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Consultant teaches ways of clutter-free life
Staff writer
chriscam@observer-reporter.com
Looking to declutter your home or office for the new year? It might be time to hire a professional organizer.
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One of about 250 certified professional organizers in the world, Kreamer provides both business and residential organizational services.
Author of "But I Might Need it Someday!" and "The Power of Simplicity: Choosing to Live Your Life on Purpose," Kreamer will speak at 10 a.m. Jan. 19 at Peters Township Public Library.
There is no fee to attend, but the library asks those interested to register at the library's circulation desk.
Becoming an organized person or decluttering your home involves more than cleaning up once. It is an ongoing process that requires investing time each day to keep the effort going, said Kreamer.
"I try to offer simple, practical and fun ideas that they can implement," she explained. She does between 60 and 100 speaking engagements a year.
Organization comes naturally to Kreamer, who started her business nine years ago in February.
"Clutter is nothing more than unmade decisions," she said. But people often need help in making those decisions and identifying the obstacles that are preventing them from making decisions.
She has six employees who undertake residential decluttering, beginning with an over-the-phone assessment. Once the organizer arrives at the home, the seed already has been planted in the client's mind to look at items differently.
Once there, Kreamer said, the organizer helps the client make fast, clear decisions about what to keep, throw away and donate.
She has identified 24 different excuses and obstacles that prevent people from making those decisions. A big one is sentimentality.
Sentimentality isn't a big problem with most business and corporate clients, but lack of organization there often translates to loss of productivity. Five minutes spent every day looking for something adds up to four weeks in one year, Kreamer said.
She cited that statistics show Americans waste nine million hours a day searching for misplaced items. Sixty percent of Americans feel they don't have enough time to get everything done, and 59 percent say they're too busy,
Being unorganized and cluttered means "you lose your freedom, your pride, your power, your purpose. Once you declutter, you get that back," she said.
She does not recommend purchasing large plastic bins and storage containers until after decluttering takes place. Otherwise, "you just contain everything," she said.
This will be Kreamer's fourth time to speak at the Peters library, located at 616 E. McMurray Road. Additional information is available at the library's Web site, ptlibrary.org, or Kreamer's Web site, byebyeclutter.com.
