Meet Monica Lin of Make Room by Monica

Today we’d like to introduce you to Monica Lin.

Monica, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Once upon a past life, I lived in New York City and worked in online marketing. After several years of working for the Internet, I started to feel removed from the audience I was trying to reach and help from behind my computer screen. I craved greater meaning and more human connection.

At the same time, in my shoebox of a Manhattan apartment, I became very practiced at squirreling away items that I just had to keep. Like a lot of my current organizing clients, I experienced my attachment to people and the past through material things. I justified keeping items with all the usual reasons: “That was from that one awesome girls’ trip back in the day… I haven’t used that in forever, but someday I might… So and so gave that to me…” But then I left my corporate job and went backpacking for half a year.

During those six months, I quickly began to see how few creature comforts I actually needed and how easily I could literally lighten my load while simultaneously filling my heart with nutritious relationships formed over savory meals, winding bus rides, and magenta-hued sunsets. Upon my return Stateside, I re-evaluated everything that I pulled out of storage and realized that so much of it was clutter that was pulling me away from the present.

Between that first big adventure and two subsequent moves across the Pacific Ocean, I’ve enriched my life by simplifying it! I’ve learned that when an item becomes nothing more than a placeholder, it’s time to let go of the thing and reach for the relationship or the experience that it represents.

Ultimately, my quest for greater purpose and deeper human connection sent me around the world and led me to found my own home organizing business. Make Room by Monica was born out of a desire to share my story and help others maximize their relationships with themselves and their loved ones by minimizing physical and emotional clutter.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
When I first launched and started talking about my organizing business, I consistently received two types of responses, “That’s a thing?!” and “Oh my gosh! Don’t come to my house!” Can you imagine? That was the exact opposite of what I wanted to hear. People who could benefit from professional help didn’t know that help even existed nor did they give themselves permission to ask for it.

When it comes to personal spaces, many prospective clients feel too embarrassed to ask for assistance because they believe they “should” be able to organize their lives on their own. I recognize what a profoundly intimate experience it is to invite someone into your home and confront your belongings, so I cannot commend clients enough for their bravery and commitment to change!

With the premiere of Netflix’s “Tidying Up with Marie Kondo,” there’s a lot more empathy and awareness around Organizing, which definitely helps both me and prospective clients.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Make Room by Monica – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Make Room by Monica is a home organizing service that specializes in helping make space for what matters to you. As such, each project is tailored to the client. Although Make Room by Monica is not a one-clearly-labeled-container-fits-all sort of solution, I do use the same approach to mindful organizing and intentional living with all my clients:

1) Intention: Clients envision the best version of their current space, its function, and how they want to feel in that room

2) Attention: Clients identify which items bring them joy and which ones no longer serve them; together, we organize by finding homes for treasured items and re-purposing furniture and decor already in the home

3) No tension: Based on client feedback, I refine the flow of organizational systems and style the space so that the room is functionally beautiful and evokes calm

When I started Make Room by Monica, I set out to create a very human business—one that helps clients celebrate the lives they’ve built; one that actively listens to clients, recognizes their needs and moves at their pace; one that allows clients to shed self-judgment and empowers them to reclaim their space and sense of self.

I don’t think this necessarily sets me apart from other organizers, but I do know that this makes me a good one! I’m especially proud of the fact that my work makes clients feel seen, heard, and understood.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
In addition to continuing to help clients simplify their lives, I’m excited to host events that bring people into conversations about Abundance.

When we picture our best lives, do we find that we’re already living them? I certainly hope so! But if we aren’t, then what is it that we feel we need more of—material items or the intangibles, like quality time with our favorite people, lightness, and purpose?

As agents of change in our own lives, how can we physically and emotionally declutter in order to make room for true Abundance? I hope that these workshops will help bring the relationships, values, and joys of our lives into greater focus!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.makeroombymonica.com
• Phone: (818) 679-6828
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/make_room_by_monica/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/makeroombymonica/

Image Credit:
Satyan Devadoss, Charlene Kiang

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