It’s increasingly strange for me to answer the question “How long have you been an organizer?” 17 years in, I’m still learning so much about organizing, human nature, motivation, happiness, and more with each passing year. Sometimes in the moment I know that a certain realization or exchange with a client will be something I'll share here, and other times, it’s not until months later that I jot down the revelation as its significance hits me.

Since 2012 I’ve been compiling a year-end list of lessons learned that stand out.  I make a point to not review previous year’s posts when writing the current one, for fear that it will narrow my thinking.  When finished, I review past years’ posts.  This year I noticed some overlap.  Elements of #1 and #5 were planted before, but this time they re-emerged in finer detail, proving they are themes that continue to help evolve my work as an organizer.

This is the 5th year I’ve paused at the end of the year to reflect on what I’ve learned as an organizer over the last 12 months.  This time around, each observation could stand alone as its own post!  Each year I grow as an organizer, and this post helps me to solidify new ways of hearing what clients want, and delivering what they need.