Free

Mattie and I made this collage

It occurred to me that the focus this year on Lent being a time to free ourselves from the things that master us fits really well with my friend, Holly and her organizing business. 

I saw her in action twice this past weekend: Friday night at a Clever Container party and Saturday for a seminar on organizing paper for taxes.  It dawned on me on Sunday morning that she really does help people get free of "stressful stuff" situations.  

Thinking about how she organizes and how that saves people from stress reminded me of how Dave Ramsey helped us get rid of financial stress and going to the gym is helping get rid of physical stress (ie...I got my skinny jeans on this morning without lying down on the bed! WOOT!!!) 

It takes me a long time to develop organizing strategies. Often, I think I'm going to adopt a strategy, I clean and put stuff away, and then I forget what the plan was and mess it all up.  I can't envision a plan ahead of time either. I have to wait until a mess is big enough for me to realize it's driving me crazy and then come up with something to fix it.  Holly can do both.  Part of her business is helping people who have just moved to unpack the boxes in a way that makes sense: that's creating a plan from the start for organizing.  She also works with her teammate Janet to de-clutter, organize and structure an existing problem area...anything from closets, entryways, spare-rooms, garages, to offices.  She laughs with me that craft areas are the hardest, but she did inspire me to finally come up with a plan for my spaces that makes sense.  (Although I still need a plan for my Exacto knife. Which is my favorite tool that I can never find.)

Professional organizing might seem like a luxury, but it's like a lot of things...you might be able to do it yourself, but will you? Do you really have time?  And how much time (and money)  would you be saving by just getting it done right and getting yourself into a routine that works?

The other thing that Holly does is offer Clever Container products which are sold at parties like Tupperware.  It's a new company and they offer two kinds of things: products that are their own and also the best, highest quality version of organizing products made by other companies. 

I didn't tell Holly I was going to blog about her and her business.  I just thought it was interesting how what she does fits with giving people freedom.  

So go check out Holly.  She's my friend and she's awesome.

Simply Organized Blog