WHAT IS A PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZER?

If you haven't come across this term before, you may be wondering what it means and what exactly a person in this profession does. I have met many people who, wanting to better understand organizational concepts or related topics, have sought me out for an explanation. That's when I realized that what may seem simple and intuitive to us can remain a mystery to others if not explained with patience and empathy. This can happen either because the terms are often in English and not in their mother tongue or because they are part of more complex concepts that people have not yet mastered.

From a passion for psychology and organization, I have launched the #TidyfulEDUCATES campaign, through which I aim to thoroughly explain the concepts both on my blog/Social Media pages and in seminars, events, and courses for children and adults.

I will start with the most basic explanation. WHAT IS A PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZER?

There's one thing we know for sure: organization is not something new. We find it in everything that surrounds us - from managing activities at work to how we spend our time or how we control how and on what our money is spent.

Organization is basically the efficient management of resources, whether we are talking about material, financial, or personal resources, such as time, energy, and psycho-emotional state.

The term "Professional Organizer" (US Organizer, UK Organiser) simply means an organization specialist. Consultants with this training are specialized in finding and implementing organizational solutions that you will often find under the name of "systems." You may not realize it, but when you put an object in a certain place and the next time you know exactly where to find it, you have already created a system, a logic that you apply that makes your life easier.

Given the complexity of the domains in which organizations play a significant role, consultants can specialize in one or more areas of activity. This is a profession characterized by a great deal of flexibility, allowing specialists to incorporate their other skills and interests, such as interior design, psychology, IT, finance, visual arts, and more, into their business models.

Here are some examples of specializations:

• Financial organization

• Time and activity management

• Residential space organization

• Office/workshop/HoReCa space organization

• Consultants specialized in managing individuals with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

• Feng Shui specialists (a principle of Taoist philosophy that is based on installing harmony in the home through analyzing the energy flows of the surrounding environment or qi)

• Moving/relocation/real estate (moving to a different residence within the city/country, moving to a different country, or preparing the home for sale, i.e., staging)

• Virtual organization (databases, documents, process flows, automations, etc.).

The fact that this type of activity is becoming increasingly visible thanks to the exposure that personalities such as Marie Kondo have, may lead you to believe that it is something new, a trend. Well, the reality is that this profession emerged around the 1980s as a response to a more pronounced need for people to organize themselves more efficiently in various contexts of their lives.

There were many factors that contributed to the emergence of this need, such as industrialization and consumerism, technological advancements, and the "nesting" phenomenon (a social trend over 40 years old that refers to the need to create a pleasant, comfortable, and beautiful environment to live in). Another phenomenon that we cannot neglect is the effect of the post-communist period, meaning the euphoria caused by the drastic increase in the availability of consumer goods. This led to excessive buying and therefore waste on multiple levels.

As we are approaching the end of the article, I would like to remind you of the three important ideas that I hope you have learned and found interesting:

● The profession of "Professional Organizer" is by no means a newly emerging trend

● Specialists in the field are as different as possible, precisely to meet the multiple needs that clients face. Although we share a special passion for organization, our methods can be different because we like to test, observe, and implement various systems. A true specialist possesses a lot of creativity and an understanding that they do not hold the absolute truth

● Tidiness is beautiful! That's what the Tidyful motto says, and I say it too. There is nothing more beautiful than a person who decides to take control of a situation that has gotten out of hand and decides to use organization as a tool to achieve a better life.

See you soon!

Laura Covaci