Ever notice a friend looking dang hot in a pair of jeans? You ask where she got them, then bolt to the store to grab a pair for yourself. You pray they have your size. You’re in luck. You try them on. They’re upsettingly ghastly. You wouldn’t be caught dead wearing them in public. How is that possible?
Some look stunning in long flowy dresses. Others, not so much.
I’m somewhat height challenged. A friend, she’s somewhere between 5’7” – 5’9”, looks divine sashaying in long flowy dresses and bopping around in colorful cropped pants. Those types of apparel look absolutely disastrous on me. We’re not built the same, they don’t work the same for both of us.
Last month, a prospective client reached out looking for an organizer who could provide home organizing systems with proof of success. For a few moments, I considered responding to the request with many examples of success stories. Check out my testimonials page, lots of rave reviews, and those are a fraction of the number received. Clients send me emails and texts with photos or victorious feats of dropping off stacks of donations and recyclables and artistically arranged drawers and shelving. I could go on and on. And yet, all of this would be meaningless to a degree. Why? Didn’t they really happen?
It gets back to individuality and uniqueness. Raving success stories about a client or group of clients may not necessarily translate to success for the way that prospective client thinks, processes information, or functions. There’s a magic sauce for her recipe. Her sauce might need to be modified if she is gluten-free, dairy-free, or diabetic. The recipe for integrating systems for household management also need to account for personal attributes such as brain-based challenges; sensory preferences (visual, auditory, tactile or kinesthetic processor); hearing or sight impairments; left or right-hand dominance; body height; and physical disabilities or limitations. And then there are home attributes such as number of inhabitants; living quarter size; work-at-home accommodations; natural lighting; sound proofing; comfortable furniture. Starting to get the picture?
I’ve worked with clients residing in very large homes with limited remaining storage space. The more room we have, the more we tend to fill it with stuff. I’ve helped those in small apartments or condos who tried to shoehorn all their belongings from a 5-bedroom house into a downsized 1200 square feet. As you might imagine, that doesn’t work well. Something needs to give. Obviously the apartment size won’t.
The reality is that we all have our unique realities. Of course there will be similarities, and we can all learn from each other. There are common tools and practices that can be translated to various situations. Keep in mind, there are also factors such as motivation, willingness, time management, and navigating relationships toward common household goals. All of which affect outcomes. More importantly, there are our expectations of ourselves, of others, and for our spaces.
What do you want from your spaces?
What do you want from your spaces?
- Appearance?
- Comfort?
- Usefulness?
- Room to spread out?
- Areas to buckle down?
What do you want from yourself?
- Time to spend with friends or on hobbies?
- Low stress lifestyle?
- More money in your wallet?
The bottom line is I can share testimonials with you. I can share successful methodologies with you. Will they be successful for you? No guarantees. Instead, here’s my suggestion. Look at the process as an experiment.
First determine what you want. The type of spaces, time management, and lifestyle that feels right for you. Like grabbing an armload of pants to take to the dressing room to see what look and feel comfortable, dare I say, even amazing.
Try different approaches to finding a life that works for you. Not for me, not for your friends, not for magazines or tv shows. For you (and other household residents).
Keep in mind, and this is so important…there’s no failure, there’s no recriminations. There are only lessons to be learned and endless ways to try to reach your definition of SUCCESS.
