I asked Sophie Hornidge from Fully Flourishing (previously little miss sorted) a string of questions, and with all the grace and wisdom she is known for, she answered them. Sophie works in the south east suburbs of Melbourne and the Mornington Peninsula.
Tell me Sophie, who do you work with? Who is your ideal client?
I’m a Holistic Organisation and Life Planning Coach. My business has 2 main services – one where I help people with the hands-on decluttering and organising of their homes – great for anyone with physical clutter within ~50km of the Frankston area. The other is life coaching which I do online – both 1:1 and group format. The 1:1 can be tailored to suit the client. The group coaching is an online community that meets most Friday mornings on Zoom for Planning, Soundboarding, Co-working and Accountability. Ideal for people wanting a more consistent and intentional planning and life organisation practice. The members in the group love the support and accountability from other like-minded people to help them get the things they need to do (life admin) and the things they want to do (life goals) prioritised, planned and done. (Especially if they’re doing life or business solo and prone to procrastination!).
What drew you to the organising industry and how long have you been in it?
I had been working as a Court Registrar and after nearly 10 years in that career, I was ready for a positive change. I was sick of the negativity, wearing a suit and commuting so I started to think about what I did want from my work. My list included working for myself, having plenty of variety and interacting with people who were happy to see me. I also wanted to do work that made a difference and played to my strengths. I started little miss sorted in 2008.
What’s your favourite thing about organising?
I think it’s when clients start to realise the enormous mental relief that comes from dealing with their physical clutter. It often starts the ball rolling on a lot of other positive life changes.
To what do you attribute your success as an organiser?
Ensuring the client’s goals always drive our work together, creating a judgment-free zone, years of experience, and being a kind-hearted human! I also decided very early on to embrace other professional organisers as allies, not competitors and this has resulted in lots of support, learning, growth opportunities and referrals both ways with other POs.
What is one habit that helps your life run smoothly?
Monthly planning in my Google calendar, in all its colourful layers. I use it for organising everything! Business, family, meal-planning, studies, personal appointments, habits, tasks and more.
Is there any area of your life or home where you are not organised?
My inbox freaks my husband out. I used to set-up and follow a whole system but to be honest, these days I just flag important emails, unsubscribe from mailing lists frequently, do bulk deleting from time-to-time and use the search function to find what I need. The number of emails doesn’t bother me at all.
What is a guilty pleasure of yours?
I don’t feel guilty about any of the pleasurable things in my life. I put them in my calendar first and work around them and teach others to do the same! If I was pushed though, I guess one of my most enduring and luxurious uses of time is my book club. It’s a great way to switch off and do something just for me.
What is one thing people may not know about you?
I don’t follow AFL. And yes, I was born in Victoria and have lived here my whole life. I do however, LOVE cricket, and I once travelled to the UK on a Fanatics Tour to watch The Ashes.
What would you say to someone just starting out as an organiser?
Keep the client at the centre of everything you do when working together. Ensure you’re always delivering on their goals, not yours. Ask questions – never assume. Seek permission. Protect their privacy. Honour their space. And, have fun building a business that grows you and brings you joy because that’s the best place to serve your clients from.
And finally, what else should people know?
I’ve retrained and graduated as a life coach in the last few years and I’m rebranding my business name to better reflect the scope of the services I now offer. After 16 years, little miss sorted is all grown up and now it’s time for Fully Flourishing. A new website is in the works but for the time-being, you can still find me at www.littlemisssorted.com or @sophiehornidge on Facebook and Instagram.
Want to read more Showcase interviews? Here they are.
