From Military Spouse To Pro Organizer: Building Tidy Milso And Systems That Stick

Ever feel like your home is working against you? We bring in Katherine of Tidy Milso to show how smart, simple systems can turn chaos into calm without chasing a Pinterest-perfect aesthetic. Her story begins during her husband’s basic training, when a self-help book, a major declutter, and one honest Facebook post revealed a gift for organizing that friends and family already saw. That spark became Tidy Milso, a thriving professional organizing business serving Howard County, Baltimore, DC, and New York.

We dig into what actually moves the needle: whole-home edits, custom closets that reflect personality, and move management that makes a new house feel like home on day one. Katherine explains how she coordinates packing, vendors, and space planning so you’re not hunting for mugs at midnight. We tackle Columbia’s quirkiest design challenges too, from deep, narrow pantries to missing drawers, and share affordable fixes like adhesive pull-out shelves, long bins, and risers that create order without a renovation.

The conversation shifts from products to psychology. Decision fatigue is real, and the cure is capacity-led maintenance—small, repeatable edits that keep systems alive. Sort school papers into a set bin, refold one drawer instead of four, donate through the easiest path so bags don’t linger for months. Katherine shares why organization is less about color-matched containers and more about permission: letting go of what no longer fits and making space for what does. We also spotlight Pro Organizers Weekend, a wellness-meets-strategy retreat for experienced founders, and tease Katherine’s upcoming book on the emotional side of organizing.

If you’re ready to breathe easier at home, this episode offers clear steps, a kinder mindset, and proof that systems can stick as your life evolves. 

Ready to create systems that actually work for your life? Connect with Katherine at Tidy Milso and learn more about her organizing services, move management, and practical home systems. 🏡✨

🌐 Website: https://www.tidymilso.com/

📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tidymilso/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tidymilso/

✍️ Substack: https://substack.com/@katherinepicott?utm_source=about-page

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXiEAvBcj_hSA2X8Fyn9R5A

If you’re ready to breathe a little easier at home, Katherine shows that organization doesn’t have to be perfect—it just has to work for you. 💛📦

Transcript

Welcome And Entrepreneur Origin Stories

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hey friends, and welcome to Mom Talk Maryland. I'm your host, Claire Duarte, founder of the Columbia Mom. And this is your spot for real conversations, local love, and a whole lot of community. Whether you're folding laundry, running errands, or hiding in your car for some peace and quiet, let's dive in. Well, I'm so excited to have my friend Catherine of Tidy Millsa. We've known each other for yeah, like four years now.

SPEAKER_00 0:23

Yeah, four years. Isn't that crazy? When our businesses were babies, like just budding, and now we're like growing like our brands. I know. Yeah. So it's it's pretty cool. I know and amazing to watch.

SPEAKER_01 0:34

It really is. Like, I I mean, I've like like just like we both have watched each other grow, and I've just done nothing but like love seeing all the ebbs and flows that you have, and like I'm always so excited to see what you're up to, which we'll chat chat about today, too. Because it is so crazy how I feel like we've both evolved so much from where we first started. Yeah, absolutely. And the evolution never really stops. Yeah. You know, which is just interesting, but it's just it's it's a cool process because it's like you keep kind of rediscovering like who you are, yeah, who your business is, your brand, and it's it's really unique. It's really it's really neat.

SPEAKER_00 1:11

Yeah, the entrepreneurial journey is definitely unique, and I think you described it perfectly. It's like a mountain, and then you get to the top of the mountain, and then there's a plateau, and then there's another mountain. Yeah. And so, like, you just keep going in that that trajectory and keep pivoting. As soon as you get to the plateau, you just pivot again and you just keep going. And um, you know, um, it's not for everyone. And I commend us both for sticking to it and you know serving the people that we do.

From Basic Training To Tidy Milso

SPEAKER_01 1:36

Yes, I know. Well, so to give everybody some background story, every time when I when I do these podcasts, my favorite thing is I love an origin story. Obviously, I know you, but we're gonna we're gonna bring it all the way back up, you know what I mean? Like, tell me how you got started. You are pro you're a professional organizer. Yeah. Um, I've heard you speak many times. You've organized my home, we've done so many different things together. Yeah. Um, so but like tell me like the origin story of how you got started. Yeah. Um, I love the name Tidy Melso, so tell people about that too.

SPEAKER_00 2:09

Yeah, absolutely. So um my husband and I are college sweethearts. Um, we met in college. Our husband's actually from here, so he's like a Columbia, Maryland native. Um, ended up going to school in Virginia, met at Old Dominion University, um, graduated from college, and um he decided that he wanted to join the military. And quite honestly, I did not take him seriously. I was just like, okay, this is always how it goes. Like, this is like hoop dreams or like something that's like far-fetched, like an idea. Um, and I honestly I really didn't take him seriously until he came home and he put the paperwork and was like, so this is my basic training day. And so being a natural planner that I was, I was like, okay, how can I plan for this? What can I do? And I'm always um, you know, thinking about okay, someone else has probably gone through this, don't try to reinvent the wheel. So I went online and I saw this blog, and the blog basically said, This is how you prepare, like, for you know, your partner going away for basic training. And it said, Read a book, lose weight, uh, pay off debt, and declutter your home. You know, I did all four of those things. I read a book, I decluttered our home, started our debt-free journey, um, and I lost 40 pounds. And the book that I read was called Live More Want Less, which is not advertised as like a decluttering or organizing book. It's more advertised as like a self-help book. Yeah. Um, but through that, I really started thinking about my things very differently. So I kind of went through that decluttering class process in a different lens.

SPEAKER_01 3:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:41

Um, and while he was at basic training, the time, the very limited time that I talked to him, we got rid of so many bags of clothes. And I shared it on Facebook, and people that I worked with, family friends, are like, oh my gosh, like, why are you coming over to my house? Right, right. So at the time I was like a property manager, like managing people, managing multiple properties, doing all the things. Which is like so Catherine. It's like the most Catherine thing ever. Yeah. Right. So I'm like, you know, doing all these things, and I'm like, oh, people want help with this because it's like, you know, you have somebody in your family that's good at hosting events, you don't necessarily say, oh, they're an event planner person, right? Right. Um, but they're just good at that. So I never saw it as a business. Yeah. Um until I was watching Netflix during the pandemic, and I saw um Marie Kondo's special, and I watched it not once, not twice, but three times. And the second time I started watching it, my husband was like, This is a really long series. Uh-huh. And in hindsight, looking back, I recognized now that I saw myself in her because I had already I was already doing that. Right. But I never saw it as a business. I just thought, I'm just helping people. Yeah. Right. Um, and when the pandemic happened, so like he went to basic training 2016-17. Uh-huh. Pandemic happened in 2020. People started remembering, and people started asking me what my offers were, what my rates were. Um, and I really um started seeing it as a business then. And that's how Tidy Milso came to be. So Tidy Milsow, um, Milsow stands for Military Significant Other, and you know, it's a nod to that experience because having uh done basic training, I never would have come across that, you know, organizing as a skill that I could help with.

SPEAKER_01 5:15

Right, right. Yeah. Well, and it's funny because it's so like your personality, like so much like you kind of were Tidy Milsow before you were Tidy Milsow. Exactly. You know what I mean? And I that's probably so true of like all of our brands, you know what I mean? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Um, it's just kind of like it like just came to be. Yeah. And um, and you know, and I I remember it's so funny because you talk about that show. I remember because my daughter was born in 2018, and whenever I forget the when the show dropped, but I remember it dropped prior to that. Yeah. And I'd done like a little bit, but then when I um was either before I had her and then after, I was like, because I was home all the time, I was like, I've just gotta throw myself into this and like reorganize and blah blah blah. Because like you're net in that nesting mode. Yeah. Um so no, it's so true. Yeah. Um, so then talk about talk about like okay, well, actually starting on staying on the business first. Yeah. What are your actual services, offerings? Like now that you've been operating the business, like what do you primarily do?

Turning A Talent Into A Business

SPEAKER_00 6:15

Yeah, primarily I do decluttering and organizing, closets, kitchens, whole homes. Um, for my returning clients, like clients that I've had for two or three years, they're now on like maintenance services. So um this year I just launched, um, I tested it out, did like a little trial last year with some of my clients. Um, so now I'm doing like laundry systems maintenance, cool, um, furniture selling. So, like my clients who have storage units, I'm selling those things, and some of these things that I was already offering, but I never like really publicized it. It was kind of like if you were in, you knew about them. Yeah. Um, but now that like all the testing is done, it's out there. Yeah. Um, and then I also offer move management. That's one of the huge ones. Yeah. Um, so when people are moving into their new home and they want everything to kind of be set up and and literally turnkey ready, um, I'd offer that as well.

SPEAKER_01 7:00

That's so do you do both ends of it? Like help like pack like you're not like moving with them, but like helping them pack up to move, or is it just like the settling in part? So both.

SPEAKER_00 7:11

Um I have some people who like maybe they're in a condo, like that's an easy pack. Yeah. Um, for someone who lives in a single family home, I'd partner with like a moving company. Right. Um, they would do the packing, but I would do the project management, the coordinating. Um, you know, if they have you know things that they want done, they want things hung, you know, frames hung, they want lighting, um, they want wallpaper, like I'm sourcing all of those vendors for them.

SPEAKER_01 7:33

Yeah. Well, that's great. Like the yeah, um and do you do that are um primarily for like military uh families or or is it kind of like to for everybody? It's for everyone. Yeah, that's what I figured. Yeah, it's for everybody. Yes. Um everybody needs help. Oh my god the truth. Ain't that the truth? And are like where do you do you travel? Do you kind of stay mainly stay in the Howard County area or do you kind of like go beyond?

SPEAKER_00 7:57

Yeah, so I serve Howard County. Um I have clients in Baltimore County and DC. Um, but I do travel. Um New York, I'm a New York native. So a lot of people know like that I'm an organizer, and like even though I live in Maryland, they're like, when are you coming to New York? So I intend to go to New York this spring and this summer. Um, so I'm hoping to announce that soon so that people can start booking and I can, you know, kind of block off time because especially when you're doing travel, there's a lot of project management involved, a lot of scheduling involved, and making sure things are running smoothly. Yeah. Um, and so uh when I do do travel, you know, it takes a little bit more prep time than it does you know, driving to you know Baltimore Academy. Right. You know, yeah, it's okay. Of course.

SPEAKER_01 8:38

Right. Um yeah. What are your favorite types of organization projects? Or do you kind of just like love them all? I didn't know if like, man, like I love like a good garage, or I love kitchens, or I love closets. I mean closets I feel like are a big one, but like do you have like a favorite type?

SPEAKER_00 8:59

I think that I gravitate towards loving the space that's organized that my client had a pain point for. The strongest pain, yeah. That like that is usually where I'm like, oh, I did this for them. Right. Um, but in terms of like the creative mind and like doing like space planning and product sourcing, definitely closets. Um, because your personality shines through your closet. So like with all my clients, it's very different. It's not cookie cutter, um, you know, but when I work with you, like we repurpose some of the stuff that you get. Yeah, um, and that takes skill too. So like I love like customizing that. Whereas like a pantry is like, or you know, your kitchen is like super basic, you know what I mean? Your closet can be if you want pink hangers, you can have pink hangers, you know. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You can do it. So like there's a lot more um customization which is personal to the client.

SPEAKER_01 9:51

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's so true.

SPEAKER_00 9:53

Yeah.

Services, Move Management, And Travel

SPEAKER_01 9:53

Question. Just because you've like you're primarily based in Howard County. Yes. Uh and you've seen like, I mean, my home is obviously not like the most like Columbia contemporary, but like the kitchen is it's and I think you would un you'll you you understand it because like you know, my biggest gripe in in my house is like we have a very like open floor plan, and like the kitchen is sizable, but the space is is like insane. Until you're in there, you don't or like grabbing things, like I don't um I don't have a standard uh utensil drawer. Drawer, yeah. And that drives me bananas, you know what I mean? And like those funky small cabinets, and then the another Columbia like staple is those deep pantries.

SPEAKER_00 10:33

Yeah oh my god make it difficult to access anything, right?

SPEAKER_01 10:37

Yeah, right. You know, and only like one or two of them pull out, which that's the only way to survive those things, you know what I mean? Yeah, but like doesn't it doesn't even matter to have a pull-out like at the top because it's like what's the purpose? Yeah, but anyway, so my guy.

SPEAKER_00 10:50

You gotta have a ladder and then like get up there.

SPEAKER_01 10:52

I know. So okay, so my question is what's the have you what's the funkiest or have you come across some really funky Columbia contemporaries that you've walk in and you're like, How do I do you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_00 11:06

Yeah, I think um just Colombian general, because you know, most of the houses were like built 70s and the 70s, in that era of architecture. Yeah, so either if they were in the 70s, they had very narrow, like geometric almost. It's narrow and deep for the pantries. And then like the kitchen, like this space plan for the kitchens are almost as if they want to be um like what you would find in an apartment, but in a house. Yes, and so like it's like there's a wall here, so you can't if you wanted to expand it and bulldoze the wall, you couldn't. And then the kitchen is also near a sunroom or a patio or so it's very limited. So, like if you wanted to like do a kitchen renovation, you'd have to demo and like do the outside, do all these things because of just how it's laid out. Yeah, so it makes um for those tight spaces very limited. But what I find is um I always talk to the client about like what they're using the kitchen for, because a lot of times there's things that are in the kitchen that don't belong in the kitchen, so that saves some space.

SPEAKER_01 12:19

Um, and then like you mentioned, like the pull-out drawers, now they have the ones that like are at Amazon that you can like literally adhesive stick and pull out, which is so nice because before the like, I mean obviously, like you obviously do a ton with like the container store, but like that's a premium that not everybody can access, but now because that was like the only option, but now there are there's more options.

SPEAKER_00 12:36

Absolutely, like there's long deep bins that you can use. Um, if you wanted to, you could you know manipulate the pantry and put up a wall, you know what I mean, on each shelf. Yeah um, but all of that is like extra work, right? So, like when I'm coming into a space, I'm like, how can we do this with the minimal minimal amount? Like, we're not trying to do construction here, right? No. What can I do that's gonna make the biggest impact with minimal like movement? Right. Like, we're not changing, doing a whole overhaul. Now, if that's your desire and you're like, I'm done with this kitchen, Catherine, we're gonna renovate it, I'm hiring an interior designer, I need a construction person, then that's that. Right. But for those who are like, I don't want to spend money in construction, like you can set up a really nice system with just some products and understanding like what you actually need to function well in this space. Sometimes I feel like a lot of clients are not using the kitchen to its best potential, like it may not be your ideal kitchen, um, but it definitely can function and support your family in your life. Right.

Favorite Projects And Custom Closets

SPEAKER_01 13:38

Yeah. Well, and okay, and actually uh as we're talking, I would say there is at least, at minimum, three or four spaces that you help me do that are still in that same kind of configuration. That's amazing. I love hearing that. Yeah. Well, because I mean, like, obviously, like, you know, as your family grows, your home evolves, right? Um well, and there's actually other little things that I don't know that if I had like installed, like you remember in our laundry room, we also had like a small coat closet. Yes. Well, I installed one of those um it's a hanging rack, but it's metal, and you can kind of screw it into the door, but that gave me some extra storage. Nice. They're like, and it's long, so I that kind of I'm so I'm able to utilize that a little bit. But I remember some in the areas of the spice um particular, like um is still in the same configuration. Wow. Yeah. Because well, especially like with that where it you know, like I have to like give you guys like a visual of my kitchen and this pantry that I hate so much. Um because it's like it's it's deep, but it's also like tall and narrow.

SPEAKER_00 14:43

And right, so it's like But yours is a little bit yours actually compared to a lot of Columbia homes, yours is a little bit more wide. A little bit, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 14:50

So it's like you're like, wow, there's a lot of space. And in one of those areas, we were able, because not all of them you can do like the two-shelf kind of thing, or like a riser. That one it worked. Yeah. Um, I think below we couldn't because it's like my oils and like the bigger, tall bottles. Yeah. But like, yeah, a lot of those areas are still configured the way that we had. Wow. That's awesome. Well, it's like once you find a system that works for because for certain things, certain products, you're like, that's just how it is. Yeah. And like what we had to create that. Yeah. You know what I mean? And like other areas like shifted a little bit because like we got a di we got we now have an espresso and we don't we have a different different coffee maker. So but now it's nice because like we have an espresso pods, so that like remember that little skinny one that I also hated because I was like, Yes, it's all skinny A. Like, guys, I'm not kidding you, it's like this wide. Um deep, right? And like I there you there's a why what what am I gonna do with the space on the top? Yeah, yeah. Um but uh so but you know, so it's like as you get different appliances or you know, your family grows and changes, so does you know the things that you have. But um but yeah, like that system like still works.

SPEAKER_00 15:58

Yeah, and that's that's proof that systems can stick. I think there's a lot of like things out there where like they think having an organized home is unrealistic. Right. And I think it's unrealistic to think that that is it's like that 24-7. Correct. But I think that when you have systems in place, it makes it easy to tidy up, to put things back. Right, because there is a place for it. Yes. And as you mentioned, as your family grows, the systems grow with it. Right. So if you're able to upgrade that system, that shows that that system's stuck.

SPEAKER_01 16:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:30

Yeah. Um what you're not having to do is reinvent the whole wheel when something new is introduced, right? Like you have a a child who's in diapers and now they're potty training, and then they're this, and you're having to create a system at every stage. No, you're just improving and tweaking as new things are coming in. Yeah. Um, so that's like that testimonial that you basically just gave is just proof that you know systems stick and it is um achievable to have an organized home.

SPEAKER_01 16:58

Yes. And and and I love that sentiment. With two dogs. Right. You remember my dog too, I know. Um because no, it's so true. I think like even for me, like I'm you know, you know me. Like I'm very type B, like I can be like super organized and I'd like things very tidy, but like today, um, I mean, I'm a kind like my my husband's very type A. He won't leave the house without everything being perfect. But I'm like, you know, there's literally Grant dumped all every single one of his Hot Wheel cars on the floor, and I was like, uh-uh, I can either clean that up or I can leave and be on time. Right. We're gonna leave and be on time. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_00 17:33

You gotta choose your battles.

Solving Funky Columbia Kitchens

SPEAKER_01 17:34

You know, and that's what I tell my husband. I was like, if you walk in and the house like looks funky, just know like, you know, we we chose we made decisions. You know what I mean? Right. Um but uh but no, I think systems is key, and I think people get overwhelmed by the idea of system because you th I think we hear the word system and we think that that equals work. Right. Whereas system equals to me, like scaffolding, like structure, like think of like your spreadsheet. It's just it's just kind of the grid of where things can go. Yeah. Now the hab like you know, the maintenance is the other piece of it, right? Right? Exactly. And that can also ebb and flow, you know, per per the household. Like doesn't mean that you need to clean up like every single day. Yeah. Like I use the example of like, you know, kids' papers. Yeah. Um like coming home from school, because again, that's also an evolving thing, because like, you know, pre like the volume at preschool versus right now, you know what I mean? But even that, like, it's still like a high volume. And but that's something that like I can't keep keep up with daily. Right. What I do daily-ish is like, yes, we take the papers out of the folder. Yeah. And um sometimes um if I'm there, because sometimes my husband pulls them out, he doesn't throw them out, but like he will put them away. He knows where they go. Yeah. But we I don't necessarily do the thing daily where I'm like, okay, throw it away. I try to, but if I can't, I either try to do it weekly or every few weeks. Yeah. Um, or what actually what I did recently, like the fall is just crazy for me, so I probably almost never really touched it during the fall, and then fall is holiday, so the kids are bringing home an insane amount of papers. So actually what I did is I um I went through them like shortly after the holidays because I was like, okay, like I have a little bit of time over winter break. Let me just like clear through this. Um so that way like come to the end of the year, I'm not having to be like, oh my god, you know what I mean? So like, you know, so I forced myself to do kind of like mini purges like that. Um so like we have so example of the system. We have like the placement of where they go. I know in my brain, like, you know, I'm tossing like I'll keep the the cute ones and then toss whatever. Yeah. Um, and then they have like the Brooke and Grant placement and then they go in there. Right. Right? Yeah. I don't know. And so they're like coming off, so and so like you know, it's like they come like from the backpack to the counter to the office, right? So they that's the system. Right. The maintenance of like, you know, this area can overflow. Yeah. Um, but that's where I try to tackle every like few weeks ish. Sometimes it can go longer, but you know, and the same thing can go for, you know, whether it's your closet, the family room, yeah, blah blah blah.

SPEAKER_00 20:07

Yeah, and I mean maintenance is the huge part of the system sticking, right? Um, and that's why when you're, you know, as a professional organizer, my job is to create a system that you can maintain on your own, right? And so that maintenance, regardless if it's not like scheduled, right? It doesn't have to be like it has to be this exact day every single year, right? Like somebody's gonna get a cold, somebody's gonna get sick, something's gonna happen, life happens. Um, but as long as you are keeping it on your radar, like maybe it's just like the capacity has exploded, right? Like the bin that you put the artwork in is starting to explode. Okay, now let me just do a small edit of these things. Yes. But you're doing a small edit, not an overhaul.

SPEAKER_01 20:47

No, because systems are already in place. Yeah, I didn't have to create a system. I just, like for me, like what happens is once things start to visually like feel like once they're like visually cluttering, like my brain, I'm like, oh, like I because I have my office down there and it's um I can see the pile over there and like it starts to even if my desk is clean and organized, I'm like, it's it's visual. Exactly. So that's for me. Like I don't have to rehaul the system, I just need to like trim the fat so that like okay, then I I can breathe. And that's just only one little spot right of the office.

SPEAKER_00 21:20

Of the office, yeah. But it's it's interesting, like I always say, you know, tidy space, tidy mind. Yes. Um, and it resonates with so many people, and you don't realize it. Like a lot of people are like, you know, I thrive and mess. Like you might be creative and mess, but when it takes time to like get down to like what you need to do in execution, there has to be some level of order. Right. Like, that's just what it is. I agree. Um, and so you know, organization, I think for a lot of people, and uh social media has kind of created this narrative too that it's like you know, we're restocking our fridges and we are um, you know, restocking our makeup or whatever. Whatever the case may be. The over aestheticness.

SPEAKER_01 22:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 22:03

Yes. Right?

SPEAKER_01 22:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 22:04

And it's like, you know, you don't need to buy, you know, a red cannon soda, orange cannon soda, yellow, green, you know what I mean? All the different just to fit the aesthetic when you know you only drink grape soda. Like, that's just not your life. You know? You have to drop the grape soda. Yeah, yeah. Like if you if you only drink grape sodas, then your fruit should be grape soda. You know what I mean? Um, and I think it has turned the meaning behind organization to limited it to it's just for aesthetics. Right. And it's really like supporting the chaos of your life. Yeah. Like life is chaotic. Yeah. And it's messy. You know what I mean? Um, and so being able to come home and have peace and have respite at your home.

SPEAKER_01 22:46

Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 22:47

Like, I mean, I can't I can't thrive without it.

Systems That Stick And Evolve

SPEAKER_01 22:51

You know what I'm saying? So right. And there's different, I think, for different people like I fully agree with that. And I think there's different tiers of that for different people. Like my husband's all I mean, and you're absolutely right because like as type B as I am, and I can I can I have a higher tolerance for a little bit of mess, a little bit of chaos, blah blah blah. But I still agree with that sentiment. Like, you know, um, and I've gotten and I'm not a I mean, you see my home. I'm not we're I'm not a messy person by any means. It's just again, higher tolerance for a little bit of like wiggle room with that. Yeah. Um but one thing that I've even worked on myself is I used to always be the person that like you could like see like every like all the countertops, like you know, you can you see my home, like can be clean and organized, look very tidy, but if you open up a drawer, it might be a little bit chaos. And that was always very true of like my closet and my dresser drawers and stuff like that. But I've been slowly forcing myself um in the last maybe because I redid my closet a little bit. Um and I got one of those just like a self-installed, like I don't even remember the name of the brand. It wasn't alpha because but I'm freak my kids have the alpha. I'm like obsessed with alpha. It's the best thing in the world. Um but basic like similar like that. Yeah. Um and because they're the um clear clear uh wire, you know, so I can see what's in it, yeah. I can see, even though they're pushed in, um I can yeah, I can just generally kind of see. So I can't just like not that I was like throwing shirts in there, but like you know, as women, like we're trying things on and then putting it back or whatever. Right. So I actually it's funny, literally as I'm saying this right now, I think because of now having this closet system and I have a F-load of the um clear uh uh drawer or bins. Yeah, yeah. You know what I mean? It forces me, because now I have a really clear visual of a large amount of my stuff, um, to force myself to fold um which I I mean I always fold it, but like, you know, it's they're not completely chaos. Is it like, is it the it's not the over aestheticness of like it's perfect, but they are folded and like you know, and I'll let you know, sometimes like, you know, again, like the jammy drawer might get a little like funky every now and then because it's jammy. It's like you know, they don't need to be like crisp or whatever. Yeah. But what I force myself to do is like Claire, you don't have to do when things start to um I don't know, get a little fluffy, you know, right? Like things start to whatever. I was like, Claire, we don't obviously I have again have the system, I don't need to overhaul, but I forced myself, I was like, Claire, you know, I remember like four drawers were starting to like trigger me a little bit. I was like, just take out one. Yes. Just refold one. I was like, we don't need to do, I was like, you know, because sometimes that can feel overwhelming when you're I gotta run and do this, but I was like, I just did one, and then the next day I did another one. Yeah. And I was like, and it it that's how simple it can be. It doesn't mean like you need to go in and re-clean your whole living room. It could just be like, I'm just gonna clean, like, clean the coffee table. Yeah. And just like reorganize that little space. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 25:49

And I think what you're speaking to is like knowing where to start and honoring your capacity. Because a lot of times it's like, oh, I need to do all of these things. Yeah. And you'll see so many times where people like they got the trash bag and they're like, Yep, yeah, and they just overhaul, and like the whole weekend they're there, and then by Monday they're exhausted, they're fatigued, they're over. Overwhelmed because they've made so many decisions in a short span of time.

SPEAKER_01 26:11

Decision making.

SPEAKER_00 26:12

In that short span of time. And you made like a million decisions in addition to what are the kids eating for breakfast? Yep. What does my husband want for dinner? Like all the all the other like things, you know, do I need to get gas? All of these other decisions that you're making, it's adding on to that. Right. And um, I think for a lot of people, they don't know where to start. And I think the best thing is exactly what you said it's honoring your capacity. Right. In that moment, okay, I know I want to do this, but right now I have time and I feel like a manageable task for me to do is this. Just and that's what I'm gonna get done, and I'm gonna feel appeased. Maybe you feel accomplished after doing that. And that little small step is gonna roll you into okay, I've done that, okay, now I can do the next drawer. Right. Okay, now I can do the next drawer. Um, and it's manageable um when you do it that way. Right. But you also have to be really self-aware.

SPEAKER_01 27:02

Right. And well, and it's funny about I mean, again, as women and especially as moms too, we all there is an absolute time where we will celebrate the crap out of a full rage weekend. You know what I mean? There is, I mean, that's that's your job too. Like you're gonna come in and do a major overhaul, right? Right. And we love that, you know. But even for you too, it's like it is um, it is very mentally depleting because you're making so many decisions, because you're thinking about structurally all these things, and that's um it's like a good feeling, but it does drain you hardcore. Yeah. And so even you're right, like the little mo moment of like, I'm just gonna organize this one drawer or this one bin. Um and I and and here's the thing, I actually told myself I was only gonna do one because again, I think as women, it's easy to be like, let me just keep doing all of it. Do all of it. Because you know, it's yeah, you you can, but it can edge on the burnout a little bit because then you're not exactly honoring your capacity. And then what you're what you end up teaching yourself is I get exhausted, this is overwhelming, takes up a lot of my time, and now I'm drained.

Capacity, Maintenance, And Small Wins

SPEAKER_00 28:03

So why would you want to do it again? Yeah, it's true, it's true. And then there's the other part where people will say, Well, I am not going to tackle the pantry because I need someone to fix the pantry first. And until the guy comes to fix the pantry, I'm not gonna do anything to it. And those kind of like obstacles that you put in front of it to not do the thing, but it's like, could you still do the thing without this? Yeah, you can declutter the pantry still, and then that way when it's fixed, you can still do it. Or it's like, oh, um, I wanna donate, you know, these things to um a mom in need, right? And you have like four or five bags, and you're like, you know, I have these four or five bags I need to donate, but I need to drop it off at this specific nonprofit, and it sits there, and it sits there, and it sits there, and it sits there, and it sits there. So it's also energy too. Yeah. You know, it's like, is it really worth it to have these things take up space that I know I don't want? Right. Um, than to like give it to a specific charity. And sometimes you have to weigh that. Right. You know what I mean? I know like sometimes you have to weigh that. Now, if it is important to you, I always say put it on the calendar. Yeah, make it easy, add it to your routine if that's something that's important. Right. But if you are creating this obstacle, all it's doing is just making you like not want to do it. And it's just it's just sitting there. Like I've I've done consultations where I've had clients who have had donation bags for a year, over a year, that have not made it out of the house, but they knew that they wanted to let it go. And because it's so far away, they have to revisit it now because they're like, I don't even remember what's in here. Right. And that is like double. Now you're making the decision twice. Exactly. So um, you know, sometimes you have to kind of like choose like what is really important. Is it important that these things get out of my visual space? Right. Or is it important that I give this to a friend because they like this book, or give this to my sister because she says she liked this skirt? Like is it what is the what is it worth?

SPEAKER_01 30:19

I know. Exactly. Man, we could sit here and literally talk about just I love how we can like get into this and then we'll just like talk about all these different things with organizing. Yeah. Um, but wait, okay, steering back to the business real quick, while we have a few minutes left, um, because we both you've your business has grown and evolved so much. You've um you've launched like organizers weekend, which is coming up for you too. Yeah. Um you've done some really awesome like new segments, and I love seeing you get to like do your thing there. Thank you. So tell me what's well, give us like a two-second description about organizer weekend and um uh and what that's all about. And then what is on the horizon for you um in the business?

SPEAKER_00 30:59

Yeah, absolutely. So Pro Organizers Weekend, this is the third year we're doing it.

SPEAKER_01 31:03

So cool.

SPEAKER_00 31:03

Um last year it was in Columbia. Um, this year it's in DC, it's April 10th and 11th. Um, it's for founders of professional organizing businesses that have been in business for four years or more. They're at that growth stage. Um they've already scaled or they're getting ready to scale. Um, and they're looking for people who really want to see them win. It's an opportunity for them to work on their wellness, I'll work on their business. Um, there's some movement sessions in there, there's some wellness sessions incorporated in there, but there's also some strategy and talk and you know being around other people who are industry experts. And um having now saying that I've hosted it like this is the third year, it's kind of crazy because I feel like I just did the first one. I know. Great, but um, it's really remarkable, and I think um, as entrepreneurs, like having like true connection with people is so valuable. Um I might even say it's invaluable in the sense that like um you don't realize how much you actually needed to continue and to go um and how you know sometimes you can just stay in your head, whether you have a team or not. Right. Um, you can get in your head so much. It's like just having a conversation with someone who is like literally beside you um can help you get over that hump or that obstacle. Or somebody who's already been through what you've been through, how how that ease just happens. Right. Um, and there's no competition, we're not in competition, we're not gatekeeping, like we're all in the room, like there is room for all of us to actually win and be successful. Yeah. Um, and so I love that about that. Um, in terms of Teddy Mosa, I'm writing a book. My first book. So awesome. Yeah, so that's really exciting. Um, I've been lamenting and like trying to figure out like how I'm gonna make this work with my clients. Right. Time to write. Right. Um, and uh actually it's been a year. So um last year I made the announcement that I was writing a book. So um it's been a year since I've made that announcement and I'm making progress on it. And um, I'm glad that I had people in my corner that give me that push to actually do it and make the time. Yeah. Um, because it's like, you know, I have this, I have this, I have this. Right. You know, talk about honoring capacity. Like as a business owner, you have to honor your capacity too. Um, but this book is in me and it's gotta come out. I love that. Yeah, I love that. What's it about? Um, so it is not your typical like organizing book in the sense that it is not um, you know, pictures of like this is how you declutter and organize your closet. This is how you declutter and organize your garage. It's more about the emotional work that happens when you're making those decisions. Yeah. Um, like the hiccups that happen along the way, how to get past that, knowing where to start, knowing how to let go, giving yourself that permission. Right. Um, so it's all about, you know, making space for what you truly want, yeah, and letting go of what no longer fits.

SPEAKER_01 34:04

I love that because I feel like it's not always talked about enough with organizing. They give you a lot of like, you know, yeah, a lot of visuals, a lot of examples, a lot of how-to, but um, I think I'm sure, especially in your business, you can counter that, like, you know, you can give everybody the systems, the tools, and like this is what we're gonna make it look like, but then they still have to make all the decisions of decluttering and letting that.

SPEAKER_00 34:24

They still have to do the work. Yeah, and it's I can't do it for them. No, no, and it's hard. Yeah, it's hard. Um, but thankfully, you know, like God gave me this gift to be able to like help them get through that and be able to make those decisions. Um, and I agree, it's not talked about enough. I think people think like it's one and done. You set out a weekend, and for some people it is, right? We talked about like, you know, your husband's like more type A, type B. Like my husband is opposite of me. Yeah, you know what I mean? Like right, my drawers are like bras, underwears, da-da-da-da. His drawer is tech, like his top drawer is tech, my top drawer is undergarments. Yeah, right, like definitely different, but that system works for him, this system works for me, and I think um there's also a monolith in some of those demos, too, in that like this is the way, and so you kind of have to decide like what actually supports you, and it takes a lot of uh self-awareness and um like emotional intelligence to like figure that out.

Letting Go, Donations, And Momentum

SPEAKER_01 35:21

Right, yeah. Oh my gosh. Yeah, I'm so excited. So you're you're working on the book. Yes, you got Pro Organizers Weekend coming up, and you got you still have your clients.

SPEAKER_00 35:30

I still have my clients, yes, still working with clients in person, um, building a team. Um, I've kind of figured out what team I need now. Like we kind of talked about this at the beginning. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So I've kind of figured out like because I have you know, tidy milso, me, tidy milso, because you know, people refer to me as tidy milso, so I'm that, but then there's tidy milso the business, right? So it's like the brand and the business together, yeah, but they're separate. So now I've figured I've kind of figured out what support I need for both of those kind of sides of the business. Right. So it's it's exciting, yeah. Um it's very exciting, and um, I'm looking forward to seeing like what like this year is gonna bring. Because we're we're just getting started.

SPEAKER_01 36:09

I know that's how I feel too. I was like, we're coming into March, and I'm kind of actually relieve of January and February. The quarter one is always like just kind of eh, it's it's always a little bit slow. I think for every for most businesses, it's always a little bit slow. Yeah. So like March is where I start to see it kind of pick up, and you know, I think you know, we're both create. I think anybody that's gonna be an entrepreneur has got some kind of creative mind, you know what I mean? So I feel like you know, even though spring's not here yet, I'm feeling the the greenness of like new hope, new energy. Do you know what I mean? Yeah, like I just I got to feel the horse.

SPEAKER_00 36:43

It's like, you know, the plants are aligning this weekend, apparently. Like so, like all these things are happening.

SPEAKER_01 36:50

You know what I mean? So yeah, I I feel you. I I definitely feel like we're still at the tip of the iceberg for this year, and like good things are coming.

SPEAKER_00 36:56

Yeah, good things are absolutely coming, and I think you know, it's been beautiful to like again just see like our journeys and like see where we started, and um, I'm truly grateful for you, you know, inviting me to be on your podcast.

SPEAKER_01 37:11

Uh so yeah. So, okay, so where can people find you? Where can they follow you? Where can they get information to either learn more about your services, etc. etc.?

SPEAKER_00 37:20

Yeah, so you can find out all about my services on my website, tidymilso.com. Um, I am most active on Instagram, threads, um, and YouTube. Um, YouTube is more like personal. There's a little bit of content on organizing, but it's more like getting to know me. So if you want to get to know me as a person more, YouTube, um, and again, um, Instagram threads, and then because I'm writing, I started a Substack, so I think some content on there as well.

SPEAKER_01 37:48

Very cool. Yep. Well, thank you so much, Catherine, for being here. Um, we will share um also all of your little nuggets in our show notes so you can check out more information from there. And otherwise, follow along on Instagram for more. Awesome, awesome. Thank you, guys. Yay! Thanks for tuning in to this episode of Mom Talk Maryland. If you loved it, leave a review, share it with a friend, or tag me at the dot ColumbiaMom on Instagram. I'd love to hear what you think. And don't forget to follow the show so you never miss an episode. Until next time, keep showing up, keep supporting locals, and keep being the incredible mom, the woman, and human that you are.