Oz du Soleil has been in data management, data scrubbing and building custom applications for over 10 years, leading the revision of entire processes to ensure that future data input would minimize or eliminate the risk of future data corruption.. He works along side data architects to assist them in their role to ensure that they can trust the database given to them. Worked at Kaplan Financial in various departments and developed a reputation for being dogmatic about making data trustworthy. Mercury Organizing Professionals is proud to add Oz as a skillful data organizer to our team.

Its Earth day! This time year we dedicate a conscious effort to help the planet. We are borrowing this earth from the next generation and we should leave it better than we found it. Consider your carbon foot print not just in the larger scale but in the simple things we do at home.

Here are the top 10 things you can do.

1. Save energy at home. Choose energy-saving appliances if they’re available. Look for Energy Star!
2. Buy locally, or grow your own! Reduce air pollution caused by food and goods transport.
3. Dispose of solid and liquid wastes and medications safely. (Are there paint cans sitting around?)
4. Reduce. Cut back on the amount of ‘stuff’ that could later end up as waste.
5. Reuse. Upcycle! Take something that is disposable and transform it into something of greater use and value.
6. Recycle metals, plastics and paper.
7. E-cycle. Recycle and/or properly dispose of electronic waste such as computers and other gadgets.
8. Don’t litter! Properly dispose of trash and waste.
9. When purchasing goods, opt for sustainable, recycled or reused resources. Choose items in less packaging.
10. Pass on gas! Take public transportation, carpool, plan your day to reduce trips and vehicle emissions.

Where can you go to shop local? Try a garage sale, Second hand stores, Estate sales, Antique shops, Community Resale Events, Shop at Etsy.

Don’t think that our efforts won’t go unnoticed. Its important to know that every little bit helps.The more planning in your home or office you take to process through your paperwork and “stuff” you own, you’ll discover that you’ll have less to sort through on a daily basis. Why not dedicate Earth day to an effort that benefits you and your family. This will save you time and money as well. We can’t just think that it is a corporation’s obligation to find a solution for a better environment, we can take it seriously and do what we can as well.

When it comes to organizing and creating a system making room for our new goals is imperative. It sometimes requires clearing out our clutter first, especially when our spaces are overwhelmed with “stuff”.

I recently spoke with Eve Brownstone, a therapist, who gave us her perspective on how our attachments can be overcome.

“The Importance of Letting Go”
By Eve Brownstone, MA, LCPC

“It’s springtime. Time for spring-cleaning. Easier said than done. Our stuff may be important to us. A mug might represent a special time in our lives (college days) and/or piece of clothing may represent a particular relationship- grandma’s housedress.

When someone we love passes, my grandmother for example, it makes it harder to let go. I tell myself that I am keeping my grandmother in my heart. I don’t need to wear her moomoo. Not sure if that is a word.

Last year My mom passed from ALS. It was tough going through mom’s things. My sisters and I shared a lot of tears. I realize that mom is not her things. She was a loving person and a bright spirit. However having her necklace to hold and wear makes me feel closer to her and remember her. Spring-cleaning doesn’t mean you have to let go of everything.

We brought a lot of mom’s clothes to resale and thrift stores. We wanted people to enjoy her colorful wardrobe. Mom had a lot of scarves. Something I did that I am proud of I gave some of mom’s best scarves to her scrabble buddies. After retiring mom would spend much of her summer by the pool swimming with her grand kids and playing scrabble. Even when mom was very sick she would go down and play in her wheelchair. These scrabble buddies were medicine for mom. I am grateful to them.

I find when I let go of things there is a sense of new possibilities, new doors to open. I am not shutting doors on my loved ones, but opening new doors for myself. I wish you well in your spring-cleaning and the process of letting go. Trust the process.”

Eve is in private practice in Chicago.
Eve Brownstone can be reached at 773-859-1276 or brownstonetherapeutics@gmail.com

I met Sheryl Mooney several years ago at a networking event and whenever I see her we always end up chatting about organizing. I’m thinking she has my dream job working for a great company helping people get organized. So I asked her to tell me more. I recently interviewed her and asked her about her role at the container store. This is what she said,

“I’ve been working for the Container Store for five years, my official role is in Visual Sales which means I work to keep the store looking its best for our customers, although we all are called upon to work in several capacities from register to order processing to product demonstrations,I’m also trained as an Elfa Designer.”

Q. Is this your busiest season at the store?

A. “With the warm weather, it’s time for spring cleaning and starting March 26, the Container Store will be holding its annual Spring Organization Sale. Every Saturday and Sunday we have demonstrations where we’ll talk about “Storing Your Winter Woolies” at 2PM and “Clear Kitchen Clutter” at 4PM, our demonstrations offer all kinds of great organization tips.”

Q. Sheryl, knowing all of the products you have at the store which are you finding to be most useful for spring cleaning?

A. “I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Elfa, our best-selling modular shelving and drawer system -it was one of Oprah’s “Favorite Things” in 2010. From the closet to the garage, everything can be organized with Elfa, and it can be customized to suit your unique storage needs. The Container Store offers free design services and we also hold Elfa Introduction Tours every Saturday and Sunday at 1PM and 3PM. ”

Q. I really like to stop in the store to find new organizing solutions for my clients? but what if I don’t know what I need?

A. “As I mentioned earlier, I am an Elfa designer and would love to work with you to design the closet of your dreams. My hours vary so you can call the store to schedule an appointment or just leave a message and I’ll call you back. You can reach me at the store at (312) 654-8450″.
sheryl@sherylmooney.com

Our interview ends and I’m still thinking that she may have my dream job to work with a great company helping people get organized, but realized that working with Mercury Organizing Professionals is just as fabulous. Helping people find a system and maintain organization in their homes or offices is our passion.

Thank you to Sheryl Mooney who provides a great service to us organizers. It’s always great to meet other organizers and chat about new organizing solutions, but especially with a knowledge of a certain product such as Elfa Shelving. I’m hoping to let everyone know about good sales and offers as they come up. Here’s one that can help make spring cleaning a little bit easier.

The latest movie with Sarah Jessica Parker Called ”I Don’t Know How She Does It”  had mixed reviews but on the whole I thought it was funny and charming. I like this movie because even though it may have depicted the extremes, in many ways it was true to life. It’s about a busy mom who is working on life balance. She is creating priorities in her daily life for herself and her family.

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Life happens! and it is how you handle all those hiccups, without too much turmoil that  proves you can live with less stress and can have some fun along the way. In some cases its not about bad things happening, but about opportunities that you are presented with. How will you choose?  How do you manage to do everything you want?

So how does she do it?  From an organizer’s point of view, it really comes down to having one’s priorities in order, and making the kind of choices daily that takes you closer to your goals; for yourself and your family.

She does it by being organized, having a support system, asking for help when she needs it, and going for good enough.

Here are some Before & After for a Family Room. We downsized the toys and books and rearranged the furniture to create better flow in the room and stored toys in bins. The toys are no longer the first thing you see as you walk in.

Have you ever read this alert sent to you by your mobile telephone company and then went into a panic because your smartphone with internet service will then be wiped out to its factory settings? Meaning you would loose all of your pictures, contacts, text messages and more. Oh no! what are you going to do? This has happened to several people we know and what they discovered was that they did not have a good system in place to prevent the panic. Let’s say you dropped your phone in a toilet or something and getting it to work again is no longer an option.

To avoid such feelings of catastrophe one would have to be in the habit of backing up their phone. Depending on your chosen provider you may already be using a routine that you won’t be loosing anything if you have to do a factory reboot. But its better to find out sooner than later. If you don’t know how to determine for yourself how your phone is saving these elements then, Its best to ask your service provider to look into your phone and let you know what and how you are saving things. We suggest to use these following steps.

Top 3 steps to preventing cell phone “memory loss”

1. Treat you cell phone like a real computer. Back it up, or, at least the parts that you want to keep as many times and ways as possible. For example, make sure that when you save a picture, see that it automatically goes to your memory card and not saved to your device. Not only will you want to save the photo to your memory card but you can also upload your pictures to an online photo gallery like Flickr, Google Picassa, Photobucket or simply email the photo to yourself.

2. Find an APP (application) for a universal calendar, most phones give you options. Enter in your tasks and appointments into a google calendar, for instance. These dates can be seen from any computer when you log into your account.  Again, make sure it isn’t being saved to your cell phone device’s calendar.

3. When sending or receiving texts that you find important and want to save immediately, copy the pertinent text into an note taking app. It will be saved there for future access. If the text contains pictures, immediately download and save to your memory card. Later, send it directly to your photobucket.

Once these steps are put in place and go about your daily life of chatting on the phone, taking pictures and texting away your plans you can confidently live your life as usual. You won’t notice anything different until something happens to your cell.  When/if a mishap happens is the only time you would thank yourself for taking the time to set things up. This is what being organized is all about. You can’t control everything in life but you can reduce the stress caused by what life can sometimes throw your way.

What will you do with that old cell phone or computer now that you got a new one for the holiday? Don’t toss it in the garbage just yet unless you want to pay a fine. Recycling in Chicago is now a law.  Starting Jan. 1, Illinois residents must recycle their expired electronic equipment under a law aimed at keeping the gadgets — and the toxic metals they contain — out of landfills. These computers and electronic equipment all contain toxic metals that are extracted and reused in the industry. Read more...

As organizers we help out our clients by taking their donations and recycle for them. For those who want to do it themselves we provide some helpful links on our website. Go to our links page and enter your zipcode; the closest site will be listed. ( Click here to search your closest electronic recycling location. ).

Happy New Year! here’s to a healthy planet!

Some solutions

“There are so many things to do in a day and so many occasions to remember. How does one keep up?”. This is one of the most common complaints we hear. Having a calendar is not the only solution it is how you use it that makes the difference. The paper calendar is a common one I see with people we work with, but, some families are feeling confident and using their smart phones. If you are comfortable using technology and own a smart phone or iPad then you have additional options.

Cozi is a web-based FREE online organizer and mobile app that helps you manage the family schedule, organize shopping lists and to do lists, and capture favorite memories—all in one place. It’s designed for busy families in mind. Cozi is accessible from any computer, mobile phone or tablet. What’s is great about it is that your entire family can see the same calendar and be downloaded to sync with your current calendar. I suggest to give this one a try. Knowing how you spend your time gives you more freedom to enjoy your family instead of stressing over what you have to do next.

Did you know? We love mops, we love the invention and its design. Did you know that the mop was patented by an African-American inventor; Thomas W. Steward in 1893. The history of the mop goes as far back as the Romans. What I enjoy mostly is finding an invention that can make life a little easier. The mop is something that is taken for granted. Its essential in every day life and vital to a clean living.

We really like our name (M.O.P.) but it has nothing to do with mops and cleaning as some people might think. As organizers we create systems and clear out clutter to improve the flow of living or working spaces and help you regain control of your life. The organization leads to a cleaner healthier life. I wouldn’t be offended, however,  if you asked me to sweep or mop your place. When we organize we generally make sure that we leave one’s space cleaner than how we found it.