This might be a question you are asking yourself if you have made it here to this site. You may be able to tackle a project on your own as time & energy allows which is great! But if you find yourself at a roadblock it might be time to call a professional organizer.

So what is a professional organizer in the first place?

According to National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals (NAPO), professional organizers “support evaluation, decision-making, and action around objects, space, and data; helping clients achieve desired outcomes regarding function, order, and clarity.”

A professional organizer can really help guide you in the organizing process- taking into account your needs, style, pain points, and goals for your space. It is important for you as the client to be really clear on your priorities and what you would really like to do in the given space that needs help. When you are clear on your vision for the space, a professional organizer can make recommendations & help implement a system to help you achieve that vision. While pictures you see on Instagram can help inspire, it might not be practical to replicate in your space based on your needs & goals. There really isn’t a one size fits all strategy as we are all unique! A professional organizer should be flexible enough to adapt a system to fit your organizing style & what success means to you. Just like you might hire a personal trainer to help you reach your fitness goal- a professional organizer is a consultant/teacher/coach for you on your organizing journey.

Will a professional organizer do all the work for me?

Sorry but no :). As a client, you are ultimately responsible for the hard decisions of editing items out of the space in order to make room for the things that ARE important to you. Otherwise it just becomes a process of putting the same stuff into bins which ultimately will not solve the issues that led to hiring an organizer in the first place. A professional organizer can help guide you & make recommendations of what to toss/donate/sell/re-home etc, but ultimately you’ll need to be rolling up your sleeves as well. Organizing takes time, often messes don’t happen overnight- so a lot of professional organizers work in blocks of time with you so you can take the organizing process at the pace you prefer.

What sort of training does a professional organizer have?

While there is no formal college degrees etc. for this profession, many professional organizers are part of an associated called NAPO (National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals) and through the association take industry classes & receive certification to further their skills in particular areas. In addition to reading & hands on experience, professional organizers that are a part of NAPO have access to a great network of peers in the industry to learn from & lean on for expertise.

If you are overwhelmed, lack the energy & just need the support to get started organizing, consider hiring a professional organizer to help you stay on track towards getting to your vision of success for your living space.