|
|
REVIEW by Amy Shellhase Finally Organized, Finally Free by Maria Gracia I can't say enough good things about this book. It's another example of a book I hadn't planned on reviewing so quickly, but which grabbed me and made me read it through. This is a quality item all the way from the information supplied to the materials that make up the physical product. It begins with a paper cover with heavy plastic over it to keep it clean & tear free. It's 8-1/2 by 11 inches and spiral-bound so it lays flat for ease in taking notes or photocopying the numerous worksheets, logs, and checklists. Even the weight of the page paper is excellent. Though the margins are wide, they aren't so wide that you are left with little content and lots of white space. All illustrations, boxes, and quotes are well executed and thought-out. They never disturb the flow of the text. So much useful stuff . . . Every area of your house, garden, basement, and attic are addressed. There are tips for keeping yourself organized in your business as well as when dealing with moving, holidays, gift giving, and planning for rummage sales. Even your car doesn't escape Gracia's tidying ideas. You begin by taking two surveys. One is about how you use your time. You'll find out if you are a:
Let other members of your family take the survey and you'll also be able to deal with the divergent family personality types. This will allow you to find ways to organize your home and cut down on frustration. Ready to use forms There are so many forms for you to use; I can't name them all. Here are a few:
Need some ideas? Here are some I thought especially useful. Do you have something that you don't like, but are keeping because it was given by someone special? Take photos of these sentimentals and save them in a scrapbook; toss the unwanted item. Keep the memory, rather than allowing the physical item to waste space. (p. 41) How about the 'Four D's of Effective Paper Management?'
There are so many ideas for using these see-through shoe bags. I had to laugh because Gracia says NOT to use them for shoes! The next item is one of those wire 3-tiered hanging baskets to put in the bathroom. Don't know why I never thought of it, especially since I have two in the kitchen. This will clear clutter off the counter top, free up space in the cabinets and put things you use daily neatly at your fingertips. (p. 58) Do you clip recipes and never actually cook any of them? Be brutal and just dump them all. If you haven't made the dish by now, you never will. Think of all the free space you'll get. (p. 71) After you've done that, Gracia shows you how to keep and file any new ones you collect. I learned tips for clipping and organizing articles I want to keep, filing tips, and marking papers with discard dates. All this forces you to go through your files periodically, but, again, if you haven't used a file or read an article by the time your discard date rolls around, chances are it belongs in the dumpster. Of course, this does not include papers like birth, marriage, and death certificates, tax and supporting materials, or the like. They are excluded from the discard and dump dates. Gracia is honest, to a fault. By the way, Gracia is an honest woman, to a fault. She promises 180 pages of information and that's what you get. So, why am I touting her honesty? Because she doesn't count her introduction, table of contents, or extensive index in her page count. When was the last time you bought a book that did that? As I mentioned in the last issue of ReviewZ, Gracia's web site is a font of organizational information. You can sign up for her free newsletter, take part in the discussion forum, and read articles. http://www.getorganizednow.com/ When you buy Finally Organized, Finally Free from the web site, you save a percentage off the list price and get a full money back guarantee. A definite win-win situation. By the way, Maria and I have no deal here. I get nothing when you buy this book. You also have a chance to be famous. Gracia is gathering tips and ideas for upcoming books and issues of her newsletter. Email her at: 
I think this book is so good that if you don't come away with at least 10 good ideas for getting organized, I'll eat this review. (c) Copyright May, 2000 - Digital Woman Return to the Get Organized Now!™ About Us Page Return to the Get Organized Now!™ Home Page |