How To Run A Garage Sale

Garage sale season is very much upon us and many people want to make some extra money with a garage sale. I've run them both personally and professionally and I've worked some ideas to get you the most money and make things run smoother.

1. Make sure everything is clean. Clean things sell easily and more quickly than things that look dirty or that people don't want to handle. This applies to dishes, glassware, silverware, toys --anything that needs to be washed, polished or cleaned. Just because it is a garage sale don't think that you can just dump stuff out and get a good price.

2. Put a price on everything. Many people don't like to ask prices and you will lose sales if prices are not marked. Yes, it is tedious and time consuming but you want to make money. You can also put up signs that say all hardcover books 50 cents or all blouses one dollar. Make it easy for people to figure out what you want.

3. Have at least one extra person to work with you. Never work a garage sale alone. Otherwise things will disappear. Dishes, a toaster, other things. You need to have at least one person watching the people and the stuff all the time. Another person should be handling the money and the wrapping. If you can get a third person, that is even better.

4. Save newspaper and plastic bags for weeks or months beforehand to wrap and hold people's purchases. Lots of people want bags for whatever they have bought even if it is a small item.

5. Have small bills and change for people.

6. Be prepared to haggle. Some people will haggle over any price. Some are legitimately asking for a lower price. If people buy a lot of stuff cut the price. If it's a two day sale cut the prices the second day. The idea is to sell things not to hold on to them.

7. Advertise the sale. Give the usuals of date, time and place but also mention a lot of specific things. The more people that come out the better for you. Put an ad on craigslist, put it in a local paper, or any place that is free. If your community allows it (some don't) put up signs on trees to let people know about the sale and to guide people there.

8. Price realistically. Know what other garage sales ask.

9. Group things together. Like goes with like. The toys go together, the shoes go together, the glassware goes together, the costume jewelry goes together, the books go together. It makes it much easier for people to see what you've got and to see what they want to buy.

Do You Have A Safe?

Do you have a safe for your valuables? Is it also fireproof for your papers?

I've worked with many people who have a safe but few have it bolted to the floor. If it is the type of safe that you contains money or jewelry or other valuables you should have bolted to the floor. Otherwise thieves can just take the whole thing and open it at their leisure.

If it is on an upper floor it can fall if the structure burns. So put it in the basement or on the first floor.

If you only need something small for papers than get a fireproof box at one of the office big box stores. It will hold your important papers so they will not burn.

You should also make copies of the papers and send them to someone who does not live in your aera or scan them to a disc and also send them to someone out of the area. This way at least you have the information until you can replace the originals.

How NOT to Get Things Done

As a change of pace I thought I'd list 10 ways NOT to get things done and NOT to recognize what's important in life. If you want to keep yourself disorganized, harried and always behind this is the way to do it.



1. Don't throw anything out. Keep everything. After all you may need it someday. So what if things become so cluttered you can't find anything.

2. Keep making new piles. Don't file anything and don't ever go through old piles to see what can be thrown out.

3. Let paper take over your life. Remember that each piece is so precious and important that your life fades into the background instead.

4. Stack up and keep all the magazines and newspapers that you will read "someday".

5. Never figure out what are the real priorities in your life. After all if everything is equally important it doesn't matter what you get done first.

6. Never make yourself an important priority in your life. Sufficient sleep, exercise, eating right all those things don't really matter. What is important is getting caught up in the things of the moment and not the things that make your life better.

7. Do not set goals. After all you may just as well take whatever happens to you in life and just experience it. Setting goals and accomplishing things would just interfere with that.

8. Waste time watching TV or surfing the Internet. After all the average American watches 24 hours of TV a week and spends who knows how much time surfing the Internet so you might as well do it too.

9. Don't think of your family or friends as important. Concentrate instead on getting and acquiring things. After all that's what impresses other people so that must be what's important.

10. Never figure out how long it really takes to get things done. Just assume it will take 20 minutes and when it takes and hour and a half be really surprised.

Shelf Life Of Food

What about the can of beans you found in the back of your pantry? Is it safe to eat? Ever wondered if the dates on egg cartons or cans really mean anything? Or what about the package of meat that you put in the fridge two days ago and forgot to cook? Just how long can you keep things before it is unsafe to eat them?

Well the website www.stilltasty.com answers those questions and any others that you have about how long you can keep foods before they are unsafe to eat. In many cases it's longer than you think, in some it's a surprisingly short time. You can find out if the frozen salmon is still safe, whether you can put half-eaten things still in the can in the fridge (you can), and just how long those eggs are good for.

Wills

Do you have a will?

It's been estimated that 70% of Americans don't have a will. You may think you don't need one because you expect that your estate will go to certain people -- spouse, children, other relatives. Well you could be very, very wrong. Each state has laws about how an estate is distributed. You may think it will all go to your spouse but instead part will go to your siblings, or even their children. You must find out what the laws are in your state.

If you don't have a will the estate will have to go to court and have an executor appointed. This takes money out of the estate and executor may not be someone you would want to have handling the disposition of your funds and your goods.

If you have children you need a will to appoint a guardian in the event that something happens to both parents. You want someone to raise your children who will raise them the way you want them raised.

Identity Theft

Worried about identity theft? Everybody is these days.

However are you doing something that could help someone steal your identity without realizing it? Are you on Facebook or other social networking sites that ask for your birthday? Do you put it in?

Well don't!

Your birthday is something that is one of the three markers that can be used to steal your identity. Don't put in a birthday or deliberately put in a wrong one. It won't matter to your use of the site if the date is wrong but it helps to deter an identity thief.

Easy Way to Keep Recipes Organized

Do you have a pile of recipes you've clipped from magazines and newspapers but can't find what you want? Do you have a small recipe box filled to overflowing with index cards and folded up recipes and you never know what's there?

What's the easiest way to keep recipes so they can be organized the way you want them, they're accessible all the time and they don't get full of spots from food? Put them in the plastic sheets that are used for photos. Then put them in a three ring binder.

You can organize them by categories if you want. They are all in the same place. They are easy to read and see the whole recipe. You can take them out when you cook and don't have to worry about anything spilling on them, you just wipe it off.

You can get the plastic sheets at Staples or Office Max or Office Depot or go to two of my favorite places for photo supplies Century Photo and Light Impressions. Get the catalog. Don't look online because it is easier to see their products in the paper catalog.

Century Photo www.centuryphoto.com and 1-800-767-0777.

Light Impressions www.lightimpressionsdirect.com and 1-800-828-6216.