Is your home a mess? Are you always losing things like your keys or your phone? Can you find those important documents at tax time? Are you always doing things at the last minute because you can’t find what you need to complete a task? Take back control of your space and get organized!

Being organized is learning the process of arranging things and keeping them in order. And being organized and tidy is not just a good thing because your Mom told you so! It saves you time and money and lets you get on with doing the things you want to do.

Here are six reasons why being organized is important.

1. You will have more time
   Being messy and disorganized is a major time-suck. How much time have you wasted looking through a cluttered closet looking for that other shoe? Or that important letter that you know you put on the kitchen counter and now can’t find? It’s better to spend some time assigning a proper place for everything and making sure you put things in the right...

Did you know that a whopping 85 percent of people have low-esteem? This issue affects their personal and professional lives, including their careers, their health, and their salaries. In other words, self-doubt and low self-esteem can keep you from reaching your peak potential.

These personality traits appear to be more common among women. They develop in childhood and either exacerbate or diminish with time. If self-doubt plagues you, check out these tips to boost your confidence and trust yourself more:

Accept Yourself

Self-doubt is part of being human. Embrace it and turn it into a strength. When used correctly, this personality trait can help you make better decisions, instead of rushing things. Think of it as a tool that guides your actions and keeps you from making costly mistakes.

Just make sure you don't overuse it though because self-doubt can also make you question your sanity and decision-making abilities.

Know You're Not Alone

Even the most successful people have...

Self-awareness exercises can help us to become conscious of our primitive and self-destructive thoughts, beliefs, ideas, assumptions, and choices. When we are self-aware, we become more peaceful, loving, and intelligent beings. Not only do we stop suffering, but the people in our lives stop reacting to our self-imposed misery. Instead, they find more peace also.

Listed below are few of the self-awareness exercises and activities, as well as tips to cultivate your gratitude practice.

Journal about what you are grateful for

Writing down a few things you are grateful for is probably the easiest and most popular gratitude exercise available.

The purpose of the exercise is to remember 3-5 things you were particularly grateful for when you look back on your day. In this way, you are completely focused on all the good things that happened to you, rather than the negative or the issues that caused you stress. When we practice gratitude, we are more at ease and expect more good things to...

Having a cluttered space, whether it’s your office desk or your home (or both) can feel overwhelming. If you have stuff everywhere and no idea of what you have, it can feel impossible to deal with and out of control.

Here are some tips to help you take back control of your space and declutter.

1. Commit to a Goal

Part of the overwhelm is due to the feeling you have to deal with all the stuff straight away. You don’t. You just need a plan and a commitment to sort and throw away a reasonable amount of stuff every day. Once you do your daily ration, you’ll feel so much better because you’re getting on with it in a systematic way.

2. Do a Clean Sweep

Take a box of garbage bags and do a walk through your home and just pick up anything that’s garbage like circulars, newspapers, wrappers. With the trash out of the way, you can get on with the real decluttering.

3. Do one room or area at a time.

Depending on how you’re feeling, this could be the worst...

To cultivate an attitude of gratitude, we have to take time from our busy day and remember to give thanks for all the blessings that keep coming our way on a daily basis. Gratitude keeps us focused on what we have rather than all the things we don't have, which keeps us in a victim mentality.

We may not realize that gratitude is a choice and that it doesn't come easily to many of us. Most of us were taught as children to say "thank you" when someone gave us a present or did something nice for us. But after a while, “thank you” can become quite glib unless we learn ways to cultivate the attitude of gratitude. Practicing gratitude is also a skill which is never too late to develop.

Here are some things to keep in mind to develop an attitude of gratitude:

Express Gratitude

When you are grateful for the things that you have and express gratitude, it takes it to another level and opens the door to feeling optimistic. Optimism is a skill that can be cultivated and one of the...

Every year more and more books and guides are published on how to help you achieve your goals. Some focus on particular areas like losing weight, giving up sugar, or setting up your own business. Others have a personal development approach to building a more positive mindset or changing destructive behavior patterns. Many authors share their own experiences of overcoming adversity or dealing with setbacks to create a successful life.

Here are some of the most popular books by authors who are leaders in their field.

1. The Slight Edge: Turning Simple Disciplines into Massive Success & Happiness, Jeff Olson
   Olsen’s book encourages you to change your mindset and make daily choices that help you reach your goals. Creating small daily habits adds up to major life changes.
   
   
2. Better Than Before: What I Learned About Making and Breaking Habits—to Sleep More, Quit Sugar, Procrastinate Less, and Generally Build a Happier Life, Gretchen Rubin.
   Rubin is a happiness expert. Her book...

There are so many apps for your smartphone, computer, and tablet that will help you stay in control of your life. Here are a few of the most recommended apps.

1. KonMari
   The Queen of organization and decluttering, Marie Kondon, inventor of the KonMari method, has an official app to help you stay on top of your tidying. Exclusively for iPhones, this app includes a supportive community, exclusive news, checklists and a progress dashboard. The checklists will help you track your progress as you tidy the five key categories of the KonMari method: clothing, books, papers, komono or miscellaneous, and sentimental items.
   
   Future features include a connection to KonMarie Certified Consultants in your area to help and support you. http://konmari.com/products/app/
   
   2. Procrasterapp
   The Procrasterapp helps you outsmart yourself. Maybe you find yourself making lists you don’t use, or downloading organization apps that you don’t open, or intending to be more organized but never actually...

Getting organized is not just a good idea because your mom said so. There are lots of benefits to being in control and developing a clutter-free lifestyle.

1. Less stress
   When organized you are automatically less stressed, you know where your keys, wallet, important papers, phone charger and phone are. Similarly, if your project plan is up to date and you complete your reports on time, there’s no need to worry about on-the-spot requests for project updates or meetings.
2. More time
   Planning your time and keeping up-to-date means you can allocate time for everything in your life, including downtime. Being organized means, you won’t get sidetracked or panicked by not being able to find important items. You’ll be punctual and more productive.
3. Ready for the unexpected
   You can be prepared for last-minute requests or deadlines because you’re not distracted by untidiness or the mental cloud of not being quite sure where things stand. That is true for everything from...

Taking action is the most important step to success. No matter what you have in mind, it's impossible to predict the outcome unless you get started in the first place.

From launching a business to booking a trip and growing your income, it's all about taking action. Even though there is no guarantee that you'll succeed, you can never know unless you try.

Need more proof? Here are four benefits of being an action taker:

Encourages Empowerment and Learning

Action takers are constantly learning new things. They experiment with different strategies, brainstorm ideas, and innovate. When they fail, they learn from their mistakes. This loop improves their confidence and self-esteem while helping them develop the skills needed to succeed.

Actions Create Habits

New actions require new habits. For example, if you start your own business, you must commit to your clients and complete projects on time. That takes planning and preparation. Over time, you will become more organized and manage...

We all know that goal-oriented people are more successful, happier, and more productive. But setting and keeping goals is a skill, and like any skill, there’s a right way to do it. One thing you might find helpful is separating your goals into behavior-based and outcome-based models. There are a few differences between the two, and knowing which is which can be key.

Behavior-Based Goals

Behavior-based goals are typically changes you make to how you act. For instance, handling stress better, being nicer to others, and spending less time procrastinating are all examples of behavior-based goals. They focus on how you personally feel and behave, rather than just looking purely at the outcome of your actions.

Behavior-based goals play into outcome-based goals, but they aren’t the same. When you change how you think and feel, often you’ll notice a change in results. But that’s not the focus, it’s just a pleasant side-effect.

In order to make behavior-based...