Life Made Simple With Carlarae Motivation Inspiration Home Organizing Time Management Lifestyle & Wellnes

Let's face it, life is kinda complicated sometimes. I love helping people clear out the clutter in their homes, but I also love to help them simplify so many other areas of life. Life just isn't always easy. Who doesn't need a little more simplicity? And one of the main goals of simplifying your life is to - in some ways - help make it a little easier, a little more effortless. And therefore, ultimately, the goal of simplifying your life is to help you discover a greater sense of joy and happiness. Quite often, while coaching my clients when it comes to simplifying each area of their life, we talk a lot about the hurdles and struggles of getting there. We take a look at specific things that get in their way, things that stop them from discovering the true freedom of simplicity... the things that tend to stop them from experiencing the happiness that comes from simplicity. Now, there's numerous different road blocks that prevent people from successfully simplifying their life, but I do find that there are comm

Think of a specific goal that you have in your life. Something that's a challenge and seems like it will take forever to accomplish. Something hard and tedious. Maybe you want to lose weight, make more money, finish a big project. Maybe you want to clean out and organize your entire house. Or maybe your goal isn't something huge, but is simply a new habit that you want to form... or a bad habit that you want to break.  Maybe you want to start getting up earlier without pushing the snooze button, or you want to start leaving the house on time instead of 15 minutes late. Maybe you want to exercise more, eat healthier, or you want to stop smoking. Whatever your goal is, it's important to have a reward to focus on in order to motivate you to get there. The problem is, most people think that the only reward should be reaching the goal itself. Like if you want to exercise to lose weight, then being thinner and healthier is the reward. Or if you want to work hard to get a promotion, then the promotion is the reward.

As a Home Organizer, I help people clear out their clutter. Clutter in their time and schedules, their to-do lists, their relationships, and mostly I help people clear out the clutter in their homes. I not only deal with the physical aspects of clutter, but I specialize in the psychological aspects as well. The truth is, I can help someone clean out and organize their home, but if we don't deal with the psychological side of their clutter problem, the clutter always seems to come back. Unfortunately, clutter is not always an easy problem to solve. It sometimes seems like it should be, but it's just not. Sure, if you were to walk into someone else's cluttered house and look around, you'd probably think to yourself, "Wow, this is a lot of stuff! Do they really need all this? I'm sure most of it isn't even that important. I'm sure it would be a piece of cake to get rid of all this junk and clear this place out!" Yes, it's easy to view other people's clutter as useless or insignificant, but when it comes to our o

I am going to share with you a couple tips on how to keep your kitchen counters clutter-free. First, did you know that there are two different types of clutter that you might have in your kitchen? The first type are the items sitting around on your counters that belong in the kitchen. Like kitchen items and food that actually have - or should have - a home in the kitchen. Things that should be put away in cabinets and drawers. You might have this type of clutter for 3 different reasons... 1) Those particular items don't have specific homes to be put away in. 2) The items have specific homes, but the cabinet or drawer is so disorganized that they don't fit. 3) The items have homes, there's room for them, but you just haven't taken the time to put them there. Those three reasons apply to the type of clutter on your counters that actually belong in the kitchen. If the first two apply, it simply means you need to re-organize... you need to clean out, take inventory, and rearrange all those cabinets, drawers, and

Life Made Simple is a show dedicated to helping you find simplicity in ALL areas of your life. For 15 years I've been helping families clear the chaos and clutter out of their homes. But you know what? Relationships in our lives can be messy, too! Am I right? Whether it be with your significant other, your parents, your kids, your friends, even your coworkers, relationships are complicated and even chaotic at times. And no matter how "good" your relationship is with someone, there are definitely times when they can be a little messy... and in some unfortunate cases A LOT messy. And along with any kind of messiness in life comes stress and anxiety. Which then weighs down our heart, negatively effects our health, and clouds our happiness. So, on this episode of Life Made Simple, I'm don't talk about how to simplify your house or your schedule. We take a look at one amazing technique to simplify your relationships. I practice this technique in my own life with many different kinds of relationships and believe me

Too often, I work with people who feel discouraged that they haven't reached all the dreams and goals that they thought they would, by the time they hit their 40's, 50's or even 60's. When they were younger they had great aspirations that, for whatever reason, have faded into the distance. On today's episode, I show you that it doesn't matter how old you are, it's never too late to be successful in anything you aspire to do. I also give you a few examples of people who found success and pursued their dreams later in life. You see, you don't have to have everything figured out by your 30's... it's NEVER too late. All you have to do is take that first step, don't give up, stay positive, and keep going. Just do it! Why not?!? One of my favorite quotes: "Happiness, success, peace, and love are experienced when we live accordingly. They are not something you have, they are something you DO." So, dream your dreams, imagine the endless possibilities waiting out there for you, and then get out there and just do it. I

This is essentially Part 2 of Episode #8 when I explained you how to make a "Perfect Day Itinerary." You may want to listen to that episode before you listen to this one. Even though we're a fairly new show, over the past few weeks we've been getting some great topic ideas and questions from our listeners. And you know what? I absolutely LOVE hearing from you! As you might already know, I've been a professional home organizer, a time management specialist and lifestyle coach for the past 15 years... and it's not just my job, but it's my passion to help you simplify all areas of your life. I'm here for YOU! This podcast show is for YOU! So please, please, please, let me know exactly what YOU want to hear more about. Just go to CarlaRaeArneson.com/AskCarlaRae . Every once in awhile on the Life Made Simple Podcast, we will have a special "Ask CarlaRae" episode where I can take time to answer some of those questions you send me. Today episode, is our very first "Ask CarlaRae" episode. Here is a message I received

At some point in your life, I'm sure you've heard some sort of version of the famous saying, "You can never have too much of a good thing." But, can you? Can you have too much of a good thing? Think about it... Can you have too much money? Can you have too much fun? Too much kindness? Too much time? Now I'm sure if we were to really analyze and apply this statement to all areas of life, we could come up with pros and cons to both sides of the argument. But then this episode would take hours... and since it's a "3 Minute Thursday" Episode, we don't have that kind of time. Today, we take a quick look at applying this phrase to only one area of your life... my question for you is: Can you really have too much of a good thing when it comes to special things in your home. Before you think of your opinion on the matter, listen to the quick story I share that will hopefully give you a little different perspective that you might not have considered before. You see, when you have too many good things they can devalue

I am going to share with you one very important habit that I recently formed this past year of my life that has been - believe it or not - a total GAME CHANGER for me. And I believe it can be for you, as well! This is definitely an episode you don't want to miss! On today's episode, we take a look at something that may seem boring and unnecessary to some, but it's actually a secret to success for many people out there who are living abundant lives. Today, we are going to talk about the importance of making time for personal development. So what exactly is "personal development." Well, the more common name for it is actually "self-help". (Yes, I can imagine you must be cringing right now... but please stick with me and let me explain.) I know that the self-help genre has a huge stigma attached to it. To many it sounds super cheesy and lame. And why is that? Well, the term "self-help" negatively implies that you must need help... because there must be something wrong with you. And no one wants to look at those

Have you ever heard of Lewis Howes? The lifestyle entrepreneur and New York Times bestselling author? He recently published an amazing book called The School of Greatness: A Real-World Guide to Living Bigger, Loving Deeper, and Leaving a Legacy. I absolutely LOVE this book! So much so that you'll definitely hear me refer to it in future episodes. Today I share with you one powerful exercise that Lewis mentions in his book. And it's actually an exercise that I've practiced many times this past year in my own life. It's called a Perfect Day Itinerary. Yes, it's exactly what the name says it is... it's making an itinerary for a perfect day. In this episode I explain exactly how this works and how to apply it to your life. I have a free worksheet that you can download and fill out for this exercise. In the download I include an example of my Perfect Day Itinerary, so you can get a better idea of how to do it. Just go to CarlaRaeArneson.com/8download. You can also text the phrase PERFECTDAY to the number 44222. If

While I am a professional home organizer, I'm here to talk about gaining control of not just your home, not just your time and to-dos, but also your attitude and outlook on life, your relationships, and so much more. This podcast show is dedicated to help and support you in simplifying ALL areas of your life. And on today's episode, we talk about how to gain control over your health. During this episode, I give you a 3-Day Jumpstart plan on how to be a healthier you.... which of course, leads to a happier you! If you're like me, and most other people that I know, you have ambitions to be healthier. Now I know that the word health can have different meanings to different people. Not only does it refer to physical wellness, but it also refers to mental wellness. This jumpstart plan covers both, because the truth is, they overlap. Your physical and mental well-being go hand in hand. This 3-Day Jumpstart to Good Health is meant to be for everyone, no matter what your health, diet, or exercise goals are. Do you wa

On today's "3 Minute Thursday" episode,  I share with you a HUGE eye-opener that I had after coming home from our last big vacation. My husband and I LOVE to travel, but I have to admit, I haven't always been the most savvy packer. I used take hours to pack for every trip and I would pack WAY too much stuff... always with the idea of "what if I need that" or "I'll pack this just in case." Recently, when we were getting ready for a trip to Maui, my husband gave me a challenge: he wanted us to only bring one carry-on per person. No checked baggage at all! I succeeded in keeping it pretty minimal and we spent 10 days living out of one small bag per person. And you know what? It was amazing! Then, when we got home and I started to unpack, I had a huge epiphany that pushed me to the next level of wanting to simplify my life.   Links Mentioned in this Show: Website: CarlaRaeArneson.com Free Guide:  "9 Ways to Simplify Your Life"   (CarlaRaeArneson.com/freeguide) Share this Podcast: LifeMadeSimplePodcast.com Share

This week's episode focuses on simplifying and organizing your home. If you don't already know, I have been a professional home organizer for over 15 years in Seattle... and I've seen it all! I've worked with so many different kinds of people. I've worked with packrats, hoarders, even minimalists, people from different countries and cultures, different backgrounds and careers, families, the elderly, children, bachelors, even a rocket scientist! And through it all, I've learned that everyone is sooooo different, with different personalities, different preferences, and different temperaments. I've really had to come up with various action plans and solutions to custom fit each family and individual. But, even though my organizing sessions are different depending on the unique client I have that day, there are still a handful of tips and tricks that are tried and true... strategies that I consistently use with everyone. It's those top tips and tricks that I talk all about in this show. I also reveal the "5 Steps

This is our very first "3 Minute Thursday" episode of the Life Made Simple Podcast! What do you have on your to-do list right now that you've been avoiding because it just makes you cringe? Any daunting awful chores that you keep putting off, but you KNOW they really need to get done? Maybe it's a pile of dirty laundry, a sink full of dirty dishes, or days worth of mail to sort through. On today's brief episode, I introduce you to a simple solution that might help: a timer. Just a simple timer... maybe an old kitchen egg timer, a stop watch, or even just a simple app on your phone. While it does seem really simple - and I'm sure you've heard of this technique before - setting a timer to tackle certain chores can help keep you focused, motivated and targeted on the individual task at hand. I also mention a book written by Francesco Cirillo called the Pomodoro Technique. The book pretty much offers a method in which you take a series of 25 minute work sessions with 5 minute breaks. He calls those "pomodoros",

This is Part 2 to last week's episode, "Why Is Change So Hard?" If you haven't already, I encourage you to go back and listen it first. During that show we explore the reasons why it can be so hard to make good changes in our lives, even when we know that the change we want to make will help us to be happier people.   Reaching goals that we want to accomplish, whether it be de-cluttering, weight loss, maybe a new career path - everything that we know we want or need to do in order to have a life that's fuller, happier, healthier -  they all take work and effort, and discipline... and if we think or know that the effort and work is going to be hard, we tend to default to not make the change, stay the way we are, stuck in the same old bad habits, because sometimes it just feels easier. Because change is sometimes scary and hard. In that episode (#2), we also talked about questions to ask yourself to figure out if all the hard work to make a change for the good in your life is worth it or not. Yes, de-clutterin

As a Professional Home Organizer and lifestyle coach, it is not only my job, but it is my passion to help people make changes in their lives and homes to become happier and healthier. I've always considered myself to be an advocate for change. But, unfortunately, change isn't easy - for any of us - even if it's for the good. In this episode of Life Made Simple - Episode#2 I plan on taking a look at exactly WHY it is so hard to make good changes in our lives. All of us in our lives have something that we wish would be different... something that we wish would be better.  We all have bad habits that we wish we could change. It could be something regarding family, like maybe you want to be more patient as a parent or be a better spouse. Or maybe you want to make a change in your home, like get it more organized, keep a  cleared off kitchen counter, or keep up with your laundry. Maybe the change you want has something to do with your career. Or even your finances. Maybe you want to stop wasting money and start s

Since episode #0 was an introduction to who I am and what I do, this quick and brief episode is meant to give you an introduction to the Life Made Simple Podcast, what it's all about, and what to expect in future episodes. While simplicity is the Life Made Simple Podcast's theme, the categories that we're going to talk about are going to be all areas of life: Home (de-cluttering all rooms of your house, including paper piles) Time (managing all your to-dos and how to schedule them) Health (diet, exercise, and even weight-loss goals) Relationships (marriage, parenting, friendships) Mind (your mood, attitudes, outlooks, values, negative vs. positive thinking and so on). The goal of this podcast is to explore the idea of finding simplicity in all areas of our life.  During future episodes, we'll be talking about and learning together how to let go of what's holding us back from being who we want to be and focus on only the things that bring us true happiness. You can expect to hear a brand new episode every M

Welcome to the very first podcast episode of Life Made Simple! My name is CarlaRae Arneson, and I want to give a huge thank you to everyone who has been encouraging me and pushing me to get this podcast up and going and off the ground! It's definitely been a work in progress and I'm so excited that it's finally happening. This particular episode is where you get to hear all about me, what I do, and why I'm now the host of this podcast show, Life Made Simple. I'm originally from Alameda, California down in the San Francisco Bay Area. I now live in beautiful Seattle, Washington with my amazing husband Eric, our little son, Levi, and our new rescued puppy, Bode. You'll definitely hear a lot more about my family and the crazy - but fun - life that we lead in future episodes. I've been a professional home organizer and time management coach for almost 15 years with my Home Management Consulting business in Seattle, called Loose Ends. Throughout the years of helping families cut back on chaos and clear the clutter