To Men: The Value of Professional Organizing

About 95% of OrgaNice's professional organizing inquiries come from women. Of that number, roughly 70% come from moms. I don't think that is an accident. As school winds down and we are all in the throes of "Maycember" with all of the madness that contains, moms are TIRED.

I know I have talked about invisible labor before, but it is a topic that bears repeating because it is so significant. The mental load of life for women is huge and it is so hard to explain to men. I am trying to avoid sounding sexist, because I know when I say this there are folks who will say NOT ALL WOMEN and NOT ALL MEN and that's true - but most of the time, when I talk to my friends and my female clients we are all singing the same song - trying to keep all of the balls in the air and hoping for the best. Here is a small sampling of what I have been thinking about just in the last 24 hours:

- Noticed Aily is out of multivitamins and I need to add that to the grocery list

- Aily's last day of school is next week - did I get her teacher a gift?

- She also has a bday party this weekend - did I order a gift for that? Is it wrapped?

- I need to make a vet appt for the dog

- I haven't weight-lifted in a week, can I fit it in Wed?

- Take the chicken out to defrost!

- A friend's parent died - when is the funeral?

- Water the plants!

- Schedule a walk with my neighbor friend

This is just in the last day and is like 25% of what I thought about. I would venture to guess all of my mom friends have a similar list.

Part of the issue is that men and women are wired differently. We "multi-task" and men are more singularly focused. I put multi-task in quotes because often I personally will try to multi-task and fail spectacularly, but I always have what I call a busy brain.

But I think the bigger issue is that so much of the things women handle are just given to us, by choice or default. We might be better at a lot of the tasks, or it might just be too annoying to explain what we need and pass it off to someone else - easier to just handle it yourself. Explaining a task and telling someone else to do it is ALSO a task, you know.

So when a woman has the bravery to say she needs help and calls a professional organizer to work with her to build good systems, declutter and organize, I am so proud! Our service truly helps people to operate more efficiently and joyfully in their homes, and I am honored to help women (and their families) everyday.

I hope that there will also be a husband of two who reads this, and when their wife asks for help he will understand that the investment in his wife's happiness and the health of their home is worth it. She's tired. Sir, if you could organize that storage room you know you would have done it already. There is a reason professional organizers exist, and it's because there is value in having an outside person provide this kind of service.

Sometimes, we need to organize a space first for the husband to understand our value. And for the rare gem men who seek out services for themselves or for their partners? We all appreciate you!

I hope I don't ruffle too many feathers with this one. I have so much empathy for my clients and I want everyone who needs help to get it. You deserve a home that works for you!

Have a great day.