Putting the Command in Center

Let’s get this straight; all I know about the value of a Command Center I learned from personal experience and common sense.

As a matter of fact, the term Command Center wasn’t even a trendy phrase when I first put the principles to use over 20 years ago. My neighbors took similar actions, and we just thought of it as getting it together.

On a recent TV program I suggested that moms with ADHD be certain they have their Command Centers developed as they help themselves and their family get out the door each morning for school or work.

My daughter, Sarah, even designed an illustration of a Command Center to show the viewing audience, and I’ve included it below for you to see in case you missed seeing the program.

What is a Command Center? It’s the place you park your family calendar, leave notes for each other, and garage necessary items such as your purse and keys, school backpacks, homework, and notes to the school. It is where husbands and dads can leave their briefcase and grab it as they go out the door.

How do you put a Command Center together in your own home? Think of it as a custom design. What is a central area of your home that your family uses every day? Is it the kitchen? Is it the area near your main entrance door? Is it as you step outside to the garage? Then decide if you need a small table or bench at that area. Will you include some sort of baskets? The answers to these and other questions will come from how you want to use your command center. Is it nearby where the family hang coats and jackets? Can kids and adults grab shoes here as they go out the door?

We began using space in the kitchen where I kept my mom calendar and a series of hanging pockets for school notes and other important papers. We expanded it by keeping my husband’s brief case near the exit when my husband left for work. As a matter of fact, I purchased a trendy soft-sided case for him to carry back and forth to work. Even though it was obviously a brief case, he jokingly referred to it as his purse. That worked. He placed his keys and wallet in it before going to bed, and I put his lunch in it each morning. Sarah, Kyle, and Anna soon followed his example by sitting their backpacks in the same area before they went to bed.

It’s important to stress that signed papers and homework where organized in those bags.

You can effectively develop your own Command Center or grab-and-go center in the most convenient room of your home. I often suggest families paint the inside of a kitchen cabinet door with chalkboard paint or hanging a dry erase board in the kitchen.  Use that handy space to post notes to each other. You can build a Command Center from there.

We don’t use a Command Center these days because our children are grown adults, and my husband has retired, but as I write this, I am convicted that it would be a great idea to initiate it again, even if only for my own organization.

For those of you who develop a Command Center as the result of our program and this blog, I invite you to contact us at McNay & Voth, www.coachadhd.com and let us know how you did it and how it is working for you.