Tag Archive for: Marie Kondo

How to Be a Part-Time Minimalist

Living in New York (or any big city) forces a person to be minimalistic when it comes to their stuff. There’s barely enough space for the things I need, let alone the things I don’t need! It’s why I’m such a huge fan of Marie Kondo, she helps you to hold on to the things that spark the most joy,  and get rid of all the stuff that doesn’t.

However, it was only when my appendix burst that I began to adopt minimalism as more of a way of life, as opposed to just a way to deal with clutter.

But what does that actually mean?

Minimalism isn’t about getting rid of everything you own or leaving everyone you know to travel around the world. It’s more about getting back to basics, relying less on material needs or obsessing over the desire to have it all. Read more

Listful Thinking Turns Two!

Do you ever get one of those Timehop things on Facebook where a picture pops up that you could’ve sworn you posted not that long ago, when it turns out it’s from two years ago!! I’m having one of those moments today as it’s been two years since my book Listful Thinking came out.

Where has that time gone?

I had to make a list:

  • There was that time I met  Marie Kondo and it sparked joy.
  • My appendix exploded.
  • Then I developed an online course with my friend Terri Trespicio called Lights Camera Expert to help entrepreneurs, experts and authors get and keep media attention.  
  • I continued to hear great feedback about a keynote speech for New York Women in Communications.
  • Listful Thinking has been translated into 10 languages! The different titles and covers of the various international versions of my book all give me a small insight into the cultures they represent. A prime example of this is the Japanese cover which features an adorable robot. Plus there’s now a new language to add to the ongoing list – Korean!

I’m excited to announce the next step in the Listful Thinking journey. I’m launching a brand new course called Listful Thinking Masterclass. It’s designed to help you set up a real system to get more done than ever.

I’ll be personally leading the course each week to give you guidance and tackle the big issues that are stifling your productivity like distractions and procrastination.  Check it out here. I can help you make this your most productive year yet!

8 Books to Turn Your Productivity Around

love reading! Not just because I enjoy learning about new things or ideas, but because I find it fascinating how a book can seep into your daily mindset.

If I’m really interested in a book I will often find that the concepts within the book will appear all around me. Friends will bring up a issues that relate to key themes in the book or I’ll face a problem at work similar to issues brought up in the book.

It’s for this reason that productivity books can be so good for you. While you may not implement all the practices suggested it at least gets you thinking about the different approaches to getting things done. You might even think of a way to adapt one of the ideas in the book to be more suitable for your lifestyle. Read more

Coming soon: Listful Thinking Audio Book

PaulaAudioI have some exciting news to share with you. I just recorded the audiobook version of Listful Thinking. I love listening to audiobooks, I find it to be so much more time effective. So it seems only natural that Listful Thinking would work in audio form.

However, actually reading my book out loud did lead me to think about some of the things that work on printed paper, but don’t really translate to the audio format.

For example when I talk about visiting Paris in my book, I mention some restaurants and what street they’re on. Now while I do love France, I know that my French isn’t particularly good. Read more

Marie Kondo Sparks Joy in Person

Paula with Marie

Paula with Marie

Who knew watching someone fold clothes could be so mesmerizing?  

I sat with a packed audience at the 92nd Street Y in New York City on a Friday night as Marie Kondo folded oddly-shaped clothing carefully and slowly.  

She’s the author of “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing.” Her newest book and the reason for this gathering is called, “Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up.”

Watching her fold never got old.  (I didn’t mean to rhyme there but I was just feeling that sentence and it’s true.) The whole room was in a collective trance — Marie had our full attention.

She folded up one side of a shirt and then the other and created a small origami-esque package again and again.

Everyone was fixated on the tiny woman, who was wearing a white top and skirt with black tights, work her magic.  

It was like watching Michelangelo paint the Sistine Chapel ceiling.  

A real craftsman at work.   Read more