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Vali G. Heist,
Certified Professional Organizer®
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Author, Speaker
C.R.A.P. Expert
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Celebrating 15 years of helping people
Cut the CRAP!
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Ten years ago, my fellow professional organizers and I went to see a documentary called Minimalism. After five years in business, I thought I knew what decluttering was all about. I was wrong because the film brought the idea of less is more to a whole new level and it was life changing. Longtime friends Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus made a documentary about rejecting the American ideal that stuff brings happiness and through minimalism we can discover the really important things in life. One especially captivating scene was a department store opening on Black Friday and the frantic crush of people going through the doors to get the latest electronics, toys, etc.
Flash forward to their latest film called Less is Now, also on Netflix, and these same guys take us back to their childhoods and tell us how they came to Minimalism as adults. Even though they took different paths to starting their minimalism journey, their message is clear: Less is more and each purchase we make prompts the question: “Does this thing add value to my life?”
I studied advertising as a Business Administration major in college and all the tricks of the trade came flooding back to me when I started my organizing business. In Less is Now, those same basic retail marketing techniques are brought to light to help us acknowledge why we buy without first deciding whether we need something or not. Deficit advertising is one way to tell us that we are not “enough” and if you buy a certain product, you will become a happier, prettier, better, or a more popular person. Stealthy advertisers know that if they can get you to choose before you think, they are going to get you to buy things you don’t need. It’s their job. It’s what they do.
But Americans don’t have to buy into that if we can recognize that it’s happening! Many of my clients tell me they have what is called buyer’s remorse and that is when they give up their hard-earned money, or in other words, their freedom, in return for stuff that will be worth nothing in next years’ garage sale. Many of them say to me, “What was I thinking when I bought this?”
Finally, I consider myself a minimalist because of the way I live my life. My home does have stuff in it (the average American household has 300,000 items in it), but I am constantly letting go of the things that don’t add value to my life. I am also very stingy about what I let into my home and remember to take out more than I bring in. Minimalism is about community not consumerism, giving not taking, and people not stuff. That sounds revolutionary, but then again, it’s not.
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Fourteen years ago, I traveled to Mexico with a BFF and brought back a handmade pitcher made by a gentleman I met. It was one-of-a-kind and meant a lot to me. So, when my husband accidentally dropped it in front of my eyes, I was crushed, as was the pitcher! At first, I threw it out, but then I retrieved the pieces and 10 months later, I found the courage to piece it back together. It is pictured above.
Kintsugi is a Japanese art form in which breaks and repairs are treated as part of the object's history. Broken ceramics are carefully mended by artisans with a lacquer resin mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum. The repairs are visible, beautiful, and an antidote to the culture of disposability.
My pitcher isn't perfect, and I may add the gold lines to simulate Kintsugi, but I’m so glad I took the time to repair it.
Click to learn more about:
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Tax Time:
Regroup and Cleanout
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It's tax season and I have a list of things that I do each year at this time to stay on top of paper clutter and to move forward with my finances and goals:
- Pull all current year paperwork to complete taxes.
- Get most recent Social Security statement from ssa.gov.
- Clean out file drawers and throw out/shred old documents.
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Get new credit report from AnnualCreditReport.com.
- Update Financial Picture I keep on Excel. It includes bills, short and long term goals, retirement figures, etc.
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Question: "How do I keep clutter from coming into my home? Sometimes I just don't know how it all got here!"
Answer: Many of my clients ask this question and I tell them that clutter (or CRAP) is so subtle and stealthy that you hardly notice it until you feel like you can't breathe.
I was watching a British show on Netflix and a mother and her young daughter were at the airport waiting to pick up relatives. The daughter asked if she could have money to go buy something in the stores, and her mother said "No, it's just landfill." How often have we bought something or let our kids buy something that we think is of no consequence, when in reality it becomes lost in the mess and ultimately becomes landfill?
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Improve Your Credit Score
with Credit Karma
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When I started my business 15 years ago, I came to the realization that I would be responsible for every dollar I brought in and every dollar I spent. Besides that, my credit score needed help.
Enter Credit Karma. I opened an account and put the app on my phone. I get notified whenever there is a change in my credit and I check it every week to see my progress. They also provide tips on raising your score. After 15 years, I am proud to say my score is stellar.
If you've been wanting to repair your credit and take control of your finances, do it now, don't wait!
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I'm sure many of you can relate to this!
However, Goodwill has suspended donations until the end of February because they need to catch up processing donations.
If you are ready to let go of your stuff
instead of holding on to it, you can donate to:
Jubilee Ministries, 6371 Penn Ave., Wernersville
New Journey Community Outreach
(work boots, black or tan men's and women's pants,
jeans and new unused socks and underwear)
Opportunity Shop, 3045 5th Street Highway, Reading
Re-Uzit Store, 1054 S. State Street, Ephrata
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I don't know about you, but life is struggle right now. Take your pick... pandemic, politics, working from home, missing families, school by Zoom, vaccine, keeping your own business afloat and on and on and on. I came across the poem Desiderata twice in the last month at two separate client homes and I saw it as a sign. Desiderata is Latin and means 'things that are yearned for'. It was written by Max Ehrmann who originally copyrighted it in 1927 as 'Go Placidly Amid The Noise And Haste'. It really speaks to me right now and I hope it speaks to you.
"Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember
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Parting Note...
The holidays are over, but true friendship
is the real gift all year long...
You can't wrap kindness, put ribbons on caring,
stuff stockings with laughter, compassion or sharing...
You can't box up smiles with a bow and a tag,
or fit good advice inside a gift bag...
You'll never find memories under the tree-
But these are the nicest gifts you've given me.
#thanksBFF #thankyouHallmark
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Click on my book to
purchase it on Amazon.com.
Also available on Nook--
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“I think that when the dust settles, we will realize how very little we need, how very much we actually have, and the true value of human connection.”
Becoming Minimalist
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If you want to take your business to the next level,
contact Dawn Wivell, a.k.a. Constant Contact Guru at dawn@dawnwivell.com.
I've been using Constant Contact for over 10 years and I wouldn't operate my business without it.
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