NAPO (the National Association of Professional Organizers) is growing a lot and their conference is too. I could suggest a couple of changes for future conferences, such as giving more time for discussions at the SIG tables during lunch, but overall it was very well done.
Maria attended a class on “Harm Reduction” at convention. This concept is very important to us. The basic idea is that even though you’re there to aid the client you can actually do more harm than help. Psychological issues can really be exacerbated when people get judgemental, critical, angry, etc. Being firm but gentle and understanding really is the best way to help.
It was good to meet other organizers from around the country and share some knowledge and experiences. Dinner at La Tasca, a Spanish restaurant at the Inner Harbor, with some folks from California’s bay area was a particularly good time, even though the paella took a lot longer to arrive than the plates of tapas. It was hard to wait.
The vendor expo was also fun. There were a lot of new products from established companies, and a lot of small companies that we’d never heard of. We were even able to buy a copy of What Every Professional Organizer Needs to Know about Chronic Disorganization by Judith Kolberg. It’s required reading for some ICD exams and we hadn’t been able to find a copy. Now we have a copy signed by the author. Cool.
There was a lot of positive energy and good ideas came from the vendors, other organizers and the classes. Definitely a worthwhile conference to attend. Now back to work.