Professional Organizer Services
Although I am no longer able to accept new clients for personal hands-on in-home organizing, I do continue to provide coaching to empower you to accomplish these organizing tasks with personal coaching and planning support.
Once you are emotionally prepared and have your own plan in mind, if you still feel you need in-home help to make faster progress on your goals, I maintain a trusted network of professional organizers who can work side by side with you to organize your things, restructure your space and implement efficient yet flexible systems.
Many clients have found that the combination of hands-on help and getting coaching from me to work on the issues they have with designing, maintaining and evolving their organizing systems as their needs change empowers them to make EXTRAORDINARY changes.
(Note: professional organizers are also known as home organizers or personal organizers)
Here is an overview of the services professional organizers recommended by Neat & Simple Living may provide to help make your life easier and simpler.
- Organizing Paperwork Systems
- Home Office Organizing
- Kitchen Organizing
- Organizing Children
- Organizing Students & Homework Areas
- Storage Organizing
(Closets, Basements, Garages, Attics) - Moving Out & Moving In
While I also help you plan and execute the above organizing projects, my specialties are:
- Coaching for LifeLong Success
- Overcoming Procrastination & Perfectionism
- Time Management
- ADD & ADHD Organizing
- Overcoming Chronic Disorganization
- Financial Organizing
- Organizing For Health
Detailed descriptions and examples of some of the above services are provided below. You can also learn more about my network of professional organizers here.
Organizing Paperwork Systems
Dealing with the constant inflow of paper is the number one organizing problem in most homes today. My Neat & Simple approach to organizing paper work is well-documented in my book, Take Charge of Your Paper and has helped many clients conquer paper clutter forever.
BONUS!!
As part of your initial consultation with me, you will receive FREE access to download this and all my other organizing books and organizing support materials. These materials save you tons of time and help you get started FAST. Plus you still have them even after our coaching program is completed! You also get recordings of your session INCLUDED FREE!
If your needs include paper organizing, I work closely with you to help you discover how paper needs to flow through your life. Then we co-design ultra-simple systems to give paper a home and make it easy to use - from the time it enters your life - till it's time for it to leave.
I don't encourage "shotgun organizing" which means dealing with each kind of paper as if it stood alone. For example, just organizing mail, or just creating a filing system. When it comes to paper, if you don't address the full lifecycle and figure out where the disconnects are happening, it WILL back up on you and stop working.
Sample Home Filing System
Action & Financial Files
See a Couple More Examples of
Paper Organizing Systems
Paperwork needs change constantly, as your kids grow, you start a new activity, plan a new event, etc. My Neat & Simple approach ensures your paper flow system works now and in the future by keeping it simple and by teaching you the basic concepts, skills and habits you need to be able to update and modify your paper flow system easily as your needs change - because you can be sure they will.
A paper organizing solution that really works includes addressing all types of paper in your life as well as building in mechanisms that "automate" elimination of paper when you no longer need it.
I don't believe there is only one right or best way to organize paper.
I don't believe everyone must have a tickler file system or even that everyone must have a filing system. Rather than being a "hammer in search of a nail", my "toolbox" for organizing paper and designing action or To Do systems includes many possibilities.
No solution is "wrong" if it works for you. So don't worry, if you love your post-it notes and they work for you, I won't take them away! : )
My goal is to co-design with you a system that feels natural to you and that you will use and continue to maintain and evolve forever.
To learn more about my paper organizing approach, check out my book "Take Charge of Your Paper with Neat & Simple Essential Paper Organizing Systems".
Home Office Organizing including Paper Filing Systems
My book, the "Neat & Simple Guide to Organizing Your Home Office!" has gotten rave reviews from the best professional organizers and productivity gurus in the country!
A reader of the book who organized her office on her own with my book told the Contra Costa Times that the "Neat & Simple Guide to Organizing Your Home Office"
was "the Bible of Home Office Organization" Read the full article and see photos here
"Home office organization saves time, increases efficiency"
NY NEWSDAY called me for an interview and quoted me in "Got Office Clutter? Start the Year Organized" and the Orlando Sentinel did an in-depth feature interview with me for their "Help Yourself" blog at "Q&A with NJ Organizing Coach Ariane Benefit "
BONUS!!
As part of your initial consultation with me, you will receive FREE access to download this and all my other organizing books and organizing support materials. These materials save you tons of time and help you get started FAST. Plus you still have them even after our coaching program is completed! You also get recordings of your session INCLUDED FREE!
You can also get my book PRINTED IN FULL COLOR
at the Neat & Simple Organizing Success Bookstore on lulu.com!
Whether you run a business out of your home office or use it to run your home, I can help you get organized so that you can be more productive and spend more time getting things done -- not searching for things!
We'll work together to co-design organizing systems that work with your natural style so that you can easily maintain the new systems you put in place. For example, I can support and coach you as you:
- Organize your active paperwork including mail sorting and handling, special projects
- Set up an easy-to-use filing system
- Create an archive system
- Choose an appropriate paper scanner system to organize paper on your computer (e.g., see reviews of Neat Receipts Scanalizer, and the Fujitsu ScanSnap
- Develop a personal action management (To Do) system
- Make your office function like a dream by helping you design a plan to redesigning your space and rearrange the furniture and items in your office for maximum efficiency
Financial Organizing Services
Organizing your financial life is a critical first step to attaining financial freedom. While I'm not a financial planner and never advise people on investments, I do help people organize their financial affairs to ensure they are clear about where they want their money to go, and where their money is ACTUALLY going.
For example, I can help you:
- Organize a bill paying system that coordinates with an effective mail processing and financial filing system
- Set up online bill pay
- Create a home budget using the Neat & Simple "Money Master" system I created using Excel. This system helps you track income and expenses and has tools to manage your credit card balances and work toward eliminating credit card debt.
- Set up Quick Books Simple Start Edition for professionals that work from home.
My Qualifications. Back in 1990, I was an executive at Arthur Andersen, managing million dollar budgets. There I learned the financial skills I needed to get myself completely out of $25,000 worth of credit card debt by 1993. In 1993, I quit my job to start a successful corporate consulting company. By 1998, just 5 years later, I had saved enough to buy a new car, and a 3 week trip to Europe! By the year 2000, after only 10 years I had saved a substantial down payment and bought my first home! Being in control of my financial life, staying out of debt, and managing expenses gave me the freedom to take 6 months off from my corporate consulting work in 2005 and start my professional organizing business helping other people take charge of their lives!
Regardless of whether or not you hire me, if you don't know where your money is going, don't wait any longer to become the master of your financial destiny! Getting organized in your financial affairs, becoming mindful of where your money is going, and knowing how to budget are skills that will last you a lifetime and make it possible to live your best life.
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Learn more about Financial Organizing Coaching with Ariane
Organized Living with ADD, AD/HD and/or Chronic Disorganization
Having ADD or AD/HD is not a life sentence for living with chronic disorganization. ADD is usually accompanied by great intelligence and creativity that we can harness to make your life simpler. In my studies to become certified as an ADD organizer by the NSGCD (See My NSGCD Training Transcript) I learned that many of my attitudes and approaches to organizing are very consistent with the kinds of unconventional organizing systems and "compensating structures" which are recommended for people with ADD or who live with chronic disorganization. In 2007, I found out that I had in fact been compensating for my own undiagnosed ADD all my life. Read my story of how I dealt with ADD even though I didn't know I had it.
There are many conflicting views on whether ADD is actually a disorder. But regardless of the clinical debates about whether ADD is a disorder or a syndrome or a personality type, the fact is that many of us in the U.S. suffer from the traits and behavior patterns associated with ADD including:
- Hyperfocusing for hours at a time
- Very high energy
- Losing track of time
- Forgetfulness
- Impulsive behavior
- Easily distracted
- Too many projects, not enough time
- Difficulty focusing on a project till its completed
- Difficulty shifting our attention to something and then coming right back to what we were doing
- Being late often
- Not having the things we need with us when we arrive somewhere
- Difficulty sitting still if not fully engaged in something you love doing, like surfing the web
- Difficulty reading a page, tending to keep re-reading passages
- Difficulty listening to others without letting your attention wander
- Talking a lot and interrupting others without realizing it
If you experience some or even all of these characteristics, you can benefit greatly from having an organizing coach to help you create ADD-Friendly organizing systems and strategies designed to work with your individual tendencies.
As an ADD organizing specialist and coach, I'll help you get the most out of your strengths by creating easy to maintain, non-traditional systems and structures that support you in achieving your goals. Whether it's being on time more often, planning and completing projects, or just attending to the boring details of life, I'll help you build on your successes and create routines that simplify getting the stuff you hate to do done.
Learn more about ADD-Friendly Organizing and ADD Coaching with Ariane
See blog articles I've written on ADD ADHD organizing
- ADD News: Studies Reveal Fish Oil Alleviates ADD Symptoms, Improves Focus, & Helps with Bi-Polar Disorder, too!!
- Is it Personality? or ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder)
- The Hypomanic American and Organizing
- Seeking Your Bliss, or "What Should I Do With My Life?"
Additional Resources for Living with ADD
- ADD Classes - Audio Library
- ADD Resources.org
- CHADD.org
- ADHD.com
- ADHDNews.com
- What Is ADHD?
- About ADD
ADD Classes - Audio Library
Even if you don't have ADD, the tips offered in these 1 hour, downloadable, MP3 teleclasses will help anyone who has difficulty organizing and managing time!
Sample Audio Class Topics
- Daily Routines for ADD
- Decision Making with ADD
- Managing Adult ADD
- Eating Disorders and Adult ADD
- Help! My Partner has ADD
- Parenting a Child with ADD
- Many More!
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Organizing for your Health
If your goal is to eat healthy, or lose weight, we'll help
you organize a simple meal planning routine and shopping strategies, and we'll work with you to get your kitchen and pantry free of "clutter" foods! We help you design a positive
approach to focus on what you want to eat,
instead of focusing on what not to eat!
Learn more about Organizing for Health on my other website which is still under development.
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Getting Organized in the Kitchen
Getting organized in the kitchen saves you so much time and money. And, it makes your life much easier and less stressful! Kitchen organizing includes:
- Organizing pantry, refrigerator, cabinets and drawers
- Creating zones for easy meal preparation, baking, making lunches, and storing leftovers
- Making cleaning up after meals easier
- Setting up an easy super simple and flexible meal planning and shopping list strategy
If you make lunches every day to send to school with the kids, or for yourself to take to work, I can help you make that as simple and quick as brushing your teeth!
Kitchen Organized by Neat & Simple Living
See many more photos of this home organization in our Neat & Simple Photo Gallery!
RELATED BLOG ARTICLES
- How I organized under my own kitchen sink.
- How I organized a Kosher kitchen.
- More articles on Organizing in the Kitchen!
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Getting Organized in the Laundry Room Starts in Your Closets!
If doing laundry makes you miserable, organizing your laundry routines, wardrobe and clothing storage systems will change your life forever! I've helped many moms (some with 4 and 5 children) rethink their "active" wardrobes and dig out from under the mountains of laundry. Learning how to plan your wardrobes and your children's clothing as well as organize clothing storage makes it possible to keep laundry under control and even - dare I say it - actually enjoy doing laundry!
I can help you organize a holistic approach that includes wardrobe management, clothing storage, chore assignments, hamper strategies, etc. We'll turn your laundry nightmares into a simple organized laundry routine. And while you are at it, you might want to make your laundry room a pleasant haven!
Simple changes such as a coat of paint, a comfortable area to fold your laundry, good storage, and a really nice laundry sink (all under $500) can turn your laundry room into a place where you can actually relax while doing laundry!
Below is a photo of the laundry room in my home. My husband and I replaced the sink, painted and organized this room to be a place to relax and enjoy folding laundry.
Read more about how we accomplished this makeover.
Laundry Room Organization by Ariane Benefit
See many more projects in our Neat & Simple Living Gallery!
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Organizing Students & Creating Organized Homework Areas
Providing a consistent, organized, well-lit, quiet area for students to get their homework done is critical to their school success.
I can coach you to set up organized areas in your home that make it easy for your kids to get homework done and turned in on time. Student and homework organizing includes projects like:
- Setting up an area in your home that makes it easy to get homework done
- Organizing school supplies
- Helping your students learn to organize themselves
- Organizing a system for storing and regularly purging school papers
- Working with your students to organize and streamline their backpacks
- Create a system for organizing and transporting schoolwork to ensure assignments and completed homework don't get lost
Creating Organized Homework Areas is particularly beneficial for students with ADD, Aspergers and other organizationally challenging conditions.
Read my articles on:
- Organizing Backpacks & Homework Areas for School Success
- Neat & Simple Tips to Help Kids Organize For School Success!
- Neat & Simple Tips for Preventing School Paper Clutter!
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Organizing Kids' Bedrooms & Playrooms / Play Areas
Helping your kids learn how to organize their bedrooms, playrooms or play areas can transform your life and theirs. I will help you learn how to approach getting your kids involved in fun and creative ways. They really want you to teach them how to put their things away, they just want you do it in a way that makes it interesting, and not like you jsut want them to do what you want. Give them empowering organizing skills now will last them a lifetime.
Playroom designed by Neat & Simple Living. See many more photos of this project
and other kids' rooms in my Neat & Simple Living Photo Gallery!
Organizing Kids
- GALLERY: Playroom Redesign & Reorganization makeover Photos
- BLOG ARTICLES: Organizing Kids :
- BLOG ARTICLES: Family Matters in Organizing
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Storage Area Organization - Closets, Attics, Basements, Garages, etc.
Would you like to get maximum value out of your storage areas including basements, garages, closets and attics? By decluttering and planning the space layout and storage you can turn them into efficient, safe, organized, easy to use and easy to access storage for the things that really matter to you!
The key to a highly functional storage area is to organize first and then design a system that fits your budget and will serve you well for years to come. Don't settle for a company that has just one solution to offer you!
The garage below was designed using Rubbermaid's Garage system which was rated in the top 3 by Consumer Reports. I can also teach you how design and install shelving systems such as ELFA by the Container Store, IKEA systems and others.
All too often, I've been called in to help organize a "custom" solution put in by someone else that didn't work. Don't let that happen to you. This happens when people design organizing solutions for you without really understanding what you need. Before spending thousands of dollars on a fancy solution, get clear about what you really need.
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Garage Designed & Organized by Ariane Benefit
See many more photos of this project in our Neat & Simple Living Gallery!
Why Work with a Professional Organizing Coach?
If clutter and/or disorganization are causing chaos in your life, working with a compassionate, skilled coach can change your life. Working with an expert home organizer service such as Neat & Simple Living makes the job of getting organized is much easier!
I provide logistical guidance as well as motivational support to complete your organizing projects. Not only will you be more motivated to finish the job of getting organized, you will learn new skills and habits that will enable you to stay organized.
Some people may have a natural aptitude for organizing, but anyone can learn how to organize their homes and create environments they enjoy working and relaxing in.
While we work together, you get feedback and ideas that save you tons of time spent doing "trial and error" organizing. And on top of that, you actually save money! Because by working with me as your personal organizing coach you can avoid buying costly organizing products that you don't really need and that just end up as more clutter!
I strive to help you develop your own personal criteria for selecting organizing products that will work for your organizing needs and style.
Some people feel ashamed about hiring a caoch, but if you think about it, would you feel embarrassed about hiring a personal trainer to teach you how to exercise without injuring yourself or to give you feedback and keep you motivated until you have the habit of exercising well established? Working with a coach is a very similar process!
