Laura Ellis shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Hi Laura, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: Have you ever been glad you didn’t act fast?
YES! Lol, was that too enthusiastic? I am not a person who acts too quickly on things. I am very methodical and love to fully research and learn about something or a situation so I can feel prepared. I love going into something with all the knowledge I can so that I feel confident making those fast decisions when they need to be made. Maybe sometimes I wish I was brave enough to be impulsive and just jump in, but I also like the art of taking it slow.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am Laura Ellis, Owner of Organized by Ellis, an Organizing company based in Los Angeles. I am a 5-time Board member and Past President NAPO-LA, which is the National Association of Professional Organizers. Did you know that was a thing?! I began organizing in NYC where I worked as an Executive assistant for CEO’s. It was my job to keep these top dogs prepared and functioning at peak performance. I made the trip out to LA and fell in love with the sunshine. Continued working in the corporate world and then one day the stars aligned (that’s code for the company I worked for closed and I was out on my bum) I had been organizing on the side so I took the leap and started Organized by Ellis. It was just me for while, but I was growing and needed help. So now I manage a team of trained organizers who love it as much I do and have a marketing + executive assistant they help run the company!
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
I think I’d have to say my amazing husband. I believed in myself, but maybe not quite enough on my own. I knew I could organize, I’d been doing it my whole life, but could I run a business? That I wasn’t so sure of. Then my husband mentioned that perhaps I had been actually running other people’s businesses for quite some time and been pretty successfull doing so. It seemed there was no doubt in his mind I could do this. Getting to see myself through his eyes helped me understand what I was capable of and have been unstoppable since, lol.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
I think pain and suffering can be a powerful motivator more so than feeling accomplished. Not getting something right because I decided I would take a shortcut and suffering the consequences financially really stung. When you’re down you think I do NOT want to feel like this again so I best make a plan and stick to it from here on out. Sure I make mistakes all the time, I’m human, but anytime I want to do something the quick way I remember how badly I felt before and I follow my plan. This is helpful to stay consistent and why creating a foundation is so important. Would I prefer to have not suffered? I don’t think so, because it truly keeps me on point, well, most of the time.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. Is the public version of you the real you?
I’d say I am pretty authentic in how I present to the world. Maybe I am a bit more silly once you really get to know me, but overall I am me no matter what. Every year I feel more at ease and more comfortable with all aspects of me, the parts I love and the parts that may need work or patience.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
WORRYING! Worrying what other people think, worrying what I think! It is such a waste of my time and energy. It holds me back from making decisions or takes up brain space that could be used on taking action and enjoying what’s in front of me. Stop worrying everybody!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://organizedbyellis.com/
- Instagram: @organizedbyellis
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/organized-by-ellis-west-hollywood?osq=organized+by+ellis&override_cta=Get+pricing
Image Credits
The photos of myself are by Chris Loupos
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