Photo by Sonya Prather

Organizing has always played an integral part in my life. Even at a young age, I was a natural organizer. More than one pre-teen sleep over ended in an all-night marathon of cleaning and organizing my friend's room. Needless to say, my friends’ mothers loved me!

Later, I served as a research assistant for a professor at Stanford University who was in dire need of organizing. The professor did not have a natural inclination to create a color-coded, alphabetized filing system (as I did). She did, however, want to facilitate her love of teaching, learning, and writing and get out from under the piles of papers and files that were holding her back from accomplishing her goals. When I established a working filing system for her, it enabled her to more completely focus on what she loved. It was in this position that I first learned that all of us have natural talents and abilities, and that I could use my ability for establishing order to help others make the most of their own skills.

After receiving a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Minnesota, I honed my organizing and time management skills in the fast-paced political environment of Washington, D.C.. As a budget expert for the White House, I served both the Clinton and Bush Administrations where my natural organizational talents proved essential in dealing with time-sensitive policy issues involving the Congress, White House staff, and the President.

In 2004, my personal need for organization was challenged with the unexpected news that my husband and I were expecting twin boys. I decided to take some time off after the boys arrived to enjoy them without having to juggle calls from the National Security Council and to think about what I wanted to do next in my career.

The answer was surprisingly clear. I wanted to help others to organize their homes and lives so they could focus on doing what they loved and, in essence, reclaim their lives. Life Organized was born in 2005, and I have been enjoying organizing for others ever since.