140 | Get Inspired Series: Beth Nordby of Custom Order Organizing

Beth Nordby was doing digital marketing for a big Fortune 500 company and she realized she wanted something more for her career. Organizing was it! She took a leap a year ago, became a professional organizer, started Custom Order Organizing, and hasn't looked back. We love our Get Inspired series talking to the awesome organizers of our Inspired Organizer® community! 

LINKS FOR LISTENERS

Custom Order Organizing in the Quad Cities: https://www.customorderorganizing.com

Connect with Beth on social media: https://www.instagram.com/customorderorganizing/

Learn more about our Inspired Organizer® signature coaching program for professional organizers:
https://www.inspiredorganizer.com

A LITTLE BIT OF THE EPISODE:

Melissa Klug: I am so, so happy to have you with us because I could talk, I say this all the time, I could talk to organizers all day, every day about like, Hey, tell me about your business and tell me about how you started and all that good stuff.

But why don't you give us kind of the lay of the land of how you started, how you're in this business, all that good stuff. 

Beth Nordby: I officially started my business on paper anyway, at the end of last year. I've been in the corporate world for 20 plus years. Most recently in marketing, digital marketing, website strategy, things like that.

And I just, you know, the last few years had started to realize that I needed to change. I flirted with the idea of a different company, but I thought, you know, I. Yeah, why not change things up if I'm gonna do it, let's do it now. Knowing that I wanted to leave the job I was in. And so I actually started researching professional organizing as a business probably a year and a half, two years ago, maybe a little more than that, and signed up for the Pro Organizer, studio inspired organizer program.

 At least a year and a half ago, and started looking into it before I left my job. And my initial thought was I was gonna do it as a side hustle while I figured out do I actually wanna do this or not. And then I got to a point in my corporate world job that I just knew it was time I needed to go.

And so I pulled the plug and jumped into it. And decided not to really focus on a niche at all yet cuz I really wanted to see what was out there and try a bunch of different types of organizing jobs and see what kind of the ones that.

I enjoyed the most, the ones where I felt like I was making a biggest impact. And so, I'm still kind of in that vein of trying all the things and mostly enjoying myself. , right. 

Melissa Klug: Mostly. Okay. So I wanna poke on that a little bit. Tell me a little bit about the things that you have said yes to and what have you discovered in that journey of what do I like, what do I not like? 

Beth Nordby: The only thing I've said no to thus far was a hoarding job. And it was also right after I started, but I'm fairly certain that's one where I, I know I'm like beyond my depth. Yeah. For a true hoarding situation. So that's the only No, I've. Had thus far.

The, I've had kind of a, a range of, I've done a few packs and moves. I've done like a massive decluttering slash pack for a move. . And then I've also done kind of the, the pretty pantries. Mm-hmm. and some newly renovated homes like gorgeous, beautiful homes, which I love real estate, so being able to go into some of those fun homes is really cool for me.

And I think the decluttering, I find a lot of value. I feel like I'm making the biggest impact. For the individual, but I also am recognizing I can't, that can't be my only because it emotionally, physically you know, a lot of times there's emotional challenges for the client. And again, that's where the, I feel like I'm making a big impact cuz I'm really helping them on that journey. But it also takes a lot out of me. And so I'm finding that if I can balance those with those sort of like pretty pantry, you know, let's, let's crank this closet out type of thing. That's kind of my sweet spot is finding a.

Between those,

Melissa Klug: I think that's really important because if you did the same, first of all, if you did the same thing every day in any kind of a job, it would get really boring really fast. Right? Definitely. But especially for those things, and especially if you are one of those people who really take on that emotion of the client or even if you don't take on the emotion, You know, you're really affected by, this was an emotionally heavy day.

It is really nice to break that up with just to like, can you please just decant all my Cheerios, ? Yes 

Beth Nordby: Exactly. 

Melissa Klug: So I, I do wanna, I wanna go back, I wanna talk about organizing a second, but I really wanna go back to something too. So leaving your corporate job, this is something, this is a question that we get a lot.

How will I know that I'm ready to make the leap? And so there are a lot of paths. You might do it as a side hustle, you might do it part-time. You might go back to, you know, your day job is three days a week and organizing is two, whatever.

Can you give people kind of like what your thought process was on the, I'm just doing it. 

Beth Nordby: Yeah. I, I wrote a lot of waves. I will say you know, so I could be really zen one day about it and the next day, like, what, what did I do? Oh my God, this is insanity. But for the most part, my kind of steady thought through that was I can always change my mind.

Yeah. I changed my mind about the job I was. And I can change my mind about this job. I can decide I don't like it. I can decide I don't like certain aspects of it and farm part of that out. I can decide that I only wanna do it part-time and I can get another part-time job. I can do. I don't have to. Do it the same way consistently.

I can learn what I like, I can learn what works. And so that's, I really rode some pretty heavy waves and I still do they're just maybe not as dramatic as they were at first, but, , you know, first of all, organizing is a pretty low barrier to entry. You know, it very low. Yes, you can take it different ways.

Obviously you can get certifications and things like that. But the upfront cost is pretty minimal at that point. File your L l C if that, I mean, you can get started without that. I, I guess officially. But really doesn't have to cost a lot. And so if I was two months in and I decided I wanted to walk away. There's no major harm there, you know? And so I just kept having to coach myself and I still do. I can change it, I can get a part-time job just to supplement and make that financial leap a little bit more comfortable for me.

And so I've been trying to coach myself in that and actually in all aspects of the business. I can do this for now. My website can look like this for now. Yes, my social media can look like this for now. And then I, and I can change. . And so, and I think that's one thing that the inspired organizer community has done for me is solidify that feeling for me because you hear it a lot in that group.

 Some people who just went away from organizing altogether and went into some niche, running courses. Or, a photography offering or things like that. And so I think that really opened up my eyes to the fact that I can go a lot of different directions.