Professional Organizer Career Information

Video Transcript

"My name is Hester Lox, I am a professional organizer based in the San Francisco Bay area. I've been a professional organizer from the first weeks that I ever heard of this profession, when I said, "Oh, boy", which is sixteen years ago for me. If you are interested in learning about this field, there is a lot online today. Just plug in "professional organizer", you will come up with a lot of information that did not exist when I was getting into this profession. I am a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers, which is actually a misnomer because we're an international organization now, mostly in the states. And I'm also a member of the San Francisco Bay Area chapter. You can come to meetings in our chapter as a guest, a few times before you join, if you're.....find out if this really might be for you. Or maybe it's not. I think meeting other professionals in this field is the best way to go. And, let everyone you know, know what you do. Put it as a signal....sig line at the bottom of your e-mail. Get a web site up, which I do not have yet, but am working on. See if you can form partnerships. Write an article for a local newspaper. Do speaking....take speaking opportunities with groups that you may be associated with already. I've spoken to various history groups. Has nothing to do with history, but they thought it might be helpful, and they sponsored it. There's many ways of building your career if you're self-employed. I think, though, that connecting with your colleagues is one of the best. It also gives you an opportunity to have resources to call on when you're stuck. If I need to find a...an adjustable bed for a client who is just coming out of the hospital, if I have no idea where to find it, I can call my colleagues. Someone will know or check it online in our little discussion group. It also is a referral source. If I can't handle the job because of the timing required, or it's just not my expertise, I'm not the best person for this particular thing, for example, I don't work with kids, specifically, I have a number of colleagues I could refer. And the goal is for me to be a resource in any way I can to my clients and potential clients. Connecting with your colleagues is a great way to do that. There is no better investment I have made than my membership. We also, by the way, offer ongoing classes, seminars, national conferences that have every type of education that you could want, not......."