The challenges of moving a service based business with the owner of Overstreet Organizing

[00:00:00] Today we are talking to Army. Army, right? It was Army, yes. Yes. Okay. Army arm. Army wife, Caroline and Caroline is the owner of Overstreet Organizing. If you are on Instagram, you need to check that out for sure. So I, we've been talking offline for quite a while, which is what usually happens.

[00:00:20] But I was telling Caroline that I, I loved, I've been following her on Instagram for a while, and I am slightly obsessed with all things organization, , and I feel like it's like a mental, like it's a, it's a mental coping mechanism, I think, for me anyways. I don't know if there's any other mill spots to feel the same way, but like, I need my house to be in order.

[00:00:43] Like, that's like the calm in the storm of military life when you're moving and TD wise and deployments and everything else. Like my house, everything has a place, everything's put away and everything will be okay. Like, that's like my happy place, . So, so I love organizing, so I'm super excited to to have Caroline on the show.

[00:01:01] So we're gonna talk about. What your military careers look like, how you started your business, what it looks like. And then we'll get into kind of towards the end what tips you have cuz you know, everybody's starting to get their orders. Orders are coming out, who's moving this summer, and maybe some some tips and things that we can use going into PCs season.

[00:01:21] So Caroline, welcome to the show. I'm happy to have you here. 

[00:01:24] Thank you Allison. I'm happy to be here. I'm very humbled that you asked me to be on the show and I'm excited to chat with you today. Yeah, I know. 

[00:01:32] Chat more cause we've already been talking for like an hour. It's so fun. I love, I love meeting other military spouses and like a, it's just, and I had another interview before this one too.

[00:01:42] And um, and it's the same thing. It's like you, there's just like this instant connection because you, there's just shared experiences and you just kind of get it, even if. , you've never met the person before. Like there's just, I don't know, like, it's just like an instant, which is Yeah. Yeah. It's, it's cool. I think that's one of the cool things about the mill spouse community is that it's very easy to find common ground.

[00:02:02] Right. And to, to be able to talk about. Yeah, for sure. Okay. All right. So sh jumping right in. So tell us a little bit about your relationship to the military, what your guys' military careers look 

[00:02:12] like. So, So my husband, again, is in the Army. He is in the Army Corps of Engineers and the, he's hit his eight year mark.

[00:02:22] So we're still much a, very much a rookie family in the military. Since, well, I guess since 2016 we've moved four times. We've done one. Overseas, moved to Germany. We've been in Missouri at Fort Leonard Wood. We've been at Fort Stewart in Georgia, and now we're actually in Vicksburg, Mississippi for kind of a special assignment.

[00:02:42] But in those, those four years of, you know, getting married and then moving with the military, it's been a lot of. a lot of changes in a short amount of time it feels like, but I know there's others out there that have moved in less time than we have, so I have more kudos to y'all , for all of that transition.

[00:03:02] But so yeah, I've been, you know, an army spouse before that I, you know, worked in corporate America. And I'm, I'm from Virginia, I'm from the Richmond area, so that was home my entire life. And then as soon as the military stuff hit, it was. Change, change, change. So . 

[00:03:20] Yeah, for sure. So how was how was going to Germany from Virginia, how was that transition for you?

[00:03:29] a huge one. And we had, you know, my husband was there for six months and then literally came back the night before our wedding. We got married and then a couple days later we both flew back and, you know, officially made the move to, to Germany. Oh my. So. as a newlywed couple, trying to navigate marriage and being away from that far away from home in a new country and not knowing anyone or having to navigate the culture.

[00:03:57] Like yeah, it was a lot of, a lot. And my husband was gone. freak. I mean, he was going a lot. Their, their unit had them, I called them the revolving door unit cuz they were always in and out. So it was a, it was an adjustment for sure, but a good lesson and a lot of great growth in that season of life. So

[00:04:17] I appreciate it. And we had a, we had fun when we could have fun, and of course, you know, we're always grateful to come home when we could come home because I'm, I love my family. I'm very close with my family, so going back to home to Virginia was really important to me too, to keep up there, relationships as well.

[00:04:34] But yeah, it was, It's good. It's, it was a good doozy of a first duty station , so 

[00:04:40] that's a lot. Welcome to military 

[00:04:42] life. Let's go overseas and you are like 

[00:04:46] time zones and time zones away from your family. Like that's, yeah, that's trial by fire. 

[00:04:51] For sure, especially when you don't really, you know, I didn't, I, I'm not a big cook.

[00:04:56] I didn't really take interest in cooking, so I would do everything else in our household. And then when I moved to Germany and I realized I had to keep two people alive with food you can't just text your mom or call your mom because you're six hours ahead and by the time you. It's like you have to figure out dinner well in advance to ask those questions.

[00:05:15] Yeah. Hey mom, what did I do this for? And how much, you know, do I put this in the, how long do I put this in the oven for ? So there was a lot of like not getting mom's help in that way cuz I just wasn't on top of my game with. Planning meals appropriately. Yeah. 

[00:05:31] Yeah, that's, yeah. I don't, gosh, I still, I still hate planning meals.

[00:05:35] Oh, my work. And I feel I, you know, I think that is a common thing. I think that, I feel like I read a statistic somewhere that most families. Rotate through the same like five to seven meals, , and that is very accurate. . Like, there's taco night and then there's pizza, and then, right, like there's like, you have like your standard meals that you kind of rotate through and you get bored and then you're like, everybody's, you know, posting on Facebook and whatnot.

[00:06:01] Oh, I need some ideas of easy meal of, you know, family meals and stuff. Because it's, yeah, it's, I. I think everybody has a equal, a shared hatred of meal planning and prepping and . Yeah, all of that stuff. Okay. So then so tell us about what your career has looked like. So you, did you have a career? You said you were in corporate America as you had a career before you joined or before you married your husband.

[00:06:25] Yes. I worked for a health insurance company. I had my health insurance license in Virginia, and I was with them for about three and a half years. Prior to that, I worked for the D o t, the Department of Transportation. I was kind of had like a bunch of odd jobs. But those two were my big ticket ticket places of employment and then, , you know, we got married, I had to resign and therefore I had to resign my salary

[00:06:51] So, yeah, which was tough, you know, when you were making more than your husband at the time, that's a really hard thing to, to let go. Right. But mainly, you know, I've been working since I was 14 years old and I've always had that want to work, work ethic. Like I, I always have to be doing something. . And so going from a hundred to zero was very difficult.

[00:07:18] Yeah. Y and when we were in Germany, I was, do you know, I was trying to find employment. I was walking people's dogs. I was cutting grass. I was nannying, I was watching people's kids. I was like doing anything to a make a buck and to, to just be able to work, get outside and. . Eventually I got hired as a substitute, which was great, you know, working schools.

[00:07:40] I really enjoyed it. My mom's a school teacher, so I kind of had an idea of what the classroom was like. Mm-hmm. and so between Germany and then Missouri, I also substitute in Missouri and that that was kind. what I was doing. But for me, that's, that was not what I wanted per, you know, that's not what I wanted to do forever.

[00:08:02] Right. So when we were in Missouri, I'd had my aunt, she was in the Navy and so I was my uncle. And they live in DC and she told me, she's like, Caroline, you know you are. good with organizing and being tidy. And she said, you know, there's an industry for that. You know, I've got friends that, that do professional organizing Yeah.

[00:08:25] Up here in DC and she said, and they have busy career. I mean, it's, it's a full, full-time job. They've got people helping them. It's, and I said, well, you know, I've thought about it. So, and she had said that to me before we moved to Germany. So that entire time we were in Germany, I was sitting on this You know, organizing and I literally like, almost like a little egg nest egg that I was sitting on, warming up that egg

[00:08:53] But you know, prayerfully going over in my head and it literally just kept coming up and coming up and coming up. And then we moved to Missouri and that's when I acted on it and I said, you know what? , I'm gonna, I'm actually gonna do this. Okay. I never plan to be a self-employed person. I never plan to have my own business.

[00:09:12] Like, that's not me, . I'm not that kind person. I like to be told what to do. Sure. And, and I, I don't like to make up business policies and stuff, but in order to avoid the. employment gap and the being told, sorry, we don't wanna hire you because your resume looks wonky because you like jump around a lot.

[00:09:33] Yep. I said I'm gonna get no call back being told no or I'm gonna figure out and do something on my own. So, yeah. Make t-shirts. I don't make Tumblrs cause I'm not really that crafty, but I can do this service. That growing up like was something that was ingrained into me. and I can do this for other people.

[00:09:53] So yeah, there's one thing about doing it for yourself. There's another thing that you can do it for someone else. So that's a big, like can you serve another person in this way and Right. And I, you know, started off test piloting with friends that let me come in and just take before and afters and, and I, he was like, Hey, can I get a review from you?

[00:10:14] Can I do before and afters? It's a totally free, I'm just testing the waters and seeing how well this goes. And I had a friend, she let me come to her whole house, which was awesome. Wow. And then that kind of like gave me the assurance to, hey, you can do this and you. Go for it. So , I literally just went for it.

[00:10:35] I made my Instagram page. I started talking to a, she literally has mentored me. Her name is Hannah. She owns a organizing business called Home Refreshment in Orlando. So if any of y'all are listening down that way, she's amazing. But she literally took me under her wing. Brought me up to speed in the organizing world.

[00:10:54] So I'm, I'm so grateful for her because we're still very good friends. We've both, she's hired me to work with her on a couple of big projects. So it, it is so nice having that connection because when you work alone, you don't really have anybody to, to connect with cuz it's all by yourself. So Hannah's been.

[00:11:12] Real amazing with that. So that's kind of where this came from. . 

[00:11:17] Yeah. No, no, no. That's totally cool. I was gonna say that, that it's so great that you were able to find a mentor in the field Yeah. To kind of like, Hey, is this, you know, as you're dipping your toe in, is this something that I really wanna do?

[00:11:31] And then like, are there industry standards? Are there, like, are there, what do I need to know? Like, someone to kind of give you the ins and outs. So how did, so how did you connect with your mentor in Orlando? 

[00:11:42] Instagram . Okay. So basically I started following her Instagram and I reached out to her and, cause I really liked her content.

[00:11:51] She had like, I really liked, she used a lot of color and her, you know, sometimes you get the very, the organizers that have a very really nice white neutral palette and they're very cleaned up. Hannah had like fun colors and like, she. I feel like we connected really well. But her, she was actually, she was actually also from Missouri, so I was living in Missouri at the time and her brother in the Army.

[00:12:14] So we connected over those things and then when we found out that we were getting stationed at in Savannah at Port Stewart, I was only like three and a half to four hours away from her and she said, why don't you come down to Orlando, stay with me and my husband and come to work with me? And she said, come shadow me at work.

[00:12:31] Ask me all the questions you want. Like it's just so you can actually like, get. Hands on experience of like, what, how this goes down. And I was like, sweet. So I like showed up at her house, and like brought some flowers and I was like, I'm Caroline from Instagram. And literally since then, like we've just had such a, a great friendship and I think I see her like once or twice every year.

[00:12:55] So 

[00:12:56] it's, it's been so That's awesome. Yeah. That's such a good story. I love that because you never. You never know where you're gonna, where you're gonna meet somebody and you might meet your best friend on Instagram. Like, there's nothing wrong with, I don't know, I have a very much a love-hate relationship with social media.

[00:13:13] Like I think that there is definitely a place for it in in connection and everything else. But then it's also like a, does it, where's does it start to take over your life? You know what I mean? Like, I feel like there's stuff like that, but I also feel like it is such a great connection tool. So I think that's amazing.

[00:13:29] One that you put yourself out there and, you know, I, and I think that that's, you know, for other military spouses that are maybe in like a different, like a different, like a very niche and career path. Like, hey, I don't know, I really like making cupcakes. Like is that something I could do? I don't know.

[00:13:46] Find some people on Instagram, follow 'em. Strike up a conversa, because most people, if you're passionate about something that's similar, they wanna talk about it too. So like, yeah. And they wanna help, right? Yeah. So I think that's a great, that's a great tip for if you are, if you're looking to change careers or just to jump into something that's maybe a little bit different, a little bit off the beaten path, like find someone else that is doing something, something similar and just, you know, you can, you can get a lot of experience.

[00:14:15] Just by watching other people. And then if you find someone that's as gracious as you did, that's like, Hey, come shadow me. Come see what this is all about. And, and learn and ask questions. And I think that that is just, that's fantastic. I love that. Okay, so then, so, so you kind of started dipping your toe and, okay, I wanna do this.

[00:14:32] Yeah. I'm gonna make a business out of it. So, so where has that led you to today? 

[00:14:36] So I will say when we PCs to Georgia, that's really where my business started taking off. You know, I became an official. See, you know, I, you know, I got my, all my business, I have my business license, insurance, all that stuff kind of fell into place and I was gaining clients and I had.

[00:14:56] So much momentum that before we left, I ended up scouting out another local organizer, you know, connecting with her and I said, Hey, I've got clients here. And she was, she was new to the industry. She was a mom of three. She was in the Navy and, you know, got outta the Navy and you know, single mom of three.

[00:15:13] She was looking to do this career field. So I chatted with her on the phone and was like, I have a book of clients that I know are gonna want to continue on. And I'm, I need to give them a name of someone that I know and I can tell them that you do amazing work. And she was really shocked that I called her and gave her these names.

[00:15:33] And, and literally up till about, probably several months ago I was still forwarding her contacts because I had people reaching out to me saying, Hey, are you still in the Savannah area? And I said, no. contact Melanie is amazing. So yeah. There's that connection and so having gone from being in Savannah and my business just like growing so much, you know, I had, was connected with a lot of realtors, which are great for organizers to connect with because people are moving in, moving out.

[00:16:03] They need to get their homes ready for those photos. Yeah. So that they can close that deal. And then moving here to Jackson, which was a whole different industry. We have a couple of awesome, awesome organizers in the city that have been rooted here. So they, they've got a very deep connection with the local people and, you know, everybody likes to, everybody likes to go with who they know, so.

[00:16:25] Sure. Kind of be in the newbie coming into a new area that's very, yeah. that can be tough. Cause I'm not, I don't want, I don't like stepping on toes. I'm, I'm, I like to connect with people. I'm not a toe stepper, you know? Cause I'm not here long enough to really do much damage. So , I was like, I'm not here long enough to do much damage.

[00:16:42] But since we moved here, just being honest, it's been kind of like a, a little bit of a. Peaks and valleys of, of having clients. And then just like some really low, no low to no clientele. So in that downtime I've worked. on my business instead of working in my business. And I've tried to, you know, refine my pro like processes and kind of simplify my stuff and just really hounding away on my website and trying to become a better business owner and learn some better sales techniques.

[00:17:17] I'm not a salesperson, so , I'm not gonna, you don't want it. I'm not gonna sell it to you. So but being here has, you know, kind of taught me that, hey, it's not always gonna be, Like the, the mountain peak, you know, you're gonna have to trudge through and, and you are gonna have to learn how to navigate through rebuilding a business in a new area, especially a service-based business.

[00:17:40] Yeah, but I, but I dove pretty quickly into the community as much as I could. I joined the Chamber of Commerce here. So for other small business owners, that's a really great way to. Out there in your local community quickly? Yeah. To get to know people. I've reached out to real estate agents. I've had coffee with some of them.

[00:18:00] I actually have a part-time job working for another small business owner. Actually had a couple of 'em, you know, I work for an interior designer here. During her busy holiday Christmas season, we put up Christmas decor for her clients. And I've done some other things for her as well. So, You know, even if you are a small business owner yourself and you are just having a little, working for other small businesses that support you and your small business and vice versa, is a great, great way to network and connect.

[00:18:33] So I, yeah. . I'm really grateful for that. So it's kind of nice cuz when I'm not working for me, I'm working for them and . So it's, it's kind of a nice balance cuz I actually get to work for someone else too for a minute and then Yeah. Get to work for myself too. Yeah. But that's, that's where we are.

[00:18:50] And of course, you know, as we get ready for our next move whenever that'll be a year, year and a half, maybe two years, I don't know. Yeah. Then that'll be a good. Mental thing for me to remember that, hey, even if we don't hit the mark on the next move because of the area we're in, because of the, you know, the, just the community, the culture there is there.

[00:19:13] It doesn't mean that my business is null. It doesn't mean that this service isn't needed. I won't put it to rest. You know, I'm not gonna just like drop overshoot organizing and just say, well, I guess it didn't work out. You know, I had a great run in Savannah and now it's like, You know, it's still kind of there, but there's seasons of life and there's phases and it's just, sometimes it's just a little bit slower than the last one, but yeah.

[00:19:38] Oh my gosh. 

[00:19:40] Oh, okay. There's a lot to unpack there. , you know, that is, I feel like, I feel like you just touched on. one of the biggest pain points that a lot of military spouses face, and that is if you have a service-based business starting over and over. and over and over. And then as you get to that point where it's like, is it even worth, I'm gonna be here for two years.

[00:20:09] Is this worth my time and blood, sweat, and tears to build something that I know I'm gonna leave? And then it's. Especially in your spot where you were in a great place, you had tons of clients that people coming back, your roster's full, this is great, and then you move and there's like nothing. It's like you start over from scratch every time like that is so emotionally draining.

[00:20:33] I mean just, wow, that's a lot, but. Yeah. I think that the, the flip side to that though is that you offered a lot of really great tips on how can you embed yourself in your new community and reaching out to other, and being open enough to work with other small businesses. Like, how can I make this work?

[00:20:52] Like, let's just make it work. Like it might not be what the business I have in my head is, or what it was in Savannah, but it's, it is what it is right now. And then, you know, moving. forward into that. Okay. So then I've noticed on your website that you offer not just in-person things, but you started to offer virtual sessions as well.

[00:21:12] So, so what does that look like and is that kind of, is that like a like a pivot that you have found to kind of ma like a make it work moment in the, to make your business work in the lifestyle that we have? 

[00:21:25] So yeah, I do offer virtual organizing. I actually started. In 2020 when everything kind of shut down.

[00:21:35] Yeah. And I have my first client that September of 2020, but then I started having in-person clients. So it was like, , Hey, I still have this option. And since then I've actually worked a lot with military spouses with the virtual side, actually have one that I've been working with. She's in Guam, so they're airport family.

[00:21:55] And she reached out about some spaces in her home that she needed help with. But the, I will say the virtual organizing, I've definit. Since I started it, I have pivoted a lot within that to like figure out the best way to serve clients. Sure. That's not gonna be draining on them, but not draining on me either.

[00:22:12] So it's really a virtual coaching method. So you get 30 days, it's per space per project, but you get 30 days with me and we ha we go through your space, we talk about it. I draft up an entire document that I then deliver to you. of like new layouts, products space solutions, product recommendations just kind of like walking through each little nitty gritty detail.

[00:22:42] And then you, you have the rest of the time to communicate with me and we kind of touch points and I see how you're doing because doing it on your own. , you know, cause I can't be there to do my, like put my hands on your stuff. So sometimes like timelines get a little messed up. You know, some, we've got kids and they go to school and, you know, sometimes you've got your, your spouse home or you're not home.

[00:23:03] And so things can get a little, you know, timeline shifts. But that's why the 30 days is there so that you have enough time to like start on the project that you have time to communicate with me. And I feel that that has been very effective for a lot of people. . And so yeah, I do offer virtual, which is really great cuz then I get to connect and I, it, it mainly is the military world, so I like to connect with everybody through that.

[00:23:29] And it's, I feel like that's really done well too. Cuz if I'm not working in person, I usually have a virtual client in my back pocket that I'm working with too. Right. So, and it's a lot, you know, I've got a little system on my other end, so I try. , like replicate that as much as I can for them. And but yeah, so there is virtual too, you know, it's not, I'm not sitting there.

[00:23:50] I used to sit on the screen with ey, you move stuff around and now we can still do that, but it's not. that does not take up the entire time. So it's, it's more of like a, Hey, let's touch base and we'll FaceTime and you can show me what you've done, and then if we need to tweak it a little bit, we can tweak it.

[00:24:05] Yeah. And kind of like polish it up a bit. So it's a, it's a great, it's a great service. I mean, there's tons of organizers that offer virtual too, and I'm sure they Yeah. Do it in different ways. I just found that this way it was the best way to do it for me and my clients, but Right. 

[00:24:21] Yeah. Awesome.

[00:24:22] I love that. That's a great pivot. Okay, so then looking at military families that you've worked with, what are some, what are some challenges that are, are there like some common themes that you see military families specifically struggling with? 

[00:24:36] Yes. Unfortunately, military housing is is just the.

[00:24:42] Everybody has a, you know, different house depending on your rank or whatever, wherever they gave you, basically whatever they gave you. So, yep. Some of these houses are super old. They don't have the kind of closet space that we wish they would have. There's no garage. There's just, you know, like a little outdoor shed.

[00:25:01] So, Dealing with those weird layouts and stuff, and, and then all of your stuff that you have there. And I'm not even gonna go into military gear. We know like that needs a bedroom of its own . It, but I think that would probably be the biggest challenge is just the different spaces and the shrinking and expanding of.

[00:25:23] Your home square footage is, it's tough. Yes, it's tough. And I'll be honest, I get my husband, who's an engineer to sit down sometimes and look at these layouts and I'm like, I want to do this for them. Is this possible so it helps sit down and help me cuz my brain, I get fatigued, you know, with, cause I sit there and as I'm going to bed, I'm doing, I'm moving for, I'm a very visual person.

[00:25:47] I can in my head and see if it'll work or not, but I'm like sitting there. Moving your living room around while I'm trying to go to bed. So , so I, I just wanna let people know that, like I'm literally in your space moving furniture around to see if something will work or to see if like this new organizational system will, will go well and Yeah.

[00:26:07] So yeah, that could be, yeah, it's, it, it's, that's, that's, it's a lot. And that's true, we were talking about this offline previously is like you, you go into one house and you're like, oh man, this has got like a great kitchen and I've got all these, I got more cabinets that I know what to do with and there's great pa and then you move to the next house and it's like half the size and you're like, I don't know where to put my crock pot.

[00:26:25] And like it's, you know, trying to figure that stuff out. And then we were talking about too you know, a lot of military families, we have stuff. We don't necessarily wanna get rid of, but it doesn't, maybe doesn't have a place in the house that we're in at that time. And you get into this like, I don't know, I want, I don't know, we're screw it, we're just gonna get rid of it.

[00:26:47] And then like two or three years later, this has happened to me so many times, I'm a little salty about it. It's like you get rid of it, you're like, I don't even have anymore. There's no place for it. Let's just get rid of it. And then like two years later, you're. Dang it. I need that again. So then you go and buy another one.

[00:27:01] It's like, you know, you just dig in the debt hole that we tend to do in the military life. , but okay, so, so as we're moving into PCs season, right, lots of people are, the orders are starting to trickle in, okay, we're moving this summer. What are some kind of tips that you have to help people? Because there's a lot of people that are like, I don't know, should I, should I declutter beforehand?

[00:27:24] Should I do it afterwards? Like, what? Like, are there, do you have any kind of like systems or ideas or anything around how you can, how people can like, streamline that process a little 

[00:27:34] bit? So yes, it's declutter beforehand and declutter on the backside too, because yeah, during your move you can be like, we really didn't need this.

[00:27:44] Get rid, rid of it. But as soon as you get the R F O or you know, you have an idea that you're gonna be moving at a certain time. Just jump on and go, you know, don't delay. Timelines are so crucial with moving that you, you wanna start, you know, asap and whether you move yourself a Diddy move mm-hmm.

[00:28:05] or you let the military move you. Having, you know yourself, get organized, knowing what you have in inventory. For my family personally, we take apart our house and everything that, like, we put like items together. So all of our. Yeah, goes in one spot. All of our bases go in one spot. Dishes are packed in their boxes.

[00:28:26] Cuz it has still have the original boxes. So in that way I can take inventory of what I own. Mm-hmm. And there's like, you know, there's box. Ops, which is great. They've got those stickers. And Stressless PCs Kit, those are really awesome tools to use to both own by military spouses. But just kind of like breaking your home down before, even if the military is moving, you just breaking your home down and sorting it with like items.

[00:28:55] You can do it room by room if that makes it, cuz if you know, hey, this stuff's gonna go in the same spot in the next house, or if you're like me, where everything gets shifted because it doesn't, you know, something's gonna go in a new room. We just try to put everything in. Like item and yeah, your house is gonna look like it's under construction for a while.

[00:29:13] it's gonna take some, you know, it's gonna take away the Lester. But it will in the end when it's time to actually box and move, it'll make you feel a little bit better that you've already gotten started on that. And grab some of those contractor trash bags, put your donations in 'em, get the trash in 'em, and just start getting it out of your house.

[00:29:32] Mm-hmm. A lot of people like the word free. So if you put, you know, put a picture of it, put on your curb and say at this address it's free pick for pickup. That's a great way to get rid of stuff very quickly. Yeah. Otherwise, you know, go to that thrift shop on post or on base, and. Find some good wills nearby, salvation Armies and just start donating to those places.

[00:29:56] Cuz if you don't need it, you don't need it. so, 

[00:29:59] right. Yeah. . Yeah. I, I, you know, it's interesting because I, I think like some people are, especially if you do a Diddy move, they're like, no, I'm gonna, I don't wanna declutter on the front end because I want to be able to max out my weight , but I feel like you kind of have to.

[00:30:18] You kind of have to pair that with the stress of packing that and moving it. And I think, I don't know, personally, I think it's easier to just like go room by room. Do I need this? Do I not need this? And then get rid of it. Yeah. Like , get rid of as much as you possibly can. Like, and, and I really feel like we're in a little bit of a tough spot and it's military families.

[00:30:43] if you haven't used it at this duty station, do you really still need to have it? Right. That's That's a good question. The caveat to that is that, well, you never know what your next place is gonna look like, so you might need it, but I don't, that's kind of one of those spots that you get into where it's like, I don't know, is this, you know, but if you haven't used it while you've been at this duty station, yeah, I probably should, probably should just, just let it go.

[00:31:08] Yeah. Yeah, just let it go. 

[00:31:09] I was gonna say, I will say on that note window treatments, which, you know, your rod, your window rods, and your curtains. All of our, all of our curtain rods are the same and all of our curtains are the same. So we had to buy more curtain rods through this house.

[00:31:32] So that's something I will not get rid of because that's something that will decrease or increase with wherever you go, right? Yes, those things are, those are things are okay to kind of store away, but, right. I know people carry those curtain rod boxes or they carry those curtain boxes of this fit.

[00:31:48] This one, this one didn't fit that one. And Yep. But, you know, if, if it's outdated, it's worn and torn and it's not your style anymore. Just let it go. Let it go. Yeah. 

[00:31:58] let it go. Yeah. 

[00:31:59] We've used bedsheets, you know, white bedsheets from Walmart before. You know those look like those Pottery Barn ones, and I've just clipped them up on the clips and they looked great.

[00:32:09] So , I'm not, there you go. 

[00:32:11] That's a smart little hack. Yeah, why not? Yeah, it's there's, yeah, you don't necessarily have to. Yeah, but I, that's funny. I think I've seen like a meme or something. , like every military spouse has that curtain box that's got like , yeah. Every size and shape window because it, it, you know, it worked at this house.

[00:32:30] It didn't work at that one, but it might work at the next one. You never know. Like, yeah, it's, and then, and then all the different, that's smart to have the same curtain rods just like across the board because we did, we actually got rid of it on the move from Washington to here is we. 

[00:32:46] I was like, God, there's so many different curtain rods.

[00:32:49] And I'm like, we're, I don't know where the hardware is for that. 

[00:32:52] I don't even know. We just like, I'm like, just get rid of it. Like we're, we, were so done though on the last one. We were talking about this beforehand. You just get to that point where you were like, I don't care. Just get it out. Get it. I don't wanna see it anymore.

[00:33:03] Like to put it in the trash. Leave it on the side of the road, whatever. I don't care. Like, I think everybody gets to the to that point in a PCs where it's just like, oh, you're just over it. I'm so done. I don't wanna do it anymore. Well, and then the, and then those are, they're so oddly shaped, like they don't fit in boxes well, you know, so then it's like they're just awkward and.

[00:33:23] A pain in the neck too, to ? 

[00:33:26] Yeah, I have, we have those Amazon, they're gold. They're just, it's a gold bar from Amazon. And they have been really great because it's a standard color that can really go either way. Sure. And then my curtains are pleated. I've re curtains that my aunt gave to me from JC Penney's, and they're very nice and they're, they're thick, but.

[00:33:48] They, they kind of go, like, if we had blue walls in our house, they would still go . So yeah, I tried. There you go. I tried to those new, as much as I love Curl and I've got colorful stuff around my home, but as much as I love color, I, if it's like a neutral color curtain, I was like, I can work with this and that's smart.

[00:34:03] Have to go, you know? And. And I, you know, I've got a friend, here's another thing. I've got a friend, she owns an interior design business. She's a military spouse. Blue Bee Designs. She's a Navy spouse. She's currently in Florida, but is PCSing to Wi Whidby Island. 

[00:34:18] Wouldbe Island, yeah. Washington State. Yeah.

[00:34:20] Yeah. , 

[00:34:21] she'll be there this coming spring, summer she'll be there, but she serves clients coast to coast. So if you need some of those decorating tips or whatnot, she's an amazing resource. She's helped me with my house when I've, you know, organized, but I'm like, I don't really have the decorating style, so I need a little extra help.

[00:34:39] So love that. I think you need, you need 

[00:34:41] I follow her. Yeah. I've been following her. I've talked to her a couple of times. We've commented each other stuff on Instagram before too. I'll have to have her on the show so we can talk about Yes. Especially as she moves, you know, like, yeah. It's gonna be interesting to, to see how that goes for her.

[00:34:53] But I, you know, I feel like the whole, the virtual and organ organizing is, I think that was a little trickier because I feel like if you get to that point where you're like, ah, I don't wanna, you want someone. To come in and just do it for you. ? Yes. So it's hard, but but again, a lot of times we're not in that position, right?

[00:35:15] And so I think that virtual aspect where someone can just come in and look at something and maybe like, you never imagined your space in a sp in a, in a particular way, and by moving this or that there, oh my gosh. Like it completely changed. You know? And sometimes you just need that like outside perspective to look at something and say, Hey, have you thought about trying it this way or, I have this really cool organizational tool that I know about that might be really great for this thing because when you have small spaces, which a lot of , a lot of military housing is that way, or even if you know, rentals that we're in, it's really challenging to, you know, find things that work in different spaces.

[00:35:52] So I think that, , having someone that has that insider knowledge of, , where to some different tools and hacks and things like, , never gonna be a bad thing. Okay. So how, if people are interested in working with you, how can they find out more about your business, your, you know, social media, websites, whatever, whatever you have to share.

[00:36:11] So you can follow, if you would like to follow me. I'm on Instagram at Overstreet Organizing, and then I'm also on Facebook at Overstreet Organizing . This one's an easy one too. I'm also on internet at overt streete organizing. Actually think it's overstreet organizing llc.com or it's, if you just type in Overstreet organizing, it should pop up somewhere in the SEO

[00:36:33] Okay, perfect. But yeah, I, I would love if you followed along. You know, I try not to harass people with my posts, but I do like to share what I've done for other clients because I think a lot of people really love that before and after. And I've done my, before, I usually do my before pictures in black and white.

[00:36:52] and then I do my after in color. So if you remember those really old infomercials where it was like black and white, it was like if you've been experiencing and then it goes straight to color, or the Wizard of Oz where you know Dorothy goes over the rainbow. Like that's kind of my mentality behind the black and white to color is like, this is what it was.

[00:37:09] And now look at this. It's like, yeah. Whole different space. And so yeah, if you'd like to follow along, I'd love to, to have you join in my journey and and that would be amazing. And if you've got questions, of course, just message me or email me. You know, find me in that. And I'm happy to help answer.

[00:37:29] Sometimes people just will message for a quick tip and I'm happy to just kind of, to give that to them. Cause I know sometimes we're in a bind and we just need a little extra, little extra help in that way. Yeah, 

[00:37:41] for sure. Well, we'll definitely make sure to, to link all of those in the show notes so it the website and your face.

[00:37:48] Book and Instagram handle for sure. Well, Caroline, it has been so nice talking to you both recording 

[00:37:53] and previous prior to recording. 

[00:37:55] And and I appreciate you sharing your, your journey and what that's looked like and, and really the, the raw and real of military life and being a small service-based business and having to move that and what that looks like.

[00:38:08] I appreciate your honesty and sharing what that is and and kudos to you for. Sticking it out and for like, no, I'm gonna, this is hard. This is a hard season. It's hard to go from this booming business down to, feels like nothing sometimes. And, but I'm gonna stick with it. I believe in this. And so kudos to you for, for staying the course.

[00:38:29] And and I, again, I think that You know, as people, we wanna simplify and we wanna feel better and calm in our space and we want to, I think that, you know, it's something that more, more and more people are, and then again, like I was telling, a lot of times you don't think about it. Like you just see all this chaos around you and you're like, oh, this is just how I live.

[00:38:50] But then you see a really nice, neat organiz. Space and you're like, oh, but it could be that. Like wouldn't that be nice? Well, there you go. Caroline's your girl. She's . She'll help you get there. All right, Caroline, I really appreciate your time. I really appreciate 

[00:39:04] your time. Thank you, Allison. Thank you so much.

[00:39:06] Again for, for hosting and having me, and I really appreciate that.