Highlights from Women's Conference by Attendee

Guest Blogger Deborah Adams of Dry Creek Farm

The Outlaw Farmer and I took a day off from our homestead duties last weekend to attend the Homefront to Heartland conference in Nashville. It was a fun and informative event, and I gotta tell ya … the minimal registration fee was well worth it. Heck, the food alone was worth it!

Of all the sessions I attended, though, the one that turned out to be priceless was the session about getting organized presented by Mary Pankiewicz.

Mary packed the session with information, addressing everything from Know Your Organizing Personality to finding ‘Focus Time.’ She even taught us how to deal with the contents of those conference goody bags. We did a quick exercise to help us devise a personal action plan for getting rid of clutter, and my Number One Action is something she suggests for dealing with procrastination:

If it takes less than 3-5 minutes — Do It Now!

But this is Friday and the topic is Trashy Things. If you’ve been following along, you know that I’m trying to rid my life of clutter, all those wonderful bits and pieces that are too useful to dispose of.

Mary is a professional organizer and I don’t want to give away all her secrets here, but I’m so excited by one particular thing she said that I have to share it. You’ll thank me.

When we’re tidying up, most of us look at an item and ask ourselves “Will I need this?” And the answer is always, “Maybe.” So it goes back into the closet or whatever shadowy corner it’s been living in for the past 5, 10, or 15 years.

Mary says that the question we should be asking is “What will make me need this?” She gave a specific example that really hit home — cardboard boxes.

I save those things like there’s a shortage of boxes in this world. They’re neatly stacked in a corner of the basement, taking up tons of space that could be better used for … well, for more rare and precious items that come under the heading of clutter.

But really. What will make me need those boxes? Not much, apparently, given the number of them that just sit and breed. Mary pointed out that, should I have an urgent need for a box, I can probably find one in the perfect size in someone else’s stash. A member of the audience who works for the USPS pointed out that boxes can be picked up at the Post Office (and anything under 70 pounds ships for one low price!).

Thank you, Mary. The minute this post goes up, I’m gathering up those boxes and taking them to Temple-Inland, a local company that takes all kinds of paper and recycles it! (And I dealt with the contents of the goody bag within an hour after getting home. I hope I make you proud.)