My Organizing Story

At Daisy Thirteen, we're all about stories. The stories we tell ourselves about our homes and the way our homes make us look can be negative. But it doesn't have to be that way.  

As a Certified Organizational Specialist™, I can help you to find a system that works for you. 

 

 

My organizing story... 

One of the stories that I've always told myself is that I'm just a chaotic person. Those piles are necessary, because I don't know where else to put those things. And I always know what's in the piles. "Organized chaos" is what I called it. 

As a child, my room was a hot mess. I liked to keep all the things, because they all had meaning for me. That ugly candle I made at camp. Priceless. No, you can't light that candle! I generally knew which pile to look to find things, but it always took me too long. 

Fast forward to my 20s and 30s; it turns out that moving to a whole new country every 6 years means that you just don't keep a lot of stuff. But once I did settle down for a bit longer, the stuff accumulated. And when your house is perpetually dusty because you have 2 long haired cats and a woodworking shop attached to the house... it means you have to dust all the things. And then you start to resent all the things. 

If someone said they were coming over, it was a mad dash to get things hidden away and then clean the house. I've been known to lock the bedroom door, so that nobody accidentally walked in there. And, if someone stopped by unexpectedly, I'd mumble vague excuses about being so busy with work... and then I'd sit there, feeling so incredibly ashamed that my house was a disaster. 

I'm not saying that ANYONE should feel ashamed of their home or the way they live. That shame was all mine, and completely unnecessary. I never judge someone else by the state of their home, whether it's tidy or messy, because I may or may not know what they're going through.  

I tried watching those organizing shows; the ones that make everything look instagram-worthy, and I felt like I was failing. Pulling everything out of a closet caused me to shut down with overwhelm, and then that pile sat there, mocking me for weeks, until I felt motivated enough to finally deal with it. I'm not a minimalist, and organizing my extensive book collection by rainbow colours hurts my brain. I wanted these methods to work, but they just didn't.  

So around the start of 2023, I started looking for other ways. I watched countless YouTube videos, listened to So. Many. Podcasts. Read books. And little by little, I started chipping away at  my home. I learned that being organized doesn't have to be pretty. It has to be functional FOR ME. And for my family of course. But I started with the spaces that I use the most. The kitchen. My office. My closet (which admittedly is still a little full). The bathroom. I used old plastic containers that I had lying around to organize kitchen and bathroom drawers. 

And as I chipped away, I suddenly noticed that I had more time. I realized that it wasn't cleaning my house that I hated, it was that I had to FIRST tidy up before I could clean, and by the time I was done tidying, I didn't feel like cleaning anymore. 

But I also noticed changes that had nothing to do with my house. I felt more relaxed. I actually had all of my bookkeeping done by mid January (I ALWAYS procrastinate until at least March). The creative energy was flowing more freely. I felt like I could breathe. 

I knew that I couldn't be the only one struggling with this, so in February of 2024, I decided to pursue professional training to become a Certified Organizational Specialist™.  

If you have been telling yourself the same stories that I told myself, I want you to know that you're not chaotic, messy, or lazy. You just haven't found a system that works for you. 

And I can help you with that.

 

Have a question? Check out our Organizing FAQ, or you can email me HERE.