How 500,000 people get their homes in shape
“My husband was an elected official,” she says. “He would have to meet sheriff’s deputies and attorneys on the front porch.” It got so bad Cilley says she even dreaded answering the door to the UPS man.
With no doubt in her mind that something needed to change, Cilley set about figuring out how to make that change happen and how to stick with it. The answer for her was to do just one thing at a time for as long as it took to become a habit before moving on to the next item.
“There’s no rush,” Cilley says. “It didn’t get dirty in a day and it’s not going to get clean overnight.”
Cilley figured what worked for her would also work for other people and so was born the FlyLady, with the daily motivational emails she calls FLYing lessons and her website which includes tips, videos, forums and merchandise such as her book Sink Reflections.
The popularity of the site and its success constantly amaze Cilley. “I never knew that one person would listen to me, much less 500,000 people,” she says. “I get 10,000 e-mails a day. We’re Yahoo’s largest group.”
Where to start
And for anyone who’s overwhelmed and doesn’t know where to start, Cilley has this simple advice: Go shine your sink. She says keeping your sink shiny can change the way you live your life.
“The clean is contagious,” Cilley says. “When you walk in to that shiny sink in the morning it’s a little ray of peacefulness. It ekes in to start your day and starts you on the right foot.”
- Style at Home/Organizing Room-by-room organizing tips, monthly checklists, storage how-tos and more; most with helpful illustrations or photos.
- The official site of Professional Organizers in Canada (POC); use their Find an Organizer directory to search for organizers in your area
- Organize Tips A great selection of printable checklists, charts and monthly calendars covering everything from groceries, moving, babysitter checklists and more.
- Get Organized Now Free tips, ideas, checklists, articles, e-courses and slideshows for organizing your home, office and life.
- Messies Organizing help and tips to eliminate clutter and junk, organize your house, and simplify your life from the point of view of a self-described “Messie”
This article is original content on More.ca
