The Simple Secret of Professional Organizers' Success
September 13, 2007
I spent about 2 hours going through old files this morning, shredding and tossing and making new files. I felt like I was my own client, and that felt great! In the midst of this happy toss-fest, I got to wondering why I was able to sit myself down and do the work alone, while so many people need the help of a professional organizer to accomplish the same result.
Most clients are:
** Overwhelmed; stuck and unable to make progress on their own
** Unsure of the decisions they are making in the process
** Have difficulty prioritizing and creating a plan of attack
** Don’t understand the basic principles of organization, storage, accessibility and usability
But there’s another crucial factor in the process; the accountability and focus factor. Having someone in your space to help you with a project — any project — forces you to focus on that task, even when you may have been putting it off for years. It also creates an atmosphere of accountability that doesn’t exist when the client works alone. Clients then discover a motivation they didn’t realize they had and are able to move forward.
Very much like hiring a personal trainer or a life coach, when you hire an organizer, you’re not only hiring someone to bring their judgment and expertise to your situation, but also to bring your energy and time together so you can be held accountable to focus on the issue and create the positive result you desire.
Excellent article! I think you hit the nail squarely on the head. Having someone else there makes you accountable and allows you to focus on the task at hand. I know I get tons done just having my mother or sister in the house, whether helping me or not. Things get done when you have a motivating force present.