Here's how I found my way to this work…

I've always been able to fit in, yet I've never quite felt like I belonged.

That shifted thirty years ago. I'd just moved to LA, and my now-husband Justin and I were at a party. I started chatting with someone who mentioned a dance class happening the next day in Culver City. Something inside me said I should go. So I followed the nudge, and I'm so glad I did.

I walked through two big doors at The Helms Bakery into a gymnasium filled with people dancing. No choreography — just a room of self-expression. Tentative yet curious, I joined in. As time passed, I began to connect with my body in a way that I had never done before, and suddenly, my mind was set free.

By the end of class, I was skipping around the room, the way I did when I was a kid. It didn't matter how I looked or what anyone thought. Everyone in that room was having their own experience and dancing their own dance. — I felt so connected to myself and everyone else.

There was no “trying to fit in” on the dance floor. And what I discovered was that the feeling of belonging that I had been searching for for so long,came from me just being me. That was my introduction to 5Rhythms.

On that day, my life changed forever.

Fast forward years later. I was walking down the alley after coming out of dance at Soho in West LA, when I ran into Baeth, one of my fellow dancers and kindred spirits. We had danced together for years, and she, like many others, I had felt like we had a relationship without saying a word. And now, here I was, actually having a conversation.

She asked me about my life. I told her what was going on, and she looked at me and said, "I can help you." I took her up on it. We met at Superba in Venice for a cup of coffee. She told me about her new boyfriend and then told me I was a Projector. I had no idea what she was talking about, but curiosity kicked in again, and I was off on a journey into the world of Human Design — and the beginning of Baeth becoming not just a fellow dancer, but my teacher, mentor, colleague and friend.

On that day, my life changed forever.

I became a little obsessed. I studied. I took courses. I got certified. I went in deep — partly to understand myself, but just as much to understand the people in my life. And just like on 5Rhythms, what pulled me in about Human Design is that it celebrates our differences and teaches us the impact and power of aligning with the truth of who we are.

It was around this same time that my addiction to moving furniture crept in. Learning I was a Projector explained so much about my life — why parts worked, and why parts didn't. It sent me deep into contemplation — trying to understand…Trying to figure things out sometimes became so overwhelming, I needed a break from my own mind. That's when I discovered that shifting my environment relieved the mental pressure and pulled me into creativity instead. Didn't matter if it was four in the morning or ten at night — Justin and my daughter Elsie never knew what they would be waking up to. It almost became a game: how many different places could I put the couch, move the mirrors and bookshelves, and what would happen if I changed the direction of my desk… Endless possibilities and a great teacher of perspective.

Not long after, the moving furniture was followed by packing boxes when I helped my parents move from Michigan to Florida — downsizing a whole life. It was a big job, but I was up for the challenge. My mom's a collector, and she has lots of “stuff.” Together, we sorted, donated, wrapped, color-coded, and labeled. Everything went into the same size box and was stacked by room in the garage. My stepdad's process was completely different: slower, more reflective. She and I did most of the house. He did his office, and he touched everything in it.

Same experience, different approaches…Fascinating in my eyes.

When I got back to Chicago, I met my friend Shari for tea at Love That Spice in Highland Park. We did what we always do — catch each other up on our lives. I told her about my parents, the trip, and the U-Haul that was coming to our house in a couple of days. She told me what was going on with her family and that she'd just started an organizing business. I let her know right away that if she ever needed help, to think of me.

And the seed was planted — excitement for her, curiosity yet again for me.

We worked on several projects together, and during that time I learned a lot. I learned that no two people's chaos/clutter looks the same. No two spaces need the same solution. Some people need to see their things, and some need everything hidden. Some think in piles, some in files. And sometimes, what matters most isn't the sorting or the emptying of boxes at all.

What I discovered was that my real passion wasn't actually the organizing itself. It was what was happening underneath it — holding space for reflection, tears, vision, and dreams. Walking into a house full of clutter and seeing possibilities.

My job is to encourage people to be authentic — to be who they are, honest with themselves and the people in their lives. To speak their truth and not be afraid. To dance their dance and not be embarrassed. To move forward when they feel stuck. To be held when they feel afraid. To be encouraged when they need support. And to be loved, the whole way through.