Ep 36 - Productivity Tips: Featuring Alana Frost
In this episode of The Tidy Revival Podcast listeners gain valuable insights and practical tips from Alana Frost, founder of Alana's Organizing and an experienced professional organizer. Alana talks about the common challenges people face during big life transitions and how she helps her clients create sustainable systems that work for them. The episode also covers Alana's tips on getting more done at home without adding to your to-do list, including the importance of creating routines, simplifying living spaces, and delegating tasks.
You can listen right here, on Apple, Amazon, Spotify or you can read the transcription below. Enjoy!
Carly: I am here today with Alana Frost from Alana's Organizing, and we're gonna be talking about getting more done at home without adding to your to-do list. And I'm just gonna jump on in Alana, tell us who you are and what you do in the world.
Alana: Well, thank you for having me Carly. I am Alana. I have my organizing business in San Diego, and I just love helping women and their families during these transitions in their life. Helping them get settled and, transitions of moving, transitions of, babies and kids, and all the things that happen in your day-to-day life. And so, that's what I do and I love helping them have more peace in their life so that they can spend more time doing things that they care about, things that matter most.
Carly: Love it. Love it. What draws you specifically to like the transitional times in your life? I know I didn't send you this question, but I love that so much because they can be extra tough times, Yeah. How did that kind of come about as something that you wanted to hone in on a little bit?
Alana: I always thought, okay, well I'm starting my business and everyone's gonna want their pantry done.
Carly: same same.
Alana: I thought, oh, okay, I'm gonna do pantry makeovers.
What I realized is that I would get a lot of calls from women that were in these transitions in their life. I got a lot of phone calls from people that needed their whole house done or they were moving and they wanted this personalized experience, someone working side by side with them.
All of these people and mostly women, were going through something, They were getting divorced or, they had kids and, they were in this transition of, moving into a new home, getting their kids situated, and, dealing with the two-parent household needing someone to help create this calmness not just in their house, but like while they're going through this difficult transition. it was this emotional transition, this physical transition, and
they wanted to be organized, they wanted calm. And that's when I thought, okay, well I need to look at this from a different aspect and not just the bins and the baskets, but more from an emotional place of where they're at in their life.
I just realized like, okay, well yes there's organization, yes, there's, maybe packing or unpacking and organizing involved. But it wasn't just about making things look pretty. It was about helping them make sense of everything while they were going through this difficult transition in their life.
Carly: Yeah. And as people reached out to you And I know that these type of things comes up a lot in the work that I do too, but I'm curious to hear from you, like, can you share some of the common phrases or sentiments that you hear from your clients when they first reach out to you about like how they're feeling and what the stressors are?
Alana: Yeah. So, I think there are two situations. There are the people that call when they're, they need to move, and then people that call who just need help with organizing. So you know, when you know these women call that they're moving, they'll say things like, I just can't do this, or I just, I need help. Like, I don't have time. I just, like, I can't do this. I have to work. I've got kids. There's just no way I can do this on my own. , or if they just looking for general organization, it's, they're just like, I'm sick of looking at this, they're, they're sick of looking at, whatever it is, like stuff in their kids' room or, maybe they have a particular room in the house, they're just throw everything in, they're like, I just, I've tried different things and I just can't do it. Or I just don't want to do this. I want it done, but I don't wanna do this. I just want a professional, I want an expert to come in here and fix this.
Carly: Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. That's what I'm hearing folks say as well.
And I think what it ends up boiling down to is that overwhelm, which is hard.
Alana: Yeah. Yeah. I mean it's like everyone has the desire to have this ideal home. and they have goals of getting there one day. In this modern world that we live in, everything's very fast-paced, and everyone's life is full.
They don't have the time to dedicate to coming up with a plan. Putting the pieces together. Yeah. , dealing with the logistics of the family in the house, and, okay, what products do I need and what's the best solution? It becomes this thing where there are so many little pieces to it that they just don't have time for it.
And then over months or years of just putting it off and being frustrated. They're just like, I can't do this. And not only can I not do this, but I need this done now because I'm sick of having it on my mind and I'm sick of looking at it.
Carly: Yeah, you're just fed up at that point.
That's gonna bring us to what I know you're here to talk about getting more done at home without adding to your to-do list.
So I'm just gonna let you have the floor, cause I know you've got tips for us and I know people wanna hear it so that they can move past the feeling of overwhelming, get their stuff done.
Alana: Well. Well, well, let me tell you so. I will first say that I'm not a person to, I'm not one of those organizers who forces their clients to get rid of things.
So I will say that. But when it comes to getting more done, I think that it boils down to like simplification and, regardless of. The family dynamic, whether there are kids or little kids, teenagers, whatever. When we talk about getting more done, it's not necessarily
adding twice our workload and getting all of that done. But it's really about covering these bases that we have in our house. So, okay, well I wanna get more done. I wanna get the kitchen, the laundry done, and the bathroom clean, organize these rooms, or just regularly make sure all your areas are covered.
The best thing to do in that situation is you've got to simplify, and that doesn't mean throwing everything away, but it does mean having a reason why you have something in your house. And I will tell you, like when I first got married, it was. It was rough. My husband and I before we got married, both lived in our own place and overnight we had to merge two households together.
And he didn't wanna get rid of anything.
Carly: No one at home can see my laugh, but. Oh my goodness.
Alana: I hear this a lot. I'm telling you, it's crazy. I thought, I didn't realize that was gonna be a problem, but I'm like, well, we have to get rid of some stuff because, like, okay. You have a master bedroom, I have a master bedroom.
We're only gonna have one master bedroom, so, okay. Even things like the mattress or the furniture, we had to consolidate. When you have household members, you have to be considerate of them. It's really frustrating when you're on a different page than everyone else.
It's not an overnight process, but like gradually over time, there has to be this cutting down of stuff. And so like something that I did, we said okay, well we're not gonna throw anything out because that just wasn't an option at the time. But we put all the extra stuff that didn't really fit into storage.
We had a shed out in the back and we just put everything there. , six months would go by and it's like, Hey, I guess we don't need some of this stuff. Let's have a yard sale. And little by little it was like my husband was okay with getting rid of things because he could see that we just didn't need them. And so I think we had three yard sales. And on the third one I said, okay, well whatever we don't sell, it's going to donate. Yeah. And after. I don't even remember what I donated. Like it's just gone. And ever since then, our house is just more simplified and streamlined. So I think just, getting simple, that's like the first step.
And once you have everything simple, you have to have a routine. It's not something like one without the other. As they go together, they're equally important in having things simple and then having a routine to go with it. Because it's an ongoing process. It's something that you have to tend to, and like every day I have my routine.
It's like my house gets dirty every day. There are people that live in it, there's a dog, and so I anticipate that's gonna happen, but there's a place for everything. And I don't have things in the house that I don't use, so that eliminates the clutter. , there's not really any clutter.
Not to say that clutter doesn't accumulate. It does, but it's minimal. And something that I've noticed about having a routine is that when you're going into these areas of your home every day. You're working through your kitchen, you're going through the laundry area, you're going in the bathroom in all these little areas, you get familiar with what's there and what it's doing there.
And okay, we use this every day, or we use this every week. And then you start seeing, okay, I've been like moving this one object around for the last three months and it has no real purpose. So. Let's get rid of this thing, and it just becomes easier to make those decisions about what to get rid of because you're constantly touching bases in all these areas of your home, and it just, it becomes more obvious and then because it's obvious, the decision to make, to do something about it, it's easier.
It's not this overwhelming feeling where you're vacillating like, what should I do? Oh my gosh. Like, should I get rid of this? What? It's not emotional. You're just like, oh, that's that thing that I keep pushing around the counter every day that isn't doing anything. For anyone, it's just there. , so, having that routine and. Knowing what to do on instinct. Instead of waiting, like if you're not in the habit of having a routine, things are gonna pile up and you're going to get overwhelmed. And you'll hear this phrase a lot with different things, but like what you end up doing is reacting instead of responding. So like when you're reacting to stuff, it's just you're not making good decisions. You're not going about it very well. So you know when things are, when you have too much stuff in the house, there's clutter everywhere. You don't have a routine. You start reacting to it, and you may react to it by stuffing it in a closet.
You may react to it by getting frustrated and taking it out on your family. And it just creates this stress and anxiety where it's really more of how you feel and not what's actually happening. Maybe it doesn't take you five hours to clean it, but in your mind, it takes you five hours.
And that's how you're thinking about it.
Carly: To your point with the reactive nature, I'm always telling people when you're doing things like creating homes for things, I'm like, this might sound counterintuitive, but sometimes with our decision making, we just need to stop. And sit, maybe have a cozy beverage and just be able to give something a little bit of thought because when we're in that quick mode of like, that's where it's easier to do what I dub the clutter shuffle where something goes here and then here and then here.
because it's usually like, okay, I need to clear off the table, so I'm gonna put this on the counter. And then later you're like, I need to clear off the counter, so I'm gonna throw this in the cupboard. And then later you're like, I need space in the cupboard, so where is this gonna go? Instead of us having a little bit more of like space to slow down and to be able to think where this should be.
And what is this like, and where am I when I need it? And like that decision making is very different than like, where should this go right now? And I feel like it ends up happening a lot. That thing where it's like, I don't wanna lose it, so I'm gonna put this down right here. But if you times that by a hundred, then you can't find any of the things when you need them because you can't see them.
They're not out in like, a way that's gonna help you recall. There are just a lot of things out at that point, and you're not able to find anything. It's that difference. And it's hard. That's a hard habit to shift out of.
Alana: I think it's interesting how you said like, oh, there's like a hundred of these. Because when you think about it, That's a hundred decisions, that's a hundred thoughts on a daily basis, weekly, whatever. It's just something to fill your mind up. I always love to ask this question when I'm working with clients, I never ask them, do you want this?
I always ask, when do you see yourself using this? Or do you see yourself using this? Like in the next, like, I'll do a timeframe, like in the next six months, because then it takes the emotion out of things and they look at it from more of an objective standpoint, and then they can be the ones to answer for themselves, and then they have to be honest with themselves, like, I'm never going to use this.
I want to, I think about it, I could. But I'm not going to.
Why do that to yourself? We all need less to do. We're looking for relief and the only way to do that is to just peel off the layers.
Yeah. Peel off the things that we have to do every day.
Carly: I was talking with a client today about how we as humans only have like so many. Poops to give every day. Like we just have a max amount. And I don't wanna spend all that decision-making power on things like what I'm going to wear today because it's at the beginning of the day and like I just cannot.
So that's like my biggest motivation for keeping. More of a cold seasonal wardrobe of choices in front of me that reflect what fits me right now, what I feel great in right now, and what is useful for this season. And just pulling from that every day so I can just be like, top bottom go, top bottom go, top bottom go.
And when I first got into it, I was drawn more to like, I'm like, okay, well I guess I'm gonna have a minimalist wardrobe. So I guess it's just gray and black for me, and I'm still enjoying it a little bit, but. As time goes on, I'm like, all right, let's get some pops of color in here. Let's have fun with it and I can switch it up.
But still feel more confident in having that limited selection because it streamlines my morning so much. And anyone who listens to this podcast regularly is like, okay, we get it. Capsule wardrobe, you're into it. Like, got it. I talk about it all the time, but it saved me so much time and energy. I used to spend seriously 45 minutes a day just deciding on my outfit, and now I get that mental bandwidth back and it's that type of energy, but in your whole home.
That I think makes a world of difference when you add up the decision fatigue that's being taken out of your life.
Alana: I love how you said that. I really love that. Like comparing that capsule wardrobe to your house and I don't, I forget because I'm just used to my systems, how they're set up, but that's that capsule mentality.
That's basically what's set up in the house. You. I don't have five sets of dishes. I have one set of dishes and paper plates for when people come over and I've got like, like one small set of mugs and a second one for fun, but like I, I don't have a bunch of things for different scenarios.
I just keep it simple. I don't know. It's nice to think that I would do something fancy all the time for every occasion, but the reality is that I'm too tired to do that. And some, I don't do this, but some of the clients that I've talked to, they just start hiring like party people that come in and bring like all the party.
Carly: So I used to do a lot of babysitting and I used to do a lot of event staffing work. I would be an event staffer when I was in college and working for parties where it's a party at home, but they've rented all the dishes and at the end of the day someone comes up and picks up the dirty dishes and they're just gone for 50 people.
I remember as like a broke college student. I was like, that is the most genius thing I've ever seen in my life. And I'm like, what? What a time to be alive. Like, it's just amazing. Yeah, if you have the budget, highly recommend it. That's the way to go. You don't have to deal with it.
Alana: Yeah. Well, cause I thought, well, I was thinking too, like, wow, that sounds kind of wasteful.
But then I thought, well, okay, well they can afford it and. The more stuff you have, the more real estate it takes up and. It's like, okay, well they don't have to have a bigger house and they need less space to hold all these things. So the mortgage is less. Yeah.
Carly: And now that I've planned events, I'm also like, okay, well if you're hosting a party at home and then you're saving the hundreds if not thousands, depending on where it is, like a venue rental fee, and instead taking a fraction of that money and just renting the dishes and extra tables, chairs, whatever, but someone else breaks it down and then takes it away. You're getting the time and energy back from not having to be physically dealing with every component of that.
And this is also the time in the podcast where I give the disclaimer as always, that Gimli is snoring in the background. So, sorry about that. I'm not sorry. He likes it, he likes sleeping in my office.
Alana: No, my dog too. She'll be walking by and you hear this little click, click, click, click, click with her nails,
Carly: cute.
Okay. So when you're working with a client and say you guys are wrapping up with your session or the sessions that you have together, what do you say, what do you feel is the result emotionally of the work that you're doing with your clients?
Alana: Oh, wow. This is my favorite part.
That's the part where I get emotional too because there's this culmination of everything that has been accomplished. And again, kind of like depending on the reason why they're calling, it's a little different if they're moving versus getting organized in general. I would say like with just getting organized there, something I see this pattern of is that a lot of women, like of course they're very happy and relieved that we have transformed their home.
There's always the backstory of why things are disorganized a lot of times, especially because they have a family. The way that they did things when they were single and the way that they're doing things with their family, it's completely different. It's not what they would prefer.
And so they end up making all these sacrifices and just kind of putting their needs aside to satisfy everyone in the family. And I like to encourage them to like, like, Hey, you are like the woman at the house. You don't need permission to set a standard in your house. Not saying that it's gonna be followed properly, but I feel like they get this sense of empowerment back.
I remember growing up and my mother just laid down the law. She's like, maybe you like it, maybe you don't, but this is the way we do things here.
Carly: When you have your house, you could do it how you want.
Alana: Yeah. Yeah. I mean, like, she wasn't afraid to hurt my feelings.
Carly: It's funny. I'm picturing my grandma Uhhuh
I can relate. Go on.
Alana: Yeah, and it's like, and the thing was that she wasn't being cruel. She wasn't trying to be cruel. She was actually being very loving and helping me because I was a kid. I didn't know any better, but she's my mom. Showing me an example of how to do things in a way that's gonna benefit me.
And maybe, at 10 years old you don't appreciate those things, but when you get older, like I look back and I think, wow, like my mother was very organized and I've been organized my whole life because of that. And I didn't realize it until I got older, but I appreciate the fact that we had a routine, or like, I always remember, I would ask her like, Hey mom, where's this?
And she'd go in the kitchen, top corner, bottom shelf on the right. She knew where everything was and that's how she would say it. I love working with women, it's like, they open up and it's like a safe space for them to talk to you and to dump everything on you.
And I give them permission to just, be raw and be real and not like, Hey, you're not being judged here. Like, I empathize with you. you need somebody in the world to tell you like, no, you are not crazy. And yeah, your thinking is right, You're, you got the mom guilt. You're feeling like, okay, I've got to sacrifice for everybody.
And you forget about yourself. You forget about maybe what is the right thing to do sometimes, and you're overwhelmed and it's just all these things piling on your reasoning. And they just, they feel empowered, they feel like, okay, like I can do something about this. Or even. Getting something where it's manageable, where they're like, okay, it's been transformed.
I have a system like I can manage this and I can keep it up. And that feeling that's the result of working with them or even just I'm sure this has happened to you, but. when we're, I think this happens a lot when we're working with people that are moving. We recently moved a client and she was like, they tell you some things about their situation when they upfront, but then towards the end of the job being done, then they really tell you everything that's going on, it's like, not just like, oh, I'm pregnant and I have a little kid. And then at the end, they're like, I'm pregnant, I have a little kid. My father just died. Oh, we moved five times in the last three years, and oh, my mother's having heart surgery next week. And it's like all of these crazy things going on in their life.
And you're like, oh my gosh, like. I'm so glad that I could be of service to you. , during this difficult time. And just knowing that you could take something so huge, and just being able to like, take that away from somebody, take the stress off of them. It just helps them to deal.
These momentous things that are already going on in their life.
Carly: Yeah, yeah. And being that safe space, like you were saying, that non-judgmental corner that they have to like
To be in with them. I think that it's important. I love it. Yeah. Any final thoughts for our folks at home, Alana?
Alana: Don't be afraid. , don't be afraid to step into your power and just make the changes that you wanna make or just tell your family. We ain't doing this anymore. . I'm just you.
These are gonna be the changes and you gotta just get with the program because everyone's gonna kind of follow your lead. And it's like the family takes the tone of the head of the family. So don't be afraid. Don't be afraid to just own your feelings, own your decisions, and. Just, do what you know is right to do and what makes you feel good.
Carly: I love it. Thank you for being here today. I appreciate you. How can folks stay connected with you?
Alana: I'm on Instagram a lot and LinkedIn at Alana's organizing.
Carly: We will be sure to have those links in the show notes. And so if you want to get in touch with Alana, keep in touch with what she's up to check out her IG or LinkedIn. I'll have your website as well. And thank you so much for being here today.
I appreciate you.
Alana: Thank you so much for having me. Talk to you soon.
Thank you for tuning in today. If you want to learn more about how I can help you, please head to Tidy Revival dot com to learn more about how I work with people one-on-one or in our Clutter-Free Home Process private community. If you enjoyed this episode, please be sure to subscribe so you'll always have access to the latest episode.
We would love to hear your takeaways! Feel free to tag us at Tidy Revival on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok. The Tidy Revival podcast is written and hosted by me, Carly Adams, and edited by Brittany McLean. Title Song Maverick is by Dresden The Flamingo.
Until next time, remember that…
