We have been pleasantly surprised, this season, to hear from Families, transitioning from one home to another, carefully thinking and planning ahead. There are always the exceptions, but so many people are really doing some very smart planning. Comparing pricing; Looking at a time line; lining up family and friends to help; getting ahead of hot weather; getting ahead of next winter's cold weather... its been very interesting to watch. The result is over-all savings. When you make a plan and think ahead, YOU SAVE MONEY!!! When you wait until the last minute, or you are pressured to make decisions quickly, IT COSTS MORE MONEY!!! Be nice to yourselves... plan ahead. Give yourself time. The stress of moving is hard enough. We can help you with your time line. If its a week, a month, a year or more... we can help you all along the way. Plan the work and work the plan. We want you to save money on your move.
Yesterday, I was helping a family get their house ready to put on the market. I had 2 hours to choose the priorities and make it all happen. It's amazing what can happen when you focus and zero in on a task. One of the final chores on the list was the view from the family room to the back yard. Now remember, it's mid March in Rochester, NY. It's still brown and wet and cold and just generally, blah. But in this case, I was convinced we could do a lot in the short time we had. With 4 able bodied kids and 4 frazzled adults... half an hour produced a little fun, a little exercise, and... you guessed it... the first signs of Spring under the wet leaves. Little tiny sprouts coming out of the ground. For a quick minute, we all stood around and smiled quietly knowing the cold war of winter was coming to an end. (FYI: Rochester recorded 120 inches of snow this winter.)
A New Year brings on all sorts of new ideas and goals. Does it do that for you also? I like to think of new fresh ideas... but they aren't always easy to take to the next step. Sometimes it happens and sometimes it doesn't. Here are some examples in my life, see if you can relate:
- Last June I decided I wanted a new logo for my business. Easy to say... doing it... that's another thing. I launched it on January 1st. I hope you like the new look.
- I was in Tampa, FL for our national conference. Then, I went to Ft. Lauderdale to visit a friend. While I was there, I checked out a condo that was for sale. I loved it. I could rent it to pay for it. Seems like a good idea. Will I do it? Not so sure.
- My husband and I want to sell our home here in Rochester. Its to big. But its so comfortable. There sure are lots of benefits to selling it. Will we do it? Stay tuned. (Guess that means I have to get organized... yikes!!!)
- My sister is moving here from Alabama, and joining me in my business. It's a dream of mine to have a business with her. It's finally happening after years of talking about it. She'll be here in April.
- I officially launched my Storage Unit Organizing Service. It's been in the works for 2 years. The brochures and business cards are printed.
- I'm thinking about a new office and a new location. Wow... thats a BIG new idea. But, the time is right. (and I found the space. What do you think? should I?)
2011 is going to be a very busy year with all sorts of new changes. These new ideas are born slowly aren't they? Sometimes they happen and sometimes they don't. It takes planning, timing, perseverance and lots of prayer.
If you need help with some new ideas... lets talk. If I can't help... I'll find someone who can.
Here are a couple of people that can help:
(Cleaning Service)
Tina Servis: Maid 4 Time -
Residential cleaning: 585-359-4834
(Senior Consultants and Advocates)
Jennifer Meagher : Senior Life - 585-729-4056
I have a circle of proven professionals to refer to you. We do not exchange any referral fees. We simply refer work to each other and feel secure knowing we are referring the best of the best.
Happy February! Theresa
I can hear a collective:
"Easy for you to say, you have no idea what's going on!!!!"
You're right... I don't... however, because I've been down this dark road with so many people I can confidently say... Help is Here... without hesitation.
The panic: ... it's the end of the year... it's December... and the holidays take time.
Don't worry... I've got a large crew of people ready, willing and able to work to get your project done on time... Call me and we'll figure it out... 585-797-9321.
Here are some projects we are working on right now:
- A house has sold... a new one is being built... 1/2 the size. We are downsizing to sell in an estate sale on 12/17 and then move the rest to the new house in the Spring. (by the way... after staging this home... it sold to the first person that looked at it.)
- A house is filled with too many things. We are downsizing to put in an estate sale across town. (The sale is 12/17) This home will be ready for Christmas.
- We've been downsizing and organizing a VERY LARGE home to put on the market in Spring. How nice that most of it will be done for the Holidays.
- A lake house has sold, and the new owners want possession by January 1st. Our job is to sort, downsize, donate, sell items to new owners and the rest goes to storage for a sale in the spring.
- Downsizing and staging a home to sell for a couple to move to a retirement community in the Spring.
- Mom passed away... apartment needs to be organized and packed. Items transported to Son's house so family can store items for kids to come of age in their own homes. Deadline is Dec. 15th.
If your situation is similar or, something else... we are able to help you come up with a strategy to get it done. Can't wait to hear what problems we can fix.
It's not to late... even for this year.
Holiday Blessings... Theresa D.
Good Morning... It's November 13th... I'm looking out at a very frosty lawn and all the leaves are off the trees... looks to me like Mother Earth is ready for a long winters nap. Me.... I'm running as fast as I can to keep up with all of you that want to move and organize before winter sets in... Once snow is on the ground... I'm sure some will give in to: "Lets wait until Spring..." but you don't have to. We can help you allllllll winter long. Let us do the work. You can stay warm and let us worry about the weather. I'll admit, it's a little more tedious... a little messier... but... we know how to do it. Think of how far ahead you could be by Spring if you cleaned out your basement. Wouldn't it be nice to get the cars IN your garage...NO SNOW TO BRUSH OFF... so... lets clean out your garage... its not to late. Just those 2 areas would make your life so much easier if they were cleaned out. We can get it done in a day... I'm not kidding!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm not sure why the photos won't behave on the blog... but you get the the main idea. They are so well done... and I'm feeling very honored today to be one of the chosen few. Thank you again Rochester Women's Network for putting on such a wonderful event and recognizing the Up and Coming Business Women of Rochester.
In the first photo, to my left is my husband Tom, and my right is my father, Richard Spiehler...
Yesterday, November 8th, I was one of 10 women honored with the Rochester Women's Network, 2010 Up and Coming Businesswoman's award. I feel blessed to have been chosen and want to share some photos with you....
This photo was taken at the end of the luncheon, after we had all received the award. The event was held at the Rochester Plaza Hotel and Conference Center.
I haven't been blogging for awhile. It's been a very busy time, with long long days.
Today I want to share some of the different projects we've been doing lately:
- We had a daughter from Chicago call. Her Mother had just passed on. When she called she was at her Mom's home in the Rochester area. She was putting it on the market and needed us to come to clean it out, then stage it for the Realtor. I met with her twice at the house, then she went back home to Chicago. She allowed us to take over from there. It is now completely staged, cleaned out, cleaned, fixed, and on the market. (Amy fund us on the through our website.)
- We received a call from a man living in a high rise apartment in Rochester. One week before, he had moved into a new apartment just one floor lower in the same building. He had hired professional movers. They packed and moved him, but not unpacked him. He is in a wheelchair, and because the boxes were everywhere, he was unable to move around in the apartment. When I arrived, it was a very sad situation. He was frustrated and mad and because of a brain injury and physical limitations, he was totally unable to help himself. We came in with a crew the next day and in 6 hours we were able to unpack all the boxes and get him organized. We spent approx. 6 more hours downsizing him so there wasn't so much in the apartment. (Jeff found us through Lifespan)
- I received a call from a son living in Georgia. His Mother was living in an independent living community in Rochester, NY. She has now moved out and living near a sister in Ohio. The apartment needed to be sorted, packed and put on a truck he was renting so he could drive it to Ohio. Right after his first phone call, I photographed all of the contents so he could see everything. From the photos he was able to choose what should be moved. Once those decisions were made, I arranged for the careful packing of all the precious art and sculptures and personal belongings in the apartment. Instead of writing on the boxes we put the photos I had taken on the boxes to identify what the contents were. I communicated with him long distance the entire time until the day of the actual packing of the truck. We had a full crew to help him load and he was on the road to Ohio in 4 hours. Any remaining items were taken away. No worries. (Tom found us through the community that his Mother was living in.)
These are just a few examples of how we can help. More to come...
This presentation has been done several times now at different locations. If you've missed it, I will be doing it again at the Rivers Run Health Fair on Thursday, Oct. 28th. The address is 50 Fairwood Dr., Rochester, NY 14623. The Health Fair will have lots of vendors and will be from 11-4 that day. We haven't set a time for my presentation yet... so stay tuned... I'll let you know. If you want more information about the fair call: 585-292-5440 and talk to Chad. Hope to see you there.
If you live in a small space... its easy to get bored with the same look all the time. This is an easy and interactive presentation to give us all ideas on how to change up the stuff we already have. Quick tips and out of the box thinking. No spending... just ideas.
Many thanks to the wonderful staff and members of the Wellness on Wednesdays group at the Immanuel Lutheran Church in Webster... They invited me in to do my Bye, Bye Clutter Bye Bye presentation... and what fun we had!!!! We exercised.... We learned.... and we ate a wonderful lunch!!! Thanks especially to Lynn Reville for all the arrangements. And... for Lisa Riggi of LHR Administrative Services for referring me.
Sure, it's late August... you might be smelling the slight aroma of fall in the air... but if you are like me, I want to savor every second of summer. I'm not a real sun person (to fair)... I'm not even athletic, so spending lots of hours outside sweating isn't my idea of fun. But I just love not wearing heavy coats, and worrying about slippery roads. Now... I also have to admit... I like winter. I love big warm sweaters, and warm fireplaces. I know... I'm contradicting myself... It's not that I don't love each season, it's just that I want to hang on, just a little bit longer, to the warm days of summer. There are so many months of cool/cooler/cold /freezing weather.
With that... I want to mention the fall downsizing season. It's such a temptation to put off the de-cluttering until spring. Isn't it? If you are one of those people, please give me a minute to plant an idea: Be kind to yourself. Don't make it worse and keep adding to it. The downsizing project you want to do in the spring is big enough. Even if you grab one box, or one bag a week... and sort it watching the news, it will help you. Try to break your project up into small phases. Really, it helps. By the time spring comes around, you will be surprised and so pleased with yourself at how much you were able to get done.
I've just come from a family funeral in Austin, TX... it was hot. We came from all over the country to celebrate my Mother-In-Law's life. She was 90 years young and just a remarkable woman in so many ways. I will miss her so much.
Needless to say, my own family story helps me appreciate and empathize with the families I work with. Because, while the grieving is going on, there are so many other levels of thinking and planning going on. The family gathers and there are lots of distractions... the pockets of conversations evolve and blend as the time with family grows short and people start to leave. Did we talk about this? Did we talk about that? We need to include this person... don't want to leave anyone out... they might feel slighted... Family dynamics are so interesting... aren't they? Would love to hear some stories of recent dynamics and creative ways to help families communicate. We are all in the same boat.
Rochester, New York has developed some very responsible ways to dispose your waste. Two web sites that give you a wealth of information are: www.MonroeCounty.gov and www.RochesterEnvironment.com . Even, if they don't handle the particular kind of waste you have... they can tell you what to do next.
Other specific options:
Goodwill: Electronic recycling (no TV's) (and will also except most everything else, however old toys can sometimes be tricky because of the lead products that China put in.)
Best Buy: TV's (pay $10 get a $10 gift card)
Home Depot: Fluorescent Blubs
Radio Shack: Re-chargeable Batteries
Auto Part Stores (most): Used Motor Oils, Car Batteries
Old (over the counter) Medicines: 1st Tues each month, 10am-1pm, no appointment needed: 245 Summit Point Dr., Henrietta, NY
I know... I know... all this is an extra step... might even be a hassel... but it sure makes you feel good when you get rid of it the right way. And... by the way... just another reason to hire us... because we will to it for you.
Happy Weekend!!! Theresa
There are sooooooo many reasons to have an organized home and life and business and and and... the list goes on. If you don't know where to start... here are a few tips to get you motivated and get it done:
1. Make an appointment with yourself. Choose a time of day when you are well rested & not hungry. Make sure to dress comfortably for the activity.
2. Ask a friend to help who knows you well. The kind of friend who will keep you focused.
3. Choose your project - make a plan. THEN WORK THE PLAN.
4. Bring the right tools. Plan what you need ahead of time. Jumping up and down to get the tools you need, wastes time and precious energy, and make you vulnerable to distractions.
5. Pick an area of the project that bothers you the most. Do it first. (Quick results motivate you to continue and come back another day.)
6. Set a timer. (Trick of the trade)
7. Empty the space!
- Combine like with like (box it, zip it, band it).
- Choose to keep only what you love and need.
- Give away or discard the rest immediately.
- Distribute what does not belong in that area.
- Clean as you go.
8. Make it fun. (Laugh, compete, sing, play music)
9. Quit BEFORE you get tired.
10. Track your progress and brag about it. Reward yourself.
I know it's hard sometimes to involve your kids... but organizing is a learned process... teach your children the joys of organizing and they will become adults that organize!!!
Best to all, Theresa
On Saturday, July 24th, from 9-10am, tune into 950 AM Radio . I've been invited to talk on Property Source Radio... A Real Estate program hosted by Brenna Hartman. It's a call-in show: 585-222-6397... so don't be shy... (Thank you Cindy B. Rosato of Remax First: 455-5961)
Come visit our booth at the Seniorsfirst Arts & Musicfest at Valley Manor, 1570 East Ave. Rain or shine under the tent, FREE and open to the public. 11-3pm. Musical Performances 12:30-2:30.
Come see and hear some wonderful music to relax to on a beautiful summer day in Rochester:
Tuesday 7/20: Big Band - Johnny Matt; Wednesday 7/21: Classical - Air de Cour; Thursday 7/22: Dixieland - Poppa Joe's Crawfish Stew... For more information call 770-1800 or visit http://www.seniorsfirst.com/.
Today I've learned how to blog.... I'm so excited to be able to tell you all what goes on with my business. I will try not to bore you with silly things. But, tips and solutions, discoveries, people I meet, where to go, how to save time and money, presentation locations, advertising to look for..... and on and on will be there to learn from. Please feel free to comment and let me know what you are doing and any special problem solving ideas to share. Thank you for tuning in...
Best of the Best,
Theresa
