Meet Lisa Zawrotny | Productivity Strategist + Accountability Coach

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lisa Zawrotny and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lisa, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
After experiencing a deeply overwhelming time in my life juggling multiple roles as a caregiver, wife, mother, and business owner, I became a Professional Organizer to help clients reduce clutter and create space in their lives so they would stress less and live more fulfilling lives.

From the first moment I stepped into someone’s home, I could see how the clutter was connected to their head and heart. I’ve worked with so many people and so many types of clutter, but one thing is always the same: the internal experiences drive the external. Our experiences and mindset (impacted by things like grief and trauma) affect every choice we make. I realized if I could connect right away to the heart of the matter, literally, we could speed up the decluttering and prevent it in the future. Then we could use that understanding to create the right habits and systems that clients could sustain.

As I shifted to coaching, I added three certifications to my collection with the internal side in mind: life coaching, time management, and stress management. Though I still help clients declutter the external through virtual organizing, my focus is on helping entrepreneurs make space for what matters and design customized approaches that fit them. While traditional productivity focuses on efficiency (a topic I help clients with) I don’t start there. I start with self-awareness and decluttering first.

I currently work one-on-one with clients, provide a packed resources vault for the DIYers, and happily share tons of helpful, free content on my podcast, Positively Living: Do Less, Live More…Breathe Easier. Working with me is like having multiple coaches: a professional organizer, life coach, stress management and positive psychology coach and productivity coach all rolled into one. I help you construct the habits you’ll actually be able to keep and delight in showing you that having fun actually primes your productivity! After all, productivity isn’t one aspect of your life. It’s all aspects working together in harmony.

What should our readers know about your business?
Years ago, as a caregiver for my mom (who had Alzheimer’s) while having and raising two children (caregiver + infant + toddler), I had to learn to let go, to limit, and to focus on being gentle instead of hustling harder. I learned that it actually works better that way and wanted to share that with others.

The productivity industry has traditionally been focused on efficiency and doing more in less time. While there is nothing inherently wrong with that, my concern has been that this mindset, coupled with how society glamorizes being busy and hustling to get ahead, perpetuates an unhealthy narrative. I know firsthand how problematic the “do more” approach can be, having pushed my own limits as a caregiver and entrepreneur. It’s my goal to teach productivity differently…safely, effectively, and sustainably.

Most productivity approaches demand a level of continued effort and energy that isn’t sustainable, especially when life shifts and transitions in challenging ways (which it always does). If we keep trying to do more without creating space for the unexpected, without considering why we’re doing what we’re doing, without taking true breaks, and without seeing the signs of overwhelm…burnout is inevitable.

Having lived years in survival mode, and experiencing the lasting effects of burnout, I’m on a mission to ensure my clients don’t go through that. Even the way I work with them is as low stress as possible, with consistency and flexibility in how we meet, and low commitment coaching options so they can explore and learn to choose what’s best for themselves.

Instead of promoting the hustle and grind, and the forced approach to pushing and making it happen, I use principles of positive psychology and stress management to help my creative clients do less, live more, and breathe easier. The best part? This approach not only feels better, it’s more effective.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I live what’s considered the Southern Tier of New York State. On the Western side, we have all the gorgeous terrain of the Finger Lakes without the lake effect weather. Because there are so many amazing wineries and brew pubs and museums to see, we could pick a lake each day and do a special drive. But the first part of our itinerary would be the Corning Market Street area (Gaffer’s District) and the Corning Museum of Glass, the place where your Pyrex dishes were invented! There we’ll find glass blowing demos/classes, an extensive museum filled with glass-related artifacts throughout the ages, and stunning art galleries. The gift shop is impressive, too. And then we’ll head out to Market Street, which is packed with shops and restaurants. What kind of food are you in the mood for because we have it there! Then before we head home to hang out and rest for the next day’s adventure, we’ll swing by Wegman’s for some beverages and snacks. If you’re from this area, you know why this is important. If you don’t, I can’t wait to show you!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Where do we start and how much time do you have? First, my family needs so much recognition for backing me up and being there for me. They believe in me, cheer me on, and have been on board with my schedule, especially when I speak at events. My husband, Jeff, and oldest son, Ian, wrote the music for my podcast! My youngest, Leo, has helped me with design work. Everyone helps bring Positively Productive to the world. I am so grateful for my biz bestie, Liz August, of Simplify Simplify (who was featured here too) who keeps me accountable and helps me walk my own talk every day. She makes the impossible days manageable and the best days that much sweeter because she gets what I do! She and her team have also done some amazing design and tech work for me. Then there’s my podcast team, run by Alesia Galati (another bestie) who hosts her own podcast Listeners to Leads. The team at Galati Media helped me create my top 3% worldwide podcast Positively Living! I couldn’t have done that without them and especially appreciate my editor, Jess, who makes me sound so good every week! Alesia and our mutual biz bestie, Emily Aborn (She Built This and Content with Character podcasts) are also on my shoutout gratitude list. As fellow entrepreneurs, podcasters, and dear friends, they are incredible sounding boards for me and the very best people I know. Surround yourself with good people and it changes the game.

Website: https://positivelyproductive.com

Instagram: https://Instagram.com/positively_lisa

Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/positivelyproductive

Twitter: https://twitter.com/positively_lisa

Facebook: https://facebook.com/positivelyproductive

Other: https://positivelyliving.buzzsprout.com/