Testimonials

I first ran across a website for Clear Surroundings during a web search in a time of utter and complete desperation. I was overwhelmed, my house was an organizational disaster, and my 2 year-old son was often pretending to show mommy how to “sweep” or “mop” with his toy cleaning supplies (I think out of his own sense of need to clear the mess!)… I was simply stuck. – But paralyzed might actually be a better word for the emotional and logistical state I was in. When I decided to give Clear Surroundings and Brodi Caldwell a try, I honestly wasn’t sure what to expect… I just knew that things had to change and I couldn’t accomplish that change alone.

Was my home neat and tidy in two weeks, with Brodi’s magical influence? No (unfortunately). There has been a lot of hard work involved, and it’s taken weeks and weeks to unlearn self-defeating patterns, and finally get those gears to shift, and things to move to a place of less exasperation and more calm. Some changes Brodi and I were able to accomplish right away, while others have taken much more time, patience, and trial and error to get “just right” for me. Brodi has been much more than a household organizer during this period of transition… She has been a cheerleader, coach, team- mate, (and occasional butt-kicker!), as well as my lifeline to sanity in the midst of total chaos. We worked together, and worked pretty darn hard, to accomplish gradual, sustained changes that have begun to reshape my external landscape, and my internal sense of myself – who I am, and what I can do if I set my mind to it.

Where I think that Brodi differs from many personal organizers is that she is able to custom-mold her approach to not only who you are (flaws and all), but also where you are. Right here, right now. She works with you to set goals that are truly meaningful to you, and then she helps you overcome your limitations and reach those goals. She is never judgmental, overbearing, or stuffy… Instead her approach is one of positive reinforcement, guidance, and frequent reflection to see “where we are” on the map. In our time together, I have laughed a lot, and done a little crying too… But I have always felt supported by Brodi through my personal journey away from the life of clutter, disorder, and confusion that had grown-up around me over the years – trapping me without me even realizing it. If you are considering making a change in your life for the better, and think that you are alone in the struggle, please give Brodi a call. Clear Surroundings has given me, and my son, a new lease on life, and the ability to claim our house once again as our home.

Catelyn C.

Brodi has been a lifesaver. After the third move in 9 years, I finally decided to unpack my previous life. Although it’s an ongoing process, with the added push from Brodi’s energy we are finally approaching the simple, uncluttered lifestyle of my dreams. I hope that all her clients find and enjoy the physical, emotional, and mental spaciousness that she works hard to create!

Ki, Fort Collins

I hired Clear Surroundings to help me make some sense of the clutter in my house, mainly in our office and entry/front room. Brodi was awesome, she had great ideas that were so simple and easy to implement. We got stacks of misc. papers sorted, files created, boxes emptied.

Several months later my mother-in-law passed away suddenly and unexpectedly. My husband was overwhelmed with all the details and couldn’t remember the name of his mother’s lawyer or doctor, among other things he needed. Because of
the work Brodi did, we had family files with all the important family and legal information at our finger-tips. It was such a relief to grab that file and find everything we needed. Before Clear Surroundings, things were scattered in boxes, envelopes and stacks that would have taken hours to sort through.

Bonnie B.

I struggled for years after my children finished school and left home with my own transition to a different life. Not able to let go of what was but wanting to move into the future, I was in limbo and surrounded by the clutter of two worlds. Not knowing how to deal with it and the stress it created every day, I called Brodi. She knew what needed to be done and how to get it done with compassion and understanding for my struggle. I couldn’t have done it without her and, looking back, wouldn’t want to. My entire house has been transformed and so have I.

Stacey A.

Brodi has helped me get back control of my space, my time and my life! Clutter and a ruined filing system made my life unworkable. Brodi’s gentle manner made disposing of unwanted clutter a piece of cake. And she easily found the right places for things I wanted and needed to keep. Now, I have a filing system that works, which takes a lot of wear and tear out of routine paperwork and a home space I enjoy being in.

Suzanne B.

Brodi, thank you so much for the wonderful organizing you did for me in my office. My work environment has been greatly improved, literally night and day. Your suggestions and rearranging has made a huge difference! I now walk into my office focused and ready to be productive. Hiring you was the best business investment I have ever made. It is already paying back dividends. I would recommend your services to anyone.

Tanya L. Pereyra

Working with Brodi Caldwell of Clear Surroundings felt like a Godsend. After going through my third experience of cancer, Brodi helped me get my life back on track by really listening to understand what I needed help with, gently questioning my long-held assumptions about the best way to stay organized, teaching me new ways to think about not only my ‘stuff’ but my life and my priorities, and getting right into the muck and physically helping me clear objects out of my surroundings.” Before I worked with Brodi, I kept everything in case I needed it later or because I thought I was supposed to or because I just couldn’t bear to part with it. In working with her, I realized that so much of my time was being spent, dealing with my stuff rather than living the life I wanted to live. Brodi has helped me realign the way I ‘do’ life at home so that I actually have time to be in life with my family, friends, and community, creating clear surroundings both inside my being and in my home. I highly recommend Brodi and her services!!! Thank you Brodi!!

Kerri J. Geary, M.A.

I would highly recommend Brodi for any project- big or small. She is professional, hard-working, very knowledgeable, understanding, compassionate and excellent at what she does- bringing amazing order from chaos in a positive way! My project was a huge 25 year mess and Brodi came alongside me without judging or demeaning me and helped me begin the difficult, emotional process of going through, getting rid of and organizing years of papers and stuff with great compassion, understanding and encouragement. She knew when to give me the push I needed and when to back off- just the right balance. She also helped me begin to rethink how I thought about my stuff, why I saved it all and how it all fit (or didn’t fit) into my future plans and goals- digging deeper than just organizing. She helped me develop a plan, giving me very practical tools to learn to organize what I have and really think through what to save and what to get rid of, to not repeat my situation again. I really appreciated, too, how she took the time to email me summaries of our times together, encouragement and lists of things to do on my own in between our times working together. I appreciated, as well, that she belongs to a professional organization and has completed a great deal of training to add expertise to her giftedness! She will be helping me organize my new house, too. I am so grateful I found her and you will be, too!

Michelle R.

Brodi Caldwell has a knack for determining what will work for me as an individual. She listens to my concerns, and makes recommendations for organizing problem areas of my house. She strikes the right balance of compassion and no-nonsense ‘take an honest look at your situation’ advice. Brodi strives to understand differing perspectives in a non-judgmental way, and she has often sent me follow-up e-mail messages with further resources to help me and my family. I highly recommend Brodi and Clear Surroundings Organizing.

Gale W.

Brodi came to me as a God thing – there is no question. I had tried, tried, tried to get organized. I bought many shelves and a lot of Container Store stuff, and more and more organizing things, and it became more and more clutter. As a mother of adult children, I have lots of memorabilia and pictures. Also, things that I have saved from family members because I thought I had to or it would be in bad taste, or a curse. Through a lot of hand holding, because it was so overwhelming, I started to organize and let go in a healthy way. She helped me do it. She gave me homework to do between our meetings. Sometimes I would call her in tears, and she would calm me down. And so it went, for over a year. During this time we decided to sell our home, and having done so much work already it made packing and staging our home so much easier. My husband who is a tightwad when it comes to my ideas, actually said it was the best well spent money (meaning Brodi). We all must do a thinning of the crop at some point, or sad to say, we will leave the ones we love with a big burden.

Michelle H.

My wife set up time with Brodi as a gift. I had always blamed my messy desk, the stacks of paper, the cluttered drawers and closets, etc., on a lack of time to “get organized”, so I didn’t really understand what Brodi could do to help. I also didn’t see how someone who didn’t know me could help me with such personal things as bills, letters, work documents, etc. It didn’t take long, however, before I realized that Brodi had not come to my house to “get me organized”, she had come to teach me the skills I needed to get MYSELF organized. Brodi didn’t just rattle off a list of rules – she set up systems that fit my style and needs. My office went from a dysfunctional mess to a useful workspace. Most importantly, Brodi taught me the basic skills to keep it that way!

Joseph H.