One of my very first clients in the Organizing Business was a very organized lady in Darien. She called me up around 10am. She needed a personal organizer to get her kitchen organized that same afternoon. I was the 5th person she had called from a list of professional organizers on FindMyOrganizer. Everyone else was busy, so I got the job!
I had googled the address to get a preliminary idea of what kind of a residence the job site would be, and knew that it was a large home recently purchased by the couple I would work with. When I arrived, I noticed a hub of activity. 2-3 contractors were hurriedly carrying things between the two flanking pavilions. My client met me with a friendly smile and led me to the opened boxes that were scattered around in the spacious quasi open kitchen. She explained that she and her husband had flown in from California two days before. The moving company had already delivered the furniture, the clothes and all the boxes. She thought she could get the kitchen things all put away on her own, but the timing was proving to be impossible and she realized she needed skilled help to complete the job.
As she showed me around the 6-bedroom mini-mansion, I learned that she had hired (the day before) several maids who had made sure all the built-in closets and bedroom cabinets, drawers were clean to hang and put away the clothes, coats, dresses, pants, accessories and shoes. They had all been removed from the moving boxes, carefully arranged and hung in the handsome walk-in closets. I saw no trace of cardboard boxes other than in the kitchen.
My client left me to decide where the plates, glasses, cutting boards, utensils, supplies, cans & sauces, small appliances and various specialty items would go. We consulted, she agreed or made suggestions, and allowed me my space.
At 4 o'clock she announced her work was done for the day as the Stock Market had closed. While I was there, she used only her laptop to conduct her business. Her desk in the main study room had no drawers and no filing cabinet components, which surprised me - especially since the top of the desk was completely clear. When I asked where she kept her current work, she replied she liked all her work stuff put away when she finished working. Wow!
It isn't that my client didn't keep anything extra or reduntant. She did. However, she had a place for everything - she had three junk drawers, which we organized. When we found spare screws, or mini hand-sanitizers, or bits of glue, or small magnets, they could easily go somewhere she had already designated. We threw away very little that afternoon, and within 4 hours the spacious kitchen and pantry area had been nicely organized. This lady knew how to get organized, in Darien or anywhere else. She hired professional help to get the job done promptly & efficiently so she could get on with her life.
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