The Stories You Haven’t Heard About How GOHQ Started

Welcome to the Get Organized HQ Podcast! We're kicking things off by giving you a behind the scenes peek into how in the world we got here – we being Laura Smith, who you know and love from the Get Organized HQ newsletter and YouTube channel, and your podcast host Tasha Lorentz. Some things you'll learn in this episode: what Get Organized HQ and nuclear power plants have in common, why we talk about home organization in the first place, and how Laura and Tasha met (which is probably NOT what you'd expect!) Listen in!

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Tasha and Laura sit down together and share the story of Get Organized HQ, how it began and how it evolved into what it is today.

BEFORE GET ORGANIZED HQ

Before starting this business, Laura was an electrical engineer for a company that designed nuclear power plants. Designing a nuclear power plant is a huge undertaking that involves hundreds of people and takes many, many years to go from conception to having a plant that is producing electricity.

While Laura knew that creating clean energy was a good thing and benefited many people, she never got to see the results herself. The work was hard, the process was slow, and things took a really long time.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

What she loves about Get Organized HQ is that she is able to take something from a concept to having it in her customers’ hands, making a difference in their lives right away. Seeing the tangible end result is exciting and was what she had been craving.

INTEREST IN THE HOME

One thing that may surprise people is the Laura was painfully shy growing up. Nothing negative had happened to cause this. She just felt that the world was a big scary place.

The one place she felt like herself, not having to worry and be self-conscious, was at home. It was her true haven where she could relax and be herself, having people around her that loved her and accepted her. And so that was the beginning of her love of organization came from, a love of creating a home that is a haven.

THE GOAL OF ORGANIZING

The goal of organizing is to have a home that is serving you and the people in it. To be organized is simply having a home for everything and knowing where that is. Fancy bins and labels aren’t necessary.

SUPER SWEET LIFE

Laura’s blog has had a few different names over the years, but the first one was Super Sweet Life, with the idea of creating a sweet life. The intention was to be a blogger who blogged about all sorts of things.

It quickly became clear that to have a successful online business you need to talk about the same thing a lot. Organizing and creating a stress-free home was something Laura loved and came naturally to her.

CREATING PRINTABLES

In 2013, Laura joined in a “link-y” party with another blogger. The theme was 31 Days in October where you would do something every day for 31 days. Laura loved making printables and so she created a printable to share each day.

She did this for about three years and would take requests from readers. One year she had around 3000 requests! And so creating printables is really what put her on the map.

I HEART PLANNERS

After a little while, the name Super Sweet Life seemed vague and maybe more appropriate for a food blog about cupcakes. So, the search began for a name that was a little more clear about who she was and what she was offering.

At the time, planners were becoming a huge hobby as well as the popularity of Pinterest. Laura loved planners and rebranded to I Heart Planners. Looking back this still wasn’t the perfect name because while Laura sold planners, it wasn’t really the main thing she talked about.

GET ORGANIZED HQ

In 2021, I Heart Planners rebranded to Get Organized HQ. This name is one that really encompasses what the business is all about. Planners are still sold, but it is not the main focus.

LAURA & TASHA’S RELATIONSHIP

Another bit of trivia that some may not know is that Laura and Tasha are related. They are cousins. Laura is 14 years older than Tasha. Because of the large age gap, they didn’t really grow up together and so they weren’t very close. So, Laura really didn’t know Tasha very well before hiring her.

TASHA’S STORY

Tasha’s original plan was to work for NASA. She wanted to work for mission control. Math is a big part of the education needed and Tasha really struggled. She passed, but began to think maybe this wasn’t what she really wanted to do.  She decided she didn’t want to keep putting money into school if she didn’t know what she wanted to do, so she dropped out.

She began work as a bank teller and noticed the marketing department seemed to be having a lot more fun than the tellers. She decided marketing might be the field for her and would be a great fit for her personality.

THE PHONE CALL

One day, Tasha sees a Facebook post from her cousin, Laura, looking for help with I Heart Planners. Tasha thought this would be a great opportunity to do some contract work and build a resume, so she gave Laura a call and told her what she would like to do.

Laura called her back offering her a full-time job. This what not what Tasha was looking for as she was planning to go back to school very soon, but she decided to give it a try, and as we can see, she decided to stay and didn’t go back to school.

PINTEREST

Tasha says her hobby during that time was Pinterest, and she really loved the idea of having “Pinterest Perfect” spaces that looked really nice. The truth is things don’t always look like Pinterest. For Tasha, and many of us, that is hard to accept.

STARTING YOUNG

Tasha was immersed into the world of decluttering and organizing at the young age of 21 and sees it as a benefit. She has learned the skill early and has been able to start life without the accumulation of stuff that most others do.

It’s never too late to start, but it is definitely true that the earlier you start the more you’ll get to enjoy the benefits.

COLLEGE VS WORKING

Not finishing college has been in the back of Tasha’s mind for a long time. A school environment is so very different than a work environment, and Tasha loved the affirmations that came from receiving grades and report cards. It can be a tough transition.

Laura enjoys the ability to work from home where the environment is not quite as structured and no two days are exactly the same. Though depending on each person’s personality, that may not be true for all.

While there are certainly some careers where formal training is needed, for many college is not necessary. A lot can be said for getting paid to learn skills instead of paying to learn them. Once you are in the real world, actual experience is more valuable than the paper degree.

COMPARISON CAN BE DANGEROUS

We will find that we all have different needs and different homes. What one has in their house may stress someone else out to have in theirs. Because one person went to college doesn’t mean another person made the wrong choice to not go.

If your neighbor has cute labeled organizing bins and you don’t, it’s ok! It’s all about finding what works for you and your home and what gives you less stress and more peace.

SOCIAL MEDIA’S INFLUENCE

Laura tells of plans she had to remodel her kitchen, though really, there was nothing wrong with her current kitchen. She realized that if she did not have social media, she would not have had the desire to remodel.

The only thing “wrong” with her kitchen was it was a bit dated. When she visits friends’ houses, they look like hers. In the days before we had the internet, she probably wouldn’t even have realized her house was dated.

BEING HAPPY WITH WHAT YOU HAVE

As someone who shares online, Laura has decided to share what life is really like and that’s being happy with her current kitchen!

There’s a lot of pressure when posting online to have and show the latest and greatest, but it really doesn’t matter. The truth is most of us feel most comfortable in real homes that don’t look like what we see showcased online.

NO ONE IS GOOD AT EVERYTHING

We have to remember what we are seeing online is people showing the things they are good at. It is their gift that they’re sharing with the world, but we have to be cautious to not make them into someone who is amazing in every aspect of their life.

The person who is really organized is probably late to everything. The one who is on time to everything maybe doesn’t have time to cook healthy meals. We all have our strengths, and we all have our areas where we struggle.

FEED BLOCKERS

Tasha shared a tool she uses to limit her social media feeds so that she is not inundated with so much. It’s an extension you can put on your computer called a Feed Blocker. All you have to do is do a search for your browser, such as “Chrome Feed Blocker”.

You can still use the platform and search for whatever you want, but helps you not feel the stress by comparison that social media can cause.

SOCIAL MEDIA IS A HIGHLIGHT REEL

Laura is very aware of the role she plays as a content creator herself. She had a really rough year in 2023. She shared a little about it, but knew it would not be helpful to herself or others to constantly share the negatives of life online.

Occasionally sharing a story or lesson learned is helpful, but you don’t want someone to share every thought or every moment of their day. So, realize we are only getting glimpses into others’ lives and we shouldn’t compare ourselves to what we are seeing.

Again, it comes back to home. We need to be enjoying our home and the people who are in it without being worried about all of the other stuff that is going on online.

REAL LIFE CONNECTIONS

We are working to make our home a place that is welcoming to family and anyone who comes in. The world needs more in-person connections and opening our homes to others. It’s not always going to be perfect or comfortable, but it’s still worth it!