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How I Became Like My Clients For One Month
By: Janet L. Hall
I know exactly when I started falling apart, not mentally but
overloaded with commitments and deadlines I knew I
could make. But then suddenly, surgery was to be
performed again, on Valentine's Day.
I've never hidden the fact that I'm just like you. I'm not
perfect and I'm not super human just because my profession
is as a professional organizer.
We all have things come into our lives, or out of, usually
unexpectedly. We all have emergencies or things that come
up that just have to be completed. We all have someone or
something needing our attention. This is you, this is me, and
this is life!
Many times clients call when their systems have broken
down, if they even had systems. But many call
because their world has fallen off its axis, leaving them and
their world spinning out of control…out of balance.
If they completely ignore the situation or don't know how to
get their world back into balance - into sync - the way it use
to be, they will become overpowered by all the stuff in their
lives.
The daily errands of driving here and there for:
>>Appointments
>>Children
>>Special events
>>Meetings
>>School functions
>>Banking
>>Food shopping
>>Shopping
>>Work
seem to make you drive like a maniac
down the street, racing and rushing from one place to
another. And even forgetting to stop at some places.
The daily activities one usually finds in a home of:
>>Processing the mail
>>Answering the phone
>>Returning calls
>>Reading email
>>Replying to email
>>Cooking
>>Cleaning
>>Playing with the children or pets
>>Bathing the children or pets
>>Watering the plants
>>Reading
>>Being a buffer
makes you just want to throw up your hands and turn
and run.
And what about the unexpected?
>>Illness
>>Visitors
>>Spouse laid-off from job
>>Someone moving in or out
>>Computer problems
>>A friend needing your ear, shoulder, and comfort
>>A client or boss needing it NOW, instead of next week
>>A child with special needs
>>A child with needs
>>Travel for your job
>>Training for your job
>>An accident
just makes you want to SCREAM that you have no time or
patience for all this!
Your world has just exploded! What can you do about it?
On Valentine's Day my world exploded when I was told I
would have to endure yet another breast surgery. I was
working on my book, "Secrets of a Professional Organizer
and How-To Become One," and the deadline was the end of
February. And worse yet, we get short-changed a couple of
days in February! WHO did that? Who thought this up?
Just three days after surgery and between work, clients,
writing, and running a home I had to prepare to leave for
Florida for 13 days to work with a client and attend school at
the beginning of March. WHEW, makes me tired just
thinking back on all this.
In Florida I stayed with a girlfriend, and had the
guest/storage room with some closet space, one drawer,
and a small desk.
My journey into piles began. Things started living in piles:
>>On the floor
>>On top of my suitcases
>>On the bed
>>On the dresser
>>On the chair and desk.
I had all my toilettes sitting out around the sink, carefully
placed (but crowded together) so I wouldn't break anything
or, God forbid, something fall into the toilet!
While in Florida I was so busy I really didn't get to work on
any of my "normal" to-dos. I had so many new to-dos' there!
I went to school from 7 AM until 6 or 7 PM, grabbed
something to eat and started working with my client,
sometimes until midnight, once until 2:30 AM. (I was helping
my friend "client", where I was staying, redo her whole web
site and teach her computer stuff.)
When I returned home to Maryland, all the mail, all
the
errands, all my clients, and all my self-imposed deadlines
and other's deadlines were waiting for me.
I unpacked (although I still have a couple of files in my
computer case I need to get out and put away) and started
making a pile here and a pile there. Some in the kitchen,
some in the living room, some in the bedroom, and some
really big piles in my office!
I didn't even touch the mail for the first three days. I didn't
want to look at or deal with mail or the bills. I wanted to start
spring-cleaning. All my clothes needed washed, dried, and
put away.
As I looked around, all I could think was, "I'm becoming my
clients. No time to think about this now. I have to finish my
book, create CD labels, burn 100 CD's and put labels on
them. Oh MY GOD! I forgot to order the blank CD's and
labels before I left for Florida. I need them today. Okay, I'll
just call and order today and get them shipped overnight. I
still have to write the newsletter, return phone calls, reply to
emails, and oh, I just want some really good sleep!"
The shipment came, as promised, the next day. I ripped
open the boxes, got everything out and started working,
leaving the packing material and boxes lie, wherever… See
Janet's Messy Office
I'm writing, researching, and tossing books here and there. I
didn't care at that point. I thought, "I have great systems in
place so when all this is over I can easily get everything back
into shape, put stuff where it belongs, and get my world back
into balance.
And so I have. After finishing the book, labels, CD's,
returning calls and emails, and still working with clients I
tackled my office. It took me just two hours to get everything
in place and put away because I have a sorting and
de-cluttering system, "The 5 W's of Organizing, a TEASER,
and a TICKLE". And it works!
See Janet's Clean Office.
We all have our own ups and downs in life; life happens. We
each ride the waves from the same Universe.
When everything is going 'just right,' we are riding our up
waves; sometimes not even paying attention to our good
'fortune.'
When things are going wrong we feel we are being slapped
silly by the waves; causing us to tumble, crash, and sink to
the bottom and depths of darkness, and asking ourselves,
"What did I ever do to deserve this?"
But what goes down MUST come back up!
So what can you do to help get your world back into balance,
and make your down waves less powerful?
Start by getting organized.
>>Create or find a common 'home' or zone for your things to
live.
>>KNOW what to do with your stuff (do you really need or
when will you use?)
>>Have systems and procedures in place.
Knowing where things "live" and how things are handled can
sure make life a little easier for those 'off balance' days that
we all experience.
Now I really must go. I still have to get out the newsletter,
send out products, send out speaking materials, get ready
for two presentations, do my taxes, take a test, read ten new
books, and, oh yeah, plant some pansies in the garden and
pick some asparagus.
Aha! Life is finally back to normal.
Smiles, not Piles,
Copyright (c) 2002 by OverHall Consulting
P.O. Box 263, Port Republic, MD 20676
All Rights Reserved. Permission is granted to reproduce,
copy, or distribute this article so long as article is kept intact,
this copyright notice, and full information about the author is
attached.
About the Author
The Organizing Wizard, Janet L. Hall, is a Professional
Organizer, Speaker, and Author of 'Secrets of a Professional Organizer and How-To Become One.' She is the owner of
OverHall Consulting and Organizing By Phone. Subscribe to
her FREE organizing newsletter at
http://www.overhall.com/newsletter.htm or visit
her web site at http://www.overhall.com
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