Organize 365® Podcast

Lisa Woodruff is a home organization expert, productivity specialist, and author of multiple books including The Paper Solution. Lisa’s research-based teaching shines a light on the invisible work being done at home and in the workplace. Lisa’s sensible and doable organizing tasks appeal to multiple generations. Her candor and relatable style make you feel she is right there beside you, helping you get organized as you laugh and cry together. Lisa believes organization is not a skill you are born with. It is a skill that is developed over time and changes with each season of life. Lisa has helped thousands of women reclaim their homes and finally get organized with her practical tips, encouragement, and humor through her blog and podcast at Organize365.com.

658 - The Current State of Housing in America 06/06/2025

Transformation with Amanda A. 06/04/2025

Transformation with Amanda A. In this episode, I introduce you to Amanda A. who is married with three kids. Amanda found herself with compounding Golden Windows which created a little chaos in her life. She had just started back to work, went to transfer files to her dropbox and stumbled upon an old bundle she’d downloaded years prior - the Ultimate Bundle. It was exactly what she needed and her “relationship” with Organize 365® took off from there. Amanda had tried a lot of other organizational systems but none of them seemed to be the solution. When Amanda came across the module about organizing your schedule is when she felt relief. Golden windows Amanda was experiencing were her turning 40, moving to IL., she had a baby, took care of her mom her mom, covid hit. That was the two years leading up to 2021. In 2021, August she went back to work after 4 years, in Nov. her son needed medical help, and in Dec. of 2021 she was able to get a handle of it all that fateful day when she came across the module to organize her schedule. Amanda has ADHD and while she understands getting your life under control starting with the Sunday Basket® consistently for 6 weeks, that wasn’t her. We had such a great productive conversation about using the space in your home for the phase of life you are in. Amanda is using her dining room as her office. It’s where everything gets processed anyway so why not? I shared how “Grayson’s Room” upstairs has changed purpose over the years and as recently as a few weeks ago. When I found out Abby was pregnant I re-assessed how we need to be using that space. That’s exactly what Amanda did with her dining room and talking through it, may be Christmas Central too this December. Amanda shared about their steak drawer. They made a drawer in their kitchen functional for when her husband or son want to make steak, which is often! Once you decide how you want to use a space, think of any obstacles you may have and problem solve. A cabinet can be used the same as a drawer or vice versa. They purchased their home from a couple who had recently became empty nesters. There were some features they would never use. One was when the beverage cooler went out. She reimagined the space with a mini fridge that now houses school lunch items. Amanda has a lot of Organize 365r products, including The Productive Home solution. She was paralyzed where to start because the members were on a different day that day 1. Amanda was skeptical that a storage space or or laundry room would stay organized. These are the spaces you start with because they stay organized the longest. So she started in their laundry room. Sure enough…she cleaned out the winter stuff, gave items homes, and to her disbelief, it stayed organized! Amanda has more perspective by pausing and thinking about how she needs to do stuff. She likes to flit around in the programs and that suits her ADHD but compounds to be organized. And she wishes she’d known that no one is being as critical as she is about her home. She has such bad negative self talk about the state of her home at one time. But now, Amanda’s advice is, “You can have as many redos or day 1’s as you need. When starting the Productive Home Solution, you can start where you want. And if you need to restart, do that! Planning day is like that for me every few months. Time to start over.” EPISODE RESOURCES: On the Wednesday podcast, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365® community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps and triumphs along their organizing journey. I am grateful that you are reaching out to share with me and with this community. You can see and hear transformation in action. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at . /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36825700

Coffee Chat - Customer Appreciation Days are HERE! 06/03/2025

657 - Boundaries ? 05/30/2025

657 - Boundaries ? Summer planning round 3, ding ding ding. I share a lot of my life because I am part of the Organize 365® brand. I’ve been podcasting for over 12 years and over that time I have shared a lot about me, my life, and my family. Recently I shared how I wanted to spend the next 120 days upleveling the upstairs of my house. Those plans changed when Abby decided to have back surgery. And once again those plans have changed. And when evaluating my boundaries, I asked to share some news on this podcast I’d been withholding to explain why all the changes. My personal life A year or two ago I started practicing boundaries. My family has never been upset with anything that I shared but I started thinking they are adults and it’s their news to share when there’s news. I don’t need to share everything. And a year ago I decided to stop sharing vacation/trips with social media and on the app. But then I wanted to share something while I was on a trip and I questioned my boundaries. I’ve decided I have boundaries in place but when I want to share something I will even if it goes against those boundaries. My boundaries are flexible. Unexpected golden window When Abby’s back surgery got cancelled, I removed the “When Abby has back surgery” google calendar and my calendar was bare! I’d dedicated about 80% of my upcoming time to take care of Grayson and Abby. Now what did I want to do in this unexpected golden window? People often ask “I have so much to do, but when I have a pocket of time, I don’t know what to do first.” I say all you need to do is just pick. I had lots of options when that time opened up on my calendar. I decided I want to make the PhD a priority. You see, Abby had to do some pre-operation bloodwork that revealed she’s expecting. Yes!! Hence the surgery is off. This discovery led to a cascade of changes for the next 120 days. The second thing I decided I wanted to do was revisiting creating an office upstairs in our house. And I created a little bedroom upstairs for Grayson like I’d mentioned before so our house is ready for this next phase of life. Wanna know how I’m gonna spend the rest of this time? Italy, a Wedding, and a Baby Knowing the baby is coming in December, I want to plan our Italy trip for this fall. It’s been cancelled a few times, and I want to go before Abby needs us with baby #2. More news I’ve been keeping private is that Abby is engaged and they’re getting married in the Spring of 2026, so we definitely need to squeeze this trip in. Pray for me as I plan this wedding. LOL So travel, travel is the other thing I want to do for this 120 days. By the time you listen to this episode I will have just come back from Michigan. Greg and Joey are headed to the Keys. When we head to FL I’m taking Grayson to Disney (secretly hoping it becomes our little tradition.) I’m taking an adult field trip to VA. And I’ll be planning this Italian trip for the fall that we’ve talked about taking forever! So I have a few things keeping me busy. I will not be creating any courses or Sunday Baskets® for weddings, vacationing, or any other courses based on the events currently in my life. I’m not a public figure that is going to try to be an expert in everything I do. When I created Organize 365® I chose a subject I was an expert in and a subject that I wanted to talk and teach about until I was at least 80. Teaching others about organization is my unique gift and I’m going to stay in that lane. EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36741315

656 - Closing a Family Business 05/26/2025

656 - Closing a Family Business Life can really get challenging when you lose someone and they owned a business. Emily and I had to face that, with our dad, and I’ve shared about it and now Anna Hall is sharing about her dad. Anna has two younger brothers and she was kind enough to share their experience with settling his estate, taking care of his business and employees, and the family house her father built with his two hands. It couldn’t have come at a more complicated time for Anna. She and her husband had just built a house one year prior to be a half mile between her mom and her dad who were divorced. And Anna was in school for her doctorate, had an almost 2 year old son, and at almost 31 years had no experience how to settle an estate and grieve the loss of a parent. It’s never planned None of us plan when we’ll pass although we may know it’s coming soon. Our passing comes with great emotional distress to those we love. How can we make it easier on them? Do like Anna’s dad did. Thankfully he was a meticulous person and all of his paperwork was orderly and passwords were readily available. It saved a lot of time and money in lawyer fees because the lawyer didn’t have to go on a wild goose chase to obtain information. Anna advises to show up with as much paperwork as you can in that first visit. Her father assigned her uncle as the executor but let Anna and her brothers be in charge. He had a will and a separate document for the business. Her father also had titles transferred upon death saving money on taxes and keeping belongings out of probate. What to do with the business? Anna called a meeting with her brothers and a long time employee of her dad’s, JR. Her dad’s dying wish was to keep him working as long as JR wanted to. One of her brothers lived out of state so he wasn’t going to be able to help and Anna worked as a teacher full time so they needed to assign roles. It wasn’t too long after that Anna, who was the leader, realized her brothers weren’t paying attention to the reports, she was fine with that but wasn’t going to devote time to that anymore. Anna led her dad’s company for 4 ½ years but was ready to sell the company. As fate would have it her father in law had a friend with a similar business. They needed a skilled wood crafter too like JR. Anna was able to sell her fathers company, keep JR working, and keep their current customer list serviced. It was such a blessing for Anna who now had two children and ambition to pursue a career as a result of getting her PhD. However, they did not purchase the warehouse. Anna took time to sell off items. It was sweet for Anna to have some of her father’s friends stop by, share stories, and maybe claim an item or two to remember their friend. There’s something about the 5 year mark There was something special for Anna to run the company for almost 5 years. She cherished being the one to carry on the legacy of her dad. If you find you just can’t part with some items yet, that’s ok. I always say get a storage unit, give yourself time with those items, and avoid regretting that you got rid of them. And we talked about that significant 5 year mark. I shared in a previous episode how around the 5 year mark I was able to see some of my dad’s items with less significance. You start to realize that person is a part of you and your memories. They aren’t that thing. The material things no longer represent them. EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag when you share on social media. /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36691680

655 - Organizing Your Role as the Executor of an Estate 05/23/2025

655 - Organizing Your Role as the Executor of an Estate If you find yourself in this role as Executor of an estate, I want to make sure to support you best during this time by providing a little food for thought. How do you want this time to look? It’s not easy losing a loved one and hopefully this episode provides emotional support in the form of considering your mindset during this time. And we found it is best practice to have ONE executor! Emily and I were both executors but needed to be present for every singing of all the papers and Emily bowed out. She said you do it, I trust you! It’s so much easier with ONE executor!! Here are the things we did to save time, money, and spare our relationships. Protect Your Relationships We had about a 9 month heads up that my dad was terminally ill. I lived 3 ½ hours South of my dad but I made a conscious decision that while my dad was alive I would prioritize taking care of him. My sister would call and I would get in the car and head North. On those long drives I would think about the memories I wanted to create with my dad, the moments I wanted to share still, and burning questions I wanted to ask. This would be the time to finish up that Financial Binder if it wasn’t completed. This way you know you are honoring their final wishes. But really? Complete it before this highly emotional time so you and/or your loved ones can focus on cherishing the final days. My Aunts and Uncles were so good to counsel us during this time in respect to what to expect in settling an estate and planning a funeral. I also considered people I would be interacting with communicating things about dad’s health, his passing, and the funeral details. Out of respect, even though they were divorced, we communicated his passing with our mom first and loved ones from there. It is also ok during this time to set boundaries. I went through some scenarios to think through. How will you interact with your less than favorite relative respectfully? Keep harmony in mind. Processing Loss Based on my experience, it seems to be a female doing the bulk of the executor role. Her husband may be the actual Executor but in her supportive role she does most of the tasks. And so how do you, as a female, household manager, and maybe a parent, take time to process the passing of your loved one?You may need to cry it out in the shower. Maybe it becomes “long shower season.” I grieved my loss leading up to and weeks after his passing at my dad’s house. I found when I was home my family needed me. But when I got up to Akron that was a place I had time to grieve. But I encourage you to be selfish and take the time you need to process this loss. How to Process the “Stuff” I have this indulgent thing I do. I lay in bed half awake, half “asleep” and I think. Normally I rearrange my calendar and think through any projects. During this time I thought about my dad, my relationships, and all the stuff in his home. It was all going to be Emily and I’s. I didn’t want all of it but room by room I envisioned what I might want. Then, I developed this elimination process for Emily and I. She didn’t have the bandwidth to sort through each room. I wanted to support her in this time and get the house content processed so we could move forward with selling his home. Each day, I’d tackle one room and set out all the items. We’d go through and claim the things we wanted. The rest would be offered to family and then to donations. This can be an emotionally charged tough season. Give yourself grace, keep harmony in mind, and for the love…finish your financial binders people! EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36627825

Transformation with Eve M. 05/21/2025

Transformation with Eve M. In this episode, I introduce you to Eve M who lives in Western Ireland with her rescue cat. Eve was first introduced to Organize 365® through listening to another podcast that was interviewing me about ADHD and Organize 365® solutions. Eve became obsessed about this idea of the slash pockets and organizing. She listened to the Sunday Basket® episodes repeatedly. She has a podcast too called Feel Better Everyday that she hosts, author of the book 365 Ways to Feel Better, owns her therapy practice, and is a freelance journalist. We rabbit trailed about having a podcast. Eve has noticed with organization she’s gained mental capacity to batch record her podcast content. And we joked how funny it is that once you notice you’ve gained capacity you continue to push it to see how much more you can accomplish with such things as batch recording. We also talked about growing business. Once you see you have room for growth, that is a great time to get a VA. Eve has gotten a VA and is surprised by how much more she can do because she’s not focusing on the admin tasks or harvesting content from work she’s already completed. There is less on her plate due to delaying some things according to the Sunday Basket® practice, but it’s all getting done within time constraints. It’s like her safety net to not have things fall through the cracks. And knowing all of the work that needs to be done helps her ensure that she has work for her VA too. Then we had a really fun conversation about deep dive work. I love my Thursdays when I get immersed in school studies. It allows me time to do productive deep thinking. When we get rid of some of the noise like admin tasks, meetings, delaying things till Sunday, and other distractions, we can really focus and get creative. Eve explained that this is also time to capture all of her pink thoughts. And described deep dive immersive time as being luxurious. It allows us to nourish our unique purpose and grow in it. She wishes she’d known to build in time for rest. I explained what fun means to me, travel!! But Eve shared her she’s been resting, taking back up scuba diving, and scheduling fun. She said she spent so much time trying to catch up, she has so many ideas though, she has realized she never will “catch up” so she’s resting and having fun instead. Eve’s advice is, “Keep checking in with yourself. Know that you know yourself best, you know your business best, you know your home best. Trust yourself and just keep asking yourself ‘What would be a kind thing for me to do for myself right now?’” EPISODE RESOURCES: On the Wednesday podcast, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365® community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps and triumphs along their organizing journey. I am grateful that you are reaching out to share with me and with this community. You can see and hear transformation in action. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at . Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36598075

654 - Organizing Your Role as a Power of Attorney 05/16/2025

653 - Advocating For Your Own Medical Needs 05/12/2025

653 - Advocating For Your Own Medical Needs As we are having these necessary conversations on how to be prepared for unexpected medical events or natural disasters, I saw a friend of mine Sarah Hart Unger had one of her own. I asked her to come on the podcast so we could talk about what happened, how she handled it, what she learned from it, and how she may improve her preparedness. I’m Healthy Sarah shared how she was so excited to get back into running marathons. There she was in Miami in about mile 11 of her half marathon when all the sudden she heard her body say something wasn’t right. She bunked (marathon runner speak for running out of steam) and she was surprised and disappointed, why was this happening? Her friend took her to the medical tent and they told her all was well. She was so confused because she was a runner and she considered herself a very healthy person. Five steps into leaving the tent something told her no, and to go back. Moments later she was on her way to the hospital. She was pleading with them to just let her get to the hospital to be put under so they could shock her heart there, not that moment in the ambulance! Sarah has been diagnosed with a rare condition called Arrhythmic Cardio Myopathy. What Systems were in place? Thankfully Sarah was near where her in-laws live so they could support Sarah during her hospital stay and gave comfort to her daughters that someone was there comforting their mom. Sarah appreciated the medical team that took care of her, she felt heard, that they were honest with her, and was thankful for the way they cared for her. She wrote questions down because sometimes there wasn’t anyone to ask if it was like 2am. And she had realistic expectations of how long it may take to get a diagnosis. She got images in hand for additional specialists she wanted to see for second opinions. She advises to always ask for the images and reports. I feel like digital records help us to be productive and physical records help us to look, analyze, and see patterns. We’re all under this false pretense that our records are digital. And they may be, but, do you want your doctor visit to consist of tracking results down or do you want it to be focused on the course of action for treatment? Remember the mini medical binder is available for free right now. If you even show up with that you are ahead of other people. You can just start putting the medical papers in a pile and bring them. Sarah is a Pediatric Endocrinologist and says that she’d rather have people show up with results and reports messy than not at all. How to better prepare? Sarah wishes she had her old labs and EKG’s for comparison sake. I remember being able to show my doctor my cholesterol history and I avoided being put on medicine. I showed that for years my normal is in the “yellow” zone. Sarah also wishes she would have headed the advice to get another EKG years ago but life got busy and she forgot. Sarah stressed that we have to take care of ourselves just like we do our children. She accredits their amazing nanny for being able to step in and fill in the gaps. However, because they always plan their week out and share it with the nanny, they nanny knew how to fill out the schedule for the family. Sarah suggested a family member maybe come observe a couple days at your house to see the day to day unfold and be aware of what they may need to do in your absence. It’s ok if the ship sinks a little like if someone has to miss soccer, that’s ok. Sarah warned “Don’t ever assume ‘I’m healthy, nothing can happen to me.” EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag when you share on social media. /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36513500

652 - Organizing Your Role as a Power of Health Care 05/09/2025

Transformation with Amy L 05/07/2025

Transformation with Amy L In this episode, I introduce you to Amy L. who is married with a son, daughter, a dog and some chickens. At the time she found Organize 365® she and her husband were working full time and raising cattle. Amy was lured to Organize 365® by the cozy pictures people were posting with a drink and their Sunday Baskets® on Instagram. I had forgotten all about that!! She had to check out what all the fuss was about. Organize 365® became the first podcast she intentionally listened to to learn about organization. Amy was in the middle of a remodel and had hit her tipping point. Paper had always been the bain of her existence but now she couldn’t locate important papers and she felt out of control and irresponsible. So Amy is in the middle of remodeling her house and her husband planning to start a business, when she gets a call from her brother saying “Something's up with dad.” Turns out something had been up with dad for a while but her brother had been trying to handle it. I don’t talk about it much but it was very relatable to me when Amy shared that her dad had late-onset of bipolar and he was acting manic. Amy was smart enough to get her name on her dad’s bank accounts and she became power of attorney but needed someone to diagnose him incapacitated. Amy was burned out. She explained her life as unmanageable at that time. Amy decided to quit her job in June of 2024. Her family needed her, especially her daughter with ADHD, dysgraphia, and dyslexia, and her son with autism and ADHD. She talked to her husband and they agreed to sell off their cattle. Amy’s dad ended up passing away in August of 2024 followed by her having a heart attack in November. She called for an ambulance after making arrangements for her kids and informing her husband. She kept saying she was under so much stress she felt like she was going to “stroke out.” She had a spontaneous coronary aortic dissection. We had quite a long conversation about that day and the day I drove an employee to the hospital who was having a heart attack. She accredits the Sunday Basket® for saving her butt because her short term memory had been affected by the heart attack. And that brought us into a very real conversation about your attitude in your 40’s and 50’s. We aren’t trying to be crass and we love our families. But in your 40’s you stop caring about what others think and in your 50’s you save what energy you have for important things or yourself, blame it on the hormones or lack thereof. I gave the example of when Grayson has an allergic reaction, I don’t need to be at the hospital. I can simply get updates from his mom. I know I am supporting her and if she needs me I’ll be there but if not, I’ll stay and get homework done in the office. Amy expressed gratitude for the grace I suggest women should give themselves with getting functionally organized not Pinterest organized. She loves that a person can get organized but it doesn’t have to look perfect in the end. Amy loved that it wasn’t perfect but it wasn’t cluttered anymore either during her renovation. She’d had the Sunday Basket® and listened to the podcast for 18 months before she put it all into action. She’d been gaining knowledge and learning how to give herself grace to get started and not need it to be perfect. She feels like the episodes are so relatable. And I added yes, you all are my friends and I want it to feel like we are just girlfriends talking. It’s nice to know that’s exactly how Amy hears it. Amy’s advice is, “Start small, start somewhere, and listen to the podcast” EPISODE RESOURCES: On the Wednesday podcast, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365® community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps and triumphs along their organizing journey. I am grateful that you are reaching out to share with me and with this community. You can see and hear transformation in action. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at . /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36448645

Coffee Chat - Organize 365 Relief App Group - Share your needs and resources with the community 05/06/2025

Coffee Chat - Organize 365 Relief App Group - Share your needs and resources with the community Take Shelter! As I record this coffee chat, our office is under a tornado watch! How timely? If anyone in our community finds themselves dealing with a natural disaster or unexpected event, I have created a space for us to come together and give or get support! The community was able to help victims of Hurricane Helene and now I want for all of us to be able to help or get help in those circumstances. But not all hard seasons of life are because of a natural disaster. So I am calling this a relief group. I want you to be able to raise your hand and be vulnerable to say “I need some help!” It’s the Organize 365® Relief Group. I also know the value of having medical information accessible on paper in the event you need to evacuate quickly or go take care of a loved one. In episode 651 - Productive Disaster Preparation and Relief, I went over an Emergency Go Bag and a packed overnight bag/suitcase plus additional ways to just be prepared for unexpected events. In that Emergency Bag, I want you to have your medical information so I am giving away the first half of the Medical Binder. This is a way I feel I can help. Go to and download your free copy. You will also get access to our community where you can connect with others who have gone through what you are going through. It’s not through social media so you aren’t in the public fish bowl where someone may see a post you don’t want them to see, there aren’t ads, cookies, or bots spying on you either. And you can ask for items you may need. The way I see it, we all have enough stuff. If someone needs something you have in storage, you can simply ship it to them. You may not really want to throw that thing away, you’d rather donate it. And nothing feels better than giving to someone in need, knowing you helped in some way. Upcoming Episodes that will give you additional ways to be prepare: 652 - Organizing Your Role as a Power of Health Care 654 - Organizing Your Role as a Power of Attorney 655 - Organizing Your Role as the Executor of an Estate EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag when you share on social media. /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36396575

651 - Productive Disaster Preparation and Relief 05/02/2025

651 - Productive Disaster Preparation and Relief While the world seems calm, in terms of natural disasters, I wanted to offer three levels of ways to be prepared. Natural disasters are unexpected events and I want you to be prepared for anything that may come your way. I used two filters to concoct these courses of action to be prepared; “What would be harder to do once the disaster has happened?” And “How can I invest in being more self-sufficient and less dependent?” Preparedness is not a necessity but a way for you to be part of the solution. Level One - Go Bag! You get news that you need to go see someone in the hospital or you need to evacuate, what do you take with you? I encourage everyone to have a Go Bag and fill it with items that would make you more comfortable. Think, if you were going to travel on an airplane, what would you want? I provided so many options of how to be prepared that this will become a reliable episode to share with anyone facing an unexpected event but hopefully everyone hears it before they are desperate for the information! Level Two - Packed Suit Case I understand this may seem a little next level for planning but when we get caught off guard and called away from home, our brains are scattered and it would be easy to forget things. I advise you to slowly build this packed suitcase. Maybe during Black Friday you pick up an extra curling iron so you don’t have to worry about forgetting to pack the one you use daily. Half of my suitcase is always ready with my toothbrush, brush, sound machine, curling iron, and so forth. In the event I needed to drop everything and go or simply to travel, I’d throw in some jammies and a few outfits, and out the door I’d fly. If you have fires creeping close to your house I want you to be prepared to be able to do the same! Level Three - Information Management When I used to organize people’s homes and paper, I would use their filing cabinets until one time I was forced to tell a client to leave them behind. That paperwork is so valuable and I never wanted to tell someone that again. That’s why Organize 365® switched to binders, paper needs to be portable. When fires are near your home and you need to get away quickly, there’s no need to worry, grab them and go! When I was settling my father’s estate, I never found myself near the filing cabinets that had all the information, when I was being asked for it. You need easy access and it’s not always due to a natural disaster or an emergency. Prepare, Support, Cycle Preparedness I asked the question: “Can a natural disaster be a Golden Window?” Sounded crazy as I said it but I thought of a few ways it could be viewed that way. I shared ways of how to be prepared with food, water, and power, in the event of a natural disaster. In the Organize 365® community there is a way to find support and give support. I never want people to be forgotten after these tragedies so we have the “Forget Me Not” Basket in Carolina Blue in effort to honor past events and future events. It’s also where you can go to download the mini medical binder to have in these go bags and suit cases. These natural disasters happen and we watch on tv helplessly. We now have a way to help anyone from 1 person to thousands going through the same thing in the community after the camera have gone home and the news coverage has stopped. And lastly, stay prepared by including updating these items each home planning day. I don’t want people to be caught off guard and unprepared so I wanted to share how you to can be in a constant state of preparedness too. EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36377665

Coffee Chat - Announcing the First Teacher Planning Day! 05/01/2025

Coffee Chat - Submit Your Questions To Be Answered on the Podcast This Summer 04/29/2025

650 - Productive Solutions For Easing Teacher Overwhelm 04/28/2025

650 - Productive Solutions For Easing Teacher Overwhelm Happy Monday! Today, we’re talking about how to combat teacher overwhelm. In this episode, Lisa is joined by Jayme (from the school pilot) and Anna (a member of the Organize 365 team) to talk all about why teachers are feeling so stressed and what can be done to help support educators. Support for Teachers Some of the resources we found address ways to support teachers who feel overwhelmed by all of the demands of the education field. Some of the ways to support teachers include reducing or streamlining the number of administrative tasks teachers are burdened with, as well as helping teachers get organized. These are all things that we offer inside the The Teacher Workbox system and that will be addressed in Teacher Planning Day this summer. At Organize 365, we built the Teacher Workbox as a means to support teachers in the administrative side of their job. Teachers receive training in their preparation program on lesson planning, classroom management, and lesson design. We step in to help provide teachers with an organizational system to manage their time and streamline as many tasks as possible. A Sense of Community Peer support helps ease feelings of teacher overwhelm, and we love that we can offer the supportive community of educators inside the Organize 365 Community App. This is where teachers have the opportunity to share ideas, ask questions, and learn from one another. Teacher Camp is a live opportunity for teachers and other educators to get to know one another and work in collaboration as we set up our Teacher Workboxes for the coming school year. How Much Time Are You Wasting? At the end of the episode, both Jayme and Anna confess to having made their own Sunday Basket before purchasing the actual Sunday Basket from Organize 365. They share how much time and money was wasted trying to create a perfect system, when the supplies they really needed were already available through Organize 365. They also reveal how no system they could create on their own was able to support them in the ways they needed because the do-it-yourself system did not come with a course, online community, or Sunday Basket Club that are needed to truly understand how the system works. If you are thinking of going this route, how much time and money are you willing to waste? EPISODE RESOURCES: Nguyen, T. D., & Kremer, K. P. (2022). Burned out and dissatisfied? The relationships between teacher dissatisfaction and burnout and their attrition behavior. Elementary School Journal, 123(2). DOI: 10.1086/721772 Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag when you share on social media. /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36333175

Coffee Chat - Submit Your Questions To Be Answered on the Podcast This Summer 04/28/2025

649 - Planning to Care For Abby & Grayson After Abby's Back Surgery 04/25/2025

649 - Planning to Care For Abby & Grayson After Abby's Back Surgery Well the time is here! Abby is finally getting a back surgery we knew would need to be done despite all the cortisone shots and physical therapy. I don’t share this so you can plan when your next family member needs you for a surgery. I’m sharing all my planning thoughts and iterations because where else do we hear this stuff? How do you learn how others plan? This is for any event you have coming up that requires a lot of shifting and planning. I’m going into a time where there will be a plan and I can not just “not feel like it.” I have to do what is on the plan in order to have success. Operation “Take Care of Grayson” What does this mean for me? Full time primary care giver to Grayson. Honestly, I’m using the lens that this is a unique opportunity to spend these months with Grayson and support Abby. The first thing I knew I needed was to think about how I was going to entertain this active big 4 year old. I have a routine I am going to try out based on tiny details of care that Grayson needs and what he’s used to. And I’ve thought about a lil lunch box I can pack for on the go, what all needs to be in my purse at all times for Grayson, and a backpack in the back of the car with things we may need when we are out. The routine is in small chunks of time that I can start to give back to Abby as she recovers. Next Layer: The Family When going into a time of new demands on your time and capacity, you need to look at it in reverse order to figure out how to still meet as many personal and family obligations as possible. So next my brain went to the rest of my family. How will I care for Greg, Joey, and help Abby through recovery. Greg has this trip to the Keys planned to take with Joey and his dad. It’s important and I encouraged them to still take it. It’s during the first week after Abby’s surgery. I’m asking Greg to take on a few tasks to make sure we all get fed and Grayson gets to and from Daycare. I’ve been reading up on this surgery and the recovery process. I have tried to consider the physical things Abby may need to aid her in her recovery. But I have also been considering the emotional toll this may have on her. Might be tough watching me play mom to her child for a while. I will do my best to include Abby to keep her spirits up. And the physical therapy! Likely I will have those scheduled before the surgery takes place. I’m sneaking in an adult field trip before surgery to fill my cup and one after Abby’s surgery to give me something to look forward to. I also looked at work and rearranged the things I need to be in person at, to the mornings, when I will be in the office. I’ve decided to work from home for the first week. And Saturday showed itself as a day I can take advantage of being in the office because Greg can be home with Abby and Grayson on Saturdays. I will be working on my dissertation starting now because I have time and then Saturdays. Please cross your fingers all the research I’m going to do in advance about Prospective Memory will be worth it because I have not got the green like on this yet. But it’s a risk, for times sake, that I have to take. How Will My Planning Day Workbook Look This Time? So after taking 32 minutes to tell you all about my planning, I opened the Planning Day workbook. I walked through the workbook and shared, off the cuff, my thoughts about how I will plan according to each page. Ha! I was actually caught off guard on a couple of upcoming things like birthdays and our anniversary. Yeah, Abby needs an oil change and I checked but my car is good for a while. These are the things you should be thinking about going into something this big, what can I get done now to make this upcoming busy time more smooth? I am trying to think of everything. I will continue to mull over my calendar and rearrange things as necessary. This is a ridiculous amount of planning that my future self will thank me for doing. This is the kind of detailed planning we do in Planning Day! EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36283220

Coffee Chat -Embrace 2025 Add On 04/23/2025

Transformation with Heather S. 04/23/2025

Transformation with Heather S. In this episode, I introduce you to Heather S. She is a mental health counselor who is married and mom to 5 children. They have their own little “farm” they call home. Heather was in a hard season of life when she heard Sara Dean interviewing me on the Shameless Mom Academy Podcast and I was talking about the Sunday Basket®. Heather was a grad student, her dad was ill and Heather was his primary caregiver, not to mention she had a 21/2 year old at the time. Her brain felt very busy and she thought the Sunday Basket® could help. Heather believes that planning and organization is one of the best gifts we can give ourselves. Sometimes, as women, it seems as though we are expected to know how to keep a house. It’s ok if you don’t know how and you need to hire someone or purchase a course to teach you. We both agreed that organization is self care! There’s one component of being a household manager that negatively impacts a person and it’s the emotional. It’s based on how well we think we are at the managerial and cognitive pieces of running the home. And there’s a lot of negative internal chatter about it! The Sunday Basket® quiets those comments. Heather had been successfully using a DIY Sunday Basket® with her large family, so Heather and her husband agreed to invest in the Organize 365® Sunday Basket to get additional support. She shared about how she does Christmas. She shared her hacks on how not have to wrap presents the night before, how she makes her kids lists, and how to not overspending! And wait till she explains her sick box, genius solutions! And since that was such a success, it made sense to invest in the old All Access program to get their house in order to sell. It made $20,000 in sense! Once they decluttered and met with their realtor again, they added $20,000 to the selling value of their home by just painting and decluttering! Then they moved, Heather got her Masters, added some dogs, and a child!! The last half of our conversation was about Embrace, currently the self-guided retreat until I am done with the PhD. She pointed out how important it is to do the journaling and coming to terms with your past. Through journaling we can all notice what we say to ourselves, the lies we tell ourselves, and look at what we wrote to decide if it’s true. We can journal to explore what we want. And specifically with Embrace, it made so much sense to Heather because she’s done that hard work of journaling and reflecting. And there is are many scientific benefits of pen to paper. The reality is you can’t get to “What is my unique purpose and how can I share it?” until you have accepted that you are worthy and have great value to give. She lost her father shortly after having her 5th child. How does one grieve and celebrate a new life at the same time? Heather had to use her planning and journaling skills to work through that grief while still taking care of her family the way she wanted to. She scheduled her grieving time and you may need to do the same. Take the time to process your past to get to the place where you can feel worthy of organization. You can then realize you have so much to offer this world. And finally with embrace, explore how you can impact the world with your unique gifts and talents. Heather has this great 6 step art therapy journal prompting process that she takes her clients through. She really shared a lot about the process and I believe so many people would benefit from doing the internal work before diving into Embrace. We are all worthy and valuable. Heather’s advice is, “We need to start with the internal work. Sitting and taking time to do the internal work first will let you stay motivated and on track to do what you need to do.” Heather shared her desire to do so in collaboration with Organize 365® someday. If you liked Heather and her ideas, you DON’T want to miss the next Coffee Chat!! EPISODE RESOURCES: On the Wednesday podcast, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365® community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps and triumphs along their organizing journey. I am grateful that you are reaching out to share with me and with this community. You can see and hear transformation in action. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at . Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36229325

648 - Planning for the next 120 Days 04/18/2025

648 - Planning for the next 120 Days We’re spending all this time invisibly planning. I desire for it to be more visible. For home, I have always planned in these trimesters, 120 day chunks. You can hear all about it in ep. 132. I call these chunks summer, fall, and winter. When the PhD is finished (hopefully in Dec.) I will have planned 9 chunks. Each chunk of time starts with this natural break in the hustle of life and gives us these organic bursts of energy to declutter, organize, and reset. It became very clear to me the energy of each season during this PhD journey. What did I plan? How did it go? And how am I leaving this PhD phase of life? Summer (May-August) Sing it with me “Schoooooool’s out for summer”...these are the more relaxed months of the year. The invisible work you would have done for this chunk was planning how to keep the kids busy, summer vacations, and this is usually a personal development time for me. The PhD is all personal development. Summer of ‘23 was “Busy” because I’d applied and been accepted into the PhD and lil Grayson turned two so he was into everything! I had each minute planned with the goal of getting my PhD that I basically missed summer! This summer was the hardest. I took less time to plan because Greg and I went to England. And I don’t regret it! Grayson was 3 and he was on to me. He KNEW when I was home and he wanted to play. But I’d made the choice to pursue this PhD and I had to choose it over Grayson for this season. So I moved almost everything to the office. Another lost summer. Fall (September-December) Fall seems to be an easy chunk of time for me. This season you have planned for back to school and the holidays. Things seem to go easier and thank God for football. Because Greg loves football and that means I don’t have guilt getting in a few more hours of studying or completing more assignments. I’d only taken 2 classes which lightened the PhD demand on me. In fall of 2024, I had to ask myself “How do I not do again, what I just did in summer?” I took a trip with Greg, I only took 2 classes and focused on the holidays. Winter (January-April/Mayish) Winter starts with all of us coming back from Christmas/Holiday breaks. In 2023, I planned to change all my habits and routines to be a PhD student, you can hear all about that in ep. 519 and/or the Monday PhD episodes I did around that same time. I knew it was going to take me 25 hours so I blocked that time off my calendar. It's no good to set a goal but not set aside time to achieve it. For my 2024 winter chunk, I’m calling it “treading water”. This was a really hard chunk of time because Greg had rotator cuff surgery, we’d remodeled Joey’s condo, and we were planning to remodel Abby’s space downstairs next. How I’m Ending My PhD Phase I’m calling this last chunk of time “the grind”. I have finished the classes portion of completing the PhD. As I see the finish line in sight for the PhD, I am walking away so happy and proud! I’m proud of myself for the mental capacity I’ve grown. I am so proud that I put earning a PhD as one of my priorities. I would cheer anyone on in my family to do the same for themselves. It forced me to set better boundaries with my family. I encourage you all to do Planning Day and I do it for myself too to make sure I am pouring into my marriage and family, that I am prioritizing self care, to travel, and breakdown a big project I want to accomplish. Sometimes you get that project done in one 120 chunk and sometimes it’s multiple chunks over the course of 3 years. Just make sure you prioritize your family and have good communication so they have accurate expectations. None of this happens accidentally, like a PhD, you have to plan for it! EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36205325

Coffee Chat - 20% off ALL Planning Days and more! 04/15/2025

Coffee Chat - 20% off ALL Planning Days and more! PLANNING…it’s the one thing that you can control in these unsettling times. Planning Days are now 20% OFF! The best part is, when you sign up for the subscription, that price is locked in for future planning days. Planning will help you to make better choices and establish routines and new habits. Routines and habits take a little more time to become second nature. Routines and habits change your character of who you are over time through intention and discipline. That’s what we do in Planning Day. There are three types that Organize 365® offers; Home, Friday Workbox® and now the little sister…Teacher Planning Day. Planning days help you to look at your time and plan ahead for the next 120 days for the Home or 90 days for Work. You will establish routines that will lead to habits that end up freeing up your cognitive load. You will look at how you are currently spending your time and think about how you want to spend your time. Each planning day comes with a workbook to work through what your next 120 or 90 will look like. You all may be familiar with Home and Work Planning Days but I want to share with you a little bit about what to expect in the Teacher Planning Day. You will look at the personal development goals you have for yourself, not the ones given to you by your administrator. You’ll look at theme days, your planning time, and how to be productive. I’ll go over the Teacher Workbox with you and we’ll talk about the pink slash pockets and what you want to do for personal development or ideas for your classroom. The purple slash pockets used for 3-5 projects you want to complete. With the blue slash pocket you’ll think about a communication goal, your team, and maybe a goal you all set together. And then the green slash pocket, I’ll explain how to use it for administrative tasks and your checklists. OOOPS…we made a mistake and I have decided to roll with it. I know how planning will help you to feel in control in a time when you may feel uneasy. So the Complete Home Organization Bundle accidentally got included in this sale. I feel so strongly that planning is what we all need right now so I’m keeping this on sale too. If you have been interested in the bundle, now is your time to get it. And at this price your planning day is almost free. You will get the Productive Home Solution® as well as a Sunday Basket®, the Paper Solution, Binders, and the workbooks, check out the link below for full details. If you wanna be around other go-getters, driven, and positive people then Planning Day is the day you don’t wanna miss. Once the Planning Day has happened pricing will go back up. So take advantage of this deal and get in the driver’s seat and get the Planning Day that is right for you! EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag when you share on social media. /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36133895

647 - Productivity Comes from Habits & Routines 04/14/2025

647 - Productivity Comes from Habits & Routines Happy Monday! Today we’re talking all about habits like what ones do we have, how they are established, some really interesting studies about habits and routines, and how you too can reprogram yourself to have productive habits. Brown University defines a habit as a repeated action that becomes an automatic behavior with little to no thought. Life Long Intentionality Setter As a child, I was in charge of my fun. I remember going to the stationary store and getting planners about three times a year. Anna pointed out the coincidence of Friday Workbox® Planning Day happening three times a year as well. I like to maximize my time. I get my planner out and fill in the tasks that need to be accomplished and then I start thinking about what I want my routines to be. I intentionally set routines to include somethings I’d like to end up as a habit with the understanding these things will make me more productive and achieve my goals. I feel like a person can successfully add a new habit each Planning Day. On average it takes a person 66 days to establish a new habit. Effortless Self Control Habits are stronger than your beliefs. You may believe fruits and vegetables are better for you. However if you habitually eat cookies…that habit will likely continue unless you make environmental changes. Remove the cookie jar and put healthy food in its place. Now when you habitually visit where the cookie jar was you will grab a piece of fruit. And with our habits we have lower emotional reactions. We talked about a study where students’ habits were questioned. They determined 43% of their day was habitual. Your emotional response to waking up early on daily is reduced when you have done it for a long time. And once you decide to clean your kitchen, the routine is habitual and you can sing along to music or think about something else because you have a routine to how you clean your kitchen. Context Clues also support effortless self control. If you have a habit of putting on your deodorant after you brush your teeth, your toothbrush is the clue. But let’s say on vacation you have all your toiletries in a bag. You brush your teeth but because your deodorant isn’t in plain sight, you go sight seeing and remember you forgot to put on deodorant. Prospective Memory This is the theory I’m thinking I will do my dissertation about. It’s something you are reminded you need to do but in the future. Say you are talking to someone about the grocery store and that reminds you that you need to pick up a card for a wedding next time you are there. It’s like you are trying to remember things for the future. They are related to a location or a time. You could be reminded about the card by time as in the wedding is a 5pm and you need the card by then. Are You Maxed Out on Habits? A person can only do so much everyday, even the amount of habits they have. Are you programmed correctly? Planning Day, with Organize 365®, really helps you to analyze your time and look at what you are currently doing. You may see some changes you need to make and then plan how you will do it . To do lists and diaries have been found to be inefficient because there’s no place for holding things like a card for an upcoming wedding or ideas you are simmering on. When you write one task on an index card and throw it in your Sunday Basket®, you are able to categorize, make a plan of completing those tasks, and delay decision making until necessary. I hope you can join us May 3rd for Home Planning Day or June 6th for Friday Workbox® Planning day to get productive habits in place so you have more cognitive space for other areas of your life. EPISODE RESOURCES: Wood, W., Quinn, J. M., & Kashy, D. A. (2002). Habits in everyday life: Thought, emotion, and action. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83(6), 1281–1297. Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag when you share on social media. /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36074395

646 - The Impacts of Tariffs on Organize 365® 04/11/2025

646 - The Impacts of Tariffs on Organize 365® This important update is being recorded on April 8th at 3pm. I hope there haven’t been too many changes by the time you listen to this episode. There have been so many economic changes and the atmosphere is starting to feel a little uncertain like it did about 5 years ago when Covid reared its ugly head. There are 3 types of responses to what’s going on. Those who know too much and they are thinking way too far in the future, those who stick their head in the sand and don’t want to know about any of it, and those who know just enough to make positive, proactive, profitable choices for their homes. As a CEO I am in the last category. I’m in preservation mode to preserve Organize 365® and my employees' jobs. I tried to give you different perspectives of what is going on from the overall economy, from a CEO, and as a household manager. Job Security & The Stock Market There are three things people are worried about right now. Two of them are job security and the stock market. Come to find out federal jobs aren’t secure! In 2008/2009, people didn’t think it was possible to lose your house. In 2020, people didn’t think we could be locked in our homes. I told you in a previous episode that I don't understand the stock market so I don’t have much advice. Greg and I decided long ago to invest in the stock market, Greg takes care of that. Our children are invested in the stock market. And historically the stock market always comes back. Supply Chain There was never a toiler paper supply issue. We had plenty of toilet paper because it’s made here in the U.S. Size was the problem…it was only available in industrial sizes for like schools and stadiums. But where we are going to see supply chain issues will be from items that come from China. We are in an economic war. My recent order from China is going to be tariffed at 121%!!! That’s right! Half of this episode is about sourcing my supplies and how & how it has changed. Due to the tariffs, expect to see fewer choices at come point and quantity available to decrease if it comes from China. I explained a lot about how the tariffs came to be, how they added up, and what they mean for the American supply chain. I offered solutions to keep your household supply chain supple. How is Organize 365® responding? As a CEO that looks into the future, I always have an 18 month to 2 year supply of physical products. Organize 365® isn’t going anywhere! We aren’t passing the tariff expenses to our customers, we don’t have to, as I explained, because of the way I have financially structured Organize 365®. And we aren’t ordering from China for now. I am anticipating working with an American company for our Sunday Baskets® in addition to other products and may continue to work with them once this whole thing blows over. I speculate it will be a good 18 months till our economy stabilizes again. We’re running leaner with daily operations. And we’re thankful we didn’t raise expenses by moving like we wanted or getting the ERP system. And most of all, always wondering as economics are changing, how can we meet our customers where they are. So, we have decided to offer upcoming planning days for home (5/3) and Friday Workbox® (6/6) and Teacher planning day (7/9) for a 20% discount from $250. You will get the planning prep day, additional videos, the 4 hour planning day live webinar with replay access for 6 weeks, and the workbook. Stop spiraling, think about the root cause of the supply shortage you experienced during Covid, and start planning. The sky is not falling. Planning is the one thing you can do that will give you more time, help you make better decisions, make your money go further, and make you feel like you are in the driver’s seat. EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/36074355

Transformation with Julie D 04/09/2025

Transformation with Julie D In this episode, I introduce you to Julie D. Julie and her husband have, in their home, a daughter, a son, and Maggie their dog. Julie heard someone talking about the Sunday Basket® and was intrigued and figured she could figure it out. Julie wasn’t looking for organization as much as she desired systems. Before the interview, Julie drew out a mind map. She wanted to make sure to share ALL of the products and ways that Organize 365® has benefitted her life. Make sure you catch the episode to hear all the areas that have been impacted in Julie’s life. Julie came from 20 years in the retail space where she used to be in charge of 13 week projects that consisted of resetting a store or setting up new stores. The way the Organize 365® systems break down 90 (for business) and 120 (for home) days, was familiar to Julie. That is how they would organize the resetting of the stores. They’d make a plan and then run that plan for the next chunk of time. Your home is like a small business right? So your family members we joked are like employees uninterested in the success of your small business. It’s harder to get them motivated to keep things organized. We talked about how men from the Boomers generation who witnessed a stay at home mom, AKA the primary parent taking care of the home and children and a dad “bringing home the bacon.” So their expectations were similar for their families. The systems let her do just that as they’d planned. The kids program has helped her to have them do some of the organizing. She’s invested in the kid program to which the kids know a lot of “what Lisa says.” Julie has thoughtfully implemented all of the Organize 365® systems. She has multiple Sunday Baskets® and even got her mom and big sister to invest in Sunday Baskets®. She loves spreading the “gospel of Organize 365®.” It was a way for them to do life together till her mother passed away. Of course, she inherited her moms. She feels the Sunday Basket® is so important in her life that when they remodeled her kitchen she had to make sure she knew where she’d be able to put it once it was finished. During the remodel, she had a Sunday Basket® dedicated to the remodel and it was convenient for her and her contractors. It kept the remodel moving along and organized. Julie’s son, John, has level 3 autism and that has added to the demand for systems. She values the Warrior Mama binder to have in DON (determination of needs) meetings. She made a point to put a picture of John as a baby on the front to remind administrators and physicians in the meetings that her son is a person and he has come a long way. She’s got a Friday Workbox® for her daughter in regards to Julie being leader of the parent council (Canadian speak for the PTO), being the pizza mom, girl guide leader, and as the registrar for speed skating. Once she realized she wasn’t going to continue being the leader of the parent council, she could see taking off that train car gave her more capacity for something else. She’s got a financial binder for each kid to keep track of receipts and medical visits. And John throws her plenty of challenges too, but, she has peace of mind that she’s basically created playbooks for everything so when the wheels start to look like they may fall off she knows how to prevent it and get back to smooth sailing. Julie often wonders how 20 year old Julie would have benefited from the Organize 365® products and systems. She was in a chaotic period of time and wonders how things would be different. What’s different now? Julie has more peace of mind and capacity to prioritize her crafts. She’s able to “do more projects that make me feel like me.” This is one line item in the budget that will not go away. Julie’s advice is, “Do a blitz. Then it’s not a huge commitment to some ongoing system you have to learn.” EPISODE RESOURCES: On the Wednesday podcast, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365® community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps and triumphs along their organizing journey. I am grateful that you are reaching out to share with me and with this community. You can see and hear transformation in action. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at . Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/35582515

645 - My 2025 Summer Household Plan 04/04/2025

645 - My 2025 Summer Household Plan The PhD is almost over and I’ve been thinking about “What do I want?” When I committed to the PhD, I knew it was a lengthy commitment of time and hefty commitment of money. There are things we agree to in life and we know the long term commitment it will require! And now that the PhD finish line is in sight, I know it’s project time again!! I love a meaty project and I’ve identified what I want to do over the next 120 days. I want to redo my living spaces, WITH a budget in mind so it doesn’t get crazy like it did last year with one project expense leading to another project expense. Do you struggle with this too? Up until I abdicated grocery store shopping and cooking, I hadn’t really been on the list. I’d always put my family’s needs before my own. If I wanted something, I’d think about the price, and I’d decide we could use the money towards something else the family needed. I’d also give them my time before using it for myself or business. We took care of the kids’ living spaces last year. Joey’s plumbing got an upgrade which meant his bathrooms got an upgrade too. Then Abby’s space basically got completely remodeled, but honestly her life was demanding it. And now I feel like we have finished launching them. And then I got to looking around my living space. And I am choosing to use available time and money for myself and Greg, I’m on the list again. My Wish List on a Budget When Grayson came along, Greg and I started sleeping in separate rooms so I could help with the baby. And we like it, so, we are keeping it that way. Remember, use your home for your current phase of life! I want to cement Greg and I into the empty nest/grandparent phase. In my room, I look around and see all hand me down things. I’ve dreamed of what this space could be and here’s what I came up with. I’d like to have a household manager command center, an office space dedicated to running our house! I’d like to bring up all my Sunday Baskets® and binders upstairs and put them all in one bookshelf for easy access. And new bedding that makes me feel like a girl. I want to rearrange the room to be able to open the curtains and make room for said bookshelf. And I want more light in this room for projects and scrapbooking. I’d like as much upstairs as possible because if I want to get anything done I have to hide from Grayson. He loves to play with me and I love to play with him but, but…I like to get projects done too! My dreaming didn’t stop there… Rezoning in the Woodruff Household I’ve decided the room between Greg and I, which used to be the nursery and then a guest room, should be reimagined into a gift wrapping room. On a previous episode, I suggested HDX shelving with a long counter top to be used as a gift wrapping station. I have not stopped thinking about that and I finally will have time to make this transition happen. I’m no longer using the kitchen as our home office so I’ll move those resources upstairs. I’d like to make communal items more easily available to Abby on the first level like band aids and things, maybe in the laundry room. I just need to go through the laundry room period now that Abby has her own and I’m doing all of this reimagining and functionality of our living spaces. Speaking of the laundry room, there’s more project supplies that I will move upstairs that aren’t for Grayson and I. Gifts for Grayson will go up because he knows the laundry room is my hiding place. AND, all in one washer dryer upgrade. It arrives tomorrow!! I can’t believe I hit the purchase button. I did the cost analysis and it’s not good but boy is my lil heart excited! We got to talking about it in the small business mastermind and everyone encouraged me to get it saying how much they loved theirs. Also I’m keeping the dryer so I can get two loads done at once. So that justifies the cost a little too. I wanted to get Abby her own washer dryer so I could get mine back. In the process of sharing my washer door would get stuck and then it started to stink! Now the washer smells despite my efforts to correct it. It annoys me! So it’s on it’s way! And Lastly, I think I’ll clean out the closet downstairs. Most of it will end up in my household manager command center and then Abby can get more storage. I hope you’ll join me for planning day to get your next projects planned for your next 120 days! EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/35974295

644 - Women's History Month - PCS Planning Day with Elaine Willing 03/31/2025

644 - Women's History Month - PCS Planning Day with Elaine Willing Happy Monday! Today I get to introduce you to Elaine Willing, who is officially on staff as teh lead for our new PCS (Permanent Change of Station) initative. At Organize 365®, we’ve developed a course to help spouses, supporting their soldiers, to find community faster and make each move a little easier. I first met Elaine through her father in law at a home school co-op conference. He was sent to get a picture with me. Elaine found Organize 365® about 10 years ago when she was maxed out and looking for solutions. Then I got to meet Elaine and the rest is history! I share in her desire to help military spouses through the PCS process. Elaine has supported her husband for many years, is raising her three boys, and now it’s her turn to do something that fills her cup! She sees how spouses just kind of circle in the lower levels of Mazlow’s Hierarchy of Needs and never get to rise to the level where you explore your purpose, what you are uniquely created to do. Elaine knows all too well about PCSing (13 times) and understands the struggle with #alltheemotions, #allthepaperwork and is eager to get to spouses organized and in community sooner. The Emotional Toll Elaine was very vulnerable in sharing her experience, to this point, being a military spouse. She shared aspects of her life I had never thought of! I never considered the friendships they have to build quickly and let go at a moment’s notice. The grieving process you go through as you leave your current station (although she joked that sometimes you are relieved to leave if it just wasn’t a good fit) and anxiety or excitement about what lies ahead with a new duty station. Think of how much you trust the people you put down for your children’s emergency contact…Elaine has to find that stranger quickly, as all the forms continue to request it, as she gets her family settled in each new location. There’s a different at home cadence with each location based on the soldier’s new job. My jaw was on the floor as she explained to me how she got to fly home to see family. Yes they get free SA (space available) flights, but I’m not sure that’s a flight I want to take. And their stations overseas, they’ve only had one car which made daily activities challenging with little ones in tow. All the Moving Pieces Oh the checklists we’ve accumulated and compiled to assist with the repetitive nature of PCS’ing. There are checklists for utilities, vehicles, homes, packing the house, and what not to pack. I included 10 steps to an organized move. When military families move, lots times they are living out of a suitcases for 30 days. You better believe there’s a checklist for those suitcases. Some bases are equipped with a lending closet for basic things like maybe some toys for your kids or small appliances that weren’t necessities. And then where do you get groceries in your new location (tricky for Elaine with her family having food allergies), house keepers, after school activities, sports, babysitters, and even for you to find friends. There’s a checklist of services you’ll need to find and establish. A lot of the post-move checklists you could review on the plane ride to your new duty station. The very last checklist “Just tell me what to do” for when you are drained but know you need to keep going. What to Expect Over the many moves, Elaine has found a way to mentally process PCS. She’s figured out how to stop the spinning in your brain with the mention of PCS and turn it into productive actions. The workbook helps you to process your emotions and proactively make a plan for the relocation. PCS’ing can be a lonely isolating process that only builds in complexity as your family grows and you “survive” another duty station. We realize the need to get to community quicker in these moves. The places Elaine has been pained to leave were those when she had a supportive community. Two Opportunities to Build Community: *4 Hr. Virtual Planning Day for your base via zoom. *6 Hr in person (in the 48 continuous states), on base training. Includes the PCS bundle. Two hours will be interactive with me in a questions and answer or book signing interactive capacity. *With this in person opportunity you get the PCS Planning Course, Workbook & The PCS Productivity Bundle which includes a Portable Sunday Basket, 2.0 slash pockets (pink, purple, blue, green), and 2.0 Productivity tabs. Your pink slash pocket is for travel, purple slash pockets is for all things related to your home, blue slash pocket for your family and pets, and green for finances including an expense tracker so you get things paid for that should be by the military. **If you have questions and/or interest in one of these opportunities please email [email protected] EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag when you share on social media. /episode/index/show/organize365/id/35928080

643 - BONUS March 2025 Household Economy 03/28/2025

643 - BONUS March 2025 Household Economy Your home is like “home base” in tag, it’s the safe spot. In 2024, we spent resources on Joey and Abby’s homes. In 2025, I want to do some renovations on the second floor of our home, where Greg and I spend a lot of time. I wanted to share how I plan to attack those renovations but first I felt it appropriate to offer this bonus economic episode to give insight to all this Tariffs talk and the swift changing of the government right now. I based my choices off of the large picture and this is how you can too as the household manager! Hire It Out vs. DIY There is a direct relationship between the money you have to invest and the amount of time a project will take. Either you hire a contractor to complete the task with a timeline shorter than you could’ve done. Or you do it yourself but it will take longer usually. And then there’s a hybrid option somewhere in there. I have decided on the projects I want to complete upstairs, however if I hire it all out like I did with the kids’ projects I’ll be broke soon! Next episode I’ll tell you all about it. YOUR House When considering your household budget and anything you want to do you need to look at what is going on in your household budget. Just because the economy is bad doesn’t mean your household is. The example I share here was the Organize 365® budget (remember our homes are small businesses) in regards to shipping costs, de minimis value, and taxes. I also shared how physical nexus and economic nexus affects Organize 365® sales and taxes so you could get an understanding of the complexity of what seems like a simple purchase or subscription from our community. You GOTTA hear the episode. And I say that to encourage learning. Always be moving forward. Everyone may not be happy about this adjustment but when I looked at the entire shipping process and considering what the customer has to pay, in addition to their receiving end, it does not make sense to continue shipping internationally. If I don’t make this adjustment and Organize 365® does under, then there’s no money anyway. Better to adjust and make unpopular decisions. You may be looking ahead and realize that in order to celebrate your child's graduation like you may have for a previous child you need to cancel the annual summer vacation. As the household manager, in order to keep the budget afloat, this decision may make the most responsible financial sense. This is where you need to cut costs first, at the household level. Economic Outlook Are we in a recession or not? I talked about my opinion of the stock market. It may be an indicator of the emotional climate but not the economy. Right now, everyone can feel how volatile the economy feels. The President is making changes more quickly than people are used to. There is a lot going on with Tariffs and we are toeing the line with financial war. This is not in our control. My best advice, with all the economical uncertainty, is to attend planning day so you can plan out and allocate money for the next 120 days AND look over the next 3 years. What Do You Need? As a household manager, looking at the current economy, I would not embark on the PhD. I know for my household budget and looking into the future over the next three years, now would not be a financially responsible time to tie up funds for that. However, I offered multiple ideas for how to continue personal development. If you can’t attend a conference this year like you normally do, try a different mode of learning. I know I want to do some renovating this year as my time is becoming available. If there is a financially hefty project you want to do, you may need to contribute some blood sweat and tears this time, in addition to or instead of hiring someone to complete the task. Can you invest more time and still get what you want? EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/35885360

Mastermind Recap with Monique 03/26/2025

Mastermind Recap with Monique In this episode, Monique is here to tell you all about her experience at Small Business Mastermind. You know how I always say I am where work comes from? Well Monique is where in person events have come from in the past and you’ve probably heard her on the podcast. She’s been a professional organizer, certified by Organize 365®, for 12 years now! She has attended our events as a customer, as staff, as an organizer, and now, a small business owner looking to grow an online business. From the moment everyone arrived at the hotel, everyone just jumped right in. Due to the private chat set up in the app before the mastermind they all had a chance to connect. They were able to connect prior to the mastermind. Monique shared her surprise that more attendees weren’t organizers. But they all were women creating business. Day one started with an energy in the room like a bunch of old friends reuniting, even for me because of all the Voxer conversations I’d had with all the women. And because of all of those conversations and the extensive survey everyone had filled out I knew the main struggle for everyone attending was green work. Everyone was asking “How do you get it all done?” We had a lengthy conversion about Executive Assistants and Chiefs of Staff and how you know which you need. Monique shared how she got so much value out of the first session. Everyone looked at their admin tasks and they calculated a dollar value for that task. It’s like I shared about economic stage 6, it may make more sense to pay someone to do something you are capable of doing because it takes you out of your business. Monique said that was one of the most impactful things she learned. We joked, once we had that session Monique was ready to go home and conquer her business! I’ve shared transparently that on day 2, I didn’t really know what I was going to teach but I had no doubt that it was going to be meaningful. As we try new things, if we keep the person we are doing it for in mind, it will be impactful because we want better for them. That’s when I decided to do 12 minutes with Lisa to really drill down on one struggle or thought or project. I didn’t know till Monique shared but as people came out they all shared what they asked and what we came up with. Monique brought to the table an online business that she wanted to grow. I advised that was a tough road if she wanted to go down it due to social media being such a beast like a part time job itself, all the noise online in general, and all the back office automations and such she would need would take years to build out. But Monique really did want to incorporate her coaching, paper organizing and productivity. But it’s funny both Monique and Lisa D. couldn’t remember their original idea they came to me with because what we imagined together was so much better and a perfect solution that they were so excited about. The day ended with the women attending Friday Workbox Planning Day live. I’ve never had applause at the end of Planning Day. Monique is offering an amazing package to come to your house for a week and organize. But we all know how easy it is to fall off the wagon after a reset like that. So you will also get 3 months of coaching on the systems and staying organized. So once you get it organized it can pretty much stay that way! She’s only taking 10 clients per year so make sure you get your package booked today!! We pay people to do a lot of things for us like watching our kids, cleaning, our accounting so why not for organizing our homes and coaching to support this change? EPISODE RESOURCES: On the Wednesday podcast, I get to talk with members of the Organize 365® community as they share the challenges, progress, missteps and triumphs along their organizing journey. I am grateful that you are reaching out to share with me and with this community. You can see and hear transformation in action. If you are ready to share your story with us, please apply at . Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/35830555

642 - Household Economics Stage 6 03/21/2025

642 - Household Economics Stage 6 What have you thought of this series so far? At the beginning of this episode, I recapped economic stages 1-5. It’s important to understand them and how to advance if you’d like. But also if you find that your economic stage was once 4 and you are back to 1, you are not alone. It can happen to anyone and honestly I think all of America is in stage one, trying to reduce expenses to match their income. The economy changed which affected our small business AKA our homes. It’s important to understand and own the economic impact our home has on the global economy. Thinking about stage 6 should prompt you to look at your expenses and set expectations for what you can expect financially. Stage 6: A business bigger than yourself; but there’s no playbook If you choose to go to stage 6, get ready for a life long journey of development. You may make some expensive mistakes or have some hires not work out. In stage 6, your business becomes bigger than just you and your household budget. You are looking at your budget and realizing you can increase your expenses to (in the long run) make more money. It’s time to start interviewing people, explore their uniquenesses, and hire accordingly. And get ready for your income to decrease. In growing your business and getting structure in place, just know you will likely have little to no income for about 3-5 years. I wish there was a playbook that could have warned me. Take heart, in America, the 4 positions that can provide exponential wealth are doctor, lawyer, sales, and business owner. So if you are embarking on stage 6, there’s a lot of income potential due to all the extra help you have in your company now. Stage 6: Taxes And with structuring your company, you will become a W2 employee, at least that is how I set up Organize 365®. My income was capped by my salary. I have learned more about the IRS than you ever wanted to know. There will be new tax implications on your business’s income. And your business income is not solely yours anymore. Due to the structure you put in place, you will pay yourself, your employees AND employment taxes. You get to learn about human resources and you’ll be where benefits come from! Remember, life long journey of learning and development. Stage 6: It’s so fun! Even if I had known the growing pains I could expect, no one could have stopped me. I love having a company, a team, and leading them!! Details aren’t my strength and it makes me really happy to hire those tasks out. It’s time to get your home in order to give way to the time and attention you need to direct towards your business. Get that home train running smooth to allow capacity at work so you can really make an impact. EPISODE RESOURCES: Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Share this episode with a friend and be sure to tag Organize 365® when you share on social media! /episode/index/show/organize365/id/35744540

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