Warm Regards,

   
P.S. Welcome to the new subscribers. I am thrilled that you have decided to become a member of the LMOS online community!

• May 19, 2011 - Lisa will be co-presenting Using Social Media to Promote Your Business for Small Business Month at the Orange County Chamber of Commerce from 1-3 pm. Visit the Chamber website for details and registration.
• Tuesdays ~ May 31, June 14 & June 28 - Lisa is presenting a teleclass series, Bold Business Moves: Moving Your Business in the Right Direction, in collaboration with IRIS. Designed as a series, but able to be taken individually. May 31st - Blueprint Your Business: Create Business Systems & An Operations Manual; June 14th - Branch Out & Mix it Up: Creating Multiple Streams of Income; and June 28th - Don’t Go It Alone: It Takes a Village to Run a Successful Business ~ Building Your “Team”. All calls are from 7:30-9:00 pm EST, and will be recorded if you can't make it live. IRIS members: $35 for each, or $89 for series; non-IRIS members: $39 for each, or $99 for series. Click here for full description and registration.
• June 3, 2011 - Lisa will be the keynote speaker for the International Association of Administrative Professionals Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico on June 3, 2011. Lisa will be presenting DECIDE to be Organized: Create Your Passion, Live Your Purpose.
• June 10, 2011 - Lisa will be a panelist for Boost Your Productivity, a program jointly sponsored by the Young Professionals, Consultants, and Small Business Committees of the Orange County Chamber of Commerce. The program will take place from 8-10 am at the Chamber Office. For details and registration, visit the Chamber website.
• Saturday, June 18, 2011 - Lisa is presenting 2 workshops in beautiful Denver, Colorado in collaboration with Sandy Dixon of IRIS, who will be presenting a full-day workshop the day before. Lisa will be presenting Next Level Business Success: Ready, Set, Go! from 8:30-12 and then Branch Out: Become a Professional Organizer or Add Organizing Services to Your Business Mix from 1-4:30. Each workshop is $159 or register for both for only $299! Click here for full details and registration for Lisa's workshops. Sandy is presenting Masters Presentation Skills workshop on Friday, June 17, 2011.Click here for deta ils and registration for Sandy's program.
• June 28, 2011 - Lisa is presenting Motivating Staff to Move Beyond Customer Service to a Culture of Sales for the Independent Insurance Agents Association of Orange County.
• July 21, 2011 - Lisa is presenting Time Management for employees of Rehabilitation Support Services, Inc. in Goshen, NY.
• October 15, 2011 - Lisa is presenting Don't Be Afraid of the Big Bad Law: Using the Law as a Protective Shield for Your Business at the Mid-Atlantic Professional Organizers Conference in Bethesda, MD.

What is clutter? The answer depends on whom you ask. For many disorganized people, nothing is clutter (a definition that often leads in the extreme to hoarding). For others, clutter is anything that piles up above and beyond their normal possessions. I like to say that clutter is like a weed in a garden. It is something that doesn't belong. Either you did not plant it, it got carried along to a new location where it shouldn’t be, or it has outgrown its space. It can even be a plant or flower that you planted and loved at one time, but now decide no longer belongs. In other words, clutter is anything that you don't love, want, need or use.

Regardless of whether the clutter is physical or mental, it is caused by a combination of forces that creates disorganization. Your role is to assess why the clutter is in your home, office and life and then get ready to get rid of it. Th e best motivation for clearing clutter is not to focus on the time and energy needed to sort out your stuff, but to ask yourself, "What am I creating space for?"

The only way you can effectively declutter is to eliminate the constant chorus of "But I might need that someday." Ask yourself what's the worst thing that can happen if you donate, recycle or toss the item. If you can live with the answer, get rid of it!

The key to dealing with clutter is being able to assess your needs and motivation in order to find out why you are keeping your clutter. Once you understand your motivations, you can eliminate clutter for good -- and greatly improve your sense of inner well-being.