I’ve been reading a lot lately about small business marketing, and one theme that keeps coming up centers around letting potential clients “get to know you.” So the point of today’s blog post is my way of telling you something about myself. Of course anytime anyone has ever said to me, “tell me about yourself,” I’ve always sort of been stymied. But today I’m forcing myself to share some (hopefully interesting) information about myself.
Currently, I live in Boston’s North End neighborhood, otherwise known as Little Italy. I like living here because this area of the city has a 99 walk score. This basically means that lots of stores, restaurants, coffee shops, parks, and public transportation are within a few minutes’ walk from most places in the neighborhood. I love this! I don’t own a car, so I mostly walk to get my groceries and to run other errands. I use the “T” as it is called here in Boston to get farther out if needed. The T is our subway system. If I want to visit friends in the ‘burbs, I take the train, which Bostonians call the commuter rail. I also use a car-sharing service called Zipcar, which is super-convenient; you basically borrow a car for however long you need it and whenever you need it. There are parking lots around the city that house Zipcars, and there’s an app that is easy-to-use and that lets you reserve the car that you want. I like not owning a car; it’s very freeing. It also saves me money, which is nice.
The other reason why I like living in Boston’s North End is that there are still times when the folks here at restaurants and bakeries speak Italian, and this is a language that I’m currently studying, so I love hearing the language as I walk around the .36 square miles of this little corner of the city. I take a class that meets once a week for two hours. Because of this, during my weekly routine, I will attempt to speak Italian to the shop owners here; usually they will smile back and respond with much more gusto than I mustered to initiate the conversation. I also like living here because on many mornings the smell of powdered sugar, chocolate, and coffee fills the air. It’s fabulous!
As you might imagine, living in a tiny area of Boston could mean that the homes here are not very big. Well, some are, but many are not. I live in a 425-square foot apartment; the reason for this is because when I moved to Boston, I did not want to replicate the life I had just left in Salem. In Salem, I had been living in a large house with too many rooms and too much to manage. The upkeep was overwhelming, and things just kept breaking. I did not feel that I was living my life; I felt as though my stuff — the house and everything in it — owned and limited me. It was my goal to start a new life with fewer possessions in a great city. Also, because I’m a professional organizer, I feel that it’s important to live in a small home so that I’m often thinking about space and how to use it efficiently. I really like doing this. At times, of course it can be a challenge, but I enjoy it, and I know that the more that I learn, the better I am able to help my clients.
Some of my favorite things are enjoying dinner with friends, cooking up plant-based meals that slightly challenge my cooking skills, traveling — to Italy of course! — and exploring new cities, reading, watching sad French films, enjoying a sunny day, seeing my nieces and my nephew and watching them turn into young adults who are funny and kind, and lastly, writing! I am happy to have this blog as a way to share information with you. I also regularly write for the National Association of Professional Organizers of New England (NAPO-NE) blog at napo-newengland.com/our-blog-and-tips/blog/ and at medium.com under Cheryl Russo. Please check out my articles on both of those sites.
I won’t bore you with much more about me, but hopefully this gives you some sense of who I am and why I live the life that I live. I could share much more personal things, but for now, I think this provided you with a taste of who I am. I know that working in someone’s home in their personal space is at times difficult and could be awkward for some people; I understand that completely, so at any time if you would like to meet for coffee or dinner to get to know me better, please reach out to me. I want my clients to know who I am and feel comfortable with me. As part of my work, I always offer a free 30-minute phone consultation as a way for you to ask me questions about my work and how I approach decluttering and organizing, and this also gives me a chance to meet you and hear about your goals for your home or office. I approach my work with professionalism, confidentiality, at times a bit of humor, and always without judgment. I know how busy we all are, and with that life sometimes gets overwhelming. This is perhaps why professional organizing is on the rise; we all need help decluttering and organizing and making space in our lives for the important things: doing what we love and spending time with the people we love.
Thank you.
Cheryl