system has to offer.

SO HOW DOES GETTING A LIBRARY CARD HELP YOU GET AND STAY ORGANIZED?

Maybe I have convinced you that libraries are the bees’ knees, but you still don’t get what it has to do with organizing?

Self-decluttering

From a professional organizer’s perspective, the best thing about libraries is the opportunity to allow yourself to trust that you need not maintain the entire world at your house.

Those four hundred issues of National Geographic making your guest room floor buckle, but which you never approach except to dust? The library has them, too, for whenever you want to learn about the mating habits of the elephants of the Serengeti, but you’ll never have to dust them. (The Nat Geos, I mean, not the elephants. Well, those too.)

Of course, I’m not saying to give up purchasing books and magazines, but understand that there’s an alternative to becoming an accidental collector of books you’ll never read (or never read again).

If you are overwhelmed by clutter in your space, but have a voracious hunger to read (or listen to music, or watch movies), check your public library’s collections first before running off to Amazon or your local indie bookseller. (But do support your local indie booksellers when you find things you want to own. This has been a hard time for them, OK? OK!)

Having a library means you can have access to any printed book, ebook, or audiobook, or tangible item (DVD, CD, graphic novel, magazine) without it permanently taking up residence in your home. Clutter often develops because we have too much stuff and no place to permanently store it, and we keep it forever because we don’t have the time or inclination to deal with it.

Library resources come with a built-in decluttering mechanism: due dates! Sure, you can renew things online, but in general, things need to be returned to the library. You don’t have to make the difficult decision as to whether it should stay or go because it’s not yours! It belongs to the library.

Or, if you prefer, think of it as yours, but stored (and dusted, repaired, and maintained) by the nice folks at the free (with your tax dollars) self-storage location called The Public Library!

And you don’t have to worry about digital items you borrow. Ebooks, audiobooks, movies, and music all “return themselves” automagically.

Just make sure you develop a system for keeping track of the tangible items you borrow. I recommend having one bookshelf or counter in your house where you keep all library items. If you have kids, help them get in the habit of returning items to that shelf or space when they’re not using them. (Oh, and let your kids help you get in the same habit. Kids love “catching” parents neglect an organizing task, and it helps reinforce the standards you’re trying to teach them.)

Money-saving

Rather than spending lots of money for books you’ll only read once, or perhaps not even finish, or for accessing any of a huge variety of tangible and digital resources, you can take advantage of the benefits of the public library.

Adore a book or piece of music beyond measure? Consider the library experience to be your free ice cream taste test; then purchase it with the knowledge that it’s something you love and will keep forever and share with others. But you don’t have to shell out money for entertainment and educational experiences you’re not sure are the right fit. And you don’t have to feel guilty, because you know the authors and creators will still be getting paid through the system of library licenses.

Still not sure about the benefits? How about saving and organizing those little green pieces of paper in your wallet? This simple form will automatically calculate the financial value of your library card in terms of annual savings. (Of course, the cognitive, emotional, and societal values are priceless.)

SO GET YOUR LIBRARY CARD

I always ask new clients a variety of questions to make sure they have life essentials: “Do you have a calendar? A file system? A will? A fire extinguisher?” On the advice of my friend, internet-famous librarian extraordinaire Jessamyn West, I also ask, “Do you have a library card?”

I’ve even been known to drag friends to sign up for a library card when I visit them in their new cities. (Shoutout: Hey, Chris, I’m looking at you!)

National Library Card Sign-Up Month is the perfect time to get a card for yourself or your kids. 

1) Locate your public library.

2) Fill out an application, available at your branch or on most library web sites.

3) Show valid ID with your current address. If you’re new to town and don’t yet have a photo ID bearing your address, most libraries will accept two items showing your name and street address (but not PO box), such as current utility bills (e.g., telephone, gas, electric or cable), voter registration cards, or other mail with postmarks from the past 30 days.

4) Use your new library card often. Plan a weekly visit with your family and explore your library’s offerings. Develop a ritual for going to the library and your children will grow up appreciating all that libraries have to offer. Let your kids help you mark down due-dates for returning tangible items.

5) Set up a library shelf in your house where all the items you borrow from the public library “live” when they’re not being read or used. Having a set location where library items belong when not in use prevents them from going missing and assures you’ll be able to return them on time. 

Happy National Library Card Sign-Up Month!

Posted in Books and Reading, Digital, Downsizing, Paper Organizing, Professional Organizing, Reading | 18 Comments »

« Older Entries Newer Entries »