Dancing Rabbit - Organizing Services

Where: Mississauga, CA
What: ICD conference (Institute for Challenging Disorganization)
Why: I want to keep learning and connecting with amazing organizers dedicated to providing Neuro-Affirming services.

I didn't know the term Neuro-Affirming before this conference, but it is exactly what I've been practicing for over a decade. It's "recognizing, validating, and supporting different ways human brains function instead of trying to cure or change them."

I value my clients for their strengths, perspectives and unique processes. We work together to adapt their environment and explore how to make decisions in a way that creates meaningful changes in their space, routine and projects.

I loved meeting organizers from all over the world and experts in ADHD, Neuro-affirming coaching, emotional labor in families and more.

It takes a village...

Large organizing jobs require many hands, minds and hearts to surround an individual or family going through a big transition.

These jobs can include:
- Moving
- Downsizing
- Decluttering a home where hoarding has happened

This is where an organizer needs to be more than just "organized" or a "neat freak." They need to know how to collaborate!

That means working with the client on decision making and working with these amazing contractors to see how their skills and strengths could get the job done.

Last month, we moved someone into their home in just one day! I learned so much working alongside:

- Lex Construction (Northern Colorado)
- Knights Crating (Colorado)
- Newton Handyman Services (Evansville, Indiana)
- Lasting Order Organizing (Evansville, Indiana)
- a sweet, little furball.

From Colorado to Indiana!

This client invited me to work with her through the whole move:

decluttering and prepping
packing
loading
space planning
unloading
unboxing
unpacking (We unpacked her new home in just 8 hours!)
and decorating

Here you can see her old home and her new home and the care that goes into making sure things feel settled and familiar.

More on the amazing businesses and teams that helped in this relocation process in the next post.

Client: "I hate that giant cardboard box, holding the wrapping paper."

Me: "Well, we could buy a long plastic tub to hold the tubes, OR..."

Why not play with the space? Items that are creatively placed can inspire use.

They are easier to see, easy to remember and bring a sense of joy and whimsy. This set up was fun and only took me 15-20 minutes and zero trips to the container store.

Boom! Moving can be very disorienting but, having your own systems makes settling into a new place a breeze.

Over a year ago, my client and I took our time researching products that he liked and experimenting with their placement in the home.

The aim was to make it easier to leave the home without losing items or feeling stressed.

Now that he is moving again, all we had to do was figure out where these systems fit best and install them.

Once you know the systems that work best for you, you can re-create them anywhere you go.

Systems shown here:
1) A bag for every occasion (going to work in a cafe, climbing, walking around town) and a hook for every bag.
2) Coat hooks over a shoe rack for guests to signal they should take off their shoes.
3) A designated hook for his keys.
3) Cubbies designated for dog care, outdoor sports and winter hats and gloves.

POD people... or people who need to pack a POD, I cannot recommend enough Two Guys, No Truck! A local business that is incredibly friendly and experienced in loading and moving labor.

This summer I packed for a client who was moving from downtown Denver to her new home in CA. We had several specialty items including a large mattress that could not be compressed, several pieces of artwork and an antique table.

True to their name, Two guys showed up, including the owner, and they took great care to make sure each item was secured safely. Everything was loaded within 3 hours and arrived completely safe and unscathed!

https://twoguysnotruck.com/

Researching PPE for upcoming jobs and, based on the "multiple applications", there is only one occassion which is truly exciting and adorable for a hazmat suit. Can you guess which one it is?

Where a professional organizer can be most effective!

Moving is not always as simple as point A to point B.

Sometimes it's from point A with no idea where point B will be and there is also a point C (another home) and D (a storage unit) that has other items from previous moves.

This was a sorting and packing job from earlier this summer. My client likes working with bins that are labeled. So, we de-randomized piles and created a photo-inventory. Now there is a system that can be used across A, C and D for when he finally finds the perfect point B!

It's easy to say moving is stressful. I think it runs more deeply than that. Below is a quote that speaks to the discomfort and growth that I have noticed in over a decade of working with people to downsize or change their homes.

Please take time to read ...

"The nervous system and connective tissues are systems in our bodies that hold memory. They record memory. The function of the nervous system is to record all of your experiences and then build a case for it, build a map for it. Our connective tissues hold the shapes that we practice making, so if we’re trying to leave what’s known and familiar, it is a threat to the shape that we are. It’s a threat to the nervous system pathways that we already have. But, just because something feels uncomfortable doesn’t mean it’s bad. Discomfort is actually where we grow the most."

- Renee Sills