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56 of 57 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
She addresses issues other books miss, May 21, 2003
This review is from: The Zen of Organizing (Paperback)
I own a whole slew of books on the topic of decluttering and simplifying ones life. Heck, I doubt there is a book on the subject that I do not own. Plus I oversee a local simple living group here in my area of the Sierras, of California. But this book, The Zen of Organizing is the first book I have owned and read that really clarified the reoccurring issue I face when it comes to actually accomplishing decluttering and actually experiencing for more than a few days or weeks, true simplicity. This is where Chapter 10 titled Maintenance and Reality with a subtitle of Surrounbded by piles again? There's a reason and a cure., made the price of the book worth every penny. Because that's the real issue for me. I would spend a half an afternoon week after week, year after year trying to figure out how the boxes I had dropped off at the charity pick up were full again. It seemed to be the complete opposite problem of the lost sock in the wash. And she answered the questions well. If there is one area that I would call your attention to is the religious passages from various religions that begin each new chapter. If you are not religious or the verses are not from your belief system, ignore them.
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82 of 88 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Zen Organizing changed my life, January 3, 2001
Okay, I thought I was pretty smart and pretty successful... but I could never keep my house orderly, it never even occurred to me that the insides of drawers could be neat and not stuffed to the brim with stuff. And knickknacks?.... oh, I was the Queen of Knickknacks. My mother was a mess and so was my father (an artist and an inventor... need I say more?) ... and so it never even occurred to me that I could have a neat and orderly home. To tell you the truth, I had gotten used to the feeling that my surroundings were going to leap on me at any time, and so just closed my eyes and pretended like the clutter was... some kind of mulch for my creativity. That is until I met Ms. Leeds. I was fortunate enough to hire her to help me move into my new home. And, frankly, she made a miracle out of it. And my closet! I actually was awed every time I walked into my closet. I am so grateful to be able to have her again through her book... and not have to pay the big bucks for a one-on-one. It's like having her lead me through the rooms again, showing me how to refine them and create beauty every where I look. Her work is truly amazing and heartfelt. I definitely caught the "organizing fever" and now find absolute joy in creating little pools of order and beauty all around my home. And, to my total amazement, I have learned to enjoy cleaning... because whenever I clean an area... it goes back to being absolutely beautiful. Something about the energy "shines"... I can't explain it. Anyway, this book is a gift to yourself. I read all the other books on organizing and, quite frankly, they made it too much work. The others made the process of organizing seem like some long, tortuous, boring punishment for being right-brained. THE ZEN OF ORGANIZING brings... Zen into it. Peace. A sense of aliveness and a space for something to enter from the beyond. Like my home is a work of art. I keep refining corners and views and sometimes I just wrap my space around me like a coccoon and cuddle and grin knowing that my surroundings are truly nurturing me. And that it's all right just to sit and enjoy them because to have peace and beauty around me is actually important. That's a new concept for me. Whew. Thank you, Regina. You have truly transformed my life and helped me to become one happy camper. And another thing about it... I didn't have to buy a lot of expensive things to do it... I just had to follow the instructions and then adapt them to my own sensibilities. I suggest everyone buy one copy for themself and one for their favorite messy friend. Once you learn the knack, it becomes a game.
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34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Spirituality synergizes with functionality, February 8, 2004
This review is from: The Zen of Organizing (Paperback)
"Creating Order and Peace in Your Home, Career, and Life," is a tall order and author Regina Leeds is up to the task. The Zen of Organizing goes beyond helpful tips (although it is full of them) to help the reader explore the nature of their relationship with their possessions. Leeds takes you by the hand on a journey to a better life beyond the clutter. The book opens with a discussion of how and why you can succeed in organizing, continues with a detailed area-by-area action plan, and finishes by tying it all together and addressing maintenance. In the "Getting Started" section, Leeds prepares you for the journey ahead. Organizing isn't easy even though it's simple. Everyone carries emotional baggage that ties in with the physical clutter in their lives. Prior to accomplishing anything, one must identify goals and challenges and then plan for success. The Zen of Organizing lets you know that you are in for a challenge in putting your life in order. It assures you that you're up to that task by helping you break it down into manageable tasks and providing some exercises geared to establish your motivation. The main body consists of several chapters with specific advice for dealing with your work space, closets, bathroom, kitchen, common rooms and children's rooms. At each way point, you get a helping of common sense advice as well as deeper insight into why the common sense advice has been so hard to follow before. It's obvious from the stories she tells that Leeds has worked for and with people who have more money than the average reader. The principles she espouses, however, are universal: Eliminate, Categorize, Organize. This stuff works whether you're organizing your villa in Spain or your bachelor pad in Venice. Everyone has stuff. Everyone has issues. If you follow the advice in this book, your stuff and your issues will both become easier to manage. The spirituality in The Zen of Organizing fits seamlessly into the functionality. It's about getting your life organized which is impossible unless your life can reflect your own inner peace. There is one chapter on Feng Shui which I've always thought of as a load of superstitious hooey. After reading this chapter, I see it as some common sense rules for space management as well as some superstitious hooey. A short chapter can be forgiven and doesn't detract from the clarity of the book as a whole. An important message that spoke to me is where the author says that organization shouldn't be used as a weapon in the relationship wars. You cannot create harmony while destroying someone else's peace. That alone is worth the price of admission. The Zen of Organizing is well-organized (no surprise) and as profound in its details as it is detailed in its profundity. It lives up to its promise and has helped me create order and peace in my home, career and life. Anybody who is already organized could probably pick up a few pointers here and anybody who isn't already organized needs the kind of help offered in this book. Reading this book is the closest thing to having a personal organizer/spiritual guru/shrink/friend stand by and support you while you get your life together.
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