Nicole Schultz describes herself as “a bit of a neat freak, but in a good way.”
As a mother of four children, being organized never really seemed like much of a choice for Schultz. Friends noticed, and what started as her efforts to help them maximize their space and offer solutions to eliminate chaos and clutter evolved into a business a year and a half ago. Get It Together is Schultz’s professional organizing company that offers services designed to create order in a client’s home, business, and life.
“Once items are placed in bins and labeled, or organized beautifully in drawers, it so much easier to find what you are looking for and the items have found a permanent home,” she said. “I absolutely love it and I feel like I make a difference. It’s like being part of an extreme home makeover show.”
Schultz is working with more than 40 clients now through word of mouth recommendations and her business is thriving. She sat down with me to share some of her insights on how to help the chronically disorganized.
What are the biggest mistakes people make that sabotage their efforts to be organized?
I have found that most people will have a dumping area, an area of the home that they will just start putting items that they have purchased and forgotten about. It gets so out of control that they usually can’t remember what’s in there, so they will go out and buy the exact same thing they already have.
I feel if you have designated cabinets or closets or even drawers for certain things, then you will know where everything needs to go.
What’s are the most disorganized spaces in a typical house?
Closets, the pantry, and the garage.
Where do you even begin when you are facing a disaster zone?
I start with a complimentary consultation to see the problem areas and create a plan of action. I take measurements for new shelving and such and so the client can understand my vision and to make sure we are on the same page.
Once we’ve agreed on a plan, I begin by removing trash, and we create a designated area for donation items—everything from an item that is new but has never been opened to old electronics. We check expiration dates on all medication as well as food items and throw out all expired goods.
If there is paperwork involved, we usually have an area for shredding and a bin filled with papers that we feel our clients would want to go through. I then organize the remaining items and clear the space completely with the hope that once the client can see the results, they will want to keep it that way in the future, which I have found is usually the case.
How long does a home organization take?
It is hard to say how long a home organization might take. Every home and situation is different. We work as diligently and quickly as possible, because we know we are invading someone’s personal space, so we try to get the job done without interfering in our clients’ daily lives.
What typically happens is I will do one room in their house and after they see the results, I end up working my way through their entire home because they are so thrilled with the results and could have never imagined the outcome or how wonderful they would feel.
What small organization efforts reap the biggest rewards?
When my clients start purging all the items that have not been used in years, they feel a huge sense of relief.
How can people stay organized once you have finished?
Once I am done and a client sees the completed project with an organized system in place, it reduces their level of stress and they want to maintain their new organized environment.
The biggest rewards for me personally are when a client says, “Oh my goodness, you have no idea how long I have been looking for that,” and the look on their faces when they see the completed project. It’s priceless! At that moment, I know that not only am I doing something that I love, but also something that brings joy to other people, too.
