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I’ve already shared {several times} how much Dave and I are loving our new iPhones… I’m obsessed

It’s true!

Just the other day, I heard of a friend’s house that caught on fire and I immediately thought about our house, and what I would do if it ever caught on fire. Of course, I would grab Nora first {and make sure Dave could get out} but my next “grabs” would be my phone, purse, and computer!

Not sure what that says about me… but it’s the truth!

Anyway, I’m always on the look-out for FREE tools to help improve my business. So when I got the iPhone, I immediately started searching for apps that would do just that.

Apparently there are a ton of free productivity apps, but I didn’t need or want them all… just the best ones. So for the past several weeks, I’ve been playing around and testing out some of these free apps… I quickly came up with a short list of my favorites.

Head on over to the Turnstone blog to see 9 of my favorite free apps for small businesses.

What are your favorite iPhone apps?

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1 comment →

UPDATE: This giveaway is now closed.

Congrats to:

Stacey (swags11@…)

Amy (amyctilson@…)

I will email you shortly!

When I first started my business {almost exactly 5 years ago!} the first purchase I made was for quality business cards. I didn’t know a lot about business, but I remember being told that nice business cards automatically make you look more professional.

And it’s true, I still get tons of compliments on my cards whenever I hand them out at blogging retreats, business events, to clients, family, friends, and even just to people who need my phone number or email address.

I love my business cards — the rounded corners, the simple fonts, the fantastic colors, etc. I think they reflect ”Simple Organized Living” perfectly!

However, you don’t need a full-time business inorder to carry cards with you. Maybe you have an Etsy shop or other craft business; maybe you have a personal blog or website; maybe you are a tutor or give private lessons; or maybe you just want cards with your contact information, social media information, family information, etc.

Whatever the reason, I think it’s a great idea for everyone to have some type of card. And if you DON’T already have cards… or if you would like to update your current cards, today’s giveaway from Next Day Flyers should do the trick!

With their custom design options, you can pretty much create any type of card you want! Plus, their prices are really reasonable… but of course, FREE is better than reasonable, so make sure you take a minute to enter the giveaway below!

The Giveaway:

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Today, two lucky Simple Organized Living readers will win 250 rounded corner custom cards from Next Day Flyers.

How to Enter:

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1. {required} Leave a comment on this post. What type of card would you create? Business, personal, hobby, family, general information?

2. {optional} Like Simple Organized Living on Facebook, and then leave a separate comment letting me know you did {or that you do already}.

If you are reading this in your email or feed reader, please visit the actual blog post to enter. Email entries, Facebook comments, and Twitter messages will NOT be counted.

Prizes:

(2) 250 cards from Next Day Flyers as described above.

This giveaway ends at 10:00 pm on Monday, 3/19/2012 and is open to all U.S. residents 18 years or older. I will use And the Winner Is to select the winning comments at random. Winners will be notified by email and noted at the top of this post. Winners must respond within 48 hours of notification to claim their prize or I will choose a new winner. Please see my full disclosure policy and contact me with any questions you have. Good luck!

104 comments →

About a month ago, I shared the REALLY simple way I organize all our tax documents.

I still use that method for both our personal tax documents AND for my business tax documents… and so far, I don’t have any reason to change or alter this system.

However, I’ve also been using Outright.com for the past two years to help me stay on top of my small business tax information.

If you’ve never heard of Outright.com, it’s a completely free program {at least for now!} that allows small businesses to easily organize, track, and categorize expenses, mileage, income, depreciation, and a variety of other tax information.

Here are a few features I love about Outright.com.

• It compiles all sorts of graphs and reports to help track your income and expenses

• It tells you approximately how much you owe in quarterly taxes

• It visually shows you who your best customers are, where you’re spending the most money, and what areas of your business are most profitable

• It has the ability to link with your PayPal, Ebay, and bank accounts so all your financial information is in one place

• It provides printable 1099, Schedule C, and other documents for tax purposes

• It calculates and keeps track of sales tax {I don’t utilize this feature… but it’s still cool}

• It provides “pro services” for $9.95 per month, but I’ve been extremely happy with the free version and currently see no reason to upgrade for my own business.

Oh, and there is also an Outright App for smart phones that allows me to access all my information on the go!

You can watch a video tour here… or sign up for your free account at Outright.com.

If you run a small business or are trying to start a small business, I’d definitely recommend trying Outright. {And no, I don’t get anything for recommending this service… I just REALLY like it and figured some of you might too!}

Do you know of any other free tax programs on the web?

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Dave and I recently renewed our 2-year cell phone contracts… and we both got iPhones!

Yes, it was totally against our ultra-frugal nature, but I have to say, the iPhone completely saved any shred of productivity I had left after Nora arrived!

Before we got our iPhones, we still had the old flip phones. We didn’t have any sort of data package, and we didn’t even have texting {told you we are frugal!}

It was actually a bit of an internal struggle for both of us, but especially for me, because we really didn’t NEED iPhones. Yes, we could afford to pay cash for the phones, yes we could get a great deal since we were going to renew our contract anyway, and yes, we could afford to pay the monthly data plans… but we still didn’t NEED them!

Another reason I was a bit unsure about getting iPhones was because I always hear how people “waste” so much time with their smart phones, iPads, Kindles, etc… and frankly, I do NOT have time to waste right now.

Well, it’s been 2 months, and I honestly think these iPhones are one of our best purchases. I can’t believe how much MORE productive I’ve been… or how we lived without them for so long!

Here are just a few ways the iPhone helps me be more productive:

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1. Email:

I get loads of emails every single day and it used to be overwhelming for me… but now I have instant access to all of my emails and can quickly check, delete, file, and reply to most of my emails from my phone… even when I don’t have access to my computer — or when my other arm is tied up

Obviously, there are still some emails I can’t/won’t do from my phone — especially if they require attachments or lengthy responses, but I’ve saved SO much time by tackling many of my emails from my iPhone.

2. Social Media:

Since I’ve been a little short on time lately {OK, a lot short on time} I’ve basically “banned” myself from spending any time on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. unless it’s on my phone.

I figure if we’re just driving, waiting, sitting around, etc. I’ll allow myself to play around on social media sites. Then when I’m sitting down to work, I keep those tabs closed, and am way more productive because of it!

3. Blog Comments:

I love reading all my blog comments, and I try really hard to respond to any questions or comments that require a response, but that had been getting more and more difficult to do… until I got the iPhone! Now I can keep tabs on my comments, stay caught up on responses, and I feel more connected to my readers.

4. Shopping:

As you know, I’m a big Craigslist shopper {and I’m semi-addicted to Amazon.com too!}… but I really can’t afford to “waste” my time searching for deals on the internet right now. So instead, I’ll use my phone to brows the web, inquire about sales, and even make purchases when I otherwise wouldn’t have access to my computer for one reason or another.

5. Shared Calendars:

Dave and I have a shared calendar on iCloud so we both know what the other person is doing… yes, this has been extremely helpful and I’m not really sure why I didn’t think of doing this before!

6. Productivity/Time Management Apps:

I still haven’t paid for any Apps yet, but I have found a handful of very helpful FREE productivity and time management apps that I’m having lot of fun with!

7. Photos:

I don’t naturally take many photos because I hate carrying my camera around with me all the time. But now that I have a really fantastic camera right in my iPhone, I’m taking pictures ALL the time! I can quickly edit the pictures and upload them to my blog or to any social media site with just a few taps of my finger… then I’m done.

No more lugging my camera around, plugging my camera card into the computer, waiting for it to load, then opening the photo editing program, etc. etc. I’m saving lots of time AND taking more pictures — win-win!

8. Navigation:

We don’t have any type of GPS in our cars so I’ve always just printed off Mapquest directions anytime I have to go somewhere. Seriously! Now, I can simply use a navigation app and don’t have to waste the time {or paper} printing off my Mapquest maps anymore!

Since Dave and I were still living in the ‘dark ages’ with our flip phones, we are simply amazed at how much more we can do with our iPhones — and how much time we save doing it!

I can do all these things while I’m riding in the car, waiting in line, or even when I’m feeding Nora. And obviously, I don’t spend every spare moment on my phone, but it is nice to have the option to “get stuff done” even when I’m not by my computer.

And yes, we do use our phones for playing games, listening to music, and even watching video clips every now an then

Do you have an iPhone — or any other type of smart phone?

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If so, do find that you SAVE more time or WASTE more time on fun games, etc.? Also, what are your favorite apps?

31 comments →

UPDATE: This giveaway is now closed.

Congrats to:

Agnes (fivemammals@…) — winner of the ListPlanIt Print Membership

Sara (sarameengs@…) — winner of the List PlanIt ePlanner

I will email you to get your information!

I talk about lists A LOT — but that’s because I’ve made a list for myself almost every single day since high school {nope, that’s not an exaggeration!}

Every night, before I go to bed, I make a to-do list for the next day. I also have long-term project lists, grocery lists, lists of my goals, a bucket list, etc. etc. I have lots and lots of lists!

Up until now, I’ve mostly been a “pen and paper” kind of list maker, but over Christmas break, Dave and I bought iPhones and I’ve had so much fun downloading a bunch of different list-making apps. I’m still partial to pen and paper, but I definitely see a use for digital lists too.

So as you can probably imagine, I’m super excited to share today’s giveaway from ListPlanIt.com – a website that offers over 700 different printable and downloadable lists for people like me who simply love lists, and for people who don’t necessary love lists but NEED them anyway!

The ListPlanIt lists are great for anyone who wants to get more organized, better manage their time, simplify their lives, etc… so pretty much everyone I know!

The Giveaway:

:

Today, one lucky Simple Organized Living reader will win a ONE YEAR ListPlanIt Download Membership! This includes unlimited access to hundreds of helpful lists — and the ability to print off as many copies as you need OR download the lists and type in your own information directly from your computer!

Another reader will win their choice of a ListPlanIt ePlanner — which is essentially a really cool electronic version of a planner and your favorite lists! They have 16 different ePlanners to choose from and you’ll have the ability to type in all your own information. Oh, and you can even download a FREE ePlanner trial offer right now!

How to Enter:

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1. Leave a comment. What is one list you couldn’t live without? {mine is my daily to-do list!}

2. Like Simple Organized Living and/or ListPlanIt on Facebook, and then leave a separate comment letting me know you did {or that you do already}.

If you are reading this in your email or feed reader, please visit the actual blog post to enter. Email entries, Facebook comments, and Twitter messages will NOT be counted.

Prizes:

(1) ListPlanIt Print Membership as described above

(1) List PlanIt ePlanner as described above

This giveaway ends at 10:00 pm on Monday, 1/9/2012 and is open to all U.S. and Canadian residents 18 years or older. I will use And the Winner Is to select the winning comments at random. Winners will be notified by email and noted at the top of this post. Winners must respond within 48 hours of notification to claim their prize or I will choose a new winner. Please see my full disclosure policy and contact me with any questions you have. Good luck!

149 comments →

UPDATE: This giveaway is now closed.

Congrats to:

Patti (Pattivredevoogd@…)

Muriel (msanders00@…)

Martha (marthamayv@…)

Jen (jenni1787@…)

Renee (reneejoy87@…)

Corey (corey.j.norris@…)

Debra L (Itsmelealee@…)

Crystal (hdfamilyof4@…)

Lani (lanilenore@…)

Kathi (kathibrn@…)

I will email you all to get your information!

Remember a couple weeks ago when we had a REALLY fun giveaway from Invite L.? I gave away some of their amazing Bag-in-Bags, yearly planners, and other accessories…

Well today, I’m back with another fantastic giveaway from the same company!

Since the New Year is just FIVE weeks away {yes 5}, you probably should be thinking about purchasing a new planner, or a refill for the planner you already have — you DO have a planner, right?

However, since I know many of you are way too busy doing your holiday shopping and recovering from a huge Thanksgiving meal; I thought I would make it really easy on you and give you an opportunity to win one of the best planners I’ve ever used.

Sound good?

I am currently using the Invite L. Agenda — and absolutely LOVE everything about it!

• I love the size {not too small, but not too big}.

• I love the bright yellow color.

• I love the clean, simple lines.

• I love that there are no preset dates so I can start the year whenever it’s convenient for me.

• I love the daily list of times so I can quickly and easily schedule meetings or other appointments.

• I love ALL the blank space below the daily list of  times where I can put to-dos or reminders for each day.

• I love the monthly at-a-glance calendars for each month.

• I love the large “notes” section in the back.

I could go on and on — but after using this planner for a while now, and realizing how top-quality all the Invite L. products are, I’m simply thrilled to be hosting today’s giveaway!

Oh, and you should seriously take a look at their new 2012 planner… gorgeous!

The Giveaway:

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Today, TEN lucky Simple Organized Living reader will win an Invite L. Planner or Agenda of choice.

How to Enter:

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1. Leave a comment. How do you currently keep track of your daily, weekly, and monthly schedules?

2. Like Simple Organized Living on Facebook, and then leave a separate comment letting me know you did {or that you do already}.

If you are reading this in your email or feed reader, please visit the actual blog post to enter. Email entries, Facebook comments, and Twitter messages will NOT be counted.

Prizes:

(10) Invite L. planners or agendas as described above

This giveaway ends at 10:00 pm on Monday, 11/28/2011 and is open to all U.S. residents 18 years or older. I will use And the Winner Is to select the winning comments at random. Winners will be notified by email and noted at the top of this post. Winners must respond within 48 hours of notification to claim their prize or I will choose a new winner. Please see my full disclosure policy and contact me with any questions you have. Good luck!

224 comments →

Yesterday, I talked about our lack of a mudroom — which was one thing we had to comprimise on when we purchased our farmhouse last winter. We would have loved a big mudroom… but it just wasn’t going to happen in this house.

However, there were several other things we were not willing to compromise on… one of which was a main-floor home office. 

Since I work from home almost all the time, and Dave spends many evening hours grading papers and planning lessons for the week, we BOTH really wanted a place to store and organize all of my business things, his school things, and everything else we use to run our home.

So a home office we very high on our “what we want in our next house” list.

Our OLD “Home Office”:

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We never had a real home office in our first house… but I made due with a small desk in our den/dinning room area and Dave did much of his work at the kitchen table or on the couch. It wasn’t perfect, but it worked!

Our NEW Home Office:

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I can vividly remember the first time we walked through our farmhouse and I saw the main floor home office. It was so ugly… but had SO much potential.

I knew this room would become one of my most favorite rooms — and I was right!

I absolutely LOVE every minute spent in our home office — and now that we knocked out one of the walls, the office is totally open to the living room and kitchen area {which is exactly what I wanted}.

You can see the entire transformation here.

And even though I’m extremely happy with our new home office, I just can’t stop myself from searching the internet for other drool-worthy home offices.

Here are a few of my favorite home offices from around the web:

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Martha Stewart’s Home Office: This one is so completely over-the-top that I just HAD to show you!

I love how this home office makes great use of such a long, skinny space.

Who would have though you could transform a tiny space under the staircase into a fabulous home office!

I always thought it would be so fun to have a “closet home office” but I’ve never had the right closet.

I love this “home office in a trunk” because it proves that if you’re organized, you don’t need a huge space.

I love all the white and soft colors in this home office — what a lovely place to spend the day!

And even though I do love white, I couldn’t help but be drawn in by this totally rustic home office. What a fun place for a bunch of kids to sit and do their homework!

Ok, one more… just because I love all home offices with dual-seating {like our office!}

If you still need MORE home office inspiration, you can see a whole bunch of other REALLY inspiring home offices on my Pinterest board {get ready to drool!}

What would your DREAM home office look like?

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