OrganizingLA Blog

Productivity Expert David Allen is Now Blogging for Huffington Post

David Allen joins the list of notable bloggers at the Huffington Post.

Allen (pictured above) is probably one of the most famous experts in the field of personal productivity and work/life balance. What he is most famous for (among many things) is his infamous "brain dump"- the idea of writing everything down on a to-do list to capture the things you desire to tackle.

The list-making is just part of his cultish GTD (Get to Done) Getting Things Done (book and system,) widely used by organized people, primarily very technical people, business folks and the like because it promotes creativity and puts a proactive spin on managing all the little details that promote human connectivity.

Allen shut his company blog down more than a year ago in order to persue other interests.  We think he missed connecting with his peeps.  Welcome back!

Check out:

• Think smarter to capture your ideas by David Allen
• David Allen - bio
• David Allen - official GTD website
• Organize IT and David Allen

Related posts:

• David Allen and a Perfect Mess
• David Allen, nominated for a 2006 Los Angeles Organizing Award

Picture courtesy San Jose Mercury News blogs

Brilliant Thoughts on Organization - from 1968

This image is brilliant, and was created in 1968!

When I worked at Walt Disney Feature Animation here in Los Angeles (now known as Walt Disney Animation Studios) everyone-- everyone, regardless if they were an artist or not, was encouraged to submit caricatures for the annual "Caricature Show" in the Hat-building's second-floor concourse.  Oh dear, people are so unkind!  So much fun.

That's why when readers submit these cartoons we're especially interested in them.  This is Santa Barbara, CA- based Ashleigh Brilliant's "My life is already complicated enough, without trying to introduce organization into it."

• Image courtesy Brilliant Thoughts and submitted by J

Global Warming Hasn't Helped Cramped Dresser Drawers

The above cheeky picture shows how global warming has affected our choice of undergarments.

But if scanties, snuggles, skivvies, and smalls are indeed getting smaller and smaller, you'd think our dressers would benefit, and have a little room-to-breath?

What do you think?  How stuffed are your drawers?

• Images courtesy of Williams Sonoma and Feng Shui By Fishgirl

Three Charles Schulz "Peanuts" strips sell for $89,275

We once had a client in Long Beach who insisted their nickname was Pigpen.

Not because of their clutter, but because they insisted they were a terrible artist.  They felt like their drawings were more like scribbles than fine art.

Well, scribbles on paper can be more valuable than Paris Hilton's trash.  Depends on who you ask and what the market will pay.

Case in point:  Philip Weiss Auctions just sold some original Charles Schulz comic strips. Three of them – two dailies and a Sunday – sold for a combined $89, 275 at a multi-estate sale held the weekend of September 8-9, in Oceanside, New York, on Long Island.

Additional strips will go up for auction at Weiss' next auction October 20-21.  Up for sale is a 'Great Pumpkin' Sunday page and a baseball Sunday page.

Pigpen doesn't look so bad after all! Maybe he just needs a makeover?

• Philip Weiss Auctions
• Official Peanuts website
• Bio of Charles Shulz

Related Posts:

• Julien's Auctions helps Cher throw a garage sale

Jeff Lewis of Flipping Out - Flipping Homes with Perfection. But Is His Perfection a Gift to the Organizing Industry?

The New York Times may call him a delusional jerk, but has Jeff Lewis been a gift to the organization industry?

Jeff Lewis (pictured left) of Bravo TV's Flipping Out, is just so much fun.  He's crazy, and obsessively compulsive, and just the kind of person we love to hate.

But one thing for sure (putting aside everyone's fixation on his so-called botox injections), Jeff Lewis is a model for ultra-organization.  Even if his needs seem over the top, he gives us all knowledge that being organized takes time, maintenance and person-power.  You need more help when your home is bigger, less when it's smaller.  So keep it simple.  I think Americans need to see OCD extremes, so they know how they fit-in.  Don't you agree?

His open houses showcase snippets of potential clients whispering how perfect his closets are organized.  Lewis's hijinks are highly dramatic when his contractors, real estate agents, plumbers, sexy assistants and sub-contractor are nudged to save $25.  During the final episode Lewis appeared to go ballistic when the garage door contractors neglected to remove stickers off the doors (we agree with him.)  And the stakes are high, he can't let his properties stay on the market for too long.  All of this is a rush that feeds on itself.

We were working in the Hollywood Hills two weeks ago.  A marketing flyer appeared on the steps going up to the house-- from Boni Bryant-- Lewis' Los Feliz Realtor.  The flyer showcased Lewis's for-sale homes, including Ben Lomond (pictured above) and Valley Oak properties.

The show seems to be such a big hit, but why are the houses still for sale?

• Check out Flipping Out's official pages for website info, blogs, bios and videos.
• Check out the Sotheby's Realtor who works with Jeff

Pictures courtesy Boni Bryant, Joe Reichling and Bravo TV

O-Magazine Offers Organizing Tips and a Sweepstakes

If you're feeling lucky, Los Angeles organizing expert Chris McKenry can help you.

Chris is part of an advertisement in O-Magazine this month for Microsoft's HP Pavilion IQ 770 TouchSmart Computer.  Our colleague offers great tips for organizing your kitchen, home office, wardrobe, mail and time-- many of those tips includes ways you can incorporate technology into your daily life (like we continue to do) by using the TouchSmart.

The HP Pavilion IQ 770 TouchSmart Computer helps plan your family's schedule, manage events and leave personal messages – all at your fingertips, on a touch screen. 

Here's a sample Conquer Your Clutter tip we love:

"Another key to staying organized is keeping items where they are used. You normally don’t leave the milk, fish, and eggs sitting on the dining room table when returning home from the grocery after a difficult day. Think of the mail as perishable and keep those surfaces uncluttered. No matter how tired you are, get in the habit of placing the mail on your desk.

Record events in your TouchSmart calendar and recycle the invitations."

To read more of Chris' Get It Together LA! organizing tricks, check out this month's O magazine on newsstands now.  You can also read the online version and enter to win a variety of prizes (including a TouchSmart and a visit by a professional organizer), by clicking here.