Happy Monday, my friends. I need to set the record straight about something.
I am not the organization lady.
I genuinely do not care if your sweaters are folded like a J.Crew display or if your boxes have the correct labels. And your junk drawer? It does not bother me one bit.
I hear it all the time. “Don’t look in here. Don’t judge me. I know your house is probably perfectly organized.”
It is not. I live a real life. I have a family. I have people coming and going, and my house is often a mess. The things around me are comforting. They represent who I am right now. The feedback they give me is encouraging, and I love them exactly as they are. My books are shelved; however, they landed. They are certainly not color-coded.
Now, some of you actually do wrap your books in paper to create a beautiful color-coordinated shelf, and I think that looks stunning. I am just telling you mine looks nothing like that, and we are both fine.
So What Is It I Actually Do?
Here is the thing about clutter, about the junk drawer, about the pile on the counter that has been there longer than you want to admit.
The clutter is never really about the clutter.
When I look at your space, I am looking at what it reveals about your inner world. What is going on in your life right now? Who are you in this season? Where you feel stuck and where you are ready to move. That is what I am reading. There is no judgment in any of it. A beautifully organized home and a home with a bit of chaos both tell a story. Both are feedback. Both are doorways into something deeper.
I also understand that your space is rarely just yours. You share it with a husband, with kids, with family members who do not always share your vision of what the countertop should look like. I understand that from my real life to yours. The real information is in how that plays out day to day and how you feel about it. From there, we can discover so much about who you are, what you want, and where you are ready to go.
Space Is the Tool. Clarity Is the Goal.
What I do is different from decluttering and organizing. Those things can be part of what I do, which is different from decluttering and organizing. Those things can be part of the process, but the work is deeper and more personal than that. I come alongside women to help them find clarity about who they are in relationship to their space, their things, and their life. From that clarity, the path forward opens up.
Sentimental items are a perfect example. When I work with a client on those pieces, my job is to help her find the joy in them again so she can make a clear decision from a grounded place. That is very different from sorting and labeling. It is an internal process that just happens to take place in a physical space.
Space is the tool. Clarity, direction, and self-trust are the result.
A Little Confession
I will be completely honest with you about one thing. I love a good label.
I have a label maker. Martha Stewart introduced me to it years ago, and I still use the same one. That comes from understanding myself as a visual learner. I like things that are beautiful and functional. I surround myself with items that feel that way. So when I organize something for myself, yes, it gets a label.
But that is my preference, rooted in who I am. Your space should reflect who you are. That is the whole point.
What You Can Expect from Me
The next time I come to your home, I am looking at something entirely different from what you might expect. The made bed or the unmade one, the cleared counter or the crowded one, none of that is my focus. What I am looking for is what your space is reflecting back to you about your life right now and where you are ready to grow.
You do not have to tidy up for me. You just have to be willing to look honestly at what is there.
That is where the real work begins. And in my experience, it is some of the most freeing work a woman can do.
See you next Monday.
Meryl
—
This work runs deep enough that I am writing a full book on it, coming this fall. More on that soon. In the meantime, if this resonates and you want to go deeper, come join us in my women’s Facebook group.https://www.facebook.com/groups/clearingforclarity.
