Moving & Shaking Tips: Part 1

I have been one.busy. lady!  As promised, here is Part 1: Tips for Moving & Shaking.  What to do before the boxes.

PLAN:
Most people don't allow themselves enough time to pack an entire house.  It is estimated to take approximately one month.  One month sounds like a lot of time; however, you would be surprised how many of those hours are eaten up by other necessities:

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720 total hours in one month
-160 for work
-240 for sleep
-135 for misc. (shower, cook, family, etc)
 185 remaining hours
 


Those 185 hours would be the equivalent to working 16 hours every Saturday and Sunday, in addition to 2.5 hours each night.  We all know how unreasonable that is.  This estimate also does not account for those of us that work more than 40 hours in a week or have any semblance of a social life on the weekends.  Now you can see how quickly our hours become depleted. 

ASSESS YOUR NEEDS:
Are you selling a house, moving out of an apartment, leaving your parents basement?  Assess what needs to be done to get out.  Do you need to paint, re-carpet, repair, or simply clean?

Create and prioritize a list of everything that needs to be done (beyond packing boxes, and moving out).  Once your list is prioritized, determine the amount of time and resources (i.e. budget) required.  Can you reasonably tackle everything on your own or do you need outside help?  All of these assessments will effect your plan, timing, and who you get to help.

PEOPLE:
Don't try to do it all on your own.  Pick the right people to help you: friends, family, or professionals.  Sure, your sister may be available and willing but is she going to spend the entire time gabbing about her most recent break-up.  Remember you only have 185 hours, most of which you'd prefer to be doing something else.  Choose reliable, trustworthy, and hardworking people.

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Start with you plan and budget.  Chose your contractors for the most important & possibly time consuming jobs.  I don't know how to install carpet; however, I can round up a mean group of women that will paint for wine.  As long as you stick to a consistent neutral it's hard to mess it up.  Just be sure to invest in some nice drop clothes OR re-carpet after the wine, I mean paint.

Stay tuned for Part 2