Sidney Ayers-Young's journey from corporate burnout to pioneering professional organizer

Sidney Young had the market cornered when she first started her professional organizing business 25 years ago.

"Seeing a woman-owned business, or even a black-owned business, was almost not a thing," she said.

But that didn't stop Young from creating her professional organizing business, Need Organizing.

A professional organizer helps people organize their physical spaces — a closet, a kitchen, a home office, offering support for decision-making, facilitating actions around removing unwanted belongings, and setting up systems, from shelving to labels.

Young helps her clients establish order and clarity.

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Leaving the corporate world

Years of marketing and corporate burnout inspired Young to make a change.

"The thing I wanted most was flexibility, like a work-life balance," Young said. "I wanted to say how I wanted to work, how long I wanted to work. Who I wanted to work with. Having control over the work I did."

After a particularly bad week at work, Young knew it was time for a change, and it had to start the next day. Luckily, fate intervened at a bookstore in La Jolla, California, where she lived at the time.

She overheard the book signing while browsing the business and entrepreneur section. The speaker, Julie Morgenstern was there talking about the art of organizing. It instantly resonated with Ayers-Young.

"(She) was the Marie Kondo of the 90s, and she was doing a book signing [for her book "Organizing from the Inside Out"]," Ayers-Young said. "I'm overhearing her, and she's not necessarily talking about organizing, but she's talking about how she's organized a lot of businesses.

She was talking about the concept that you can create a business by helping people get organized, small businesses, individual people at home… that's when it hit me that I could do that."

That moment is when Sid's Time Saving Biz was born, the first iteration of Young's new business. She now goes by Need Organizing. Young kept working in corporate marketing as she built her business from the ground up. She spent her free time marketing herself and her business in hopes of building a clientele.

She had a unique way of building that base, taking advantage of the warm, inviting California weather.

"I would throw my rollerblades and grab my cheap Vista Print business cards and go to houses on the beach and slide my business cards in the door that had all my skills and services," Young said. "I would do it five days a week and on certain Saturdays for about two hours. I did that for a month and a half until I got my first call."

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Establishing a client base

That first phone call came from Debbie Ford, a spiritual teacher and motivational speaker who gained widespread recognition for her book "The Dark Side of the Light Chasers," after becoming a regular on The Oprah Winfrey Show.

Ford needed help unpacking after a move.

"She had just bought a house overlooking the ocean, and she found my business card on her counter in her new house, so she thought her realtor had referred her to me," Young said. "I helped her unpack and organize. She became a regular client of mine…It was an extremely lucky draw."

The clients started to roll in quickly after connecting with Ford, through word-of-mouth recommendations, to the point where she could finally quit her "day job," as Young called it, to be a full-time business owner.

She'd help people organize when they moved homes. Any task of any size, Young was willing.

In the 25 years of owning her organizing business, Young has moved all over, from Florida to Germany and now Iowa City. There are always people who need her help.

There were very few businesses like hers when she started in the 1990s. A recent surge in popularity has seen the field grow thanks to the rise of Marie Kondo's KonMari technique.

Young takes it a step further, saying she enters a home as a companion, willing to beautify the place with simple suggestions and techniques.

"I am like your nonjudgmental best friend, and everyone needs one," she said.

Young has organized and worked on various projects, from organizing an old Iowa barn, closets, and garages to working with people with ADHD and those going through significant life changes.

She said connecting with people is the best part of the job.

"[When I first started], I didn't connect how much shame was going to be attached to a person because of their space, which means I also wasn't ready for tears that come for different reasons," Young said. "I am the one person that you want to see. There is not one thing you can show me that I haven't seen before."

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An understanding and generous helping hand

Young thrives on her ability to enter an unfamiliar space without prejudice or judgment. She's traveled across the country to help clients or their relatives and often makes yearly visits to others.

Some clients are hesitant about Ayers-Young's ability and services. One of her favorite clients and projects was working with an older couple to organize a barn. The wife, anxious about the conditions of the barn, wanted to prevent injuries that might be caused by clutter. Initially, the husband was disinterested when Young arrived, but after multiple visits, they developed a rapport. He shared stories of cherished childhood belongings, and together they organized the space with meaning.

The duo helped coin the acronym WWSD, meaning "What would Sid do?"

"We built this relationship where he knew he could trust me in his space," Young said. "They keep up with it, but I still go in probably twice a year just to kind of like fine-tune because it is normal to get a bit off track sometimes."

Young started her business because she wanted flexibility and a stable work-life balance, but since then it has shifted to what she now values most − helping others.

"I'm always there to support you and advocate for you," Young said.

The local business owner hopes to expand her reach by creating a workbook that offers residents the best tips and tricks.

"I’m grateful to be a black-owned business where I can support local Iowans," Young said.

What Would Sid Do?

Young's clients find great success in her teachings and support, and to maintain their organizational habits, they often ask, "What Would Sid Do?"

Here are three easy tips Young has to help organize your home.

1. Make Your Bed

"I started doing this years ago and haven’t stopped," Young said. "It will instantly make your bedrooms look put together and it takes under a minute to complete. Get your kids to make their beds in the morning as well."

2. Declutter the counters

"This may seem obvious, but it can be daunting—especially the longer you’ve gone without doing it," Young said. "For that reason, the key is to tackle them once then maintain them as best as you can each morning or evening. Choose a five-minute window in your daily schedule and stick to it. Trust me: I know those free minutes are few and far between, but it’s worth it."

3. Create a daily and weekly Routine

"A daily routine is key to maintaining an organized house," Young said. "I spend about 30 minutes a day cleaning up and putting things away. It keeps the clutter at bay and helps me to know what I have and where it belongs. The most important outcome is that it keeps the clutter from getting out of control."

Readers can learn more about Sidney Ayers-Young and Need Organizing on her website and on Instagram.

Jessica Rish is an entertainment, dining and business reporter for the Iowa City Press-Citizen. She can be reached at JRish@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @rishjessica_

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Iowa City's Black-owned Need Organizing breaks boundaries and helps others