A Case Study of Motivation For Getting Organized and Downsizing

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Sidebar_foyerI’ve started a new organizing and de-cluttering project with a wonderful couple in their mid to late sixties. They called me because the state of their home is straining their relationship of 40 years.    It’s not at all unusual that disorganization and clutter in a household can cause stress and tension between couples no matter how long they have been together.

When I first drove up to their home in an older, established neighbourhood I noticed that there were some minor repairs and maintenance needed to the exterior of the house.  Not at all uncommon for an older couple.  It can become increasingly difficult to maintain a home if there are physical restrictions or limitations those individuals may be challenged with.

The initial consultation

Upon entering their 4 bedroom home it presented as very well kept, tidy and clean.  During our initial consultation and needs assessment we all sat in the living room as I jotted down information, inquired about any health issues I would need to be aware of and went through my in depth assessment in order to be able to understand how they function within their home and what their requirements and concerns were.

It was not too long into the consult when it became evident that the wife was not at all pleased with the state of certain rooms in the house and expressed a significant amount of blame and anger with her husband. She was extremely embarrassed to have anyone over to her home, including myself, and was very concerned about what her neighbours might think.  This is fairly common as there seems to be unfortunate negative connotation to being disorganized and bringing in the “big guns”.  Why not bring in a professional if your home is not functioning as well as it should? The thing is the majority of homes I work in are not in the state of clutter that you see on those television shows about hoarders. In fact, when you first walk into the homes we work in most of the disorganization is hidden behind doors and cabinets and not necessarily in plain view.

Tension in relationships

In any event, with these clients the tension was palpable and there were at times some harsh glances between husband and wife.  Mr. X was quite soft spoken and although not in denial about his part in the disorganization, he used humour as a defense to the allegations and stress expressed by his wife while also acknowledging her concerns. At this point I had not taken a tour of the home or seen the clutter that was disrupting their relationship and their life.  Although there was a great deal of tension between them it was also very clear that they loved each other dearly and that Mr. X was willing to do whatever was necessary to make things better both in their home and in their relationship.

In my next post I’ll continue with this story of motivation, support and facilitating change with these great people.

3 Free Applications that Make Organizing and Cleaning Fun

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What do the three apps below have in common? They are all 100% free, super easy to use, compatible on most devices and will help you organize and clean your home in creative and practical ways. I’m sure you already use a couple of these if not all three, but I’m hoping this post will help you see different uses for them when it comes to making your home a better place.

1. Pinterest is a content sharing service that allows members to “pin” images, videos and other objects to their virtual “pinboard”. Do a quick search for “organizing” or “cleaning” and you will find thousands of pins and boards with some of the smartest ideas and tricks you can imagine. Find affordable DIY ideas for organizing your garage, pantry, home office, bedrooms, car, laundry room, bathroom, closet, jewelry collection and anything else. I guarantee that you’ll find lots of ways to save money and make your space sparkly and squeaky-clean! You can also search for people, such as Martha Stewart. Martha’s official Pinterest account has a fantastic board called Cleaning and HomeKeeping Tips which is worth checking out and is chock full of cleaning and organizing ideas. Last but not least, try searching for the official accounts of your favorite stores such as IKEA. IKEA Canada’s Pinterest account  features tones of awesome boards such as Organizing and Fresh Outdoor Inspiration.

Pinterest

2. Evernote is an easy-to-use app that lets you take notes, capture photos, create to-do lists, and record voice reminders. The best part is that everything you input into the app becomes completely synchronized and searchable across all of your devices (mobile, tablet, PC, or Mac), whether you are at home, at work, or on the go. Since Evernote makes it super easy to add and label/tag various images to your account and keep them forever, the app is a lifesaver for those of you who are trying to clear away paper clutter. Use it to store images of your favorite wine labels, stacks of business cards you collect at networking events and conferences, whiteboard notes from meetings at work, and so on. For more tips, check out my previous blog post on 3 Ways To Organize Your Life Using Evernote. The possibilities are really endless when it comes to this app!

 Evernote for organizing

3. Songza is a 100% free music streaming and recommendation service. With playlists created by music experts, the service makes recommendations based on time of day, your mood or activity. It even offers three playlists created specifically for cleaning and doing housework: method’s clean happy mix, Spring Cleaning, and Sparkle & Shine: Cleaning with Showtunes. With hundreds of other playlists to choose from, I have no doubt that you will find something you’ll love. Cleaning and organizing is so much more fun with some great music to sing along to!

Songa organizing

I hope you give these apps a try, or see them in a different and more useful light if you do use them already. Do you have any other go-to apps that you use when cleaning and organizing your home? Let me know in the comments below! 

10 Secret Places To Find Extra Storage

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understair-storage-spaceThe truth about storage is that you can never have enough.  As an organizational specialist I am constantly thinking about new and creative ways to bring more storage to my clients’ homes or offices.  It doesn’t matter whether your space is small or large.  Even in a larger home clients seem to grow into their homes, perhaps buying more than they need simply because they think they have more space.

So here’s my ten secret places to find extra storage:

  1. Wall partitions with built-in storage compartments.
  2. Vintage leather or wicker suitcases that can be stacked to serve as an end table or coffee table and also provide hidden storage for your video or CD collection, photos or files.
  3. Headboards that have storage shelves.
  4. End tables or coffee tables that have shelving underneath with or without drawers.  These are great for storage of family plays board games or cards, videos and even those remote controls.
  5. Empty luggage which can storage off season clothing if your closets cannot accommodate all of your belongings.
  6. Storage ottomans with not only tops that open, but the ones with lids that flip upside down for multi-functional use as a tray/side table.
  7. Baskets. They come in every conceivable shape and size and can be utilized next to a chair, under a bench or stool, inside a closet and even attached to a wall.  They can hold everything from photos, extra paper, toys and even towels.
  8. Benches that open are another great secret storage space.  With a safety latch, your kids may even think this is a great hiding place!
  9. Steamer trunks can be both a coffee table, an extra place for linen storage or serves as a great costume trunk for dress up.  Make sure you have a safety latch on these trunks as the lids can be quite heavy for small children.
  10. Hollow architectural columns are a great idea if you are doing some renovating and are looking for a creative way to add storage. Make them hollow and you can add shelves or a door on either side.  If you paint them the same colour as the walls they will not stand out as much and actually blend into the walls.

If you are looking to simplify your home, find secret storage spaces and get rid of clutter in your home or office, these ten tips for finding news spaces to store everyday items will help you get organized so you have more time to relax, enjoy every day and the spend more time on the things that matter the most to you. What are some secret storage places you have found?

3 Psychological Reasons For Clutter

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Do you struggle with clutter?

Are there one or more rooms that you simply dread walking into? Or avoid all together?

Hi there, I’m Vanessa Long and I’m guest blogging for my good friend, Linda. She’s asked me here to talk about the psychological reasons that we clutter our houses and our lives from my perspective as a transformational coach and trainer.

In the early 1900s, the famous psychologist Dr. Carl Jung drew a connection between your external life and your internal mind and the impact that each has on the other.

Did you know that you have both an unconscious and a conscious mind? 

Your unconscious mind is everything you aren’t aware of right now – that’s about 98% of your power and your mind.

Your conscious mind is about 2% of your mind and power and is everything that you are aware that you’re thinking right now.

For instance, if I asked you what your best friends name was in Grade 4… a name will probably pop up. You weren’t thinking about it before so it must have come from your unconscious mind. Really, that’s all the unconscious is: everything you’re not aware of right now – and it’s running your life.

What’s important to know is that your conscious mind can only handle a very few thoughts at one time, somewhere between 4 and 9. If your conscious mind can only hold a few thoughts at any one time, what happens to the rest of the thoughts that you have? They go unconscious! They get stuffed down into that part of your mind where you don’t have to deal with them.

And that brings us to your basement. Or garage. Or whatever area of your house has clutter that you just don’t want to deal with – or can’t bring yourself to face.

How you do anything is how you do everything.

One of my favorite sayings is ‘How you do anything is how you do everything’. That means that if you’re holding clutter in one physical space of your life then you are probably holding clutter in other places as well – energetically, at work, emotionally, relationally.

If you have a cluttered basement, then you have clutter elsewhere that you don’t want to deal with. If you look around and think ‘Ugh!’ then you are doing that internally as well with one or more issues. It can be pretty depressing, and, in fact, clutter, unfinished projects, and other holes in our energy field actually do have a significant impact on our emotional and mental health.

There is very good news, though! You have the power to change whatever it is that is dragging you down. You do! You have 100% power to change your life for the better – or to ignore it and watch it get worse.

So here’s where it gets really cool. If you want to get unstuck, if you want to get moving on something in your life, I have found that one of the best ways to do so is by cleaning up a physical mess. When you have successfully tackled a mess in or around your home it frees up a tonne of stagnant energy and that energy can then be used to finish other projects.

Each time you clean up a physical mess you’ll find that other messes want to clean themselves up – that a situation that has been dragging on with no end in sight suddenly changes. There will be shifts in unexpected places.

What mess can I clean up?

In fact, when I feel stuck on a project my first thought is ‘What mess can I clean up?’ Even if it’s just doing the dishes, it gets things moving. And, if I want to see a big change, I clean up a big mess. I tackle something in the basement or rip down a wall that has been vexing me.

You can change your world. You have that power. And if you take just a baby step you’ll find that the power of the universe is waiting to help you on your way. Your unconscious mind knows exactly what is keeping you stuck and it will tell you if you ask.

If your physical messes are just too much for you to handle, call Linda, she’s amazing. She brings her background in social work, as well as her compassion and uber-efficiency to get your project moving in a powerful way.

Author’s Note: Vanessa Long is a Board-Certified Master Coach and one of Canada’s top NLP and Hypnotherapy Trainers. She works with super-busy people to help them break through their stuckedness and blow past their stuff to live the passionate life that they dream of. If you’d like to learn more about the unconscious mind and how it is impacting your ability to get stuff done, you can visit her site at http://vanessalong.ca/takecharge-lvk-thankyou for a complimentary training on the unconscious mind. It’s her gift to you.

Photo by Tomwsulcer (Own work) [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons

Organizing Your Home Using Velcro

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organizing tools and emergency equipment using velcroVelcro can be such a wonderful tool for organizing your home.  Once you play around with it you’ll realize there are dozens of ways you can use it to keep things nice and organized.

Where did Velcro come from?

After examining the burrs left on his clothes while hiking, a Swiss engineer thought that the concept of using hooks and loops to temporarily fasten things together could have commercial use.  Velcro was invented in 1948, though it didn’t see commercial applications until the late 1950’s.

Creative uses for Velcro in your home

While there are lots of creative ways you can use Velcro in your home, below are five organizing ideas that will help get your creative juices flowing.  If you’re going to be using Velcro to attach small and lightweight items, regular Velcro is fine.  For larger and heavier items I recommend you use an industrial version of Velcro.  You can find industrial Velcro at most major hardware stores and you’ll be amazed at how strong it is.

Organizing Your Computer Desk

Oranizing office with velco for hard drive

Computers are great, the cables attached to them and all of their peripherals are not.  You can buy Velcro straps to organize your cables, but you can also use Velcro to organize your power strip, modem and more!  Attach Velcro to the back of these devices and mount them to the underside of your desk and keep your floor neat and free from cables.

Keeping Emergency Tools Handy

organizing tools and emergency equipment using velcro

This was a great tip from Marthastewart.com.  The last thing you need during a blackout is to fumble around the house looking for a flashlight.  Why not keep them handy and within reach?  Keeping a flashlight handy by your electrical panel, at the top of your cellar stairs, and in the garage, is a great way to keep you safe the next time you lose power.

 

Keep Your Drawers Organized

Organizing drawers with velco

Drawer organizers are great, the only problem is that unless they are custom fitted for your drawer, they tend to get banged around every time you open and close the drawer.  Use Velcro buttons to secure your organizers to the bottom of the drawer and have a tidy drawer every time you open it!

Organize Your Crafts

Organizing crafts with velcro

Crafts are fun, though organizing your craft supplies can be quite the challenge.  Keep your craft supplies organized and ready for use by using small Velcro tabs to mount them for easy reach.  Here’s a neat way to mount your Stickles Glitter Glue using Velcro tabs and an acrylic sign holder.

Organize Your Spices

organizing spice rack using velcro

If you love to cook, keeping your spices organized is a must.  Unfortunately, you may have outgrown your spice rack and don’t have the room for your excess spice jars.  You have a lot of available space in your kitchen for your spices, you just need to be creative.  From your cabinet doors to the inside walls of your pantry, those little spice jars can be mounted and organized just about anywhere in your kitchen.

Do you use Velcro to organize your home?

As you can see, there are lots of ways Velcro can organize your home and I have given you just a few suggestions.  Do you have creative ways you’re using Velcro to organize your home?  Leave them in the comments below, I’d love to hear them!

Organizing Your Car For Spring

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messy carA car would be typically described as a passenger vehicle that is self-propelled with four wheels and an engine.  With that in mind let’s consider what state of organization your car is actually in.  Don’t be fooled into thinking that that you don’t need to have your car organized. Remember that your car is an extension of yourself and in fact tells others about you, your character, style and personality. As a result you want to keep its contents organized, functional and accessible.

10 things to keep in your car

There are certain items everyone should keep organized in their vehicle for safety purposes.  These include:

  • Owner’s manual
  • Tire pressure gauge
  • First aid kit
  • Flashlight
  • Jumper cables
  • Jack
  • Motor oil
  • Spare tire
  • Tire iron
  • Flares

It’s not recommended that you keep your insurance card or your vehicle registration in your glove compartment.  They should be kept on your person only as these are not items you would want a thief to get their hands on.

Also remember to keep all your invoices and receipts from any repairs and maintenance you have done on your vehicle and store them in a clear plastic sleeve or envelope inside your glove compartment.  Its good practice to also scan and keep a copy of these papers in an electronic folder on your computer as well.

Starting the car organizing process

Spring is a great time to do this project.  Pick a good weather day and roll out a small tarp or blanket on your lawn or driveway.

You then begin by removing everything out of your car (don’t forget the trunk, behind the visors and all compartments throughout your vehicle) and place it out on the tarp or blanket.  Keep an open trash bag on hand so that you can place any trash you come across immediately in the bag.  Also have on hand an empty bin that you can label “Put back in the house” in which you will place any items that originated from there and should be returned.  This would include coffee mugs, food containers, etc. Once everything is out on the tarp take a photo. You will likely be amazed at how much “stuff” was living in your vehicle without your knowledge.

Categories are cool

This next stage of organizing your car is like a game of Match as you will be sorting like items with like items.  For instance, place all tools together, DVD’s in another pile, paper in yet another and continue this process until you have put everything in a category, like items with like items.

If you find any maps I suggest you check the dates for relevancy.  My rule of thumb is that any map over 3 years old has likely changed and may not be worth using on your next road trip unless you are looking to take an unscheduled detour. This is also a good time to update your GPS system.

Once everything is in a category begin to revisit your piles and start purging. Think about the essential items you need in your vehicle all the time. For instance if your work requires your car to be your office as well, you may need certain office supplies. If you regularly drive kids to and from school, perhaps you may want to carry a supply of wet wipes or snacks.

Remove items that are obsolete and out dated, broken or damaged. Multiples of items should be addressed and should not be kept unless there is something special or unique about them in terms of size or shape.

Organize and corral

Now it’s time to corral all your piles.  Using separate bins and crates, load your categories of items into the best sized container. Corralling items in your trunk will save you time and frustration scrounging around in there when you are looking for something. An orderly car is less frustrating and more efficient than disorganized chaos.

Don’t forget to plan a regular schedule for cleaning out your vehicle to maintain the state of organization.

Drive organized!

Tips For Organizing Your Garage

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tips-for-keeping--your-garage-organized_50291a407dd1cIt’s that time of year when our minds turn to getting our garages organized and decluttered. I think it’s very telling that we live in Canada with snowy winter weather yet the majority of us can’t fit our cars in our garage.  Instead we park our cars, which cost thousands of dollars, in the driveway and fill our garage space with, more often than not, useless junk.

April and May is always the time of year when our clients contact us to get their garages organized when they feel they can’t handle the project on their own due to their own physical restrictions, time restraints or just not knowing where to start.  We usually find scraps of wood never to be used, old toys, broken gardening and swimming pool equipment and much more that we end of donating, recycling or sending to the trash.

With spring in the air you can get a fresh start on your garage organization with a few simple tips. Thinking about how much space is free space in your garage, measuring wall and ceiling space and considering shelving and cabinets can go a long way to organizing the garage.

Most of us have a number of “zones” we need in the garage, such as a sports zone, gardening zone, auto zone and toy zone, as applicable. Keeping this in mind will help you to set up zones on separate shelves or in distinct cabinets for each that matter and are applicable to you. Labeling each zone is also important so that all members of the family know where to retrieve and return items for consistent maintenance of the newly organized space.

Once completely organized your garage will be a welcome addition to your home and a space where perhaps you can get your car into the garage.  How great would that be?!

This Infographic included here, courtesy of Mid-Atlantic Door Group, is a great visual to get you started on this project.  Good luck!

 

 

Five Ways to Transform Your Basement Into a Home Office

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Basement office ideasWorking at home can be a wonderful privilege for people who have commitments close to home.Whether you’re at home or in an office building, a dedicated workspace is a must.

Working in a cold basement with linoleum floors and exposed insulation probably isn’t very inspiring or appealing, even if it is the only place in the house that’s unoccupied. However, with some creativity and hard work, that dingy basement can be transformed into an enjoyable, efficient home office suitable for everyday use.

Here are five different ideas for transforming your basement into a comfortable environment for productivity during the day:

The Office in the Closet

This is ideal for the basement that’s already being used for other purposes. A small walk-in closet can easily double as a small study. With mounted shelves (one for a desk and one or more for books and supplies) and a small chair that can be tucked beneath the lowest shelf, you can easily create a work cubicle free of distractions from whatever else is in the basement.

 

The Murphy Bed Office

This office can quickly transform into a guest bedroom. The flip side of this desk, as well as the shelves, actually contain a Murphy bed that can be pulled out and tucked away as needed. Filing cabinets on wheels can be used for additional storage that’s both mobile and efficient.

Source: sunset.com via Mary on Pinterest

 

The Room Within a Room

Perhaps the most ideal type of basement office is the type that’s enclosed within its own room in the basement. The enclosed office can benefit from:

  • Sound proofing.  The walls can be sound proofed so as to avoid disruption from activities happening in the rest of the basement. In addition, the basement ceiling can be sound proofed. Even the type of door chosen for the office can make a difference.
  • Different flooring.   Carpet may seem desirable in this respect. After all, you’re at home, and you want to be comfortable. However hard floors are a better choice for office chairs with wheels, and are more durable. It’s easier to take yourself and your work seriously in an environment that is slightly removed from the rest of the house. After all, your non-working life is just beyond the office door.

 

Source: bhg.com via Jennifer on Pinterest

 

The Alcove Beneath the Stairs

A simple home office design that utilizes seemingly unusable space and allows for a private space for working. A desk, shelves, and storage cabinets and drawers can all coexist to provide an efficient workspace. Or, the entire alcove can be used for storage, and a desk can be placed up against the adjacent wall.

 

The Open Concept Office

Perhaps the simplest design is to have an open concept office in the basement without any walls or doors sectioning it off from the rest of the basement. In the event that the entire basement cannot be used solely for the office, a corner or wall can be used to clearly designate office space. Computer monitors can be mounted onto the wall, along with shelves, in order to save space. The desk can then be placed against the wall, or it can be created with a lower mounted shelf.

 

What Kind of Basement Office do you like?

As you can see, there are lots of great ideas for a basement office.  Which office style do you prefer?  If you would like more great ideas for creating a basement office, check out these great ideas from Pinterest.

Shannon Ryan is the online community manager for the Nusite Group, a Toronto waterproofing company.  You can find more ideas about home renovations by following Nusite on Twitter.

 

Spring Cleaning For Your Closets

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Cluttered bedroom that needs organization

Cluttered bedroom that needs organization

 

It’s National Clean Out Your Closet Week so what better time than now to talk about Spring cleaning for your master bedroom and closet.

The master bedroom is supposed to be a warm, serene and inviting oasis for you after a crazy day in these very busy times.  It should be a place where you want to relax and get a restful sleep after a long day.  However time and time again when I get called in to assist clients with their organizing projects the bedroom is a clutter trap of stress and confusion.

For many homes I’m invited into the master bedroom has piles of clothes on the bed and floor, children and dog toys amongst them and piles of folded laundry ready to be put away but alas, they just don’t fit into the dressers.  Various receipts, newspapers and magazines are often found under beds and stuffed into side tables.  Photos, some in frames, many not, sit on top of any horizontal surface available, either displayed or waiting to be displayed when time permits (which is one of many projects waiting to get started or completed). Jewellery often litters the tops of bureaus and dressers, dust littering almost every surface simply because there is really no way to clean properly when there is so much clutter.  Closets are overflowing with clothing on the floor, toppling off shelves and a mix of accessories strewn about. Clients are stressed and I know I can transform their space.

Just walking into a bedroom like this can raise your blood pressure, tighten the muscles in your body and cause you stress you may not even be aware of.  Your plan for an oasis has turned into a cluttered cave and your hope for calm and serenity seems impossible. But there’s good news!  Spring is a perfect time of year to get your bedroom and closets in order. So how do you begin to transform this cluttered cave into a calm, peaceful and efficient room?

How do you start?

We start by clearing the bed to give us a large staging area.  We go through the piles of items of the floor and sort them into what does and doesn’t belong in the master bedroom.  Those items that don’t belong are immediately placed in an empty bin or laundry basket to be transported to its proper location afterwards (whether it is somewhere else in your home or in the trash). We go about the room clearing the horizontal surfaces and sorting like items with like items.  All pieces of paper are gathered and placed into a container for further sorting down the road.  All jewellery is contained which will be sorted as well.  Then we tackle the closet.

Rules to live by

I’m sure that countless times you’ve said “I’ve got so many clothes and nothing to wear”.  Many people have “fat” clothes, “skinny” clothes, “work around the house clothes”, etc. all piled into their closets. As far as I’m concerned, the rules to live by are if you don’t wear it, can’t wear it or haven’t worn it in two years, it’s time to go. If it really doesn’t make you feel good when you wear it, it’s time to go.  If you don’t like the colour or the feel of the fabric, donate it. If it’s damaged, worn or torn, it’s trash. But alas, I’m getting ahead of myself here.

Work in sections

Rather than completely emptying your closet in one fell swoop, do it in sections because otherwise you will likely run out of room and feel completely overwhelmed.

Start with the closet floor first, pulling everything out and then sorting like items with like items and compiling piles of items on your bed.  You then take a good hard look at each item in each pile and decide whether it will be donated, its trash or it’s a keeper, keeping in mind the rules to live by as noted above.

Sorting items by type, you’ll compile slacks, shirts, coats, etc. and then you will further sort items by colour and style.  Once you have gone through this process with everything in your closet and your dressers, you will end up with the items that are essential to your wardrobe and that now need to be housed back in your closet or dressers. This is not a one hour project.  You do need to set aside a few hours of your own time. It may feel a little painful at first, but trust me….Once you have done a complete reorganization and been diligent about it you likely won’t have to do it again.

Reloading

The next step is hanging the clothes back in your closet.  Remember that game Concentration….all you have to do is match items with like items and you can maintain your closet with very little effort.  Arrange clothes back on your closet within each category, and then within each category arrange by colour and hang from light to dark. This game of Concentration also applies to your dressers.  I typically reload drawers if possible from head to toe in descending order.  This means that what you wear on the top of your body typically goes in the top drawers of the dresser but there are times when this process needs to be adjusted depending on the size of your drawers and the volume of items you have.

If you are struggling with how to store certain items here’s a few ideas to get you going.  Neckties can go on racks or hooked hangers.  Belts can go on hooks or hangers or can even be placed in a decorative bin.  Scarves can be folded and placed in bins. Handbags can go on shelves or in a large tote on the bottom of your closet.  Smaller purses and clutches can go in a small basket or bin. Clothing that is not quite dirty, but not quite clean and you may want to wear again the next day can be positioned on a hook on the inside of your closet door.

Lastly, remember that your master bedroom closet and dressers should not be an area for general storage unless absolutely necessary.  It should not be a hidden space where you barely open the doors.  It should be a space where, within 30 seconds of opening the door you can put your hands on whatever it is you are looking for.

If you need help with project, don’t be afraid to ask.  It can be daunting and that’s why professional organizers exist. We bring skills and expertise to the table, can assess your needs, give tailored solutions, practical techniques, coaching and do most of the physical work for you.

Organization does matter. Creating calm out of chaos is what we do best!

Organizing And Tracking Inventory For Businesses

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messy inventory room

If your business involves stock, whether it is products for sale or for manufacturing, keeping track of stock inventory is critical to know what you have, where it’s located and the value of the inventory you have on hand.

Not only is organizing and tracking your inventory important for customer service (to have inventory when you need it), but it’s also important from a financial perspective so you know the value of your inventory. Keeping track of your inventory will alert you to when you need to re order and give you an accurate snapshot of your inventory at any given time.

Maintenance Requires Discipline

Maintaining any inventory system requires discipline in entering all of your transactions and staying current with them. It is recommended that you set aside a few minutes each day for this critical clerical task. Of course, all stock requires a part or stock number with each transaction being posted to your system. If, even just once, you forget to enter stock coming in or going out, the entire system fails.

Inventory Software

Anyone who owns or manages a business that has inventory should consider using inventory software. The best products will allow you to enter and view items using part numbers, let you attach important notes to each item, and help you manage recurring orders that you may have.

What to Look For

If your company keeps an inventory you definitely need to have inventory software to help you stay organized and on top of your stock of products. Inventory software can provide the basics of just keeping track of your inventory, but it can also help you manage customer relationships and even provide you with a calendar for purchasing goods.

Some of the best inventory management software is equipped with a low-level warning system that will alert you when your stock is getting low so you don’t run out of something that is selling well. You also have the ability to see, in real time, what stock you have on hand at another location and keep track of it.  If you offer item kits it’s important to use a program that will allow you to keep an eye on your sales and inventory so that your kits are all accounted for.

Other Features

When searching the for the best inventory program you should consider looking for one that will allow you to build and save your customer and supplier databases. In addition, you should have the ability to set user access rights for employees who need access to the database but don’t need to see sensitive information.

Another important feature is the ability to create and print customized reports, and you should be able to import and export inventory files and reports.

Ease of Use

Your inventory program should be easy for anyone to use. The best inventory software will offer tutorials and on-screen setup guides that will help you to incorporate all of your important information. You should also be able to find help on the manufacturer’s website with ease. Products that offer support without forcing you to buy a separate support package are also something to consider.

Options

There are many affordable software systems available for small businesses. A manual system is one option (the old Kardex system comes to mind) but with software costs being what they are today they are not recommended. Following are three options available to organize and track your inventory.

Inventory Pro ($150.00), rated 5/10, covers all the basics including PDF capability for sending invoices, but does not handle bar codes which is generally not an issue for small business.

In Flow is another option, priced at approximately $300.00, is rated 10/10 for small business but will not run on a Mac.  It does have kitting and financial options available.

Lastly, there is Small Business Inventory Control.  Priced at an affordable $100.00 this program is rated 7/10 and allows for planning as well as lets you know what item or items are slow moving so you can adjust your purchase orders.

So now you have a few ideas to organize and track your inventory.  Ultimately the one you decide to go with depends largely on the volume of your stock and your budget.  Do your research and get the best inventory management system to organize your business inventory.