Back in June, I wrote about a project on which I had done a good bit of procrastinating (see A Blessing and A Curse). To refresh your memory on the salient details, I was asked to record a 90-minute class I had delivered at a NAPO conference 6 years earlier, so that the class could be made available as part of NAPO’s educational offerings. I put it off and put it off, and finally got it done by setting myself a deadline. But as it turns out, that wasn’t the end of the story.
First, a little more background. Somehow, my first attempt at recording what had been a live 90-minute class came out to only 27 minutes. By going into more detail on some of the points in the class, I was able to extend it to 36 minutes – an increase of 33%. I was pleased that I could add more value to the class. But as Yogi Berra once said, “It ain’t over till it’s over.”
A couple of weeks later, my contact at NAPO headquarters let me know that the NAPO Education Committee wanted all NAPO courses to be at least 60 minutes long so that they could be used as Continuing Education Units (CEUs). As a Certified Professional Organizer® who needs to earn CEUs to keep my certification, I was sympathetic to the concept. But how was I going to add another 24 minutes to this class? Especially when I had already wracked my brain to extend it 33%? I guess I was going to have to do a little more brain-wracking.
The class is called “Less is More: Maximizing Small Residential Spaces.” I decided to add more examples of the guidelines I had included for small spaces. I gave more specific tips. I added photos of products. And I included more client anecdotes. I spent many hours researching more content, and I actually had fun coming up with new ideas. The number of slides in my presentation went from 18 to 42.
When I recorded the class, I was thrilled to see that it had reached 60 minutes and 51 seconds. Success!!
The class is now available on the NAPO educational website, NAPO University, for $45. While it is intended for Professional Organizers, it is chock full of content that is useful to anyone who lives in a small space and is looking for some pointers. Check it out here.
This experience was a good lesson for me that we do our best work when pushed out of our comfort zones. I started out by thinking “I can’t” but ultimately, I could — and I did.
