More Money, More Time: How to Reclaim Your Life and Make It Your Own

By Elizabeth Dawson

All aboard for the Easy Life as Elizabeth Dawson, professional organizer and cultural iconoclast, takes you on a context-shifting tour through the rooms of your house, the pages of your checkbook and the minutes that make up your day.

By way of anecdotes, comical metaphors and her searing, myth-busting practicality, Ms. Dawson reveals irresistibly simple steps to unraveling the rampant overspending, over scheduling and clutter that constitutes Life in the Fast Lane.

Along the way, Ms. Dawson reveals the connection between an excess of possessions and a lack of time and money, encourages readers to reinvent Christmas and illuminates the value of cooking at home as an act of family bonding.

Ultimately, she demonstrates that a rested, fulfilled woman has a potently positive impact on her family-an idea that is obvious and, therefore, overlooked.

Women interested in making space in their lives to fulfill their personal dreams will find More Money, More Time a vigorously inspiring teacher.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Jan 7, 2004
• ISBN: 9780595751716

Elizabeth Dawson

Elizabeth Dawson first learned organization when, at age eight, her parents? clutter compelled her to bring order out of chaos. In later years, jobs followed in event coordination, catering, and office organization. She now owns and operates ?Errand Girl of La Canada.? Elizabeth lives in the mountains above Los Angeles.

Book preview

Contents

YOU CAN HAVE MORE OF WHAT YOU NEED

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

HAVING IT ALL IS NOT WHAT IT SEEMS

IF MAMA AIN’T HAPPY, AIN’T NOBODY HAPPY

WHAT DO YOU WANT?

BEFORE WE BEGIN, A LITTLE ABOUT ME

RECLAIMING SPACE IN YOUR ENVIRONMENT

CLUTTER

HOW TO START THE DECLUTTERING PROCESS

PREPARING FOR THE EXORCISM OF STUFF AND THINGS

PERFORMING THE EXORCISM OF STUFF AND

THINGS

OVERCOMING PAPERWORK

ORGANIZING PAPERWORK

EVERYTHING NEEDS A HOME

DEALING WITH CHILD CLUTTER

CHILDREN, MONEY AND STUFF-—THE MADISON AVENUE TRAP

A NEW LOOK AT CHILDREN AND ACTIVITIES

MORE FOOD FOR LESS MONEY

MORE FOOD, MORE TIME, MORE MONEY

CHRISTMAS FOR THE SOUL——RECLAIMING YOUR HOLIDAYS

RECLAIMING YOUR PRECIOUS MINUTES

HANDLING MONEY WITH WISDOM

MAINTAINING SIMPLICITY—THINK BEFORE YOU

BUY THAT EXERCYCLE

SHELTERING YOUR DREAM

THE DEEPER ISSUES—REEXAMINING YOUR

VALUES

WHAT’S YOUR PRIORITY?

IN SUMMARY

MORE MONEY, MORE TIME SEMINARS

You Can Have More of What You Need

What do you hunger for? Freedom? More time? More money? Do you hunger for your daydreams to come true? I don’t mean just the big ones, but the little ones too, like reading a book or taking a nap. Your hunger can be satisfied. You can have what you want.

WHO AM I?

I run my own business, Errand Girl of La Canada. I help people get organized, downsize, and simplify their personal lives. In the process of doing so, I’ve learned a lot about the little annoyances that make life hard and the little tricks that make it easy. My techniques for achieving simplicity are, well, simple! These techniques are also quick and fun. My method is to make simplicity a game.

Let’s face it, modern life is complicated. There’s a lot to do, and a lot of demands on our time and money. For many people, it can feel as though this lifestyle is a black hole they are being sucked into. My personal mission is to help them avoid that feeling. This book will show you how. This book was born out of my desire to reduce your misery and increase your fun. This book is for you.

How To Use This Book

This book is written for the insanely busy woman. You know who you are. I designed this book so you can read it while on the john. Even if you’re busy, you still have the few minutes a day that it takes to relieve yourself. Each chapter can be read-and any accompanying exercises done-in less than 5 minutes. So, no excuses!

Keep the book and a pencil or pen on the back of the john. You will be able to cover at least one chapter a day. If you aren’t making it to the john at least once a day, YOU NEED TO DRINK MORE WATER. ‘Nuff said.

Having It All Is Not What It Seems

DO YOU KNOW THIS PERSON?

•   HATES HER JOB

•   NO TIME TO RELAX AND HAVE FUN

•   FEELS SHE IS LOSING TOUCH WITH HER FAMILY

•   CAN’T SEEM TO SAVE MONEY, IT SLIPS THROUGH HER FINGERS

•   FEELS DISTRACTED; CAN’T GET THINGS DONE

•   LIVES ON CONVENIENCE FOOD, NO TIME TO COOK

•   GENERALLY DEPRESSED

•   FEELS LIFE WOULD BE BETTER WITH MORE MONEY, MORE TIME

I meet this person all the time in my line of work. My business is to provide personal assistance for modern life. One hundred years ago, people like me were called servants and you could count on us to make your life less complicated.

Our culture doesn’t do servants anymore. No! We do everything ourselves. Have you ever heard the expression having it all? Well, we do. We have it all, and much more than we can ever handle.

The problem is that we don’t know we can’t handle it all. We keep trying to make the program work: the job, and the children, and the shopping, and soccer practice, and church, and bills, and paperwork, and you name it. Somewhere in there, we try to sneak in a little quiet time or, at least, a margarita. Some mornings, we wake up and we don’t have the energy to make the magic happen, yet again. That’s called Depression. If we continue to drag ourselves through this routine, despite Depression, some of us never wake up again. That’s called Death By Stress.

So, what are you supposed to do? You have to make a living, you have to get the kids to soccer, you have to do the Bake Sale, and you have to afford your SUV. And SOMEWHERE in there, you’d like to be able to take a vacation—or at least read a book.

Yes, what about that? What about your desires, dreams and aspirations for life? Is it all going to be toil and drudgery, just you, running like a hamster on a wheel until you retire? Doesn’t sound like much of a life, does it?

There is a way out. You know the way. You just don’t know that you know it. But you will. Keep reading and get ready to do a little (just a little) writing.

If Mama Ain’t Happy, Ain’t Nobody Happy

Perhaps you’ve read this slogan on T-shirts or bumper stickers. I don’t know who wrote it, but it’s brilliant. What’s more,