ChaosCancelled -- November, 2000 Meeting Brings Organization to the Organization: An Interview with Mary Lou (Bunky) Lundberg

ChaosCancelled -- November Meeting Brings Organization to the Organization
An Interview with Mary Lou (Bunky) Lundberg
by
Tina Novinski

"My work as a professional organizer can be summarized as
life management. I help people get their offices, businesses
homes, and their lives together."

-Bunky Lundberg, Owner, CHAOSCANCELLED

The November HODRW meeting will feature Mary Lou Lundberg, better known as Bunky. She founded CHAOSCANCELLED early in 1995. Born to be a professional organizer, she served as student body president at Colorado Women's College, Executive Director of the YWCA, Fort Worth, Texas, and has received numerous awards and citations for her abilities to bring organizations to higher levels of performance. A member of the National Association of Professional Organizers, she is a co-founder of Colorado Professional Organizers. Mary Lou graciously agreed to a short question and answer session to prepare our members for this outstanding meeting.

Q I think of an organizer as being someone a CEO needs. How can a self employed writer benefit from an organizer?

A My favorite clients are entrepreneurs...self-employed people who are wearing most of the hats that it takes to not only run a business, as is the case with a CEO, but are also doing the business. The majority of my clients fall into this category. What that means is that a self-employed writer will benefit greatly from the services of an organizer. We are all in search of increased productivity, relief from stress, peace of mind, increased creativity and time saved. These are, in a nutshell, just a few of the benefits of being organized. There are new systems to be learned, new methods to implement, and ideas for saving time that organizers have become experts in teaching. They apply to everyone alive, not just CEO's!

Q I'm afraid the next question is going to de-bunk (excuse the pun, Bunky) an old myth, but I thought my messy desk was a sign of genius. Apparently it is not, correct?

A Debunk, huh?! ! ! There are all sorts of old myths. My philosophy is that any extreme, be it a VERY messy desk or a VERY tidy desk, can cause problems and that, in our search for balance we can find a form of satisfaction. A very messy desk can create all kinds of problems. One can't find anything and wastes precious time looking. It can cause anxiety. On the other hand, the extreme of totally tidy can mean that all one is accomplishing is a totally tidy workspace. Somewhere between the two is helpful to anyone. And, I am keeping in mind that writers are very creative and visual souls whose greatest fear might be putting something away for fear of never seeing it again. I would like to help us all to find balance so that the benefits of organizing systems can be experienced.

Q We all would love to learn to organize our professional and personal lives, but is there truly a way to make it a day to day reality instead of similar to spring cleaning?

A The answer to this question is absolutely yes. Finding new systems that will work for each one of us is the key, then committing to ways for maintaining them, essential. If we find methods that are easy to maintain, then it becomes easy to let go of old ways and embrace the new. Seeing the value daily provides the necessary motivation.

Q What can we expect to learn at your program at the November 18, HODRW meeting?

A: I will share lots of ideas with you. My program will include laws about getting organized; information on how to manage desks, and, the most important piece will be on paper management. I will be bringing you information on a revolutionary way to manage paper that is exceedingly good for writers. I am the only authorized Paper Tiger consultant in this region and will demonstrate new ways to manage the abundance of paper and information that paralyzes us all. I will surprise you by making such a discussion fun and interesting. Can you imagine? And, we will leave plenty of time for questions.

Tina Novinski has sold numerous short stories and writes short contemporary romance.