Peace of Mind Organizing

Can you give the gift of organization?

24 November 2008

This time of year I sometimes receive inquiries from people who want to give my services to someone on their gift list. That’s a tricky proposition and I’ll tell you why. Folks who look like they could use the services of a professional organizer might be perfectly happy with their current state of affairs. Or they might just not be ready to even think about decluttering. They might be insulted by the suggestion, which is an awful reaction to a gift.

It’s not unlike giving an overweight person a gift certificate to a gym. If the gift recipient has been dying to join a gym but just can’t afford it, the gift will likely be received with great enthusiasm, particularly if the gift giver has gone out of his or her way to find just the right gym.

If the gift recipient has been noticing his clothes getting tighter and thinking, “I should start exercising some day,” but not really doing anything about it, the gift might be frowned upon. “Are you saying I’m fat?” might go through his mind (or pass through his lips).

So when I get those requests, I explain that one can’t surprise a gift recipient with the gift of organization. That they shouldn’t even consider purchasing a gift certificate unless they’ve already spoken to the recipient and know for a fact that working with an organizer sounds like a dream come true. Because unless the client is ready, any efforts at organizing will probably be futile, particularly if the client is chronically disorganized.

If you’ve been thinking about giving a gift certificate for organizing services to a disorganized friend or family member, think long and hard about how welcome it would be. Have you heard this person say aloud, “I’d love to work with a professional organizer!”? Do they watch Clean House and Mission Organization avidly? If so, a session with an organizer might be a perfect gift. But broach the subject with your loved one first before you even call an organizer.

I’ve had a mother-in-law buy a gift certificate for her daughter-in-law, who was thrilled. A stepmother for her stepdaughter. A husband for his wife. It can work, but the key is to make sure that the services are really desired. And also to make sure that you choose an organizer whose style seems to mesh with the gift recipient.

Don’t get me wrong…the gift of organization is a true gift, particularly for the organizationally challenged. But if you want your generous gift to received well and be truly helpful, be sure you know it would be welcomed with open arms.

Color me certified!

21 November 2008

Yesterday I sat for the examination to become a Certified Professional Organizer®. The certification exam is administered by the Board of Certified Professional Organizers. Certification began in 2007 and since then over 275 professional organizers have become certified. (There are 4,300 members of NAPO.) I’m happy to say I passed!

I’ve been chomping at the bit to take the exam ever since it became available. But in order to qualify to take it, an organizer has to have at least 1500 billable hours under her/his belt or 1250 hours and 250 substitute training hours over the past three years. It wasn’t until this month that I qualified to take it.

I did study and I benefited from the studying. I’m absolutely delighted to have this credential, which I’ll be able to begin to use once I receive the paperwork in the mail. Next year, when I finish the Level III certification program from the National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization, I’ll also have the credential CPO-CD® (certified professional organizer in chronic disorganization). Having those two credentials will be the fulfillment of two very important goals for me.

As a sad counterbalance to this good news, I learned yesterday morning that Lori Hall Steele, the writer I blogged about in September, passed away at the age of 44. Lori was suffering from a neurological disease (most likely ALS) that left her unable to work or pay her mortgage. My September blog post was part of a national writers’ campaign to raise money to help Lori pay her mortgage so she wouldn’t lose her house as she fought the illness. That that campaign raised $70,000, which surely will be a help to her family.

Lori’s beautiful essay in the Washington Post about looking after her son, written before her illness, is even more poignant now. Here’s her obituary from her local newspaper in Traverse City, Michigan. Rest in peace, Lori.

Some great ideas for the dog lovers on your gift list

20 November 2008

As I mentioned earlier, I went to the HH Backer Christmas Trade Show in October, to help my friend, Sally. The Backer show is a huge trade show for the pet industry.

I had a great time and came away with some gift ideas for pet lovers.

First, of course, is the company I was representing, Roll Over Rover, Inc., the t-shirt company owned by the wonderful and talented Sally Brown. She designs all the shirts, carefully selects the garments and colors and turns out a really beautiful and comfortable product. Here’s one of my favorite designs:

Sally doesn’t sell direct to the public, but you can find a list of retailers on her site. Her shirts are also sold at In the Company of Dogs. (There’s a greater selection in the physical In the Company of Dogs catalog.)

Tomorrow I get to immerse myself in Roll Over Rover goodness as I help Sally do inventory. (Incidentally, Sally’s website was designed by her niece, Nora Brown, who also designed mine.)

Some other products that caught my eye at the Backer show were the beautiful collars and leashes offered by the companies whose booths were on either side of us.

First, Trish Hampton offers stylish designs for the sophisticated dog. Check out this example:

On the other side of us was Paw Paws, another company selling really gorgeous and sophisticated collars and leashes. I don’t think such pretty products were around when I first became a dog owner. Kirby and Pip now have Paw Paws collars and leashes and they’re fabulous. I love this pretty collar:

The other exciting product to me was this dog walker’s belt from DOOG (sort for Dog Owners Outdoor Gear), an Australian company. I got one for myself and I really like it. This flat belt is much nicer than a bulky fanny pack and discreetly carries all the essentials—poop bags, treats, even hand wipes. It has a hook for keys and another for your iPod (assuming your iPod has a case with a clip). Here it is:

The DOOG dudes were at the show looking for US distributors. I see there are a few listed on the website. I imagine you can keep checking back to find one near you, or order online from Australia.

Step out of your comfort zone

19 November 2008

I have two standard poodles. Kirby is what people in the dog biz call “reactive.” He barks like a mad man at other dogs and sometimes people. He’s afraid and feels that the best defense is a good offense. Pip’s not afraid and doesn’t tend to bark at other dogs (except for a few enemies).

I took this photo of the sweet Kirby yesterday. It’s hard to imagine he can turn into a lunging, barking fool on walks.

What a sweet boy!

I used to walk the dogs together. But I discovered that when Kirby went nuts, Pip did too. If I walked her alone, she would be calm. But if Kirby was barking, Pip supported him with even more vociferous barking. So I’d have two barking, lunging standard poodles at the end of their leashes. Together they outweigh me. I lacked a certain amount of control.

About four years ago, I decided I would walk them separately. That decision came when Kirby lunged at an elderly woman walking by us on the sidewalk and Pip grabbed her coat. After that incident, it seemed irresponsible of me to walk them together.

For four years I was taking three to four walks a day. (In the evening, often the poodles and I will walk with my husband.) Walking so much was an investment of time, even if it was good exercise for me. I would loved to have walked them together and save time, but I was afraid.

Then, last month, our pet sitter, who isn’t a whole lot larger than me, started walking them together and I decided to give it a try.

I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to control them. I was afraid something horrible would happen. You know what? Nothing did. We do run into other dogs on occasion, but my dogs are older now and I’m able to control them.

Phew.

Why am I bringing this up? Because, for me, it’s a great lesson in facing fears, leaving our comfort zones, and taking risks. It can be uncomfortable, but it can also be successful. And if you don’t try it, you’ll be stuck doing the same things, day after day, that might not be optimal for your success.

Are there things that you’re afraid to try? These are scary times economically. But I believe the people who will get through this patch most easily are the ones who are taking risks. I think it’s doubly important for self-employed people like myself not to be paralyzed by fear.

It’s hard to go ahead and invest in training that will allow you to help your clients better and give you more credentials. It’s hard to risk failure by offering a new service if you don’t know it will fly. It’s hard to spend money on marketing if you don’t feel you have money to spend. And, yes, it’s hard to invest in organizing services even when you know that getting more organized will make you more productive.

But here’s the thing: life in these times is hard. Let go of the fear. Live, risk and prosper.

Got something you’d like to do but are afraid to try? Think of me spending twice as much time every day walking my dogs for four years. That’s ridiculous. Put your toe into the water. Try that thing you’ve been wanting to try. Now’s the time. Go for it!

Ravelry: The greatest organizational tool for knitters

18 November 2008

I heart Ravelry. I absolutely love it. If you’re a knitter and you don’t know about Ravelry, or you don’t belong to it, click on the link the previous sentence and sign up. Just do it. Come back and read why I love it. But right now, go join.

What the heck is Ravelry? It’s essentially a social networking site for knitters and crocheters. To be honest, that doesn’t necessarily sound like something I’d adore. But Ravelry is more than a community of knitters. It’s an awesome database. People list their knitting projects and post photos and advice. If you’re looking to knit something, you have a huge searchable library at your fingertips.

It’s more than that, though. There are forums for people with similar interests, from lovers of the TV show The Office to knitters who have poodles to knitters in one city to supporters of a political candidate. You can talk about anything. And the undercurrent is the love of yarn.

You can also post your inventory of yarn and tools so that you know at a glance what you have. If you’re in a yarn store and have an internet connection through a smartphone (or if the yarn store will let you use their computer, which they often will), you can check to see if you need to buy a particular size of needles or see how many balls of a certain yarn you have. And that’s still just the tip of the iceberg.

Let me give you an example of how I used Ravelry last week.

My hands were cold. My 100-year-old house has radiator heat and it takes awhile for it to warm up in the morning. I decided I’d like to knit some fingerless gloves to keep my hands warm while typing. So I went to Ravelry and searched on “Fingerless gloves.” I was presented with no fewer than 942 different fingerless glove projects. These were all gloves that people in Ravelry had knitted and posted about.

I decided on Fetching, a popular, free pattern from knitty.com. 8300 Ravelers have made Fetching. I’ve seen them knit up in real life and liked them.

Then I had to decide on a yarn. I didn’t want to go out and buy yarn. But I didn’t already own the yarn that the pattern called for (Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran). So on Ravelry, I searched the yarn database for Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran, a wool/cashmere blend, and learned about the properties of that yarn. I learned that Aran weight is the same as Worsted weight and I took a look at the worsted weight yarn in my stash (easy to do since my stash is well organized). I found a single leftover ball of Plymouth Suri Merino, a blend of alpaca and merino wool.

Then I was able to look to see if anyone had knit Fetching in Suri Merino, by searching the 8300 Fetching projects by yarn. Alas, no. But I was able to find that some folks had knit it in another alpaca/wool yarn very similar to Suri Merino and it worked out fine. So I went for it. And as soon as I add my Fetching project to my Ravelry notebook, there will be a Fetching project there made from Suri Merino.

I don’t have the yarn knowledge to have been able to do that without Ravelry. In the past I would have gone to my local yarn store to ask, but since my goal was not to have to buy yarn, my purpose might have been defeated.

I’m typing this with toasty warm hands and wrists in my new Fetching, which took just a couple of evenings. Here’s a photo.

Have I convinced you to at least check out Ravelry if you’re a knitter? Like so many social networking tools, it can be a time drain. But it needn’t be if you use it just for the fabulous and powerful databases. If you do join, check out my notebook and feel free to make me your friend. My Ravelry name is kramerscout.

Keeping the clutter out of holiday gift giving

17 November 2008

If you haven’t already purchased your holidays gifts this year, I encourage you to consider giving gifts that won’t contribute any clutter to the recipient’s home. I wrote about this in the November 2007 issue of my newsletter. My readership was smaller then, so I’m going to repost it here for those who may not have seen it. (If you like it and would like to subscribe to my free monthly newsletter, which comes out on the 15th of every month, please subscribe.)

Clutter-Free Gift Giving

So many of my clients develop attachments to inanimate objects. Those attachments make it really hard for the client to part with the objects. And what happens? Clutter happens. I’ve found that clients who tend to get sentimental about stuff find it particularly difficult to part with gifts that have been given them.

This has certainly changed the way I think about gift giving. I personally believe that once I’ve given a gift, the recipient is free to do whatever he or she wants with it. My feelings won’t be hurt if the gift is given away or even thrown away. But I don’t want to clutter up anybody’s life. So I try to give gifts that won’t add to clutter. And I encourage you to think in the same way about gift giving, particularly if anyone on your gift list has a problem with clutter.

Here are some of my favorite ideas for clutter-free giving:

Fresh flowers. A beautiful arrangement of cut flowers livens up any room. After the flowers have died, they can be tossed guilt-free. I try to avoid including a vase with the gift—I’ve seen many a home cluttered by florists’ vases! An easy website for ordering flowers is 1-800-flowers. I’ve also used Proflowers with success. Sometimes I’ll call a local florist in the recipient’s town, if I know of a good one.

Pampering. If you have a friend who would enjoy a little pampering, consider a gift certificate for spa services. Many cities and even towns have day spas. A massage or facial (even for men!) might be something your gift recipient wouldn’t do for him or herself. To find a spa in your gift recipient’s community, try Spafinder.

Services. Give someone the gift of time by offering to perform some needed services for him or her. You could offer a few hours of babysitting, offer to shovel snow, rake leaves, walk dogs or even clean house. If you’re a gardener, offer to do some landscaping. If you’re good with computers, offer to set up a wireless network or make their computer more secure. These gifts are clutter-free and really very special. You can also give a gift certificate for organizing services if you’re sure that the recipient would love to work with a professional organizer.

Clutter-free subscriptions. Giving a magazine subscription is a nice year-long gift, but many people let magazines pile up. Instead, consider giving a subscription to a services like Netflix or Blockbuster Total Access, which send rental DVDs right to your recipient’s home. If your gift recipient likes to listen to the spoken word, a subscription to Audible might be just right.

Edibles. Give something perishable to eat and you know it won’t linger in your gift recipient’s home. You can make homemade goodies, or send a gift package from a place like Wolferman’s, which sells English muffins and specialty breads, or Harry & David for fruit or other editbles. In 2006 Food and Wine published a terrific article on giving edible gifts.

A side benefit to giving an intangible gift is that you don’t have to go out shopping! Let your fingers do the shopping online. And give yourself (and your gift recipient) the peace of mind of not adding clutter to a cluttered world.

Off to Chicago

14 November 2008

I leave this afternoon to drive to Chicago with my friend and fellow organizer Karel Worley of Clearing Your Path (who, sadly, doesn’t yet have a website). We’re going to the 2008 Professional Organizer Midwest Conference and Expo. There’s a great lineup of speakers, mostly fabulous organizers from around the country (and the world — Wendy Davie, president of the Australasian Association of Professional Organizers, who lives in New Zealand, will be speaking). Other speakers include Elizabeth Hagen, Margaret Lukens, Pam McCutcheon, and Emily Wilska (whose blog was my Blog of the Week a few weeks back).

I’m a conference junkie. I love learning new information and I adore getting to know other organizers who are, by and large, a really wonderful group of helping people.

Karel and I are visiting IKEA on Sunday. Karel’s never been there. I’m still having flashbacks about my stress-filled trip there last summer, but this trip should be much more relaxing since I’m not planning on buying anything.

After our trip to IKEA, we’ll drive the five hours back to St. Louis. I’m looking forward to spending more time with Karel, renewing acquaintances with organizers I know and meeting more of them!