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Saying NO to Holiday Perfection Means Saying YES to What Matters!

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Saying NO to Holiday Perfection Means Saying YES to What Matters!

Bee Organized Gift card

A central part of the Bee Organized mission is to help you simplify your life so that you can carve out time and space for the people and activities that mean the most to you. No month is more fully jam-packed than December with its infinite activities, shopping, chaos, and pressure for perfection. As you think about the dozens (hundreds?) of tasks before you this holiday season, we want you to consider whether you really have to do it ALL! In fact, we’ve brainstormed the following list to help give you permission to let go of some of the holiday chaos.

Nine Things You Have Permission to Say NO to this Holiday Season

  • Giving ALL the Gifts. For many people, this is the first place to look when you are trying to streamline your holiday season. Think about ways to cut back or simplify your shopping and giving. Maybe this is the year to focus on giving experiences (think tickets and memberships) instead of objects. Perhaps this year you can give group gifts to couples and families on your list instead of multiple smaller items. Maybe instead of finding unique gifts for every teacher and party host, you buy several copies of one great gift (assorted teas? a fancy cookie tin? a seasonal candle?) that would work for a variety of folks. You have permission to simplify gift-giving in whatever way makes the most sense for you this year! For more simple gift giving inspiration, check out Feel Good Holiday Tips.
  • Every Single Social Invitation. Some holiday get-togethers fill you with joy and connection … and some are utterly exhausting and bring nothing but stress about what to wear and what to bring as a gift for the host. But you don’t have to go to everything you are invited to this holiday season. You have permission to only go to the events that feel right to you—and send your regrets to the rest.
  • Holiday Cards. Some of us relish the tradition of picking the perfect card design, writing out addresses, sticking on dozens of stamps, and depositing a large stack of holiday cards in the mail. If this is you, keep sending the cards! But if it’s just one more thing taking precious hours when you are already short on time, skip it this year. Send an email instead or just post your cute family photo on social media. You have permission to let it go (and spend that $0.73 per stamp on something else!).
  • Outdoor Lights. Elaborate lighting displays can add excitement to your street—but for some of us, they are just one more thing to buy, manage, maintain, and store. What if you didn’t precariously stand on a ladder to clip your lights onto your gutters? What if you didn’t spend precious time trying to untangle lights and replace broken bulbs? For less than $10, you can get a string of battery-powered LED lights—you have permission to wind them around a wreath for your front door and call your outdoor decorating complete!
  • The Traditional Tree. There is no rule that you have to buy a live Christmas tree OR drag your artificial tree up from the basement every single year. The internet is jam-packed with ideas for untraditional and simple Christmas trees—whether you simply decorate a houseplant you already have, use a strand of lights and ornaments to create a 2D tree on a wall, or come up with something uniquely suited to your home and personality. If you do opt for a traditional tree, you have permission to leave some—or most—of your ornaments in their storage container.
  • All of the Decorations. If you’ve managed your own home for more than a few years, odds are that you’ve collected more decorations than you have the time and energy to deal with. You don’t have to adorn every vertical and horizontal surface of your home with decorations! You hereby have permission to just choose a handful of your favorite—or most meaningful—decorations to display this year.
  • Elf on the Shelf. More power to you if you have the time and mental space to creatively position the elf each night after your children go to bed. But you don’t have to! If you love this holiday tradition, then carry on. But if you haven’t started it yet—or you are wishing you never had—you have permission to tell your kids that there is an elf shortage this year and that you are lucky to have such good kids year round so the shortage won’t affect you!
  • All the Baking. If you have big plans for baking this holiday season, make sure you revisit our blog about getting your kitchen ready for the holidays. But do remember that just because one of your parents or grandparents baked 24 different types of cookies each holiday season doesn’t mean that you have to. You have permission to pick your favorites (either to eat or to make) and save the rest for another year.
  • Homemade Everything. Of course people love and appreciate homemade gifts, whether you’ve crocheted a scarf or poured a candle. And they love homemade food, too—from a jar of jam to an elaborate meal for your entire extended family. But not everything that you can make is worth your precious time. You have our permission to make just those things that bring you the most joy to give to the people who would most appreciate your labor of love.

This holiday season, give yourself permission to let go. And if that doesn’t work, listen to us! You have OUR permission to set aside some of the holiday pressure this year … and every year. And, as always, if you find yourself in over your head, you know you can call in the Bees!

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Organizing Your Kitchen Will Help You BEE Ready for the Holidays

Organized kitchen Pantry

The holiday season is getting close—and with it will come the whirlwind of cooking, baking, cleaning, decorating, hosting, and more! For most of us, the kitchen is the center of our busy Hive, and it’s a place that takes on extra responsibility during the holiday season. As you count the days until your first holiday festivities, you can help your future self by purging, restocking, and organizing three prime areas of your kitchen.

Recipes and Cookbooks

If you are like us, you have recipes in every conceivable form—emails, bookmarks in browsers, handwritten recipe cards, print-outs of aspirational recipes, and cookbooks upon cookbooks. Before holiday cooking and baking begin in earnest, think about finally getting a handle on your recipe situation. As you tackle your recipe collection, the first place to start is by taking a hard look at your cookbooks. The most optimistic version of yourself might have bought most of your cookbooks—or perhaps you’ve received cookbooks over the years as gifts or family heirlooms.

The first step, as always, is to use our famous Power Purge to sort through the cookbooks and recipes that are just taking up space. Look through your cookbooks and take photos of any promising recipes before clearing the books out of your kitchen.

Consider moving to a completely digital recipe organization system. Some of us have had excellent luck using Google Drive to keep our recipes organized—whether it’s a spreadsheet of links to recipes from all over the internet or a series of folders where you keep photos and PDFs of recipes sorted by category. We know of some folks who make it a policy to always email themselves recipes with very clear (and searchable!) subject lines.

If you have a variety of recipes on paper and don’t feel compelled to scan them into the digital world, think about using a binder to organize and preserve your recipes. You can use clear plastic sleeves with pockets to protect handwritten recipe cards from drips and splashes. Use a three-hole punch on your recipe printouts and a few tabs to divide your recipes into appetizers, desserts, holiday favorites, and more.

There is no one right way to organize your recipes, so feel empowered to adapt our strategies to fit your needs, usage patterns, and emotional connections.

Spices and Seasonings

When was the last time you spent some quality time tending to your spices? How many of them have long expired, never been used, or have lost their aroma? Before the holiday cooking begins, get your fragrant seasonings organized!

Before you start organizing anything, you need to discard those spices and seasonings that are too old to be useful. While most experts agree that it’s safe to use expired seasonings and spices, you should toss anything that is clumping or just smells off. Pinch a bit of the spice between your fingers and rub them together—if there is little or no fragrance, it’s probably time to replace that container.

Once you are down to those containers of spices and seasonings that are still in good shape, be honest with yourself about which ones you will foreseeably use in your cooking. If you are an adventurous chef who regularly experiments with new types of cuisine, your spices and seasoning needs will be much broader than someone who limits their cooking to tried and true recipes and styles.

Think about what organizational style will streamline your cooking. If you use a wide variety of spices, alphabetizing the containers could save you time searching when you are whipping up a new dish. Some folks have better luck with keeping their top 5 or 10 spices in easy reach, while they store the remainder in a container or cabinet. Spice racks, drawer inserts, or spinning trays can all help you make the most of your space. Whatever way you decide to organize your spices, make sure they are clearly labeled and in a cool, dark place when possible.

Finally, think about those recipes that you make during every holiday season—whether it’s cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving or black-eyed peas on New Year’s—and make a list of herbs and spices to have on hand before the cooking commences!

Baking Ingredients and Tools

The final area to give yourself a holiday head start is with your baking ingredients and supplies. Essentially, you need to take inventory of the supplies you will need for your upcoming baking, whether you are making cornbread for Thanksgiving stuffing, pumpkin pies, or the whole range of Christmas cookies, candies, and other sweets. To begin, take EVERYTHING out of the baking section of your kitchen so that you can see what you have, what is expired, what tools need to be refreshed, and which ingredients need a re-stock. Check through our list to help prompt your memory about what you might need in the next few weeks of festivities:

  • Flour: All-purpose flour, cake flour, bread flour, gluten-free flour if needed
  • Sugars: Granulated sugar, powdered sugar, brown sugar (dark and light), other natural sweeteners like honey or maple syrup
  • Dairy: Butter, eggs, milk, buttermilk, heavy cream
  • Flavorings: Vanilla extract, almond extract, cocoa powder or chocolate chips, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon
  • Other key ingredients: Shortening, vegetable oil, baking powder, baking soda, yeast, cornstarch
  • Supplies: Parchment paper, food coloring, sprinkles, cookie cutters, muffin/cupcake liners

Take a close look at your baking equipment too. If your favorite spatula has taken a beating or you notice your loaf pans are too scraped up to release properly, think about ditching and replacing them before you are up to your elbows in flour!

We hope getting your kitchen whipped into shape now will give you more time to do the things that bring you joy during the holidays! And if you get stuck somewhere in the process, you know you can always call in the Bees to get you back on track!

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Simple Steps for a Clutter-Free Garage

Pictures of bicycles hanging in a garage

For some people, the garage is an afterthought—just a place to toss anything you don’t want in the house or to precariously stack every bike helmet and soccer cleat the kids have outgrown. But what if, instead, your garage worked for you? Giving some time and thought to what you store in your garage—and how and where it’s stored—can help make your home safer, more livable, and more functional!

Step One: The Power Purge

Did you know that 25% of homeowners have so much clutter that they can’t fit a car in their garage? Don’t waste your time organizing things that shouldn’t even be taking up space. Your first step—and it’s a BIG one—is to part with your excess items. We know this can feel overwhelming, which is why we have spelled out exactly how to tackle this project in our Power Purge blog post. Remove items from your garage that you no longer need, are broken, or are remnants of some forgotten project you don’t intend to come back to. Once you’ve cleared out the excess, you will have a much easier time organizing the rest.

Step Two: Sort into Zones

The most efficient way to organize your garage is to group similar items together into zones that make sense to you. Not only will this help you find items when you need them, but using zones can also help every household member know at least the general area of where to put things away. You’ll need to tailor your zones based on your needs and climate, but here are a few common zones to get your wheels turning:

  • Sports equipment
  • Pool/Beach toys
  • Gardening supplies
  • Tools and hardware
  • Seasonal decorations
  • Auto maintenance
  • Camping gear
  • Cleaning supplies
  • Recycling and trash
  • Snow removal

Step Three: Go Vertical

Once everything has been sorted into logical groups, you can figure out which storage areas in your garage make the most sense for each category of items. The one piece of advice we cannot say enough is to KEEP THE FLOOR CLEAR! Invest in shelving, hooks, wall-mounted baskets, and even overhead storage racks to maximize your vertical space. If you are like most homeowners, your garage troubles began with a ring of clutter stacked around each wall. Getting everything off the floor and onto walls and shelves will do more than anything else to make your garage more efficient.

Step Four: Safety Check

The garage is home to so many tools, liquids, and other substances that need to be stored safely. As you finalize your amazing work of organizing your garage, take a few minutes to double-check for potential hazards. Start with these main categories, but also keep an eye out for other hazards that are unique to your situation:

  • Blades—Make sure anything with a blade (whether a large chop saw or a box cutter) is securely stored and out of reach of kids.
  • Liquids—Lighter fluid, antifreeze, pesticides, paint thinner and other potentially hazardous—or just messy!—liquids need special attention to make sure they aren’t at risk of being knocked over or grabbed by little hands.
  • Tipping—If you are lining your walls with shelves full of heavy things, ensure those shelves are firmly secured to the walls to prevent tipping. Triple-check the security of any heavy items stored or suspended above your head.
  • Tripping—Walk the perimeter of your garage and look for potential tripping hazards. Make sure all exits from the garage are accessible.
  • Fire extinguisher—Every garage needs a fire extinguisher. Make sure yours is current and easily accessible—not on a high shelf behind a hundred other things!

Cleaning out and organizing your garage definitely isn’t easy, but it’s oh-so-worth-it in the end. And if you get stuck somewhere in the process, you know you can always call in the Bees to get you back on track!

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The Wonders of a Weekly Reset

photo of inside of the kitchen

Imagine it’s Monday morning. You’ve got a jam-packed week ahead of you with a million different events and obligations. What if you look around your house and see that everything is in its place? And what if your fridge and pantry are fully stocked with a meal plan at the ready? And what if you glance at your calendar and see every single opportunity and potential conflict listed so you have a full picture of who needs to be where and when? You are starting to get the picture!

One of the best things you can do to manage the chaos each week is to let the magic of a Weekly Reset work for you. Dedicating a couple of hours each week to systematically restoring order to your home can save you stress throughout the week—and can help you set aside some of the mental load that goes with keeping your busy life buzzing along.

As you think about what you should include in a Weekly Reset and when to get it done, consider the ebbs and flows of your week. For many of us, it makes the most sense to work through our Weekly Reset on Sundays, but do what feels right to you. Read on for a few of the key areas we like to include in a Weekly Reset, but feel free to ignore the sections that don’t make sense for your unique life or to add in areas that will set you up for success each week!

Whatever your Weekly Reset looks like to you, make sure you have a checklist for each area so that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel each week.

Kitchen Reset

The kitchen is arguably the most important space in the home, and taking the time to reset it each week will save you time, money, and frustration. Here are a few tasks we put at the top of our Weekly Reset list:

  • Fridge, Pantry, and Freezer—Take a few minutes to scan each shelf for spoiled food, items that need to be used sooner rather than later, and inspiration for your meal planning this week. Toss out anything that needs to go, put anything that’s out of place back where it belongs, and add missing staples to your shopping list. We recommend keeping a running shopping list that your whole household can access so that as things run low, they can be added to the list.
  • Countertops—Return appliances, food packages, and other items to their storage places, sort through mail and other paperwork, and deal with those items that tend to stack up near the sink, like water bottles and travel mugs.
  • Meal Planning and Prepping—Meal planning is the key to eating well on a budget, with minimal waste, and without the daily drama of figuring out what’s for dinner. Once you’ve finished your Calendar Reset (below), you will have a much better idea of how many meals will need to be prepared this week, how many people will be eating, or whether any of the meals need to be super quick or eaten on the road. Some of you might also find that meal prepping, in addition to meal planning, will help your household have the best possible week. Prepare individual servings of grab-and-go healthy snacks, layer salads in mason jars, create homemade Lunchables, and divvy up leftovers into microwave-safe containers for quick work lunches.

Calendar Reset

We sometimes wonder how we would get anything done without a shared Google calendar. Between work and school, social gatherings, quality time with the extended family, rehearsals and practices, volunteer activities, and community events and opportunities, we are guessing your lives are as full as ours are! It’s a blessing, to be sure, but it’s also a lot to manage. That’s why you need to include your calendar in your Weekly Reset tasks. Make sure you chat with every member of the family so that everyone’s activities are accounted for, including:

  • Regular work shifts as well as irregular work events
  • School days, field trips, tutoring, dress up days
  • Extra-curricular practices, games, rehearsals, performances, lessons
  • Family and social events, birthdays, get-togethers with extended family
  • Infrequent obligations like oil changes and dentist appointments

As you are filling up your calendar, don’t forget to block out time for things that are important to your wellbeing but tend to get left behind, like scheduling in time for exercise or a date night with your sweetie.

Laundry Reset

As you prepare for the week ahead, you not only need to be sure that you have the regular clothing and linens for the week, but you also need to be ready for any special clothing needs. After you’ve updated your calendar, you will have a better handle on whether and when you need specific uniforms, dress clothing, costumes, or favorite outfits for the week. The goal is to avoid those last-minute searches for a missing jersey, spirit day outfit, or the need to do a midnight load of laundry to wash that irreplaceable clothing item for the next morning!

Household Reset

Just because YOU are the one reading this blog doesn’t mean that YOU are the one who has to reset the whole house! Get everyone involved in figuring out how they can set themselves up for success each week. This will look different for every home, but here are a few ideas to get your started:

  • Reset your own bedroom, closet, dresser, and nightstand
  • Make sure bathrooms are stocked with whatever they need: shampoo, toothpaste, toilet paper, and other items
  • Clean out your email inbox and other places where you receive messages
  • Do a quick cleanout of your purse, briefcase, or backpack

The Weekly Reset is key to restoring order to your home and life before the next week begins. Taking the time to prepare for the week ahead can help clear your mind as well as your home. And, as always, if you need help developing a Weekly Reset routine that works for you, call in the Bees!

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Buzz into Better Book Organization

If you are a book lover, you know the optimism and excitement of cracking open a new book. Whether it’s an author you know and love, a recommended read from a friend, or your book group’s latest selection, every book you open is an opportunity to connect with and learn from the wide range of human experience.

Americans buy roughly 700 million books in print each year from booksellers—not counting the many more volumes purchased at book fairs, at author events, and through local used book sales! In fact, 25% of Americans own more than 100 print books—and even more in digital formats.

We’ve put together our best advice from the Bees on how to know when to let go of old books, what to do with the books that no longer need to stay in your collection, and how to organize the rest!

There Are NO RULES in Book Organizing.

The most important rule of book organizing is that there are no rules in book organizing. You don’t need to organize your books like the library does or your bookstore does or your mom does. Organizing your books is a very personal choice, and what works for one will not work for all.

Each book in your home entered your collection for a reason. Maybe the you from 20 years ago adored the author, or you inherited a collection from someone you love, or you bought a parenting book (or 10!) to read when you have more free time. If you’re like us, you have many books that you’ve never read and never intend to read. And if you are like us, some books in your collection are a direct connection to your heart, either because of who gave them to you or how they make you feel.

As you think about your collection of books, reflect on whether you truly need to hold on to every book you have, and consider how the books you keep might do a better job of serving you and your home.

Letting Go of Books

You may come to realize that you have more books than you want or need in your life. We hereby give you permission to let go of those books that are taking up space without giving you anything in return. If you are struggling with the process of sorting through your books to select what to keep and what to let go of, remember that the Bees have developed a tried-and-true process for that!

For book lovers, the idea of throwing away a book is an abomination! Luckily, there are so many places and organizations that would love to acquire the books that you are ready to pass along. Here are a few of our favorites:

  • Little Free Libraries: More than 150,000 Little Free Libraries can be found all over the country—no library card required. Anyone is welcome to drop off or pick up a book to keep. Find the closest ones to you by using their library locator map! You can drop off a few books from your collection while keeping an eye out for new-to-you books that you would love to read!
  • Public Libraries: Most public libraries appreciate donations of gently used books. While some books might be added to their regular collections, others will be sold at periodic book sales to raise money for library operations and activities.
  • Book Drives: Keep your eye out for charities, schools, and international education nonprofits who might be collecting used books. Everything from textbooks to romance novels can find a second life!

Now that you’ve found new homes for the books you are willing to part with, it’s time to think through how to organize the volumes you are keeping.

How to Organize Your Books

The most important question to ask yourself is what organizational style will best serve you? If you rarely or never refer back to a book on your shelves, you can feel free to organize your books aesthetically. But if you are the kind of person who needs to be able to find a specific volume, you will need to use a more systematic approach. Here are a few of the most common ways to organize home libraries.

  • Topic or genre: Create separate sections for categories of books, just like you’d find at your local bookstore. Gardening? Nonfiction? Travel books?
  • Alphabetically: If you have a large collection, a simple way to organize them is alphabetically by either the last name of the author or the title of the book.
  • Color: Arranging books by the color of the spines can make for a strikingly beautiful display in your home—whether you put them in rainbow order or just chunk them together for bright bursts of color.
  • Size: The shelving you are working with may play a role in choosing how to best organize your books. Consider separating hardcover and paperback books, if it works for you. This can help you maximize space and make the different heights of books less jarring.

Whether you organize for aesthetics or for functionality, keep in mind these key ideas:

  • Use vertical space. Consider using vertical stacks of books in addition to the typical horizontal display you’d see in a library. The variety can be more efficient in using space and be more attractive to the eye!
  • Include breathing room. If you can, leave some empty spaces on the shelves through the selective use of stacking or book ends.
  • Incorporate other objects. Think about tucking a few framed photos, houseplants, and other treasures among your books.
  • Rotate your books. If you have limited shelf space, you can keep it fresh by rotating books in and out of storage whenever you have the whim. There is no rule that you must have all of your books displayed at the same time!

Remember our most important guideline of all—there is no single right way to do this. These are YOUR books, in YOUR space, and you can organize them in whatever way feels best to you. And, as always, if you need help organizing your books—or any other space—call in the Bees!

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Road Trip Ready

parents playing with a child in a grass valley

Paving the Way to Smooth Travels

There’s something special about the Great American Road Trip. Miles of open highway stretching out in front of you. Roadside attractions of all shapes and sizes. Infinite opportunities to learn, bond, explore, and maybe even bicker with a sibling. There’s truly something for everyone!

As you prepare for your next adventure, thoughtfully organizing your vehicle will save you time, money, and frustration on the road. Read on for our tips and tricks to make the most of your time away!

The Benefits of Pre-Trip Organizing

You’ve picked your destination. You’ve plotted your route. Now it’s time to wedge everything into wherever it fits and hit the road, right? Wrong! Taking the extra time to get your vehicle organized before your trip has numerous benefits:

  • Less stress and frustration. Digging around for sunglasses while everyone is napping. A phone charger that doesn’t quite reach. Snack wrappers everywhere. A box of markers barely out of the grasp of the youngest kid. All of these micro-stresses add up and can dampen the mood of even the happiest traveler.
  • More time. When you’ve carefully chosen which items to bring and where to put them, you will spend less of your vacation time searching the trunk for elusive items, or even worse, making expensive and time-consuming stops to replace what’s missing.
  • Easier food options. Having well-organized, pre-packaged food options ensures that you always have healthy (and less expensive!) food and drinks available, regardless of where your path takes you.
  • Entertained children. If you’ve traveled with kids (or adults!) of any age, you know that boredom can quickly spiral into something worse. Having a well-organized vehicle can help passengers keep themselves entertained and engaged.

Wondering where to begin? Read on for our space-by-space ideas for whipping your chariot into shape before you hit the road!

Organizing Your Vehicle, One Space at a Time

Before loading your car for your road trip, you’ve got to start the same way you would with any organizing project—taking everything out of the space you are organizing to see what’s there, making smart decisions about what can stay and what should go, and only then organizing the rest. If you need a refresher on removing excess clutter from any space, revisit our blog for a step-by-step guide!

The various spaces in your car fulfill specific functions, so make sure you are prioritizing which items make the most sense for each space.

  • Center Console: The Domain of the Driver. The center console is the only space that’s truly accessible for the driver, so make sure that it has everything they need within reach: sunglasses, phone charger, lip balm, gum or mints, quick access to a playlist or podcast, water bottle, etc.
  • Glove Box: The Domain of the Co-pilot. The driver gets the glory, but it’s the co-pilot who makes the road trip happen! The co-pilot often serves as navigator, drink opener, squabble solver, tech guru, snack distributor, and more. We recommend using separate bags or pouches to keep categories of items organized and easy to find in the glove box:
    • Extra cords for various gadgets
    • Health supplies (hand sanitizer, sanitizing wipes, headache and stomach meds, band-aids, neosporin, tweezers, etc.)
    • Important documents, such as your insurance and registration information
    • Sleep supplies for nappers (eye masks and ear plugs)
    • Pen and paper
    picture of a car console
  • The Backseat: The Domain of the Passengers. Accessibility is key—backseat passengers need to be able to reach their activities and snacks without unbuckling. A few things that might help:
    • Back of seat organizers can keep a wide variety of items within reach. Many folks have had good luck with repurposing a door shoe organizer for this!
    • A box or narrow crate in the center can be a game changer for helping kids keep track of their items—and limit the amount they are packing.
    • Many vehicles have an abundance of cup-holders! A few plastic cups from the kitchen can help passengers make use of this valuable space—think crayon storage, headphones and cords, or snacks!
  • The Cargo Space: The Storage Domain. If you love the game Tetris, now is your time to shine! Use the space in your trunk or cargo area as strategically as you can, being mindful of when you will need access to each item. Place your most-likely-to-need first items closest to the bumper, so you don’t waste precious time moving everything out and then back in to reach something. It’s always a good idea to make sure you have a travel safety kit with you (especially if you are expecting difficult weather)

Tips and Tricks to BEEgin Your Journey

We’ve rounded up a few of our most-used items and ideas for organizing your journey.

  • Daily Tidying. Every day, take the 15 minutes to clean out trash and debris, refill snacks and activities, and put everything back in its place. Bring the things you need to keep your car tidy: Wet wipes? Trash bag or can? Paper towels?
  • Repurposing Items. You don’t need to spend a bunch of money buying gimmicky car organization products. Think about how items you already own can help you accomplish your goals. Don’t have a place to hang a grocery sack for trash? Stick a removable adhesive hook in an accessible spot. Need something to organize kid art supplies or snacks in? You finally have a reason to use that old shower caddy! If you don’t have time to divide out bulk snacks into smaller bags for the road, toss a package of coffee filters into the snack bag. Coffee filters cost pennies, hold their shape, and take up minimal space.
  • A Place for Everything. The biggest chaos-makers in a car are those items that don’t have a place to live, so make sure that you figure out the most sensible spot for each item, and then encourage the whole family to put the item back in the same place every time.
  • Frozen Water Bottles. We love it when we remember to freeze a few bottles of water before a road trip. They serve as ice packs while they are frozen, and then eventually become beverages!
  • The Almighty Snack Bag. Being mindful about the variety of foods you bring—and how they are packaged—can save you time and money on the road. You will save money by not being subjected to that upcharge for convenience at your stops. And you’ll save time at your stops by putting an end to the endless browsing and indecision about what to pick.
  • Mesh Bags. We never bombard you with countless organizational products because we know buying more things won’t solve your clutter problems. One of the very few exceptions is these mesh zipper bags , which keep you organized when traveling without adding a lot of extra weight or bulk.
  • New-to-You Activities. If you have a road trip coming up, keep an eye out for activities that will keep weary travelers entertained. Whether it’s borrowing a stack of magazines from a friend, printing out instructions for new card games, downloading a couple of podcast episodes from a comedian, or pulling out a set of forgotten window clings for the kids, brainstorming for fun new ways to occupy your time will be worth every minute!

As you BEEgin your next summer adventure, we hope spending a few extra minutes before you leave will help you make the most of your time making memories, one mile at a time!

As with any organizational project, if you need help, you can always reach out to the closest Bee Organized location for the compassionate, confidential, and judgment-free support we are known for!

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Listen to the Bees to Get More ZZZs

The Key to Better Sleep is Organization

More than a third of Americans report they regularly have difficulty falling or staying asleep. In fact, struggling with sleep is so common that many people think that it’s inevitable. You have more control over your sleep than you think! Before you reach for that melatonin or medical sleep aid, you owe it to yourself to consider how the state of your bedroom can improve—or diminish—your sleep quality.

The Importance of Sleep

We all know that to live a long life, we need to make healthy food choices and exercise regularly. But according to the National Institute of Health , the quality of your sleep is just as important for your health as diet and exercise. So why do we treat healthy sleep as a luxury rather than a priority?

The research is abundantly clear that the quality of our sleep impacts all areas of our lives—from how long we live to our likelihood of encountering numerous diseases. Here are just a few of the latest studies:

  • Longevity: According to the Mayo Clinic, women who get adequate sleep live about two years longer on average than those who are sleep-deprived—for men, it’s five years longer!
  • Cardiovascular health: Researchers from the medical school at Columbia University tell us that not getting enough sleep can cause high blood pressure, heart disease, and inflammation. In addition, the American Stroke Association reminds us that those who struggle with sleep are at an increased risk of heart attack and stroke.
  • Dementia: Researchers from Harvard inform us that adults who struggle with getting enough sleep are twice as likely to develop dementia after retirement. The most likely reason for this is that our bodies use every minute of our sleeping time to flush away toxins that accumulate in our brains during the day.
  • And more: If all of the above reasons aren’t enough, researchers have also connected poor sleep to weight gain, diabetes, kidney disease, car crashes and even lower perceptions of relationship quality.

The verdict is in. The quality of your sleep is too important to leave to chance. It’s time to get serious about improving your sleep health—and the best place to BEEgin is in your own bedroom.

Your Sleep Quality Depends on Your Sleeping Space

There’s no two ways about it: People sleep better when they sleep in a space designed for their sleep needs! As we’ve discussed before in our blog, several research studies have shown that nighttime sleep is shorter and less restful when the sleeping space is cluttered or disorganized. Dr. Pamela Thacher, a psychologist at St. Lawrence University, found in her research that people who slept in cluttered bedrooms were more likely to experience a sleep disorder.

Research published in the journal Sleep noted that when people try to sleep in cluttered rooms, they can have lower sleep quality because the clutter causes anxiety. Neuroscientist Dr. Chelsie Rohrscheib explains that a messy bedroom will overstimulate your brain and cause it to associate your bedroom with stress, making it more difficult to fall asleep in the space.

So if we know that we need quality sleep to live our best lives and we know that the state of our bedroom directly impacts our ability to get that sleep—how do we get from Point A to Point B? Read on for the Bee’s roadmap for whipping your sleeping space into shape!

How to Organize Your Sleeping Space

Your poor, neglected bedroom. If you are like most of our clients, your bedroom is the space that needs the most TLC. The primary bedroom is often the place that collects the most cast-offs from other areas of the home and becomes the default storage place for things that you don’t have the time or energy to deal with. Your bedroom is the last space to get much-needed attention, whether it’s new paint, a deep cleaning, or a complete makeover. We get it that most of your visitors never venture into your bedroom—and that spaces used by all members of the household can take priority—but there’s no time like the present to commit to better sleep!

  • Organize Your Routine: You’ve heard a million times that little kids need routines. But adults need routines too! Having a bedtime routine helps organize your brain and helps prepare you for deep sleep. Dr. Marishka Brown, a sleep expert at the National Institute of Health, notes that one key to quality sleep is building a consistent sleep schedule. And the University of Chicago strongly recommends “developing a bedtime routine that helps you wind down for the evening.” The internet is full of great bedtime routines for adults—you can start with these bedtime routine ideas from Psychology Today!
  • Organize Your Nightstand: The space closest to your bed is prime real estate for helping you sleep fully and deeply. Do not give up the space to clutter. Instead, think carefully about what items you need by your side as you settle in for a good night’s rest: your phone charger, sleep mask, lip balm, book, ear plugs, retainer, and more. Make sure every item has a place to live and you’ve removed the items that will just get in your way.
  • Organize Your Bedroom: Ready to put the time and effort into organizing your sleeping space? Follow our step-by-step guide for decluttering any space on our blog. And if your bedroom is jam-packed with excess stuff, begin with our famous Power Purge!

You deserve a functional, peaceful space for sleeping—in fact, your health depends on it! And if you get stuck along the way, you know you can always reach out to the closest Bee Organized location for the compassionate, confidential, and judgment-free support we are known for!

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How We Came to Bee 

It all started as best friends since junior high. We are the yin and the yang, Mutt and Jeff, Thelma and Louise…you get the picture. As life moved forward with new spouses, new houses and kids, we did our best to support each other and navigate life.

One friend, a self-proclaimed “hot mess,” earnestly struggling to organize, simplify, and sustain a household that was constantly expanding with family, furniture, and the tchotchkes of life that naturally accumulate.

The other friend, already gifted in the art and science of space organizing, knew exactly what needed to be done — with kindness and compassion — and made it FUN!

That was us — Kristen and Lisa. Helping each other. With patience and trust. Clarity and calm. Grace and humor. That was the beginning of Bee Organized.

Simplifying and organizing our own homes brought out the BEST in each of us. We were happier. We actually felt better about ourselves, and more grateful and present in our daily lives.

That feeling sparked a crazy idea in us, “Why couldn’t we do this for others?” “What if we took our passion for organizing and love for helping others and turned it into something bigger?”

So, built on the shoulders of this friendship, trust, and support, we began offering our services. The affirmations from our family, friends and complete strangers were overwhelming. We were humbled.

“My house feels lighter, and so do I.”

“You restored in me something I feel like I had completely lost.”

“I had no idea how much the clutter and disorganization was stressing me out until the project was finished.”

We saw the despair of some clients turn into hope. We saw procrastination turn into productivity. We watched clients happily move on with the next chapter of their lives, and we watched others fall in love with their homes all over again.

We launched Bee Organized in 2015, with the sole desire and purpose of helping people get organized and teaching them how to “Simplify their Hives” and lives. We knew that if people could get a glimpse of how organization could change their lives…they’d be hooked!

The Jive of Our Hive

We started small, worked hard, and with grit and humility, we built a national brand from the ground up. As our Buzz quickly spread, our purpose became bigger than just organizing. We now realize that we’re transforming lives…one Hive at a time. We are beyond proud that a family culture has organically developed in our company, not unlike that of a beehive –- everyone Buzzing together with the same goal.

We originally created Bee Organized to help our friends and neighbors locally. Little did we know that we were building a road map for organizing enthusiasts around the country to build a business for themselves, but not by themselves. And just like that, Bee Organized Franchising was born!

One of our greatest joys has been watching our Franchise Owners spread their wings and experience this sweet nectar of success, while providing a needed service.

One owner said it best… “Becoming a Franchise Owner has allowed me to continue to ‘fill my bucket’ of helping others while providing a professional, exemplary service.”

Through the years a lot has changed. Our business has grown into a successful franchise company with Bees pollinating in major cities from the West Coast to the East Coast. But one thing has remained constant. Our three Bee-liefs, the foundation we built our company on:

Compassion.
We meet you where you are and come alongside you to listen, talk, and sometimes cry together.

Confidentiality.
It’s our privilege to be in your home, and you’re the only one who ever needs to know we were there.

Judgement-Free.
We respect your courage and conviction to seek our help. We’re impartial, accepting, and focused on progress, not perfection.

We continue to thrive because of this embedded foundation.

Through our Bee-liefs, we attract Bees nationwide who embrace these same core values. That’s why our Bee’s superpowers go way beyond organizing, and set us apart from the crowd. One of our happy Bees summed it up beautifully by gushing…

“Many times we enter homes as complete strangers, but leave being the best of friends.”

We are all so giddy about what we do that we even created our own Organizing Profile Quiz for our clients so we can all better understand why we buy what we buy, and keep what we keep. Once we understand our relationship with our stuff and our behaviors around it, we can make lasting changes.

At Bee Organized our mission is simple…we make spaces more usable, homes more livable, and lives more enjoyable. We do this because (we love making new friends) and we’re certain that simplified, clutter-free and orderly spaces make it easier to breathe, think, work and live.

We gotta ask you, my friend, who doesn’t want more of that?

P.S. If we’ve got you Buzzing… mention this story “How We Came To Bee” for a honey of a deal on your first booking with us.

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Inside the Hive

What Happens When You Invite The Bees In?

If you are reading this blog, there is a good chance that you think you might need help with a home organizing project, but you aren’t sure whether to take the leap. People who have never hired a professional organizing service often wonder whether their amount of clutter is chaotic enough to warrant calling in reinforcements. And those who know they should ask for help are sometimes stuck because they can’t imagine precisely what it would look and feel like to have the Bees work in their home. In this blog, our goal is to demystify the process by answering the two top questions people ask us BEEfore they schedule their first appointment!

TOP QUESTION #1

1 How Do I Know When to Call in the Bees?

As you know, not every home organizing project requires calling in the professionals! Depending on your time, motivation, and organizing skills, you can tackle so many projects yourself with fantastic results. You might be thinking that your home doesn’t look nearly as bad as those homes they feature on hoarding shows, so do you really need a home organizing service? Shouldn’t you be able to figure it out yourself? The answer to these questions is mayBEE! When you are wrestling with the decision about whether or not to call a professional organizer, we advise thinking through each of the questions below.

  • What is My End Goal? You need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve. Is that a small project that just needs to be touched up? Or is this a project that you need an expert to help you think through? Is this a project that just needs a partial refresh or is it something that really needs to be custom designed in a way that your family can easily maintain?
  • Do I Feel Stuck in the Process? People often reach out to us when they’ve started a large organization project, but got stuck somewhere along the way—maybe they ran out of time or lost their momentum or just became overwhelmed with decisions.
  • Do I Have the Skills to Organize Myself? With the right resources, many people can do well with small-scale organizing projects. You know yourself and your skills best—be honest with yourself about whether you have the ability to get your focus area in shape.
  • Do I Have the Time to Organize Myself? Many people have the motivation and skills to be successful with a home organization project, but simply don’t have the time. Depending on the size of the project you have in mind, you might need to find several hours or even days in your already-packed schedule. Is that realistic for you with everything else that is pulling on your time?
  • Is a Deadline Looming? We often hear from people when a pressing deadline is ahead. Are you putting your house on the market? Do you have houseguests coming to stay? Are you downsizing a home for a loved one? Sometimes you have a limited amount of time to see a project through from beginning to end—the Bees can help ensure that you meet your deadline.
  • Will I Really Finish the Project After I Start It? Only you know your track record with projects like this one. What is the likelihood that you will see it through to the very end? If you know that your motivation will likely peter out halfway through, having a Bee by your side can help you succeed!

After you answer all six questions above, you will likely be able to make a reasonable assessment about whether you should tackle this project on your own or call in the Bees! If you’d like to dig deeper on any one of the questions, you can read more about each question here. Some folks absolutely know they will be more successful if they reach out to us, but hesitate to do so due to uncertainty, embarrassment, or simply because they can’t picture what the whole process even looks like.

TOP QUESTION #2:

1 Fear of Failure

We know that it can feel intimidating to willingly open all of the doors and drawers that you usually close tightly before people come over. The most important thing that you need to understand about the Bees is that they are real people with hearts of gold. Our Bees are filled to the brim with kindness and compassion, and they are doing this work because they love helping people gain a sense of peace in their homes. Our Bees have seen all sorts of chaos and clutter over the years—and have had to deal with the chaos and clutter in their own homes too!—which means that they are ready to meet you wherever you are with zero judgment.

  • Free Project Assessment: The first thing that happens after you reach out to us is that we schedule an assessment to talk with you about your goals and to understand the size and scope of the project(s). We collaborate with you to figure out which areas are causing the most day-to-day friction and therefore sapping the joy out of your life. For any project, we will discuss with you a whole range of options—from using the organizational products you already own all the way to installing an entirely new organizational system to help you manage the chaos. The collaboration between you and your Bees is critical to customizing solutions to help your space serve your particular life as fully as possible. Do you have more questions about the Assessment step? Get your answers here!
  • Timeline and Budget Estimate: We know that not every budget can support a whole-house makeover, so our Bees work with you to create a plan that will prioritize the projects that have the most impact on your daily life and wellbeing. Our timeline and budget estimates are developed based on our years of experience organizing projects like yours, so you can count on the Bees for accurate and clear estimates that allow you to finally meet your organizing goals.
  • On the Job: The most exciting part of the process is when our Bees show up to your house, don their apron, and get to work! Be ready to be asked a lot of questions as we comb through crates, boxes, and piles, sorting one item at a time. The Bees do their best to keep the process buzzing along efficiently during their time with you. Your involvement is key for when we get to work—but you can choose how much you’d like to do on your own. Some clients want the Bees nearby every step of the way throughout every project. Others want to work with the Bees to get started on a problem area, but then feel comfortable continuing to make progress on their own between visits. Once everything has been sorted, our Bees use their expertise, creativity, and understanding of your needs and goals to create a customized and sustainable system.
  • Maintenance Planning: While the Bees are working alongside you, they will teach you valuable tips and tricks to help you maintain your newly organized space. Their goal is to design an organization system that works so well that everyone in your home can help put things in their place and keep clutter at bay. But, we know that life has a way of throwing us curveballs, so don’t forget that the Bees can always return to your Hive to get you back on track when things start to get complicated!

If you need a helping hand getting started, reach out to the Bee Organized location nearest to you. Our Bees are standing by to give you the judgment-free, compassionate assistance that you need to make your home the peaceful and organized space that you deserve. We are buzzing with excitement to get started!

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To BEE or Not to BEE a Franchisee

Over the last several years, we’ve had the honor of talking with people from all over the country who are considering opening a Bee Organized Franchise in their community! We love these conversations because they help us better understand why people are eager to start their own Franchise—and what roadblocks are standing in their way.

Many people daydream about opening their own business because they are feeling stuck and discouraged in their current jobs. In fact, the Harvard Business Review reported that job dissatisfaction is at an all-time high, with 60% of workers feeling “emotionally detached” from their jobs. We know that several of our Franchisees opened their businesses because they needed to make a meaningful change in their work lives. We hear from others that they were motivated by a desire to try something outside of their comfort zone—that they needed a fresh challenge at this point in their lives. And some of our Franchisees made the leap because more than anything else, they love the feeling of pride and joy that comes from helping people transform their lives, one cluttered space at a time.

Opening a Franchise is not the right choice for everyone, but it most certainly is the right choice for some of you! So how do you figure out whether this is the right path for you? Our WannaBEE Franchisees tell us that there are three main reasons why they are hesitating to make the leap.

1 Fear of Failure

Thinking about failing is scary. After putting so much time, energy, and hope into taking the leap, the idea of failing can be so overwhelming that it keeps one from trying in the first place.

Our advice to you is to acknowledge that fear—sometimes things can happen that are out of your control that will lead to failure. But at the same time, you need to be honest with yourself about all of the reasons why success is more likely than failure for you. With a Bee Organized Franchise, you are not alone on this journey. You have a wealth of support, knowledge, and best practices from seasoned and experienced Franchisees who have successfully launched and scaled their own organizing business. You will do the research, talk with experts, and have the Bee Organized branding and reputation to lean on. Fear is a critical part of every new business venture—it’s what helps you sharpen your planning and what drives you to make smart, research-based decisions

2 Financial Risk

Starting a new business—especially when you are walking away from a career to start it—is most certainly a financial risk. Especially during the first couple of years, the financial rewards of starting any sort of business can be a bit of a rollercoaster. It takes time to build your business and to grow your base of regular customers. You can’t collect dozens of heart-felt Google reviews and word-of-mouth references all in one day!

Unlike many Franchise options, a Bee Organized Franchise has a low financial entry point and you can begin your business from your own home—no need to rent expensive retail space, buy professional equipment, or hire multiple employees out of the gate.

When you buy a Bee Organized Franchise, you’re buying a system based on years of organizing, running, and managing a successful business. Plus, you’ll have access to a whole HIVE of experts to help you every step of the way. You’ll have the opportunity to speak directly with the founders and existing franchise owners to understand what it’s like to go through the transaction, learn firsthand about capital, selecting the right partners, organizing your affairs, and what to expect from pre-launch to taking flight.

3 Lack of Confidence

One of the roadblocks standing in the way of some of our WannaBee Franchisees is a lack of confidence. But as renowned organizational psychologist Adam Grant reminds us, “You don’t have to build confidence before taking action. You build confidence by taking action.”

What does that action look like? Scheduling an informational call with our co-founders so that you can pick their brains. Talking to friends and family and mentors about your exciting idea. Reading every single page of the Bee Organized website to learn more about every aspect of the mission and business. Meeting with your financial advisor or bank to plan a financial strategy.

Our Franchisees learned how to run a successful business by leaning on our expertise and resources. The last part of the Adam Grant quote we mentioned above is just as valuable as the first part: “Never let doubts about your ability undermine your faith in your ability to learn.”

We know that making the decision to purchase a Bee Organized Franchise may be your biggest decision yet. If you’re feeling the nudge for change, take the next step and schedule a call today—it might BEE the right choice for you. The only way to find out for sure is to get the conversation buzzing!

Learn how our co-founders, Kristen Christian and Lisa Foley, came to BEE!

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