We all want something.
Maybe it’s a new business, a creative project, or a career we squeeze into whatever time we can find. Perhaps in our home, we want a calmer rhythm, more cooperation, and a space that feels easy to maintain.
Sometimes we get there.
Other times, plans fall through or feel out of reach.
It’s a topic I wanted to explore further with Jo, one of my Substack favorites, who recently experienced that range of emotions.
What I love about Jo’s work is that her enthusiasm and drive are palpable.
Jo writes for women building their dreams alongside motherhood. She shares what it means to enjoy the life you have whilst going after everything you want, something I strive for with my organizing clients at home too.
When I read her post Someone Else Signed the Lease on My Daydream, her journey through wanting, waiting, and figuring out what comes next felt familiar. It’s similar to what families experience when they work with me: wanting more order in their home, waiting for everyone to get on board, and finding a way forward when they run into a challenge or have to let something go.
Together, we explored those crossovers. Here’s our conversation.
Ann: Before we dive in, I’d love to start with understanding the wanting itself. We spend so much energy meeting the needs and wants for our kids, but when it comes to our own, we often wait until everything else is done, which can mean never.
What does wanting, or ambition, mean to you, and has it changed since becoming a mom?
Jo: Prior to having children, I wouldn’t have said that I was very ambitious. I had little sparks of ideas here and there, that would pop up mainly on my long commute home from work. The moment I stepped through the front door and into my flat, I’d forget all about them.
However in this current chapter of my life after having children, it feels like I’ve opened some sort of magic portal. I’m more hungry to move forward with my ideas than ever before and it’s not only for me, but also to encourage my children to see how possible it is to go after things they want in life.
I now write down any thoughts and ideas I have as soon as they arrive into my mind, just to make sure I don’t forget about them. I also research a lot, weigh up the pros and cons and if the whole idea makes sense, I go all in.
Ambition to me is an intense desire. It’s an itch that I need to scratch. It’s a goal that I can’t stop thinking about. A feeling that never leaves my thoughts, even after a good night of sleep, it waits patiently for me at the breakfast table.
Ann: I can relate. It’s that internal motivation, like something connects and lights me up.
And I see this with families too. Parents hire me because they want a home that’s free of clutter, and often, to pass those skills down to their children. That becomes a deeper emotional drive, more than a task to cross off their list.
What’s interesting is that almost every time I finish working with parents, their children become curious and ask how they can do the same with their bedroom. It’s kind of funny how they end up motivating each other.
So, as a busy mom, how have you made room for how you want to spend your time, and for all the ideas in your notebook?
Jo: Towards the end of 2025, I took a very ruthless and hard look at my life and habits. From where I was spending my time during a normal day, to what I would like to stop doing and also start doing, going forward into the new year.
Some of my day to day tasks I couldn’t completely stop doing but, I could cut them down to what was necessary, from constant cleaning to washing clothes and hoovering. Then in my free time I evaluated what I was doing there, which tended to be watching TV, reading the news and endlessly scrolling. I saw these activities that were stopping my growth and they were keeping me hostage! I cut them all down massively which meant I had time to prioritize my dreams in 2026.
I still check the news for a couple of minutes in the morning and the evening. I’ve blocked a lot of news websites on my phone so I can’t doomscroll. I don’t really watch tv as boring as that might sound. I might watch a film with my family on the weekend or a YouTube video when I’m cooking. Nowadays I only scroll good content, which I have trained the algorithm to show me, because it does spark my creativity. However I always bear in mind the idea of, consume less, create more!
Ann: It sounds like you’ve been very intentional about where your time and energy go. I love helping families do the same at home. When we clear what’s taking up space, it gives back time and energy, and sometimes room for something new, like a cozy reading nook in a corner once taken up by clutter.
And consuming less, creating more is something I love sharing with kids. When they make things to play with, letting go of toys gets a little easier, knowing they can be resourceful.
Still, saying goodbye can be hard, especially when it’s something we really wanted. Which brings me to the story that inspired this conversation.
Can you share a little about that and what went through your mind?
Jo: A couple of months ago I came up with the idea that I needed to open a lovely little cozy bookshop in my local village. After going all in and researching until the early hours of the morning, it struck me that I had to make it happen. There aren’t any local independent book shops near me and I really didn’t want to buy a second hand book online from a large company.
Fast forward to a few weeks later, my husband was driving through the village and he noticed that the shop unit that I had been eyeing up was turning into another yoga studio…
I was absolutely gutted and my husband knew I would be, because every time I had walked past that empty carcass of a shop, it made me smile and we had talked about my ideas and the dream I had. I was by no means in a position to rent the unit, but I was in the research phase and was gaining an understanding of how it could all work, piece by piece, day by day. In my mind, it had begun to feel like a possibility and now the rug had been pulled from underneath me, unexpectedly, because the shop unit had been empty for months.
Ann: That gutted feeling when a door closes before you’ve had the chance to walk through it can be so disappointing and discouraging.
My readers might relate. They imagine an organized home, then look around their small, cluttered apartment, and it’s easy to decide that having order is a nice idea but out of reach. Even when they’ve researched containers, saved Pinterest boards, and pictured their kids helping out, seeing the mess on the kitchen counter while the kids are crying because they can’t find their things can make that reality feel so heavy.
Usually, that’s where I guide families to lean into those feelings. Is one person carrying most of the responsibility? Do they need a different kind of system or routine? When we look deeper at the problem, it becomes clearer which way to move forward.
So how do you decide whether to keep pursuing what you want, change direction, or let it go?
Jo: As tough as it was to have the dream taken away before I had taken the first step, I reminded myself that yes the shop now had a whole new identity but, that was just one shop, there is actually another empty shop in the village. In fact, there are MANY empty shops waiting to become book shops.
If a goal has slipped away for whatever reason, the first step is to really assess how much you truly want it.
If you can’t imagine life without it or you can’t stop thinking about it, how could you pivot, what’s your glass half full scenario? Could you keep going?
But if you’re not too bothered, that’s your answer, and you can put your energy into the dreams that do keep you up at night.
Ann: I completely agree. This is like one of the questions I ask families when deciding what to keep: if an object broke or got lost, would you replace it? If the answer is yes, it matters. If you hesitate, that’s useful information too.
What stood out to me in your story is that you were able to step back and look at the bigger picture, and you didn’t let disappointment become how the story ends. If anything, the loss gave you more conviction and helped you see the potential.
What do you think helped you come back to what matters when things didn’t turn out?
Jo: Small returns are important. I think the first thing is remembering why you wanted something in the first place. It’s so easy to let disappointment make and take the decisions away from you. Feeling annoyed and frustrated is totally normal, especially when you’ve put so much thought, love and energy into an idea.
When I heard about the yoga studio, I could have decided that my bookshop dream was done… But why? Just because one shop is unavailable, my dream should stop??
I decided against it and I reminded myself of what I still wanted and started looking at what the next step might be… I don’t want to look back at my life with regrets and wishing I’d tried harder to make something happen.
If there’s one thing I’d like other women to remember, it’s that you don’t have to give up on an entire dream just because one of the puzzle pieces doesn’t quite fit. Turn it round and see if you can slot it in another way.
The shop in the village I had my heart set on has unfortunately gone, BUT my bookshop dream is still very much on the table.
Ann: I love that perspective. A dream doesn’t have to end when one piece falls through. It can take a different shape.
I’ve seen this with clients who had to downsize and let go of many things. Their space looked different, but their dream of an organized home where the family could feel safe and build memories together stayed the same.
The most important part is to focus on the why, then zoom out to find a path we hadn’t noticed before. And when our kids watch us do that, they learn that we don’t have to stay stuck. Being flexible opens us up to new possibilities.
Thank you, Jo, for sharing your story, and reminding us that we can want something and let ourselves imagine it. And if it doesn’t turn out the way we pictured, what comes next is where the growth happens.
If you enjoyed Jo’s writing, you can find more at Your Precious Seconds.
If you’ve been wanting a calmer, more organized home and help getting your family on board, I’d love to talk. Book a free Connection Call with me.