Her clients, who range from harried mothers to CEOs, may grumble at first. As the clutter recedes, though, they usually give in. When clients keep on grumbling, she asks about their lives — work, illnesses, significant events — until she hits on a convincing reason for them to toss the clutter. Chat online about home ownership and home improvements. How does that make you feel? Reich has just used this tactic on her latest client, a genial widower in his 70s named Fred. My son-in-law, everyone, is after me to clean up. That's where Reich comes in. A trim brunette in jeans, boots and a black sweater, she plants her hands on her hips and looks around with narrowed eyes.
Piles of paper teeter on a desk. Old magazines spill from bookshelves. A dozen boxes claim most of the floor space.
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Reich, 46, a self-described type A personality powered by six to eight daily cups of green tea, has a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA in management from NYU. A lifelong neatnik, she had already launched a consulting firm when, in , she found herself rearranging the toys on her children's playdates.
There Are 4 Types Of Organized People -- Which One Are You?
It occurred to her: Why not transform her neurosis into a business? It's a growing one, too: The National Association of Professional Organizers now has 4, members. Chat online with others about relationships, grandparenting, family and more. Get AARP member discounts on travel, shopping and more. Reich has since served about clients through her firm, Resourceful Consultants; she's booked for appointments a month in advance.
For most clutterers, 10 two- to three-hour sessions do the trick; some clients ask for occasional tune-ups. A few have a standing weekly date. She doesn't work with compulsive hoarders , whose homes can fill from floor to ceiling with trash. Such people have a complex disorder best treated with cognitive behavioral therapy, medication or a combination of both.
The organizer, who rattles off rapid-fire tips as she works, is blunt but also a born nurturer; she softens her advice with kindness and humor.
One more step
When Fred tells her that the hardest part is getting started, she nods sympathetically. Fred, a retired menswear executive, is still doubtful. If you think you're going to spend five minutes here and there, it will be undone in a minute. Then, play some music, enlist a friend to help, pour some wine — whatever works so you get cracking. Sort things into three piles — keep, toss and donate — and tackle what makes you most bonkers first. When you label a drawer, you're not only telling yourself what goes in there.
You're telling your entire family. Trash Bags Use these to collect items you'll donate or discard. Then, make sure all the bags leave your house. Nice Boxes Store items you use often or want to keep in attractive boxes that can be stacked, labeled and displayed. File Folders Keep your file categories broad. If you have too many narrow categories, filing becomes burdensome.
She turns to Fred.
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And then you can go to the movies. I don't even know what's in there. And if you get rid of it, think of the money you'll save. They're bad for the environment, take up space and encourage you to buy things you don't need. To Reich, clutter is not merely piles of junk. It nags at you, drags you down psychologically, slows you down physically. People tend to hang on to their stuff for a few different reasons, she says.
Some clutterers suffered a major loss early in life. For them, accumulating stuff that no one can take away can be a source of comfort. Other clutterers grew up with a parent who didn't save anything so the person overcompensates or a parent who saved everything so there was no model for purging.
Still others hold on to things as a way of preserving memories they fear they'll lose otherwise. Reich understands the comfort and security that stuff can provide, but when it piles up, that feeling of safety quickly turns into oppression. She maintains that the things you own should be beautiful, useful or well loved. Reich has clients ask themselves these questions: Have I used or worn it in the past year?
There Are 4 Types Of Organized People -- Which One Are You? | HuffPost
If the answer is no, out it goes. Is it justifying the space it's taking up in my house? Sometimes clients tell her she is wasteful when she advises them to toss still-usable things. Au contraire, says Reich. After the to hour megapurge, she urges people to live much more simply and stop being haunted by what-ifs. You can always replenish when supplies run low. Own fewer possessions, and use them until they wear out. She picks up a cracked box that once held a computer. She chucks the box in the trash.
She moves on to a container stuffed with ancient manuals. As Fred steps gingerly out of the way, Reich grabs a stack of files and scribbles categories on the labels: People like to make a separate file for every single thing, she says, but documents are more likely to get filed if you're not hunting for micro-categories, so the "car" file can include insurance, maintenance and expense records. Next, Reich zeroes in on a horror she finds in almost every home: No one ever knows what the electric cords and chargers in this box are for, she says, "but everybody is very afraid to throw it away.
Cords are replaceable, but not your grandmother's vintage beaded purse. And about that purse: Reich says that of all the items we hoard, sentimental ones are the most difficult to pitch, because along with all that sentiment comes a large dollop of guilt.
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But if you don't truly love the silver service your great-aunt gave you, you should donate it, or sell it on eBay. You're not living her life, and she would be unhappy that the tea set has become an albatross. Nor do you love your grown kids less if you decline to keep storing their childhood artifacts. Once you take financial security out of the equation, culture, country of origin and ethnicity seem to play a very minor role in how you age. People over 90 stop reporting pain as a problem; no one knows exactly why.
To live longer and with good quality of life you need to sort out vision and hearing problems cataract surgery and a hearing aid , take measures to prevent falls nail down the carpet , avoid taking siestas, eat a decent amount and range of food not vitamin supplements — they may increase mortality and, above all, keep moving and stay engaged. And keep mentally, socially and physically active at whatever level you can manage. Frenchman Robert Marchand, , gained the first-and only-place in his age category this year by cycling 14 miles round a velodrome in under an hour.
He was a bit disappointed by his time and is waiting for a rival to egg him on.
Marchand worked until his late 60s and only got into sport at 68, once he retired. Jack Reynolds made it into the Guinness World Records last month by becoming the oldest person in the world to ride a rollercoaster. Next on his list is to race in a Formula 1 car. Another year-old, immunologist Dr William Frankland, co-authored an academic paper last year on burning feet syndrome — a consequence of malnutrition among soldiers held, as he was, in a Japanese PoW camp in the second world war. Frankland still enjoys a drink, but in moderation. At a recent lunch for a newspaper interview he turned down a glass saying: The pianist Alice Herz-Sommer, who died in at the age of , was a concentration camp survivor who swam and played the piano every day until well past her centenary.
In a interview , she attributed her survival to her temperament: Punctually, at 10am, I am sitting there at the piano, with everything in order around me. For 30 years I have eaten the same — fish or chicken. Good soup, and this is all … I walk a lot with terrible pains, but after 20 minutes it is much better. Sitting or lying is not good. I know about the bad things, but I look only for the good things. This article contains affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission if a reader clicks through and makes a purchase. All our journalism is independent and is in no way influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative.