BEHIND THE BRAND

Hi, I’m Betsy and I’m so thrilled you’re here. Behind every brand is a story and this one is mine.

The year was 1993 and the space was Mrs. Charles kindergarten classroom. Naturally, I was a type-a child and well-known teacher’s pet. It was report card day and my track record of all A’s and E’s was squashed with a P in “feels comfortable and secure in her environment.” I was an anxious child and while this made my parents giggle with love, this moment of imperfection was one I will never forget.

It was during rest time that Mrs. Charles called me to her desk and asked me what I was so anxious about. My mind was on one thing in that moment—organizing the imaginative play area the yellow table (my table) left in disarray before naptime (#typeAchild). She agreed to allow me sort materials quietly if it brought peace of mind. Enter the beginning foundation of my work and my desire to help others better understand themselves, the way Mrs. Charles did for me that year. 

Fast Forward to 2005. I had my first payroll job working the night shift for a retail store in Nashville. It began as a simple restocking product situation but revealed my talent for stockroom organization, product placement and displays designed to sell. I was asked to work the floor during store hours in the stationery department while redoing displays when not serving customers. Enter my love for paper, labels, and the freedom of graphic design. I worked at this store for seven years while chasing my first dream—becoming a teacher.

Fast Forward again to 2018. I’m a Metro-Nashville Public Schools Teacher of the Year Award Winner, Nashville Scene Magazine’s Best Educators Pick, have three fancy degrees under my name, experiences with every grade Prek-4th, was a reading interventionist, a behavior specialist, the model classroom for district personnel visits, and on track to become an assistant principal. These accomplishments were attributed to one thing—the environment I helped create WITH my students. The systems, order, and creativity in my classroom brought an energy most had never seen and created an environment for all learners to thrive.

While the little 5 year old inside me, striving for perfection and “fixing” everything, was finally proud and felt accomplished, the adult me was suffocating. My energy and ambition was dissolving. I found myself in an environment that put me at the mercy of someone else setting my ceiling. There was this nagging thought that someone else was determining MY value and setting MY boundaries. I wanted control. I wanted freedom of purpose. After nearly a decade of service in teaching, leading, and creating, while organizing systems and structures for schools, I wanted to share my talents without boundaries and teach a greater population on a new level.

While I did not know where I would land, I knew the next right step was to change my environment. I resigned June 7, 2019 and immediately began to work on the “clutter” in my life. Clutter goes beyond your junk drawer and secret closets at home. Clutter is anything not supporting your better self—relationships, habits, thoughts, and environment. For weeks I mourned the loss of my educational career and feared the unknown. How would I ever use all of my talents and experiences while putting them toward something that made this world a better place and simultaneously built the best me?

Enter Type A Lifestyle.

With a vast knowledge of retail, customer service, graphic design, behaviorism, leading and teaching others, my mission here is simple: Help others find their own energy and ambition through organizational happiness.