We were lucky to catch up with Barbara Hemphill recently and have shared our conversation below.

Barbara, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s been the best thing you’ve ever seen (or done yourself) to show a customer that you appreciate them?

Gratitude is critical to long-term business success — gratitude for what others have done for you, and gratitude for the opportunity to serve others. One of my business coaches, Perry Marshall, describes marketing as “the art and science of helping people who need each other find each other.” One way I have shown appreciation through the years is by sending physical cards, and often, I use them not only to say “thank you” or “congratulations” but to connect people who could benefit from knowing each other.

Many years ago, I read an article in my hometown paper in Nebraska about a Florida investor who had purchased much of the property on Main Street in order to revitalize the town. I sent him a “Thank you” card for no particular reason except to say how much I appreciated what he was doing for the town where my family still lived.

Several months later, I visited my mother when he was in town to dedicate one of the new buildings, so I attended the celebration with several hundred people. At the end of the event, I went up and introduced myself, and he replied, “Oh, I know you! I have your card in my briefcase!” That card led to several more introductions, which benefited both of our businesses.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

According to recent statistics, the home organizing industry has grown to $12 billion and is projected to rise by 3.6% through 2030. The four words that have driven my business are the registered phrase “Clutter is Postponed DecisionsⓇ.” I learned that from clothes closets, but I soon learned that while clutter came in many forms, the biggest challenge for most of my clients was paper. Clients often asked, “How long do I keep this?” I didn’t know the answer, so I searched the library for a book with this kind of information, and discovered there wasn’t one! So I decided to write it! In 1988 my first book Taming the Paper Tiger was released.

In 1998, I created a training program to license consultants to become Paper Tiger Authorized Consultants (PTACs) using a software program created by an IT company based on my book Taming the Paper Tiger. After 10 years, I parted ways with the software company, and began using existing digital platforms to accomplish what the software had done.

In 2005, I partnered with Andrea Anderson and we changed the company’s name to Productive Environment Institute (www.ProductiveEnvironment.com), and the certification name to Certified Productive Environment Specialists (CPESs). We were the first company in the industry to offer package pricing for organizing services and virtual organizing (which served us well during Covid when everyone was working at home!) When I began my business, one of my goals was to create a company that will exist when I am no longer available to contribute. Productive Environment Institute is now owned by Andrea Anderson, one of my trainees. I am still actively involved with the company. We continue to train, certify and mentor organizing and productivity consultants worldwide who desire to make money with flexible hours doing something they love.

In addition to coaching and consulting clients to eliminate clutter to create a productive environment so they can accomplish their work and enjoy their life, I also offer a coaching program called “Vision Accelerator.” to help women who are at a transition point in their life, such as empty nest, caregiving for parents, recently retired, divorce — or feel they are meant to do something more in the years they have left such as start a business, write a book, or repair a broken relationship. God allows me to see in other women what they often cannot see for themselves, and a 90-minute session can change a life forever!

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

When my first book, Taming the Paper Tiger, was published in 1988, it was excerpted in Reader’s Digest worldwide. The publisher declared bankruptcy the month it was released, making the book unavailable in bookstores. I had to purchase my manuscript back from the publisher. On the cover of an office supply catalog, I noticed that they were offering readers a clock if they purchased $100 worth of supplies. I called the company’s president and suggested that they purchase copies of my book which described how to use the products they sold, and I received a purchase order for 27,000 copies. I took the purchase order to the bank and borrowed enough money to buy 30,000 copies, and self-published the book.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

The topic of clutter and disorganization is relevant to every individual personally and professionally, so my most effective strategy for growing my business is public speaking. This gives me many opportunities to share my story, raise audience awareness about the cost of disorganization, and offer my products and services.

More importantly, I spent a large majority of my life feeling hopeless. I tried to commit suicide at age 11, and was in a mental hospital for depression at age 46. Today, at age 77, I feel better physically, emotionally, and spiritually than I have ever felt in my life, and I want to give others hope. My license plate reads HOPEFOOL, and when people ask me why, I reply, “Because I am a fool for Jesus, and HOPE stands for Help Others Pursue Entrepreneurship, which I have been doing for over 40 years!”

Productive Environment Institute’s training to become a Certified Productive Environment Specialist offers a career opportunity, no matter your age, and a program to help others accomplish their work and enjoy their lives!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ProductiveEnvironment.com. www.BarbaraHemphill.com www.BecomeaSpecialist.com
• Instagram: https:// https://www.instagram.com/papertigerlady/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/barbara.hemphill.73
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/barbarahemphill/
• Youtube: https:// https://www.youtube.com/@productiveenvironment

Image Credits

Brandi K. Autry