Selling clothes and other items on eBay is what one of my clients does for a living. I’ve been working for him for about 15 years on and off. Last week he gave me full freedom to work in his garage and a back storage room in order to make it possible for him to find things to sell. Excited about finding a local buyer for his clothes, he was eager to be able to have full access to the many bags of items that were piled up in this room.
I had tried to organize the room before, but it was hard to find enough space to put things. Since he was giving me freedom to do whatever needed to be done, I realized that I had felt blocked from removing some shelving and drawers which were not being efficiently used.
I also took everything out of the closet and put it in the garage along with the draws and shelving which now were in a place where they could be utilized better. I removed the items from the drawers and put them in marked boxes so they could more easily be found and the drawers be used more efficiently.
One of my main philosophies is to organize things using priority as a guideline. If something is used often, it should be easily accessible as well as clearly marked if necessary. I noticed that many things were placed in high priority areas and they needed to be moved so that more essential things could be placed there.
My client was shocked and overjoyed when he saw how I had stacked banana boxes almost to the ceiling, put plastic bags in places that made them easy to find and know what was in them, and open up the room so it felt more spacious. “I’ve never seen so much floor before,” he exclaimed!
I felt so encouraged and uplifted knowing that I had really made a difference. The room was truly transformed.
But that wasn’t all I did in ten hours. I also helped him sort clothes and get them ready to sell and re-organized the garage so that he and his helpers could more easily find packing materials and have a workspace. Locating a good juicer, cleaning the whole house, and even getting into nooks and crannies were among the things I happily did. Some organizers don’t like to clean, but I feel so satisfied when I can declutter and then clean up the newly opened up space.
We did a number of other great things to help transform his space. I had estimated 10 hours, and it truly was a miracle that it all got done in that time. I normally don’t work so long, yet sometimes it is more efficient for me and my client to do a very long day and really get the job done thoroughly.
In fact, when I worked for a client the next day, I only worked 3 1/2 hours and I was able to uncover buried Christmas decorations, get her newly remodeled bedroom much more ready for decorating, and get a very overwhelming room in order. I even was able to put some sheets on her bed and get some vacuuming done. I was so happy to see the progress in her house as she has had workers doing remodeling work even while she is living in her house and things are a bit chaotic. But we are making progress!
I really love my organizing job and feel so grateful to my clients for entrusting me with helping them. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
