According to a recent survey conducted on behalf of the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO):

• 71 percent of those polled said their quality of life would improve if they were better organized.
• 65 percent described their home as at least moderately disorganized.
• 27 percent said disorder keeps them from being effective at work.

As millions of people vow to get organized as part of their New Year’s resolutions, it is no surprise that January has been dubbed National “Get Organized” month, a 7- year-old event, sponsored by NAPO, an organization that represents well over 4,000 members in the U.S. and beyond.

Long after the celebratory confetti is swept up,  many people will once again make an all out effort to plow through their piles, manage their files, clear their clutter and make more room for themselves in an effort to feel happier at home and more productive at work.

And before the end of the year, as predictable as the sound of popping champagne corks, many will resign themselves to yet another year surrounded by clutter in their homes, on their desks and worst of all, in their heads.

Excepting New Year’s resolutions, the decision to get organized is usually precipitated by an event or changing life circumstance. Examples include moving, expecting a new baby, sending kids off to college, getting a new job or keeping up with the demands of an existing one. Even a loss of health, money or death of a loved one can be the deciding factor in getting organized “once and for all.”

Whatever the precipitating cause, it is wise first to assess whether or not you have the time, skill, and motivation to manage the resulting organizational tasks by yourself. If not, seeking the help and guidance of a professional organizer could mean being able to check  “Get Organized” off your to-do list.

Ultimately the question of whether or not you would benefit from the help of a professional, can best be answered by you.  Here are 11 questions that will help you decide if hiring a professional organizer is right for you:

1. Do I want to get organized but have no idea where to start?
2. Am I moving and need ideas on how to set up my new home or downsize from my old one?
3. Is my disorganization or lack of productivity holding me back from success or costing me money?
4. Is the clutter in my home or office weighing me down?
5. Is there someone in my family who messes up all my attempts to get organized?
6. Have I lost or misplaced documents that cost me late fees and unnecessary finance charges?
7. Do I frequently apologize for ‘the mess’ to guests who come to my home to visit?
8. Have I tried to get organized but never seem to make any progress then slip back to my old ways?
9. Am I feeling stuck because my living or work space makes me feel unfocused and distracted?
10. Do I want to be more organized but just can’t get motivated?
11. Am I feeling frustrated, overwhelmed or stressed by my mess?

If you answered YES to any of these questions, you will most likely benefit from the services of a professional organizer.  To find one in your area check out the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) website or visit mine at www.letsmakeroom.com.

As a professional organizer, my goal is to come up with innovative ways to simplify the lives of my clients.  Innovation is not a new concept but these days innovative companies seem to be acting on our lives at warp speed and sometimes that speed has usurped their common sense, at least when it comes to the customer experience.  Case in point: blister packs.

The other day, I actually broke my scissors trying to open a new cell phone charger that was packaged like it was expecting an attack from an insurgency. Just when I thought I had finally broken through, I was foiled by a series of krypton-like twist-ties that never seemed to unwind.

It doesn’t just play out in packaging. It’s in product design as well.

Take those enormous toilet tissue dispensers in public bathrooms.   Can you ever find the end of the roll?  You just keep spinning and spinning.  Don’t even think about reaching in.  You may get in, but you’ll never get out.

And can someone tell me why we need light sensor paper towel dispensers? Are we really being kinder to the environment here or more innovative?  I still don’t know what was so wrong with the old, hand-cranked version.

When I have one of those days where everything simple becomes overly complicated, I start to wonder if I’m an unwilling actor in a 21st century version of George Kukor’s movie, Gaslight, pushing me, an otherwise sane person, into a state of borderline psychosis.  “There’s nothing wrong here. It must be you,” [close-up of face in look of terror, fade to black.]

Somewhere along the R&D cycle, it seems to me that many so-called innovative companies have forgotten about their customer’s experience.  They’ve got the development part down but what happened to the research?

Nobody has a stronger love/hate relationship to technology, than those of us born before 1980. I’m continually amazed at the level of communication, knowledge, entertainment and efficiency that technology has made possible.  Pandora. Itunes. Skype. Online Banking.  Yet with all its advantages, it only works if you know how to work it. I love what the Internet has brought me but it will never be able to pour me another cup of coffee.

I sing the praises of social networking sites. They’re great for reconnecting with old college friends but try to find actual help from them to solve a user problem? Good luck. It’s like sitting around the dinner table with my relatives. Every question is answered with a question. Whenever I find myself entering a “help” site, I feel like I’m driving on the LA freeway for the first time; going round and round and ending up nowhere.

The other day I was trying to find out how to adjust a setting for my Facebook business page. Each search took me to a new level of FAQs but no closer to resolution. At every dead end I was confronted with the site’s feeble attempt at gaining my trust.   “Did this answer your question? Thumbs Up Thumbs Down?” At that moment, what I was really feeling had more to do with another finger.

Perfection can indeed be the enemy of progress but what good is innovation if it only pisses you off?  How are we, the consumer, being served when companies seem more focused on being the first, the cutting edge, the latest and greatest, at the expense of the actual human beings using their products?

When it comes to providing real service, real help, real satisfaction, I wonder. Has innovation killed their humanity?