Monday, October 8, 2018

Meet Stan


I became a nurse because I like to help people.  A lot of my nursing skills carried into the world of organizing and have served me well.  However, I’ve learned over the years that my true motivator is not so much about the helping, but more about the fixing—that’s what gives me energy.  I love to solve problems and be able to get things done. I’m the girl who makes a list after I did a bunch of things just so I can cross them back off the list.  So satisfying!!  So, the more troublesome a problem becomes, the more set I get on making a solution happen. 

I had a client who broke one half of their lazy susan cabinet door.  They had tried various fixes and weren’t getting anywhere.  I thought for sure this would be no big deal, but it proved to be quite difficult.  Over the course of a year we worked together on and off in all areas of the house, and the door continued to sit in the corner while the cabinet gaped open.  Suddenly, they were ready to move and the house was getting listed, and we still had a broken door.  I visited multiple hardware stores and cabinet showrooms to no avail.   We were ready to reattach this thing with duct tape.   



I decided to take one last stab at my smalltime local hardware store.  When the rosy-cheeked, teenaged counter attendant asked if he could help me, I knew I was doomed.  I went ahead and told my story, which was overheard by Stan.  Stan, who had received a call to say his order was ready, and low and behold was not in fact there.  A wasted trip for Stan, but a goldmine for me!  Stan had an abundance of knowledge about hinges and the like, and as an organizer, sounded like he would be my worst nightmare…he demos cabinets and rarely gets rid of a piece of hardware…you know, “just in case.”  Just in case a random organizing girl gives a sob story in the hardware store and you are able to offer her exactly what you both think she needs!  Stan needed a couple hours to get home and search for said pieces, but was confident he would have them by the time I arrived.  He gave me his address…complete with hand-drawn map!  I showed up with a friend in tow, just in case Stan was a serial killer, and collected 2 different sets of hinges he thought might work.  I was doubtful, as they looked so similar to things I had already tried, but I was gonna give Stan the benefit of the doubt. 

Later that night I get a call from my newfound friend.  He’s been pondering my predicament and thought what I might actually need is a piano hinge.  “Say what, Stan?!”  A piano hinge.  Six bucks.  Found anywhere.  I picked one up the next day, threw that puppy on and boom!  Done.  Just like that.  At some point in our encounters Stan said, “this is kind of crazy, huh?”  “Maybe crazy, maybe fate, Stan, either way, I’m gonna blog about you.”  Stan doesn’t know what a blog is.





When I was working with a business coach this past year, I had to determine my core values.  I chose resourcefulness, grace and awareness—maybe more on that later.  Anyway, he was unimpressed by “resourcefulness” because it didn’t carry much emotion and didn’t seem that significant.  But to me it’s everything—it gives me the grit I need to get any job done.  Or in this case, to find a Stan to help me get the job done.   What values drive you?



1 comment:

  1. Tada! I love this story Aimee! I too have loved the gift of resourcefulness over the years! Soo happy to hear that God put Stan in your path that day!

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