My time as President of AAPO is coming to an end and I want to take this opportunity to thank you for the confidence you've shown in me over the 2 years I've been in the job.  It has been tremendously rewarding personally and professionally.  I have really enjoyed working with a dedicated team of fellow members and watching AAPO grow and develop.  I cannot say it enough.

Thank you!

I hand over to our new President, Roz Howland, on July 1st.  I know she'll be a wonderful representative for us all.  I hope her time in the role is as rewarding as mine has been.  And I want to encourage you to fully support her.  We each have special talents, and it's in the sharing of these with our AAPO community that we can grow and flourish.

The 2011 President's Award was presented at the Gala Dinner during the 2011 AAPO Conference in Christchurch on February 9.  It was a great pleasure to be able to present the award in front of industry peers, and to have the awardee acknowledged publicly.

Here is the speech announcing the Award -

The winner of this award has been in business and a member of AAPO since 2006.

She is an award-winning businesswoman and an industry pioneer in her community.

She is serious and passionate about professionalism in our industry.

Despite geographic isolation she has sought out ways to contribute to AAPO - organising a conference far from her home, heading up a sub-committee, and constantly striving to deliver direct benefits to our members.

She uses her skills as an Organiser and Productivity Specialist for the betterment of our Association.

She's a clear thinker and she get stuck in!

She's a fabulous right-hand woman and sounding board for me personally.

The 2011 President's Award goes to Roz Howland!

Congratulations Roz.  You so deserve this award for all the hard work, long hours and strategic planning you put into AAPO.

As President of AAPO, nothing gives me more pleasure than to present this award to someone who has distinguished themselves as a leader and a toiler for our industry.  Simultaneously, nothing gives me more angst than deciding who will be the next recipient.  AAPO is blessed with strong candidates, people who give selflessly, think strategically and work tirelessly.  Previous recipients Wendy Hanes and Wendy Davie are a testament to this.

This year I am honouring a woman who has served AAPO well over several years.  She displays the highest standard of ethics and integrity and strives to defend these values whenever and wherever she sees an improvement can be made.  She has attained Expert accreditation, and was one of the first to do so.  She has served on the Executive committee, made significant contributions to National Organising Week, served on the Website and Public Relations sub-committees, has been the leader of 2 chapters or forums as they are now known.  She has in fact been the Forums Leader, mentoring forum co-ordinators and developing the manual and policies which guide and support our forums and their leaders.  She continues to contribute to the Public Relations sub-committee and has recently taken on the role of Professional Development Co-ordinator, and I frankly had to tell her to take a rest from her many other roles.

I am pleased to present the AAPO 2010 President’s Award to Sarah Cottman.

Professor Michael Kyrios, the keynote speaker at AAPO's very first conference in 2006, has called for a taskforce on compulsive hoarding.  What do you think?  And if you agree, who should be on that taskforce?

Read the Age article here.

For decluttering tips, don't take your advice from the Australian Labor Party. Much better to consult a Professional Organiser.

In the meantime, it's election time for the Australasian Association of Professional Organisers.  Members should seriously consider making a contribution to their industry association.  Now's the time to get those nominations in quick.

Please put your hands together and stand to welcome our Social Media Co-ordinator, Claire Lane from Urban Assistant.  Claire was one of 4 applicants for the position and her strong application won her the job.

Look out for activity on AAPO's Twitter and Facebook accounts, spreading the word about organising and how it can make a difference.

You know the saying, what happens at conference, stays at conference? Well, not in this case. I can tell you I had a fabulous time, came home utterly exhausted from all the networking, learning, sharing. Remember I told you the conference theme was Innovate, Connect, Inspire? Keep that in mind as you read this update on the NAPO conference in Columbus, Ohio. (And yes, it was noted that OHIO stands for Only Handle It Once)

As I mentioned in last month's newsletter, the very first session of the conference was Ask an Organizer. Just some of the many questions asked were – What do you think about discounting? What are your favourite books or systems? Name some budget tools for the beginner organiser. How do stay motivated when you’ve been in business a while? What about service bartering? So, have I got you think? What will you be asking at AAPO’s conference Ask an Organiser session?

Tim Sanders, the opening keynote, spoke about innovating the way you connect with people to create a great customer service experience. His take-away message was – Most people try to turn their friends into customers. Do the opposite, turn your customers into friends. If we took this message literally in our industry we may well face boundary issues with some of our clients. But the point he makes is a good one. When we come from the place of “What’s in it for them?” instead of “What’s in it for me?” we create loyal customers – raving fans – who will be happy to refer business and sing our praises.

Gina Schrek spoke about Connecting with Today’s Technology. She welcomed us to the future and motivated us to get a bigger share of the future. She calls herself a “Digital Immigration Officer” and pointed out that under 35-year-olds are digital natives, while over 35-year-olds are digital immigrants. Customers have changed, and so should we change the way we communicate with them. It was fascinating stuff and I encourage you to learn more about social media as a means to communicating and connecting with current and potential clients.

Another point of connection was during the NAPO International meeting, where I got to speak with Organisers from Colombia, Canada, Hong Kong, Portugal and the UK. While many of the issues we face as organisers are the same, there were some cultural differences, which highlighted the fact that no matter where you are in the world, or in your business development, it’s important to know who your market is, and therefore you’re wanting to connect with. You may also remember Mayumi, the Japanese PO who attended the last AAPO conference. She sends her best regards to everyone and wants you to know she’s been very busy establishing the PO industry and association in Japan. They’ve already held their first conference.

Monica Wolford delivered the closing keynote to Inspire us with Contagious Confidence. It was a great way to close the conference, to send us out to make a difference in our businesses and in our client’s lives. A couple of key points Monica made were 1. Self-esteem is the belief that you are worth the effort, and 2. We are the average of the 5 people we hang out with most.

Apart from these sessions, there were others which I'll report on in more depth soon. They will be found in the members’ area of the AAPO website.

The IFPOA (International Federation of Professional Organizing Associations) met again in Columbus as well. We learned a great deal, as always, and built on our strong relationships. I also spoke with many of the exhibitors about attending and exhibiting at our conference this year, and had the opportunity to speak to the 700 conference attendees and invite them to visit us in Christchurch.

Have you checked out the AAPO News page lately?  Wow, there's a lot happening.  Our members are busy getting the word out about Organising and its benefits.

Here are some of the latest news items...

Working Order by Roz Howland

The Organised Family by Charlie Chapman

Experts Reveal Secrets to Being Organised, featuring AAPO members, Gail Rose and Marianne Shenton

Virtual Organizing in Action, featuring Roz Howland

The first session of the NAPO 2010 Conference in Columbus, Ohio, was the Ask an Organizer panel. The first question asked of that panel was, “What one question do you always ask of a client at the first needs assessment meeting?” The first answer given was, “Are you ready to get organised?” Great question, and a very apt one to start a jam-packed program aimed at beginners and more experienced organisers alike. Equally, they could have asked, “Are you ready to grow your business and learn how to deliver the best service possible to your clients?”

With the theme of Innovate, Connect, Inspire, the focus was on sharing new ways to reach customers and colleagues, new ways of looking at ourselves in order to be the best we can be, and new ways of looking at organising problems.

With delegates from all over the world – the US, Canada, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, Portugal, Colombia and the UK – there were lots of opportunities to learn about the differences and similarities in this worldwide industry. Many of the challenges here in Australasia are the same as those in other parts of the world. Unfortunately a large contingent from the Netherlands could not attend as planned due to the ash cloud. Besides myself, AAPO was represented by two other members – one from Melbourne and one from Hong Kong.

Some emerging trends to watch are organising projects, green organising, senior relocation, social media, video use and education. I’ll be going into these in more depth in the future, along with other things I learnt on my trip to Ohio.

The April edition of the AAPO Newsletter is out now.  Don't get it but would love keep up with news in the organising world?  Simply sign up here.

I'd like to thank Kat Tate, our dedicated newsletter editor, who is handing in her "red pen" and hanging up her Editor-in-Chief hat.  Thanks for the energy and ideas you've brought to the position.  All AAPO members and other subscribers have benefitted from your work.

Next month we'll have a new editor and I look forward to having Leslee Stroud on the AAPO team.