I realized that I have more bad habits than previously thought.

A couple quick examples. My desk is clear, in this way you are tempted to sit down and be proactive with ideas rather than simply doing paperwork which is code for filing the past away.

Proactive means jotting down a few notes for an upcoming talk. Be it a speech or practiced lines when you interview with future teni or text for the next ad.

However, I seem to always have that last group of papers that I am working on. (Why are they never finished?)

Well, I went to clean the garage and froze. Could not do it. I love cleaning but I simply wasn't moving. I realized after a lifetime that cleaning amounts to moving everything out, then rearranging some major items, then slowly putting everything back in. This brings me joy....however for the first time ever I noticed that I was short on room.

I then noticed that my cleaning was just another bad habit. I'm cleaning but with only adequate results. At most, I should get credit for sweeping. Had a actually cleaned, I would be adjusting the contents of the garage to the changing needs of the rentals. I've never done that.

Whereas "lease ideas" is a good habit. If I spot a good lease idea I quickly open a Word file and add notes to a page. Save the file. Every so often I review the lease and edit and add new items from the file to the leases.

Can you share how you may have conquered some of your bad habits?

What do you think of rigid schedules? Say wake up at 5 and run or always go to bed before 12am etc etc.

My garage is in chronic disarray.

Was it Einstein who said a clean desk is a sign of a wasted life?

I don't even have a desk! Haha.

My worst habit is saving too many materials. I don't like tossing stuff and then end up buying more because I lost what I saved.

Tossing materials vs saving them is something that goes in cycles.

When you are busy remodeling a home, I recommend you get a big trailer and toss the materials into it. I used to have a trailer with just lumber and plywood. It was only 12' long but if you ever needed something for framing...there it was. Also nothing was ever under your feet and in the way.

Livingthedream tosses ....houses. Every now and again you sell and move.

(this way you can stay one step ahead of the shovel Police)

I noticed that I need to review what I have in storage. All items need to be easy to reach.

Also to be clear.

I use the Webster's definition of desk

Desk /desk/ :

A flat top piece of furniture found in a landlord's dining room

A counter in a hotel, bank, or airport at which a customer may check in for the annual landlord convention

A flat table next to a reclining soft chair where Brad20,000 puts his feet up while looking at pictures of his tool belt that he used to wear.

A "clean", organized or almost empty garage is a sign of something wrong with the owner....

Our goal was to clean out the accumulated stuff in our garage this summer. But like all the previous summers, once we start parking outside, we start dropping thing (temp storage) in the garage. So once again, winter is coming and we are scrambling to at least clean enough room to get the trucks inside. Like every other year.

I keep thinking I need to clean and organize my sewing /craft room... I walk in, look around, get overwhelmed and find something else to do! Of which there is plenty.

I spend many years getting up early, doing chores, going to work in the IT office, coming home to work at the rentals and raised a family. Hit the ground running every morning.

Now that I "retired", I have no use for the rigid schedule. There is usually enough time for another tea before I go do my stuff! I am OK with that. When ever I think about getting a job, I remember it means I will have to be somewhere at a specific time and that takes care of that thought! I can plan a day or week ahead. Happy to help others get their stuff done and still chip away at my stuff.

I keep thinking about this subject. The fact that something changed and clicked in the last weeks interests me.

In short, I'm simply as lazy as the day is long. I can't exhaust any energy at all looking for something. I want to be able to walk right up to it.

When I started stocking my appliance barn, I realized that I could in fact keep just three washers, three dryers, three fridges, three stoves, two camels, two horses, two goats, two chickens (no wait,...I'm mixing stories...forget the ark and lets get back to the appliance barn).

I use a lot of used appliances. However, I've noticed that I used to keep the hard to fix models as well as the easy fix models. All the hard to fix stuff needs to scrap.

That thought had me revisit other things that are stored.

HVAC registers. Seldom or never use them. I stopped putting in central HVAC. If I have an ugly rusty register, we quick paint it. I can then replace it on the next visit.

Wood trim, Very easy to organize, stack, and store. It stays.

Windows...well due to their cost, they will stay a bit longer but I hope to find them a home.

Old doors. They have saved my neck over the years many times. Their numbers are fading. I think when they are gone I won't stock anymore. Flat easy storage

Light fixtures. Oh brother. The classic easy to find item that doesn't get used as quickly as you find another. Learned my lesson there.

I read a quote a long time ago that says "stuff will expand to fill the available void" the bigger the void, the bigger pile of stuff. The older I get the more truth I have seen in this statement.

I used to save everything and then occasionally get fed up and throw it all out, usually after I spent an hour or more trying to find something I know was in there. I found that it was a vicious circle wasting time and energy storing and then purging. Now I keep very little.

I have a few rules when I'm done remodeling a unit.

Anything new is returned to HD/Lowes.

Building material, nothing less than 3/4 of original is saved (IE: 3/4 sheet of plywood) and no more of one of the same size/thickness.

Everything taken out of a unit (lights, fixtures, cabinets, etc) is taken to the Habitat store. If I need one I'll go back and buy it later.

Paint, if it isn't my standard color and more than 1/4 of a 5 gallon bucket it goes away.

Appliances, don't usually keep them. I limit my storage space to a 1 car garage with lots of shelves. My tools get space first, the loaner AC's and heaters get 2nd, one plastic each for painting, plumbing, electrical, and cleaning. Any space left then I can store a little stuff.

About all I religiously keep are specialized parts that I can't easily get replacements for.

Now that I don't let it get out of control in the first place, I find I am much happier and don't waste a lot of time and energy managing it.

Thanks for sharing that.

Managing it. I've been concerned about this recently. Managing in my case has meant relocating storage over the years.

A huge success was to build an hardware store shed. No tools, just plumbing, electrical, fasteners. Very organized and centrally located.

I then built an appliance shed. Same concept but it was simply too small and filled. Lots of used appliances are used. The appliance shed had power for testing however you were making quick repairs outside and not inside.

It was still counted in the win column as it had easy access for helpers - eliminating the need for me to be around when appliances needed to be swapped.

Everything else was in "deep storage". It took effort to go and get what you needed. Less effort than going to the store but it didn't motivate anyone to complete repairs faster.

Now Deep Storage that is being eliminated. There is a 30' by maybe 15' barn which all supplies need to fit into otherwise what doesn't fit gets given away.

Setting up a workshop space now. Many changes happening. I bet one year from today I'll have new lessons that I've learned and understood.