I’ll preface this video by saying these tips are United States-specific and also in no way meant to be a comprehensive list of how to stay safe not only in everyday life, but also in running your mobile business as a home organizer. I’m also not saying that something bad will happen to you- but I also don’t rule that out on jobs I go to! Hopefully with a solid Consultations process and learning to follow your gut and look for red flags in chatting with people that might give you an icky feeling or just not feel like the right fit… you can avoid any sort of personal safety and security issue.
So here’s a few tips of how I try to stay safe on all of my organizing jobs!
Get a Google Voice number if you’d like to separate your personal calls from your business calls, or if you simply need an area code that matches the city you’re doing business in. For example, I just moved from San Diego to Oklahoma City and I didn’t want to keep my old San Diego number for running my business, Let’s Get You Organized, here because I didn’t want to confuse potential clients! I was able to quickly and easily get a Google Voice number by heading to https://voice.google.com/ and also download the app. If you want to learn more about how I set up my business for success in a new city and essentially started over from scratch- check out my Pro Organizer Blueprint series all about how to set up your own biz in just 30 days! So now when I get a business call, it forwards to my regular number and I can keep track of everything all in one place! My favorite feature is that I can use the web version to follow up with clients and quickly copy and paste messages in bulk, when I need to do blast to old leads in my pipeline.
Locating tracking- do you have a trusted contact, maybe a best friend, parent, spouse, or team member? I always suggest sharing your location with someone so that they can see you on the map with a little pin, just in case something were to happen on an organizing job. You don’t have to share your location forever- it can just be for those few hours that you’re at a session! This is a “just in case” you were to get injured on a job or have any sort of issue that deterred you from being to complete the job and get home safely. For iphone users this is super easy- just go to your contact of choice in your phone, hit the little “i” button for Info, then hit Share My Location and you’ll have options to share for an hour, til the end of the day, or indefinitely. For Android users, your process is similar- you’ll do this through the Google Maps app- you can choose who can find your location and how long to share your location with Google Location Sharing.
Self defense- now it’s up to you how far you want to take this, and thankfully I’ve never heard of any organizers (at least in my programs) having to use any sort of self defense techniques, but you could explore things like basic self defense classes at your local YMCA. I personally love CrossFit to keep in shape and stay at the top of my game, and I may be exploring Brazilian jiu jitsu soon too. Early on in my organizing career when I wasnt so sure about entering other peoples’ homes and didnt feel quite confident on consultations to be able to notice red flags… I would carry a pepper spray keychain as part of my regular car keys or a small knife with me (that could double for breaking down boxes on decluttering jobs). Again, I’m not saying that anything bad is going to happen to you as an organizer, but I’m also not saying that you’re immune from anything potentially happening!
Stay safe out there and keep booking those dreamy, ideal clients! I’m curious if you’ve ever run into any “icky” situations in your organizing work… leave a comment below if you have or better yet, join our exclusive Pro Organizer Facebook community- I’d love to meet you HERE in this FREE group!