Last month, I had the opportunity to be a guest on a television talk show. It's called Kitty Talk, and it's a weekly Canadian talk show for South Asian women. I was there to share some decluttering and organizing tips. It was really exciting and I'm so happy to finally be able to share it with you!
So for all of you who have been wondering what I sound like, today you get to check out the video and see for yourself! And hopefully learn some decluttering and organizing tips too :)
A Little Background on my TV Appearance
The whole thing happened quite quickly... I got an email from a fellow professional organizer who had been contacted by a producer from Rogers Television. My colleague didn't want to appear on the talk show and wondered if I would be interested.
What?! Me appear on TV?! Um... that sounds way beyond my comfort zone. But, since it wasn't a guarantee anyway (it had been several hours since the producer contacted my colleague so I figured she'd probably already found someone else... and besides, she probably contacted my colleague because she's been a professional organizer for 10 years, and she wouldn't be interested in me when I've only been doing it for 2 1/2 years...I'm great at rationalizing things away!), I figured I'd say yes.
At the time I thought it was a small local community cable TV show so how bad could that be if they did say yes, right?!
And, as a family, we'd decided our word of the year for 2016 was going to be "Yes". Little did I know what that would entail for me!
Within minutes, the producer contacted me to confirm I'd be available for the taping... it was a go!
Yikes!
That was late on a Wednesday and the taping was Friday afternoon.
The next 2 days were filled with preparations for my TV appearance:
- Researching everything I could about the show - turns out it's not just a small little local show, it's national... and it's not just shown on local community cable channels, it's also broadcast on the OMNI TV network... and the show only began in the fall and they don't post episodes online so I couldn't "get to know" any of the hosts ahead of time by watching old episodes
- Finding out what they were expecting of me - 2 segments, 6 1/2 minutes each, 1 on the couches talking about tips, and 1 at the counter sharing products
- Asking fellow professional organizers what are some common challenges their South Asian female clients face, so I can ensure what I talk about will meet their needs
- Figuring out what I'd like to talk about - the producer had a few suggestions and I fleshed those out a bit with tips and then submitted 3 questions for the hosts (3 South Asian females) to ask
- Deciding which products I'd bring along to demonstrate... even shopping a bit for items that I wanted to showcase... and my kids helped me choose some of their toys to bring along (you should have seen all the stuff all around my home!)
- Practicing what I wanted to say
- Getting a haircut
- Determining what I would wear
- And panicking in between all of that!
On the day of the show I got myself ready, packed everything into my car, and made my way to the studio.
I was really starting to think this was a crazy idea.
- Why did we think "Yes" was a good word for the year?
- What if I stumble over my words?
- What if I can't think of enough to say for 6 1/2 minutes?
- What if I say something that will offend South Asian women?
- What if I sound unprofessional?
- What if I am bringing too many products to show?
Yep I was a big ole' bucket of nerves!
Thankfully, I had tons of support. So many of my organizing colleagues were really helpful! Those who had done TV appearances before shared tips with me. Many wished me luck and told me they thought I'd do a great job. Friends and family sent encouraging emails and texts, saying they were praying for me. My kids were over the moon excited as soon as they heard I was going to be on TV... they thought I'd be changing careers and becoming a movie star now... one of them actually suggested maybe I could be in the next Star Wars movie! Um... yeah... not sure Disney is going to be calling any time soon LOL. I think I'll stick with organizing and blogging :)
And of course my hubby... who's always my biggest cheerleader. He gave me advice, listened to me rehearse, and kept telling me how proud he was of me for doing this.
So, armed with notes, bins full of products, and the support of nearly everyone I know, I marched my way into the studio, with as much confidence as I could muster :)
At the Studio to Record the Show
From the moment I arrived at the studio, everything was a blur. My organizing products were taken into the studio and I was whisked into make-up. Holy wow... I've never had so much make-up on in my life! Here's a picture my hubby took of me when I got home... I feel like a clown LOL!
After make-up it was time to get my microphone on and then I met the hosts on the set (there ended up just being 2 of them that day). We had about a minute to chat and they asked me what I wanted to talk about. Guess they didn't get the 3 questions I'd sent in. I didn't have time to panic about that though. I gave them a few general topics and then we were ready to record!
Then things really were a blur. I was flying by the seat of my pants through the whole first segment. I responded to their questions and tried to tie in the things I'd planned to talk about the best I could. And before I knew it, they were wrapping up the segment. What?! How did 6 1/2 minutes go that quickly??
I felt pretty good about it though. And I was definitely glad I'd planned as much as I did in advance, because it gave me confidence to fly by the seat of my pants.
Then I had a couple of minutes to set up my "props" at the counter before we started recording the 2nd segment. I scrapped a couple of things, because I knew this segment was going to feel even shorter than the first.
Before we started, the studio took a quick picture of us with all the products.
I'd hoped to have some way to hang an over-the-door shoe organizer, so I could pop all kinds of different items in and out, to show a variety of ways they can be used to maximize vertical space in our homes. But they weren't able to set anything up for it, so one of the hosts held it up.
And then we taped the organizing products segment. It was another blur and time flew by. But I actually enjoyed this segment and tried to just have fun with it.
And then I was done! I was only at the studio for about an hour. I was happy that it went as well as I felt it did, and I was definitely relieved that it was over.
When my kids came home they were eager to hear all about it. But the funny thing was, they couldn't stop staring at my face. I had so much make-up on they nearly didn't recognize me! More talk about being a movie star... still think I'll stick with organizing :)
Without any Further Ado... Here's the Video!
OK, here are my organizing and decluttering tips, as shared on Kitty Talk!
[Huge shout-out to Linda from Life and Linda who converted the video into a size and format that I could share with you! If you need a Blogger blog redesign or help with video, she's your gal! Thanks again Linda!]
OK, back to the video... It was an exciting day around here when we watched the show on TV (a week after the taping). My kids not only think I'm famous now... but so are their stuffed animals and toys LOL!
And yes... I checked... those 6 1/2 minutes really were 6 1/2 minutes... despite how quickly they flew by at the taping!
Helpful Links
Here are the products I showed or mentioned in the video (affiliate links):
- Baskets
- Over-the-door shoe organizer
- Little black dress jewelry organizer
- Double tier turntable / lazy susan
- Toy organizer bins
- My label maker
- Mason jars (I hadn't planned to talk about them but hey why not?!)
- File bin
- Hanging files
- Clear plastic shoe boxes
And here are some of my blog posts where you can see these products in action:
- Printable decluttering signs
- Organizing stuffed animals and toys using a shoe organizer
- Organizing a linen closet with a shoe organizer
- Kitchen command center - organizing kids' schoolwork files
- Organizing kids' toys
- Organizing a pantry with plastic shoe boxes
- Organizing a freezer with plastic bins
- Organizing a fridge with plastic bins
I'm really happy with how the show turned out and it was a really great learning experience. I'm definitely glad I stretched beyond my comfort zone and said yes to this! It was a wonderful opportunity. And I hope the tips help some people declutter and organize their homes!
Happy organizing!
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