Customer Reviews

The Zen of Organizing

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

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.

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.

"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.

The Zen of Organizing: Creating Order and Peace in Your Home, Career and Life is one of the first organizing books that I have read that made sense and that actually made a difference in my life. The book has resulted in my creating more peace (zen) not only within my home, but also within my life. The author, through her suggestions and stories, helped me to identify solutions and provided insight to my organizing. Ms. Leeds' inspirational approach to organizing has assisted me in getting organized and staying organized.
If you are looking for lasting changes...Give yourself a gift and get this book.

I bought this book on the strength of the reader reviews here hoping that it would make a good gift for a friend of mine whose home is a fire hazard, it is so cluttered with more than a decade of junk that she cannot throw away. However, the first chapter that would have been relevant to her needs deals with... how to keep your files straight! My gosh, for someone who is in great need of organizing help, that is one of the last matters to address. I found some of the examples in the book parochial and off-putting - who outside of LA and New York City spends $1,500 on a dinner party for six other couples?! And who in the world told Ms. Leeds that the purpose of a mezuzah for Jews is to ward off evil? That is absolutely ill-informed and incorrect. She should have checked that information out before printing it. In sum, you might find this book helpful if you are slightly to moderately disorganized. If you are nearly hopeless at keeping your life in order, this book will not help a bit.

I have purchased a total of seven different books on organizing and out of the seven this great little book by Regina Leeds is the best. Of the seven books, I only read the whole book of three of them. This is the only one that I have read twice and continue to use as a reference book. The rest of the organizing books are being donated to a worthy cause as part of my decluttering. I am looking forward to Ms Leeds next book and am confident it will be a warm and informative read also. Ms Leeds keep up the good work. You have worked a miracle in my life.

This book is a whole lot cheaper than working side by side with Regina Leeds to get my office in some semblance of order (which I used to do, and which was worth every penny). And it's almost (but not quite) as much fun. Most organizing books I've read seem to be written by Closet Nazis. The magic of The Zen of Organizing is that it celebrates the humanity and spirituality of getting and being organized in a way that makes you want to do the work, not fight doing it. Regina Leeds is a genius of spirit.

Yes, I need to organize my office - but I also need to organize my books, my closet, the pantry shelves, and the cat's toys. I am cognizant of the deep psychological implications of constant clutter, but I would prefer to get my space organized before I meditate on that aspect of the disarray. And I totally agree with the reviewer's comment about overpriced dinner parties. Let's get real! No `housewives, corporate execs and business people' I know would fritter that amount of money on dinner, nor do I consider movie stars or producers to be realistic role models for organized living.

For me, this book neither confronted nor eased the painful step-by-creaking step journey of sifting your precious possessions, only to come to the realization that what you have been keeping is not a `memento' but an anchor to your past and a hindrance to your progress. Far from her desire to bridge the gap between Thomas Moore and Suze Orman, she made the environment more confusing. This book is neither `Zen' nor `die-hard' organizing; it's more like `Reality TV'.

Although some people doubt the authenticity of Feng Shui, it has been an essential planning tool in the Far East for thousands of years - chicanery cannot survive that long! A fundamental precept is that one must be organized, uncluttered, to succeed in life. A FAR better anti-clutter book is 'Move Your Stuff, Change Your Life' by Karen Rauch Carter. It does lack an index, but her ideas are much more concrete and, no, you do not have to paint your front door purple.

For an introspective, esoteric view of clutter, read 'Clear Your Clutter With Feng Shui' or `Creating Sacred Space With Feng Shui', both by Karen Kingston. Although it is not an instruction book on organization, `Sacred Space' by Denise Linn also confronts on the deep-seated malaise of clutter.

What a wonderful book! Via personal stories, Regina Leeds brings forward intelligent, interesting, entertaining ways to get more organized. This book goes beyond a "how to" to become a guide for a better life.

I highly suggest this book for anyone who is interested in changing their environment for the better.

Thanks, Regina!

HELLO FELLOW SEEKERS, BEFORE I MENTION THE WONDERS THAT THIS BOOK HAS INSIDE, I WANT TO NOTE HOW I FELT WHEN I FIRST PICKED IT UP. IT IS JUST THE RIGHT SIZE, THE AUTHOR SEEMS UNASSUMING AND NON JUDGEMENTAL AND THE COLORS ARE SOOTHING AND PEACEFUL.I HAVE BEEN BATTLING THE HORRORS OF CLUTTER ALL MY LIFE. AS I GLANCED AT THE DIFFERENT CHAPTERS I REALIZED THAT FOR THE FIRST TIME SOMEONE WAS TALKING TO ME AND NOT AT ME. ALSO, THE AUTHOR SHARES VERY INTIMATE AND PERSONAL INFORMATION ABOUT HER LIFE AND YOU FEEL AN INSTANT CONNECTION WITH HER AND CONSEQUENTLY WITH THE INFORMATION. FINALLY HERE WAS SOMEONE TO "HOLD MY HAND" THROUGH THE TRAUMA OF LETTING GO OF AGE OLD"STUFF" AND KNOWING THAT I WAS NOT ALONE AND IT WAS "OK". THE BOOK TOUCHED ON EVERY SINGLE THING THAT I HAD SECRETLY FELT WAS PERSONAL TO ME. AS A VERY SUCCESSFUL BUSINESSWOMAN AND MOTHER OF THREE, MY SECRET OF UNMANAGEABLE CLUTTER HAUNTED ME DAILY. I READ THE BOOK TWICE, SOMETIMES TO THE WEE HOURS OF THE MORNING TO BE SURE THAT I WAS NOT IMAGINING THE LOVE, SUPPORT AND COMFORT IT OFFERED. THIS IS TRULLY THE FIRST BOOK OF ITS KIND THAT DEALS WITH ONE'S SKELETONS (ALONG WITH ONE'S CLUTTER.) I NOW TRULLY UNDERSTAND THAT YOU ONLY HAVE TO ORGANIZE ONCE AND THEN MS. LEEDS SUGGESTIONS OF "SYSTEMS"MAKES SENSE. I HAVE CREATED NEW CLEAN ENERGY IN OVER HALF OF MY 3600 SQUARE FOOT HOME AND PLAN TO KEEP IT THAT WAY. I RECOMMEND THIS BOOK TO ALL TEENAGERS OF THE WORLD AND THEIR PARENTS, TO ANYONE WHO HAS A DESK, TO ALL OFFICE MANAGERS AND TO ALL MOM'S LUCKY ENOUGH TO STAY HOME TO CREATE AND ENJOY THE LOVING ENVIRONMENT THAT IS OURS. ALL WE HAVE TO DO IS ACCEPT THAT WE DESERVE THE GIFTS THAT ARE OURS IF WE ARE BRAVE ENOUGH TO ALLOW REGINA LEEDS AND HER LOVING AND INFORMATIVE BOOK TO ENTER OUR HOMES AND OUR HEARTS.