Coffee Talk Tuesday #117

Happy Tuesday! It’s been a hectic 2019 already and I’m so on board for some coffee.

If we were having coffee together today, I’d tell you that I totally SPILLED COFFEE on my computer yesterday. In the middle of my coordinator skype call. While I was talking. I tried to play it chill, but I’m sure I looked like a spaz. This ridiculous stuff happens, right? I was SO annoyed at the time. I haven’t been a good girl when it comes to backing up data, so I legit panicked. Luckily, my husband does IT/client support and he came to the rescue to help me back it up before turning it over to let the coffee drip. I hope it can be salvaged. Fingers crossed for me! Oh, and don’t worry – I made a fresh pot of coffee. Naturally, I spilled my BIGGEST CUP EVER of coffee on my computer.

Related, if we were having coffee together today, I’d tell you that this is an excellent time to start getting rid of files. Luckily, a lot of my super important work items are in the cloud, but I do design and content creation work for different companies, and I didn’t want to risk losing this. I’m currently uploading everything to various google drive and dropbox locations so I don’t freak out if (when?) it happens again.

It also made me think about the KonMari method. I recently viewed all of the Tidying Up episodes (tidy up your space, transform your life), and a couple of things struck me:

1) I’ve unknowingly been following this method for most of my life. With moving so frequently, I’ve become very good at only keeping those items that “bring me joy.” I have a blue storage tote that contains smaller boxes inside it. This is for my mementos, items that are not clothing/books/papers, but bring me joy. If it doesn’t fit in the box, I didn’t move it from place to place. This has also been easier for me with things like clothes and books — I didn’t like moving SO much stuff, so I’ve only kept those items that are meaningful to me.

2) Being tidy will change your life. If you live in a constant state of junk and confusion, you’re not setting yourself up for great success. It’s much easier to be creative, think clearly, and be productive in a tidy space. I have things that MUST be done every day for me to have a good/successful day: make the bed, no dishes in the sink (clean them), tidy the entry/living room space, put away all bags, shoes, and clothes that are not getting worn/used the next day.

3) It’s time to KonMari digital files. You know what I mean — those 12,000 photos on your phone, the desktop full of files, those term papers from college (actually, the only paper I’ve kept is my thesis). It’s time to tidy up those areas, too. Spilling coffee on my computer has me in full KonMari mode for this. I have so many flyers I’ve created, so many workout videos (I hit 100 this week!), workout plans, so many music files. It’s time to be methodical and keep only what still brings me joy.

If we were having coffee together today, I’d talk about this last part — I like to create things. Over the years, I’ve created hundreds of event flyers, digital images, content for various businesses — and while I’ve kept most of it, I tend to start fresh when it comes to a new item. Meaning, I like starting from scratch, blank canvas. Sure, it’s silly to reinvent the wheel when you’ve already created something that works. I have created templates for various things, especially those items I create frequently. But starting fresh allows me to change the way I look at the item, and consider the possibilities, so I’m not influenced by something I’ve already created. If you’re a designer or content creator, do you do this, too?

It’s sometimes painful, but I like going back and seeing some of the items I’ve created in the past. I saw this once — “If you don’t look back at your old work and cringe, you’re not growing,” — something along those lines. I like that idea, and I think that’s why I’ve kept a lot of my old items. I’ve had several computers over the years, so some of my work has been lost. With the work that I’ve kept, it’s neat to see how much I’ve evolved or matured into my own creativity.

If we were having coffee together today, I’d tell you that yours truly has taken on yet another project – Dance with the Stars! Year 5, baby! I’m excited to participate again. Please vote for Team Jon & Aundra and hey, I’d even love to see you at the event. Details here. Click the link for tickets — it’s a link for the event but also to vote! I’ll share our progress with you before the event on Feb 2.

This has been one hectic year already, so let’s call it a day for now. I hope to see you for a fitness class! New schedule posted here.