A career as a professional organizer comes with many pre-conceived notions about my personal life. Whenever I tell someone that I am a professional organizer, I often hear assumptions about my life.
Let me dispel the top 5 myths about my life as a professional organizer:
“Your home must be perfect and look like a magazine!”
No one is perfect! Despite what the media shows us, the only homes that look like magazine photos are staged. I will admit that during the week my last home was for sale, it did look like those in magazines, but that was due to staging and constant cleaning. I am so glad it sold so quickly, because keeping up perfection is impossible. My home is clutter-free and well organized. Each room, piece of furniture, and closet has a purpose. It is not spotless, but when everything has a home, it is much easier to clean and organize.
“Your family must be so organized!”
I have a husband and child, and I am definitely the most organized person in my family. Compromise and creating spaces to store everyone’s items certainly helps us all remain organized. My family members each have rooms and areas that they are responsible for, and organize to the level that works for them. Remember, not everyone is a neat-freak, and trying to force that level of organization on others won’t end well.
“You must have inherited your ability from your mother.”
No, my mother was not organized, but my father has some organizing tendencies, such as organizing baseball card collections. I believe my organizing skills are an inborn part of my personality, and I later honed those skills as I coordinated schedules and items throughout my life. Much of what I’ve learned from The National Association of Professional Organizers, books on organizing, educational seminars, as well as on the job experience has turned me into the efficient professional organizer that I am today.
“You must have OCD and like organizing others to make the most of your disorder.”
No, I have never been diagnosed with OCD. I also don’t force my idea of organization and order on others. I organize to the point where my client feels they are at a good place, and able to find what they need. OCD is a psychological disorder, often requiring help from a mental health professional. I have helped some clients with OCD to organize, but they were under the care of a therapist at the time.
“You must love to clean!”
The act of cleaning (vacuuming, sweeping, scrubbing, dusting, mopping) is not organizing. I clean my own home because I have to; it is another chore that I make time in my schedule to complete, but I hardly love it. I do love organizing, the act of purging, sorting, labeling, and creating a purpose for a space; that is very different from cleaning.
My organizing comes from my father…. my sister and I both “caught” the bug….
I could have written this same blog about myself. It fits my life almost to a T.
Thanks, Yve. I am sure much of this is common to many Professional Organizers.
Oh my goodness Nancy, I have to laugh because I get these EXACT same comments all of the time! They are indeed myths, particularly #1 and #2!
Yes, Natalie, I think many Professional Organizers get those same questions. Just about any time I tell someone what I do for a living, it is immediately followed by comment myths #1 and #2.
Thank you very much for helping to set the record straight about what OCD is and is not. It’s a term that’s thrown around far too lightly sometimes!
You’re very welcome!
Great post. I hear all of these statements all the time. It’s quite annoying. Why do people think I am perfect? Who knows. I really hope I don’t come across as being a know-it-all in the clients’ eyes. =( I personally don’t like to clean. I do it because I have indoor allergies.
Thanks for the comment, Sabrina. For some reason, there’s a general belief that professional organizers are perfect. I am hoping this post helps to change that view.
A great round up of myths! I love how you handled the OCD question. People ask it innocently enough, but it’s always an opportunity to shed light and help others understand the reality of that life.
Thanks for sharing these!
Thank you very much, Kathy.