Coming from a former teacher and Army Officer turned PO

Holy moly, it’s my first blog post!

Do I sound like a freshman? 😉

Let’s recognize the inherent advantages to being a freshman in any capacity: endless learning potential!

That’s how I’ve been viewing my first couple of years as a professional organizer…a period of endless LEARNING.

I feel I should mention I was a teacher for 4 years, so you could say I am extra eager about any potential for learning things I do not yet know.

I’d like to also take this time to note that I believe so strongly that my time as a teacher could not have been a more perfect precursor to what I feel I am truly meant to do: help as many people as I can to live their most stress-free, organized lives!

If you know me, you know I grew up a big athlete—if I wasn’t playing a sport, I didn’t know what to do with myself (or I had my face in a book). Sports have also shaped me into the person I am today, instilling many qualities in me that I believe have also allowed me to have the confidence and wherewithal to run my own business (something I NEVER even considered until the birth of PNO!). That being said, I’ve relied heavily on the leadership and time management skills I learned while being a busy athlete to help with building this business.

Speaking of leadership…I also served as an Officer in the U.S. Army for a few years, so I most certainly gained some skills from that experience that have helped me on this business venture.

I didn’t intend for my first blog post to be all “me me me”, however, I feel like some context to how I got to where I am now and the experiences that have shaped who I am are important in the vulnerable world of organization and productivity.

Vulnerability—a word that truly captures the experience of working with a professional organizer. Please don’t hear that word and shy away even if your instinct may be to do so…the ability to be vulnerable enough to lead to changing your life for the better is a powerful thing.

Alright, I have been rambling—apologies! If you’re still with me, I applaud and appreciate you!

Now onto what probably brought you here:

5 Things I’ve Learned as a Freshman Professional Organizer

1. Compassion is crucial

As I already said, working with an organization professional requires a level of vulnerability that many avoid ever having to experience. Embarrassment and shame are common emotions that surround clutter and disorganization; enough to stop people from seeking help. As you can probably imagine (or you’ve experienced yourself), this leads to the clutter and disorganization getting worse.

If no one has ever explicitly told you, then allow me to be the first: there is no need to feel shame about being disorganized or feeling like you have too much stuff. EVERYONE, on some level, experiences clutter and disorganization at some point, many in a chronic capacity.

I consider myself empathetic to a fault, which is why I find so much purpose in getting to work with people who willingly put themselves in vulnerable situations in order to improve their quality of life. Compassion is and will always be at the forefront of what Pretty Neat Organizing strives to accomplish. I will always prioritize fostering a judgement-free environment that encourages a successful decluttering and organizational journey for my clients.

2. Modern overconsumption trends create disorganization

We (as Americans, at least) live in a capitalistic world that encourages the buying, obtaining, and keeping of too much stuff. Overconsumption is the norm for many and in its most basic form, disorganization is having too much stuff to be able to manage successfully.

I personally have fallen victim to the trend of buying things because people or advertisements on social media said so. All credit to those that work in marketing, because their tactics WORK. I’ve seen and heard stories from multiple clients of items they bought because a person or ad told them to. I am told that background story when we stumble upon that unused or unopened item during the decluttering process. This culture of overconsumption makes it almost impossible to STAY organized, even with the help of a professional. That brings me to the next lesson I’ve learned:

3. Buying habits must change in order to stay organized

If you have too much stuff, all the professional organizers in the world cannot help you STAY organized. We can make things look and feel better using our expertise, but without decluttering and having an appropriate amount of stuff for the available space, the level of organization won’t meet your standards (and definitely won’t meet ours).

In the terms of a bad sports analogy, imagine trying to run an offensive basketball play meant for 5 people, but with 10 players on the floor. Some will find their role and place, but many will be left out trying to find where they fit into things. There’s too much going on for things to be successful!

It’s hard to reflect on our own habits and recognize where things need to change (trust me, I understand), BUT it’s crucial to help us live less-stressed, more organized lives. There will definitely be more tips to come in the future of this blog (and my newsletter!) on how to buy and have less.

4. Life can be a direct enemy of organization

Life happens. Good things, bad things, exciting things, devastating things. Events that take stuff from us or add to what we already have. Things that give us more time or less time. Situational disorganization happens when life events (having a baby, moving, divorce) negatively impact our level of organization. This is unavoidable and normal. Our priorities change with the season of life we’re in, and I think that should be seen as a beautiful thing. If you’re anything like me, having some semblance of organization at all times is important and truly affects your mood and productivity. That’s when good, effective organizational systems come into play. Everything having a designated place in our home, systems for when certain areas get cluttered, jobs for all members of the household to help maintain organization are all examples of systems that help keep organizational control even when life is “lifeing”.

5. Social media makes us believe there are organizationally perfect people out there (there are not)

As Hannah Montana sings: “nobody’s perfect!” (Did that help you realize I’m a ‘95 baby?😝)

As I said, life happens, and it happens to everyone! Even the most thoughtfully created, custom systems to stay organized fail to work 100% perfectly when variables change and life gets busy. And that’s okay.

Social media makes it really hard not to see the beautiful, organized closets and feel like less than because your closet looks nothing like it. I certainly struggle with comparing where I’m at to the professional organizers I see on social media who seem to have it all figured out. Guess what, though? What we don’t see is the time and work that went into that perfect closet, or the privileges they have to help them attain it.

I’m going to kindly encourage you (and remind myself) to stop comparing. Meet yourself where you’re at and be proud of the fact that you are motivated to improve. What a beautiful, exciting thing!

That’s it for now! I hope these five lessons I have learned over the past two years as a professional organizer resonated with you in some way.

Tidy regards,

Nicki