A common question I hear is “how long do you typically work with a client?”  Most clients start with a package of time, be it 9 or 18 hours, and usually work into a long-term relationship. Others only need a nudge and some fresh ideas, and my two hour intro session suffices.  

It’s hard enough to organize things we can see, feel, and touch, so how do we organize time?  It’s usually a different process for each client that then needs to be tested and tweaked until we land on just the right combo of solutions. In this case, we laid it all out on a board propped up in her office. One of my clients is an interior designer specializing in medical offices.

While some days we clear vast expanses of floor or desk space, or let our creative juices flow in creating fabulous new systems, other days I simply help my clients open their mail.  This may precede creating smart paper flow systems, happen immediately after, or years into our relationship

We are all too hard on young people to clean their rooms, when our own rooms need cleaning just as much in some cases.  Like their parents though, they don’t always know how, but enjoy the process once walked through it.

Though a lot of my time is spent sitting side by side with clients at their desks, paper lurks in all nooks and crannies of a home.  What happens when your contractor tells you he’s demolishing your kitchen cabinets next week and needs you to clear our the drawers?  Call the organizer!

Though I’ve given virtual consultations to clients outside of the US, a couple of weeks ago I gave a talk via video conferencing to a World Bank group in Afghanistan!  I taught how to turn your phone into a mobile office...