Client Testimonials

I want to thank you and your "Organized Success family" for becoming part of my family.

I work full time and the idea of unpacking and organizing my kitchen after major renovations was overwhelming. I did not know where to begin.

You and Lois were available and ready to help me at all hours of the day and night. Lois rearranged her schedule to accommodate mine. She was here when the workers were still in the middle of putting things together and it is because of her quick thinking that many mistakes were avoided. I watched, in awe, as Lois transformed a disorganized mess into a beautiful, organized and efficient kitchen.

As a result of all of your hard work, I now have a dream kitchen. Everything is easily accessible, functional and at my fingertips. All I do is lean over and take what I need and replace it in seconds. The organization of my kitchen is not only a work of art, but efficiency personified. Best of all, no one needs to ask me where to put anything. Everything is beautifully organized and clearly labeled and, therefore, easy to put back in its place.

Thank you, Susan, for everything: for all of your phone calls to get people to do the things they were supposed to do, your availability, your flexibility, your positive attitude, your talent and your charming personality. It was a pleasure working with you and all of your staff.

Once again, I thank you for sharing your family with me. Who said you can't pick your family!!

Dr. Miriam Scherer Berkovic

Susan's wealth of tips and knack for knowing what works is what makes her so successful at what she does.

Gary E. Polacheck
CEO
Magil Laurentienne

The first time Susan worked with us, she helped one of our partners organize his office. Understanding his needs and apprehensions, she not only left his office well-organized and clutter-free, she also helped him change his work habits so he could keep things in order on his own. She even trained his assistant!

Because that first experience was so positive, we asked Susan and Jacqueline to hold sessions for all our staff – most of whom are moving to a new building. To give everyone a fresh start, Susan helped them think differently about organizing their workspaces, and offered them very practical, easily implemented tips. Jacqueline enhanced the presentation by discussing the role of colour and ergonomics in the workspace. After the sessions, our people were much more enthusiastic about the office change. Thanks, Susan and Jacqueline!

Chantal Lamoureux, LL.B., CRHA-CHRP
HR Tax Associate Director
Ernst and Young, Montreal

Forget about the others. Susan Portnoy has come up with the gold standard of "to do" lists. You will do three times what you did before in half the time. I was totally overwhelmed by re-organizing my office. The way Susan chopped up the job into small pieces miraculously transformed a dreaded task into a fun project. Susan Portnoy has achieved the impossible. As I wandered from one task to another, she got me back on track. What happened? The job got done. Her filing system did more than just help me keep my papers in order. It gave me the gift of time to do whatever I wanted.

Tommy Schnurmacher
CJAD Radio

I should have hired Susan and her team five years ago when we opened our business. They blew in like a bunch of organizational good fairies and quickly showed us how to set up our filing, our supplies and just make our business go so much smoother. We can find everything now! We are super impressed with Organized Success – they were worth every penny and more!

Amy Fish
Servicelab Canada Inc.

Lois and Natalie, I just wanted to thank you both for all your help last week. It was a tremendous relief to get the basement organized. My husband was thrilled when he came home and could not believe the difference. Even my 5 year old son noticed the change. Thanks!

Mindy Mayman, B.A., Pl. Fin, FMA
RSM Richter Wealth Management Inc.

My filing system is working brilliantly and I feel very much in control of the paper in my life. I no longer dread going into my office and I find it truly liberating to have a clear desk – finally! Before I was unaware of how much energy and time I was wasting by not having a system in place. Now I can locate, in seconds, any bill, document or obscure piece of paper. Thanks for getting me organized. It was well worth the time and effort.

Suzanne Tokarsky

I think what you do is a phenomenal service to mankind and you are truly making this a more productive and sane world!

Anneliese Papaurelis
Development and Alumni Affairs
Marianopolis College

You are an inspiration for organization.

Karin Drewery

You have a very positive outlook. You make it all sound so possible, so achievable (no small task when speaking to people whom are chronically disorganized like me!).

Karen Donnelly

I wish I could have met you twenty years ago. What a difference you would have made!

Ruth Wolofsky

I found your conviction, passion and energy very intoxicating. The plan gives me hope and a way to try to get out of my mess!

Anonymous

Alanna has a unique gift for identifying what needs to be done and then making it happen. Her clients benefit not only from her professional skills and services, but also from her energy, drive, laughter and caring. These qualities are priceless.

BP

It doesn't matter how good a writer one is, or how many wonderful ideas you have. If you are not organized, most of your creativity will get sidelined or submerged in a sea of paperwork and randomly filed research.

When I got my job as a weekly columnist at the National Post newspaper, I became extremely anxious. My amateur filing system was completely inadequate for the demands of my new job. I knew within a few weeks that I would be drowning in data if I didn't have a dependable and easy-to-use system.

Susan Portnoy of Organized Success came to my rescue. She walked me through her simple but effective guidelines to keeping incoming data, work in progress and archives in distinct, accessible and self-organizing units. Within a few visits the entire system was in place and working.

Being professionally organized has brought me peace of mind and freed me to dedicate my energy to creative work. Being organized has made me, in effect, smarter and faster at my job. I am very grateful for the skills I have acquired, and would recommend this shortcut to professional development at the most basic and important level to all information-dependent professionals.

Barbara Kay
National Post Columnist

Alanna did a fantastic job rearranging furniture and came up with great solutions for efficient storage. She worked quickly and there was no disruption whatsoever to my work (I work from home).

SU

Had I known that Organized Success would not only assess, purchase materials, and complete the entire organization process of my home with little assistance from myself, I would have made the initial call months ago. Even with 10 fingers in my closets and files, I never felt that there was an intrusion of my privacy. Lois' work ethic, drive, and tenacity is unmatched while Susan's ability to sort through enormous amounts of paperwork is highly impressive. This is a great investment that brings much needed peace of mind and is lasting.

ST

I have been at Bialik 14 years – my office was something that was always talked about. The perception that most people got – especially those who didn't know me – was that I was disorganized, a last minute person, could never find anything, but that I am very creative and a very good teacher. One of the school's previous principals (I am on my fourth one), without my knowledge, took pictures of my office to take to the school's personnel chair (do I hear blackmail?). I discovered the pictures when he asked me to pick up some pictures he had developed (he gave me the wrong ticket; I got my office pictures). It made him crazy. This is just to let you know how far I have come.

When I saw your picture in the paper – offering your course at the "Y", I knew you would help me. I picked up the phone, called, and the rest is history. I knew the time was right to get my office to look professional. I wanted it badly and you helped. My office is STILL the talk of the school – now how wonderful it is, how it is the students' favorite place in school and how well it reflects on me. Those who worked with me and knew me well say, "we told you so; she IS organized, smart, creative and a great teacher." Thank you to you and Lois for presenting the true me.

Hanna Eliashiv
Vice Principal, Judaic Studies
Bialik High School

Sure I could have cleaned up my garage, my closets and my office by myself. But I didn't. I could also easily orchestrate my own workout without a trainer. But I don't. If I didn't have regular appointments with a trainer, I don't want to think about the shape I'd be in. Ditto my house and office without Organized Success. Susan has made an incredible difference in my life – in my home, in my office, and in my feelings about myself. She has a system for everything. It's simple, easy to follow and to follow up. And everything works.

Thanks to Organized Success I now have a filing system that allows me to actually find 'that' piece of paper. And I know how to tackle clutter before it becomes overwhelming. There is no question that putting this kind of structure into your environment isn't a freebee. But the time and money spent with Organized Success add up to feelings of accomplishment and being in control – a mindset that is priceless!

Elaine Goldstein

Thought I'd drop you a note to let you know how much I appreciated Lois' help today. Barely 15 minutes after arriving, she dove right in and started rearranging my stuff, finding space that had eluded me, shifting things around for better access - in short, performing the professional organizer's magic. After only 3.5 hours, my office floor was visible (it had been a minefield for the past 4 months!) and my closet offered me functional storage for all my office supplies and odds and ends. All this using containers and accessories I already had on hand. Fabulous! I can't begin to tell you how pleased and relieved I am to have this done before the baby's arrival and better yet, done so painlessly. Thank you very much for your help. Next time I feel overwhelmed by organizational or clutter issues, I won't hesitate to contact you. Can't tell you how blissful this space feels now.

Suzanne Choquette
Pointe-Claire

I owe you a debt of gratitude! I am on an organizing mission and, thanks to you, I have started tackling some things that had been on the to do list for years!! It's cleansing I tell you!!! Thanks again....

Madalena Coutinho

The 'organization' has become a disease. I have matched my physical filing system to my electronic one. This has allowed me to get 600 emails out of my inbox down to a manageable 20 that I use as a to-do or follow-up list. I love going into my pen drawer. The Rubbermaid containers are nice and deep so I can keep a lot of my favorite pens there without them spilling over into the drawer (as they used to). The disease continues. I spent 2 hours on Sunday at home labeling all of my audiocassettes and replacing all the broken plastic holders with good ones. Susan, I thought of you the whole time. I cursed you and thanked you all in one!! You've made a big difference in my working style – but better still, my staff sees the difference and has asked me to pass on the disease. They are jealous and want to have the same benefits. For that, I am very thankful (they really need the help!!).

Lisa Zentner
Director Of Marketing
Globe Electric Company Inc.

Thank you for presenting an exceptional evening of information and ideas for women in the community. The feedback was tremendous, everyone asking for more.

Pam Russ
Coordinator, Ahavas Chesed

... I suspect you sensed the panic quite easily and very neatly moved into action, suggesting things to do, steps to take that would allow us to start tackling the mountain without dwelling for a minute on the mountain itself... I think, countering the panic with hope at the beginning of a project is one of your many talents...In truly miraculous fashion, order was imposed on chaos. The discrepancy between the starting and finishing points is so great that it is hard to believe it is happening and has in fact happened. It is all the more acutely appreciated since I know that it never would have happened without your expertise ...It is like paying for a move without the move...

MM

I'm happy to report that my office is STILL clutter-free (and yes, 2 weeks later is a record...) I could not have done it without you, Lois. And the biggest reward is that organizing the office has given me the energy to continue organizing the rest of the house. And I'm keeping it up! I no longer feel overwhelmed by our "stuff". You really helped me overcome a mental hurdle. We had friends call us on Sunday morning wanting to drop by that afternoon. A panic situation prior to your visit, but not this time. "No problem, come on by". How freeing!! And how sweet to accomplish all this before the baby's arrival. I can't thank you enough.

Suzanne Choquette
Pointe-Claire

I must tell you the new filing system is working wonderfully. It is 8 months later and my desk is empty and clean. You are right. It doesn't take me more then 30 seconds to find any file or paper. Thank you so much for making my job so much more pleasant.

JF