According to the LA Times, the average American household contains 300,000 items. What? That’s crazy! The accumulation of stuff in our homes can often lead to feeling overwhelmed and stressed within the very spaces that should be our sanctuaries. More and more people are hiring professional organizers to come into their homes to help them with their clutter. And now, through virtual decluttering, a professional organizer can work with you anytime and anywhere. Read on to find out a little bit more about how virtual decluttering can be an excellent option for you!
FAQs about Virtual Decluttering in this article:
- What is Virtual Decluttering?
- What is a Virtual Declutter Coach?
- What are the Benefits of Virtual Decluttering?
- How Does Virtual Decluttering Work?
- Setting and Achieving Decluttering Goals
- What Happens during a Typical Session?
- Time Mangement and Decluttering
- Decision Making and Decluttering
What is Virtual Decluttering?
Virtual decluttering is when you work with an organizing professional to organize and declutter a part of your life using a virtual mode of communication. You can work with a virtual declutter coach to declutter your papers, digital photos, or an area in your home that has become overwhelming. You can even work with a coach to see if there are places in your schedule that you can make more efficient through apps or time management systems. Unlike a professional organizer who comes in and does these tasks for you, a virtual declutter coach will coach you virtually and teach you the skills and thought processes you need to do the work yourself. In this way, a virtual organizer works more as a coach, hoping you will continue the process far beyond the virtual decluttering sessions.
What is a Virtual Declutter Coach?
A virtual declutter coach is a professional organizer who works 1:1 with clients to help declutter your home, digital spaces, paperwork, and/or schedule. They are experts in decluttering and organization and possess the tools to help keep their clients motivated and on track. The coach and client work together through virtual decluttering sessions to help declutter and organize a specific area to help create efficient systems. These sessions are typically one hour long and focus on a specific area of the home or digital clutter.
What are the Benefits of Virtual Decluttering?
One of the key advantages of virtual decluttering is its location flexibility. A virtual declutter coach can be located anywhere in the world ( like Spain, for example, 😉) yet can virtually assist you in your kitchen, wherever you are located. Another perk of virtual declutter coaching is the freedom to choose the most convenient time for your sessions. Because sessions are usually 1 hour long, they can easily fit into a busy schedule and when you can focus on your home.
Perhaps the most significant benefit of virtual decluttering is the peace of mind it offers regarding your space. With virtual decluttering, you have complete control over what your coach sees. You can reveal as much or as little as you’re comfortable, eliminating the pressure to have a spotless house during sessions. It’s worth noting that in-home professional organizers are equally understanding about the state of your home, but virtual decluttering provides an added layer of privacy and comfort.
How does Virtual Decluttering Work?
Virtual decluttering sessions typically begin with a complimentary consultation call. During this call, you and the coach will discuss your main concerns and pinpoint the areas where you need the most assistance. Typically, you’ll also discuss session timing, pricing options, and how to prep for your first meeting. After the consultation, the virtual declutter coach will craft a personalized decluttering plan tailored just for you. Every session will be unique to your needs. Expect a bit of homework between sessions to reach your organization and decluttering goals.
Setting and Achieving Decluttering Goals
Throughout the consultation and meetings, you will work with your coach to set realistic goals for what you want to accomplish throughout the virtual decluttering sessions. Having an end goal in mind can be extremely useful when you are stuck or struggling to continue the process. A coach will help keep you focused on your goals when things get overwhelming or start to go off track. To read more about using SMART and DUMB goals for organizing, you can check out my article here.
What Happens During a Typical Virtual Decluttering Session?
Usually, a virtual decluttering session is about one hour in length. You can set up your camera to be just on you or move it around to the area you wish to declutter. After an hour, you’ll discuss your progress and plan what needs to happen in between sessions to prepare for the next one. The number of sessions required varies; some areas may need only 1-2 sessions, while larger projects might take more time. At the end of the session package, you’ll receive a comprehensive decluttering plan to maintain your progress independently.
Decision-Making Support during Decluttering
Sometimes the hardest part of decluttering is simply deciding whether or not to get rid of an item. Decluttering decisions can add up quickly, and one is expected to feel overwhelmed or exhausted by the decluttering process. Decision fatigue is a real thing! It can be easy to give up in the middle of a big project, so taking it one step at a time is crucial. Working with a professional declutter coach can help keep you on track and help simplify those incredibly emotional decisions- especially regarding sentimental items. A virtual decluttering coach can help you decide how and what to declutter and how to dispose of your items in the manner that you feel is best.
Time Management and Virtual Decluttering
Because the sessions are short, it is inherent to stay on track. During virtual decluttering sessions, a coach will help you to stay in the process and keep focused on the goals. When decluttering one area, it is normal to want to start decluttering other areas. It can become a Pandora’s Box of decluttering projects very quickly if you don’t have someone to help you stay on track. A coach will help motivate you and push you to stay focused on the task at hand.
How Can I Help You?
As a virtual declutter coach, I offer a supportive and personalized approach to decluttering. I work with you through small, manageable sessions to create a harmonious and clutter-free environment personalized for you and your needs. Whether you’re struggling to kickstart decluttering or facing stress-inducing clutter in specific areas, a virtual decluttering session with me can help calm the chaos.
We’ll start with our big, DUMB goal and then move into smaller bite-sized SMART goals that we will tackle throughout our sessions. Having an end goal in mind can be helpful when you are stuck or struggling to continue the process. I will often refer back to the goals that you created to foster motivation and keep our sessions focused.
As a coach, I will keep you focused on one area at a time before moving on to something new or taking on too much. I will also motivate you if a decision is taking you off course or a too much of our time together. I’ll always try my best to guide you back to your decluttering goals and why you signed up in the first place! Schedule your free consultation now to get started creating your clutter-free life!
15 Responses
Super explanation of a valuable service!
Thank you for linking to your earlier post about DUMB goals. Although I’ve read it previously and loved it, the concept didn’t stick in my brain, so I was happy to have a reminder.
Oh you are so very welcome! I hope the second time around makes better sense. Thank you so much for taking the time to read and comment. I appreciate it.
Good description of how working with an organizer can work virtually. Well done, Jana.
Thank you so much for reading and commenting. I think it’s a new concept for some, but I’m very happy to be providing this service to those who would find it beneficial.
Nice overview of how this process works. I think people wonder exactly how it might work!
I find most of my virtual clients are for coaching and time management work, but I do work with some people on decluttering. It helps if I have been there before because then I can better guide them on where to put things. But if the struggle is with memorabilia or a stack of paper, it actually can work quite well!
I think preparation is key for the virtual sessions. If a client comes with questions they’ve already thought about or if they have already started the decluttering process and are just needing guidance or motivation I think that’s the best. Thank you so much for commenting and reading!
Virtual organizing and decluttering is a valuable way to work for the organizer and the client. When the pandemic hit, I pivoted my organizing business to only work virtually. For all the reasons you described, it’s been a positive change. My clients take more ownership of the process, are more likely to do the agreed-upon ‘fieldwork’ between sessions, and make amazing progress.
Your explanation is terrific! And how wonderful that you are experiencing the best benefits of being able to provide this support from anywhere in the world. With your recent move to Spain, this must be especially great.
Yes! The switch to virtual was necessary for me as well. I, too, like the idea of being more of a coach to help guide clients through the process rather than doing it myself. Thank you so much for taking the time to read and comment!
Virtual organizing offers many ways to work together to accomplish the tasks the client wants to complete. It is a very flexible way to work with a professional organizer so you can have the help and support you need when you need it.
I think the aspect of professional organizing that’s the most confusing for prospective clients is the possibility of working virtually to be coached through the activities. You’ve given a clear, robust perspective on how it all fits together.
I’d been doing time management and productivity coaching (by phone, then by videoconferencing) to distance clients for about 15 years, but I think the pandemic gave us all a chance to see how we might spread our wings. I’ve moved on to working with clients on digital and paper organizing, but find that most of my clients aren’t inclined to be DIY enough to handle the completely-on-their-own homework. That said, I love the flexibility for the clients for whom it’s a smart fit.
I’m curious; now that you’re in Spain, does the time difference from North America to Europe present any problems, or do you just get to enjoy sleeping in before North America wakes up? 😉
Hi Julie,
I had to adjust my scheduling a bit. We’re 6 hours ahead of the States here and I am an early morning person. So I have to adjust my availability to a little later in order to accomodate my clients’ preferred hours. Thank you so much for reading and commenting!
300,000 items in an American household? I’m sure some people have more.
I loved your detailed explanation about the virtual decluttering and how it works. I’m glad we have this option, I believe a lot of clients could benefit from it.
Janet, I totally agree. I think that through virtual decluttering, organizers have the ability to reach a lot of people that might not otherwise reach out. Thank you so much for reading and commenting.
This is so helpful- I think you need to have some sort of a system! I just read your November clean out post and it inspired me to organize everywhere! scheduled a carpet cleaning for tomorrow to finish off the month with a clean home!
That is so wonderful to hear! I am so glad that the calendar was helpful. Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. It made my day today.