“Wash the dishes as you clear the table instead of putting them into the sink. It’s a shame to let them sit and become an unwanted project for later.”

She’s assuming I remember to clear the table after dinner…

“For a quick cleanup of the living room before your husband or guests arrive run around with an empty laundry basket and throw in all the miscellaneous items floating around. Schedule a time each day to return everything from the basket to its place.” An empty laundry basket? Ha! Schedule a time each day! As if I have a schedule … Return everything to its place?! What if I don’t know where it goes?

“Make a weekly menu plan transform it to a standard weekly shopping list and go shopping every Monday for the entire week’s menu.” I’m spontaneous and creative in my cooking. How can I know on Monday which ingredients I’ll need on Wednesday?

These ladies sit at the back of my home management classes desperate for a solution to the home management problems plaguing them. They listen attentively to practical ideas that have helped many yet they look at me as if I were speaking Chinese.

“I never read home management books or columns — they never flow with my rhythm” says Chani an ADD mother of seven.

Atara a busy mother with ADHD adds “I can’t plug myself into standard home management ideas. They have to come from a different angle.” As a home management consultant I believe that every woman has the ability to run her home smoothly. It’s a matter of finding the ideas and strategies that work for her.