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Julie Leonard Life Coach

Helping you live to your full potential.

How Organizing Your Home Can Support Your Healthy Habits

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Kitchen by Julie Leonard

I recently read an article on the things that people who live long lives do. And on the list of tips, was organizing their home to support healthy habits that in turn improved their health and longevity.

This resonated with me. As a decluttering coach, I know the impact feeling, and being, disorganized can have on your health. And see the positive changes that come from decluttering and organizing your home. Not just feeling less stressed and less overwhelmed but actually contributing to a happier and healthier life.

I organized my kitchen and it was a game changer

I applied this thinking to a recent situation with one of my daily habits. I enjoy healthy smoothies each morning but I found that I had slipped into feeling that I couldn’t be bothered making them every morning as I had to remove several other kitchen gadgets out of the cupboard in order to reach my smoothie maker. I was also put off by the amount of frozen food packed on top of my frozen fruit in the freezer. Not really big obstacles to overcome but enough to waylay my good intentions and clearly the organization of my kitchen was not supporting my healthy eating habit.

Mango-Juice by Julie Leonard

So I decluttered my cupboard, got rid of my unwanted gadgets and stored my smoothie maker and accessories at the front where it was easily accessible. I made a list of my frozen foods, created a meal plan and used up a lot of the food in my freezer. I then stocked one drawer with the frozen ingredients I needed. I also cleared a shelf in a kitchen cupboard where I used labeled storage jars for all the seeds and powders I like to add to my smoothies. Now it is easy to make them and I start my day the healthy way I consciously and intentionally wish to do so. My decluttering and reorganizing of my kitchen was now supporting my healthy eating habits.

Imagine applying this to all areas of your home and life.

When your home is organized and items are quick to find and simple to store, then life is much easier. Think about if you want to go running. If you only have to open a drawer and all your sports gear is right there and your running shoes are on a rack by the door it is super easy to go running. If your desk is clear of clutter and you have a designated work space then you will be able to sit down and write or achieve work goals.

Backing by Julie Leonard



Want to do the same in your home? Here is my 8 step process.

How to organize your home to support your habits.

Take a notebook and write down the answers to:

  • First of all, what are your healthy habits or goals you wish to achieve? Make a list of the habits you wish to develop such as healthy eating, daily meditation or regular exercise.
  • What blocks or obstacles do you have? What stops you doing these habits? There is usually a solution to each problem.
  • What areas of your home have clutter or are disorganized? Take stock of the areas in your home that would support your habits and make a detailed list of the clutter and storage solutions needed to organize that space.
  • Make a detailed plan of each habit, the area of your house and your desired outcome.Be clear on what needs to be done to support your habit development.
  • Focus on your why. How will you feel to simplify and organize your home? How will it feel to be intentional and consistent with your habits?
  • Make a plan and timetable to clear and organize. Clear your clutter. Organize your space. Restock what you need. Clear any distractions such as removing the TV from your bedroom to improve sleep.
  • Time block space in your calendar for each habit to ensure you prioritize and focus on each one.
  • Remember you may need to refine your home organization a few times in order to make it work for you and support your habits.


Writing by Julie Leonard

How that might look:

Habit: Running 3 times per week.
Obstacles: Can’t find my running clothes easily. It takes time to shower and get ready.
Area: Organize and declutter a drawer with all my running clothes and accessories in one place.
Declutter and organize toiletries for a quick shower.
Declutter and organize a wardrobe to easily find outfits.
Create a designated place near the front door for running shoes.
Declutter and stock the laundry room to ensure I always have clean clothes.
Plan: This weekend I will reorganize my drawers and organize my sports clothes (Saturday). I will clean and declutter my bathroom (Sunday). Purchase any missing items. Organise the laundry room and wash clothes 3 x per week.
Why: It seems like a lot of work but I will feel organized and be able to reach my running goals. WhenIi run I feel energized, destressed, and my mood is more positive. I also feel healthier and stronger. When I run more, I eat more healthily and drink more water.
Goal: Running 1 hour Monday, Wednesday and Friday @7.30am.

Organizing your home can have a significant impact on your ability to start and maintain healthy habits. By following these simple steps you can simplify your life and create a home environment that supports your healthy habits.

Goal setting in Autumn

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September is the new January

Goal Setting in Autumn

The leaves are changing colour, summer has ended and I have that back to school feeling. It feels like a season of transition and of new beginnings.

And I’m discovering that I’m not alone. As a Life Coach, I have often focused on the beginning of the calendar year for new starts and goal setting but in fact good times for goal setting are during periods of natural change. And those for me are Spring and Autumn.

[Read more…] about Goal setting in Autumn

How To Increase Your Motivation

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Motivation

Motivation

Feeling motivated and keeping motivated can challenge all of us at various points in our daily life. Indeed, it’s one of the most common topics that people in my Happiness Club tell me they are struggling with. The number of people struggling with their motivation has significantly increased during the pandemic and the extended periods of lockdown and working from home. So, I asked our Happiness Club members this week, what helps you to get motivated? Well, there is a lot of knowledge in the group and I’ve added all that wisdom to my research and experience to bring you this comprehensive guide to how to get your motivation back and to stay motivated. Much of what I will share is fundamental to what makes us happy and some are the key steps in my Intentional Happiness Circle.

[Read more…] about How To Increase Your Motivation

What Is Your Clutter Cost?

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What Is Your Clutter Cost?

I’ve amassed a clutter debt! I have to be honest, I was so busy in December and January with travel, festive parties and Christmas that my house suffered and isn’t quite as tidy and organised as I like it to be. Add to that the massive amount of gifts that came in to our home over the past couple of months, the clutter has mounted up. And when my home is like this, every day tasks can take longer, I feel stressed and overwhelmed and I feel that a lot of my time and energy is spent on tidying and sorting instead of on family, relationships, work and fun.

[Read more…] about What Is Your Clutter Cost?

Decluttering Tips for Busy Moms

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Do you feel overwhelmed by the amount of stuff you have in your house?

You are not alone. The average family home has 27,000 items, so it’s no surprise that many of us feel that we have a clutter problem. Many of us have grown up being told that owning things will make us happy: the latest phone, gadgets, clothes, bags, etc. The result is often the opposite. Clutter has an effect on you physically (how things physically take up space in your home) and emotionally (it can leave you drained and lacking in energy and motivation, with low levels of concentration and feeling more emotional and overwhelmed).

Decluttering Tips for Busy Moms

And clutter often reflects our state of mind. It reminds us of all the things we aren’t dealing with.

Decluttering is more than just having a tidy house. People are now coming around to the idea that less is more: more space, more time, more energy and more happiness. Letting go of the clutter allows us to get on with more important things.

There are many reasons why things often start to pile up and begin to feel out of control.

The good news is that you can regain control. And remain decluttered and organized.

As a busy working mum, I completely understand that finding time to declutter feels impossible. And any free time you might have, you don’t fancy spending cleaning! But once you have completed a major decluttering of your home, you will notice big changes in how you feel and keeping it organized will get a whole lot easier.

Decluttering Tips for Busy Moms

So here are my Top 10 Tips to help you Declutter:

1. Go room to room and write a detailed list of all that needs to be decluttered. This is the list that you can start ticking off as you work through it, motivating you to keep going.
2. Now write a goal plan for what you wish to achieve. Break it down into small tasks such a ‘go through my fridge and remove out of date food and thoroughly clean fridge,’ or ‘sort through all my t-shirts, only keeping the ones I wear and love.’
3. Start with the easiest categories such as food, clothes, and books. These hold less emotional attachment and are easier to sort through. Leave the more sentimental items until the end.
4. Avoid being overwhelmed and use your limited time effectively by planning to declutter in small doses. It is amazing what you can achieve in 15 minutes a day. For example, clean and organize one kitchen shelf per day.

Decluttering Tips for Busy Moms

5. Enlist your children. If they are old enough, encourage your children to participate and give away clothes, books and toys they not longer use to other children who would enjoy them.
6. If this doesn’t work, get the support of your partner to take the kids out or entertain them so that you can sort through things.
7. Even better, have the support of your partner to tackle the decluttering together.
8. Get yourself an accountability partner. Telling someone your goals means that they can keep checking in with you and will keep you motivated.
9. Have fun! Join the Über Moms 30 Day Decluttering Challenge and see if you can remove 465 items in one month. It’s never too late to start!
10. Find a flohmarkt, or post on Facebook or on eBay Kleinanzeigen and sell, sell, sell. Make some money and use it for something you need or a treat.

Decluttering Tips for Busy Moms

Decluttering is an ongoing business, especially if you have kids. Stuff comes into our homes daily. But it does become much easier once you follow my tips and get organized. Then it just becomes regular maintenance. And I promise you: you will find that you have more energy, more freedom, and feel lighter and happier. You may even find that you have more interest in new projects and more headspace to focus on the important things in life.

Happy Decluttering!

This article was originally posted in Über Moms by me.

Accessorize Your Winter – Wardrobe Essentials

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Is it just me, or does it feel like one day it’s lovely and warm and the next we are in Autumn and it’s feeling much colder? So don’t get caught out. Be prepared and ready for all kinds of weather. And an important part of being organised is to sort through your accessories.

Here are my tips for Organizing those Wardrobe Essentials:

Wardrobe Essentials

#1 Organise Jumpers and Cardigans
It’s time to declutter and get rid of old and worn woollens. Keep the ones you like and feel good in. Do any need laundered, hand washed or dry cleaned? Now is the time to do that and have them fresh and ready for the cold weather.

#2 Hats, Scarves and Gloves
Find matching pairs of gloves. Wash hats and Scarves. Find matching sets. And get rid of any badly worn or damaged accessories or any that you haven’t worn in years. Have them all in the one place- a drawer, a shelf or in a box so that you can easily find them. And don’t forget to have that umbrella in an easy to grab location.

#3 Boots
Now is the time to make sure you have all the footwear you need for the wet and windy weather. Do any boots need to be thrown away or replaced? Do shoes and boots need cleaned? Or does anything need to be reheeled or repaired? Do that now and be ready for colder days.

#4 Jewellery and Handbags
The colours of our clothing tend to change with the seasons and so looking out jewellery and handbags that match darker and heavier fabrics will mean you always look polished and put together.

Follow these steps and the ones from the past two weeks and you now have a wardrobe deluttered, organised and ready for winter.

For Ideas on how to get organized for autumns check out this article.

For more support with decluttering contact me at julie@potentiacentre.com

Get Ready For Autumn – Declutter your Wardrobre

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The weather is definitely changing and feeling decidedly cooler. So this week I have been going through my Autumn/Winter clothes and decluttering my winter wardrobe. I do this every year so that I feel organized and prepared for the coming cold season and so that I also feel good in all that I am wearing. By only keeping the clothes that fit me and that I feel good in, I am certain that I will be dressed warmly and practically over winter and I will look and feel my best too.

Let me share with you my tips on how to declutter your wardrobe:

Declutter your Wardrobre

#1 Take Everything Out Of Your Wardrobe
Set time aside. Depending on how many clothes you have, this could be an hour or a morning or and afternoon. Remove all your clothes from the wardrobe. You need to visually see how much stuff you have! And you can now work through the pile or piles(!) and put back only those pieces you choose to keep.

#2 Get Rid of Anything Beyond Repair
Start with removing any items of clothing that are so old, ripped, have holes or beyond repair. These can be binned straight away, used as rags or donated to charities who receive money for rags.

#3 Do You LOVE it?
Now go through each piece. Hold it up. Look at it and be honest. Do you love it? Not, did it cost a lot of money? Not, it was a present. Not, I might wear it again in the future. Simply, do you love it?And when you wear it, do you feel fabulous in it? If the answer is no, then put it in a pile to donate or sell.

#4 If You Were Free From Guilt, Would You Keep It?
Perhaps it was a present. Or it cost a lot of money. If you didn’t feel guilty, would you keep it?  If the answer is no, then add it to the pile to go.

#5 Find A Place For Everything
Return the items you are keeping, either hanging up or folded up and make sure there is a place for everything and you can easily find what you want.}

Bonus Tip
If you are not quite ready to get rid of some clothes, hang all your clothes up with the hook of the coat hangers all facing the same way. As you wear clothes, turn the coat hanger round. At the end of the season, you will see the clothes you never wore. And perhaps then you will consider what you can do without.

Taking a little time to sort out your wardrobe will have a huge impact. Not only will you feel less stressed and more organised but it will save you time and you will look and feel fabulous.

For tips on how to get organized for winter check out this article.

Get Organised for Autumn -Goodbye Summer Wardrobe

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I am just back from my summer holidays and emptying my suitcase. I’m sorting through my clothes and deciding what I can put away until next year and what I may still need. And with the unpredictable weather this week, I’m  thinking about organising some Autumn clothes just in case.

September is the perfect time to go through your wardrobe, declutter and get it organised for the season ahead. Over the next few weeks, I’d love to share with you my tips for getting organised.

So, this week let’s start with sorting your summer wardrobe.

Summer Wardrobe

I am just back from my summer holidays and emptying my suitcase. I’m sorting through my clothes and deciding what I can put away until next year and what I may still need. And with the unpredictable weather this week, I’m  thinking about organising some Autumn clothes just in case.

September is the perfect time to go through your wardrobe, declutter and get it organised for the season ahead. Over the next few weeks, I’d love to share with you my tips for getting organised.

So, this week let’s start with sorting your summer wardrobe

#1 Clear Space In Your wardrobe
Do you have summer clothes that you didn’t wear this Summer at all? Are there any clothes you don’t love how they look on you or how they make you feel? Did you buy new clothes to replace old ones? Then now is the time to go through all of your summer clothes and be ruthless. Do you love it? Do you feel fabulous wearing it? If not, donate or sell them. Get rid of the clothes your aren’t wearing.

#2 Repair
Go through your clothes that you wish to keep. Do any need laundered, dry cleaned or repaired? Do that now before you pack them away so that they are in tip top condition when the weather warms up next year.

#3 Pack Away Your Beachwear
I treated myself to a few new bikini’s this holiday but I’m not going to need them until next summer. I have a swimsuit for the swimming pool so the rest can be packed away. Along with flip flops, beach cover-ups and shorts.

#4 Vacuum Pack Your Dresses And T-Shirts
I love vacuum bags for storing clothes and keeping them clean and fresh. Invest in a couple and keep all your clothes neat and tidy in one place. And it will be easy to find all your summer stuff next year.

#5 Clean And Pack Away Sandals
Clean and repair your summer shoes and sandals and put away in shoe dust bags. Take care of your footwear to enjoy wearing them for many years to come.

More decluttering tips on getting ready for autumn in this article.

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