Lifelong love of organization turns into Raleigh business

Even as a kid, Leah Friedman appreciated a clean, orderly space. As young as age 6, she spent countless days with her friend rearranging their rooms to ensure maximum floor space and minimum clutter.

Fast forward a few (or more) years, and Friedman is now the married mom of two. With a career as a newspaper reporter and columnist behind her (full disclosure: we were once colleagues at The News & Observer), Friedman decided to turn her passion for organization into a business.

"I've never been shocked by the things I see in my client's homes," she said. "Everyone has large homes. They have filled it to the brim and they can't breathe."

Friedman certainly practices what she preaches. In her own home, a fixer-upper in Raleigh, Friedman has actually removed closets and built-in cabinets because she doesn't need the storage space. Shelves and dressers aren't overflowing. She even took the doors off her kitchen cabinets because everything is neat, orderly and not cluttered behind them.

That's not to say that Friedman doesn't have a few weaknesses. Let's talk about handbags. But even those she has culled down to a smaller number, realizing that she probably had spent the equivalent of her dream Louis Vuitton bag (used) on those cheaper bags that she'd been collecting over the years.

"I'm not against buying things," she said. "Just buy things that you treasure and are quality."

Friedman will offer tips here on Go Ask Mom for the next several weeks starting Wednesday. But before that, she shared her top ten tips for keeping your home or office clutter free.

1. To be organized, you need to purge things you don't want or use any more. Go through toys every six to eight months and donate ones your children have outgrown.

8. Children are overwhelmed when there are too many toys to choose from. Find a closet in your home and use it as a rotating toy closet. Switch out toys every quarter, so there's someting new in the playroom every few months. Your children will love this.

9. Keep your sanity and keep the house from becoming a disaster zone by teaching your children to clean up their toys after they are done playing with them and before they move on to something new.

10. Have a place for everything, so children can easily put their stuff away. For instance, we have cubbies for shoes by the door. When the kids come in, they put their shoes in the cubbies, so we are not tripping on them, and they know where they are when they are ready to go back outside.