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Interview With . . . Cynth'ya Lewis Reed Accord Unlimited Muncie, IN by Maria Gracia 1. What is the name of your company? Where are you located? How long have you been in business? My name is Cynth'ya Lewis Reed and my business name is Accord Unlimited. I am located in Muncie, IN. I have been in business for seven years. 2. Is this your primary business, or a part-time business? My business is part-time. 3. Are you a member of NAPO? (Please indicate if you're an officer.) No, not at this time. 4. Why did you become a professional organizer? People need an extra hand when it comes to having extra time, and knowing about all of the little 'time thieves' we tend to take for granted. We don't have to be 'Super Woman' or 'Super Man' to get things done decently and in order. 5. What type of organizing do you specialize in (home, office, etc.)? Home Organizing. 6. Do you sell products, services, or seminars? Please describe. I sell products that have to do with natural health awareness, 'ditto delivery' gift management, and how to reach target audiences for public events, or what I call 'Publicity Planning with a Punch.' 7. Have you written a book(s)? If so, what is the title(s)? Yes, a book of reflective poetic essays called 'Pieces and other color'd quiltations' people who need to remind themselves that there is more to life than 'a meeting after the meeting.' 8. Do you publish a newsletter? If so, is it a print newsletter, or an e-zine? Is it free, or is there a charge? I publish a free newsletter, monthly via Authors Den website on a number of topics: 'TWIRP' (This Writer is Really Peculiar) symbolizing that anything that is an obstacle in life is only a challenge test that can be passed if one SLOWS DOWN and looks at even the least of possibilities. 9. Do you have a web site? If so, what is the address? Yes, it is http://www.authorsden.com/cynthya 10. Is travel a big part of your business? Not yet, but that is changing even as we 'speak' as I pursue professional public and inspirational speaking. 11. Who is your primary target audience? Midlife women, men and women who are in businesses but crave time to discover who they are and who they should aspire to for more creativity in their non-work lives. 12. Describe your typical workday. While working primarily from home, (and home is a REAL job), 1. I make sure to do my project schedule for pending deadlines, appointments, orders, etc. to make certain that the most time-demanding tasks are sorted apart from the least-time demanding ones. No day goes by without spiritual attention, so meditation helps me eliminate the tendency to panic if something does not get done. 2. Writing is a daily ritual, part of my life, regardless of whether or not it is a list, an editorial to the newspaper, a book idea or a simple poem to express what's lingering in my soul. 3. Making calls to at least three potential clients if only to say 'hi, how'ya doin.' And eventually, I may even get to clean my house after taking care of other people's needs and deeds. 13. Every person interested in entering the professional organizing field is wondering, "Can I make enough money doing this?" What is your outlook on this question? If a panhandler can make money from picking up cans on the street after a major athletic event, then anybody can make money if they think of a simple, cute and creative way to package it. Experience has taught me that no one is going to fulfill your dream for you except the one staring back at you in the bathroom mirror when you've stepped out of the shower, butt naked. We alone can judge our own performance as 'A' or 'F', because for true winners, this is no in-between. The world is full of average 'C''s who either don't try something long enough, or think they are too smart to stoop down and do the work it takes to consistently complete a simple task that one day will put them over the top. We all cannot be 'A's' until we've gotten a significant number of 'Fs' under our belt of life experience. And to paraphrase Les Brown says, as long as you keep failing enthusiastically, one day those failure will stack up high enough to where you find yourself surprised by the blessing of succeeding. Success and failure are just natural processes like life and the seasons. We can't appreciate the warmth of the sun until we've been smitten by the relentless chill of winter. Remember, success can not be appreciated without failure, but unless we fail, there is no way in the universe we can appreciate, and teach as Winston Churchill taught, the value of never ever, ever, giving up. It's all a process. The tough part is asking ourselves, 'are we willing to go the distance to see the reward we have visualized in our souls?' 14. Which of the following marketing vehicles have you used to help you grow your business (direct mail, newspaper advertising, free workshops, radio, television, web site, e-zine, telemarketing, yellow pages, joint ventures with other professionals, publicity, other: please describe)? Info-shops, web site, direct referral, flyers, other networking ventures. business cards and lots of hand shakes. 15. Which one marketing technique have you found works the best for you? Please describe. Word of mouth referral has helped me to land more appointments than I ever could have done on my own. Previous relationships lend credibility, a sense of 'safeness' so to speak, with people who have yet to meet me through what I call a 'warm referral.' 16. Describe a successful, creative marketing technique that you use, or that you've used in the past. Coupons! My goodness how people just LUUUUV coupons, especially if they have a quick expiration date. Also free rewards for consistent service, little unexpected 'thank you notes' with an offer for some special sale item or information that might be offered at the time. Rocket scientists need not apply. By far the simpler and more duplicatible the plan, the better the chances for success. 17. Do you feel that networking plays a big role in growing your business? Huge. Absolutely HUGE! 18. What do you do to generate referrals? Ask, and ye shall find. . . and if not the first time, keep moving and keep asking. 19. What do you find to be the most exciting part of your business? It's never the same, the relationships are priceless, the lessons, both sweet and bitter, are memorable and help to whittle me into tip top shape, preparing me to go to the next level regardless of how long it takes to accomplish. 20. What do you find to be the most frustrating part of your business? Me being impatient with myself. I figure if I died tomorrow, someone would still be making money I could have been making for myself, and eventually, if I don't sweat the dinky stuff, the big canoe will row into port, one paddle stroke at a time (as long as I hang onto both paddles to keep from running around in circles.) 21. Describe your greatest success in this field. Learning discipline with faith and diligence. It has nothing to do with money, smarts, connections, because all of those elements can easily go 'bye bye.' But with faith and diligence, it is very possible to achieve levels of accomplishment that may seem to be so difficult to reach. As long as the passion of the dream stays within you to fuel your discipline, then it's like a weed growing on a stone mountain; with time, the mountain will be give way to the passion of the weed to break through and receive its God-given light. 22. As a professional organizer, do you have a funny story to share? Well, how much time do I have, and will it land me a spot on Comedy Central? There was one time when after a business weekend, I rushed from a 12 hour drive back home, Kansas City back to Muncie, IN, non-stop (except to do 'you know') and broke into a horrific sweat preparing to do a Sunday evening training meeting. Trying to make a good impression I tossed the dirty dishes in the oven, threw all the scatterings of the living room, and scrubbed the bathtub because even when you pull the shower curtain, people still gotta 'sneak-a-peek.' Well, I changed clothes because the air conditioner was on the blitz. And the humidity was bad enough to make a sponge beg for mercy. Well, you guessed it. None of our 'loyal team' showed up. I'm just glad I didn't get a speeding ticket doing 85 mph all the way home. But at least my bathroom, kitchen and living room appeared to be that of a totally organized woman. 23. As an organizer, what professional organizing information or tools are you always on the lookout for? Anything from anybody who does it better than me so I can spread the news, and make the world a happier place. 24. Looking ahead, what do you see as your greatest challenge? Besides losing 40 pounds so I can tell my high blood pressure medicine 'GOODbye!', the greatest challenge is to be able to fund my publishing company that is my dream, as well as becoming a syndicated columnist. Those two things, and to land a spot on Oprah. We're the same age and from the looks of the bags that all of her makeup doesn't quite conceal, she could use a bit of my stress-relieving poetry and some of the herbal tea that I sell in my business. 25. What is your best tip for people interested in becoming professional organizers? Do your homework, watch your dream, avoid people too chicken to jump into the deep end of the dream pool, and forgive yourself often because we all are human. 
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