Tag Archive for: certified professional organizer

What People Say When They are Working with a Certified Professional Organizer

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CPO

Many people start with good intentions but quickly feel overwhelmed when it comes to getting organized. That’s where a Certified Professional Organizer® (CPO®) makes all the difference. Working alongside a trained and credentialed professional can give you the structure, accountability, and expertise needed to create lasting change. Here’s what clients often share with me about the value of working with a CPO.

“Writing out a less complicated plan helped me get started.”

When plans are overcomplicated, it is hard to get started or continue the project. You have a vision, but it lacks clarity. With a CPO, you can write out the organizing process to make sure it is accomplished in the most efficient way.

“Writing down my baby steps.”

The struggle happens when you have to remember all the details. Together, writing down the details makes your plan manageable. That might be a color-coded chart created together or a list your CPO writes and texts to you. Along the way, you are devising a manageable plan with real baby steps.

“Keeping me on track.”

You set a deadline, but it can be a long way off. Accountability is one of the most frequently requested parts of the organizing process. Staying focused on a project is often the hardest part. A CPO brings “loving” accountability and helps you maintain momentum, even when the process feels daunting. With someone encouraging you and being alongside you step by step, you’re less likely to get stuck or lose sight of your goals.

“Helping execute my plan.”

Many people know what they want their home, office, or schedule to look like, but don’t know how to get there. Getting started on your plan may be the hardest part. A CPO helps translate your vision into an actionable plan and works beside you to carry it out. Instead of facing endless tasks alone, you have a partner who helps break those tasks into small, manageable steps. Planning is a great asset, and so is execution.

“Giving me permission to declutter my stuff.”

Sorting through belongings can feel emotional and overwhelming. Those items may really be a burden while also feeling like a responsibility.  A CPO brings a fresh perspective, guiding you through decisions about what to keep, donate, or discard. With CPO support, you’ll create space and clarity in your environment.

“Changing my environment to be more productive.”

Your surroundings have a huge impact on your focus and energy. A streamlined environment is where productivity starts. A CPO helps you design systems and spaces that support productivity, whether that’s setting up a streamlined home office, reorganizing your kitchen, or creating routines for daily life. The result? A space that works for you to enhance and empower your productivity.

“I could not do this without you.”

If you could, you would! There are so many ways a CPO makes a difference. You have the plan, and a CPO arriving makes stuff happen. Your trust in your CPO creates a powerful partnership. A CPO can also act as a body double, giving you the energy and focus to complete your goals. I love making a difference in time and space in my clients’ homes and lives.

Working with a Certified Professional Organizer® is more than just tidying up.  It’s about building systems, habits, and environments that support the life you want. With expertise built on a strong foundation of education, you’ll feel empowered, supported, and set up for success.

What to expect when working with a Professional Organizer when you have ADHD

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Starting in the early 2000, I noticed my clients having similar challenges. It was usually a love hate relationship with time, paper and stuff.   That’s when I learned about ADHD.  Since that time, I have been working with clients with ADHD and helping make the changes they want in their lives.   Because of our work together, these clients have started living the life they have imagined.  What is it like for us to work together?

 

What to expect before we meet

My clients reach out through email or phone, bravely taking a first step.  It’s courageous because they have finally recognized how asking for help can make a difference. That courage comes from a deep longing to create systems and routines that have been unnatural for them.

 

When we initially talk or meet, my role is a listener. I am hearing what are the challenges.  I am not judging.  Because our work is non-judgmental, we are from the start creating a trust relationship.

 

It’s common that my clients can feel anxious about our first meeting. Perhaps it is about whether there is “hope” for a solution, or whether there will be judgement, or another feeling.  After we meet, that all changes.

 

What to expect when we meet

Our meetings begin with an assessment. It’s further talk and review of goals, expectations, and ho we will work best together.  There is a lot of verbal processing going on! My clients are talkers, who as they talk, ideas become clear.   We review the process of decluttering, organizing, and maintaining that we will work on together.

 

My clients and I establish a rhythm to our work for decluttering.  Our work always begins with “what to keep and what to let go.”  It’s a conversation at times and it’s a quick sort at times.   If my client gets stuck, at times we put something aside to talk further and at times we keep it for a while. My clients often don’t know what to let go of because it is not clear how much of an item they own.  We gather items together while we are decluttering.  In the end, I bring items to donate to facilitate decluttering.

 

As we organize, my clients and I determine categories together.  There’s grouping, there’s placing, and then there’s products to help.  Many of my clients have lots of products to help us organize. We can place these more effectively together.

 

What to expect after we meet

Organizing is a journey.  It’s not over after our series of meetings.  We discuss what maintenance looks like, how to create routines to maintain and what a maintenance visit together looks like.  These new perspectives on organizing help my clients keep organized. We talk about when we might meet again as needed.

 

What to expect

My clients have recently decided that they want to make a big change.  They have hit a point where the time has come to invest in that change on many levels.

The core of our work together is trust, education, support, and communication.  Knowing how my clients work best and sharing basic knowledge about ADHD are underpinnings of our work together.  My support and establishing a team to support my clients are part of our work together.  Communication, verbal processing, and non-judgemental discussions are elements that move our work together forward.

 

Curious about ADHD and getting organized?  Let’s connect!