Get to Know Stephanie LH Calahan: Long Version of Bio

Stephanie LH Calahan is a nationally known speaker, author, productivity and organization consultant, and business start-up consultant. Her company, Calahan Solutions, Inc. was founded in 2002 to provide premiere business, office organization and lifestyle management services as well as residential organizing. She is also the publisher of Productive And Organized, an online resource where she offers simple, yet powerful ideas, on how to manage your time, space, information and thoughts for a more productive and fulfilling life.

The media enjoys working with Steph and other Calahan Solutions, Inc. consultants because they can meet even the most pressing deadline. She has been featured on and in numerous venues.

Stephanie believes that diversity of thought, communication styles, backgrounds, and experiences lead to more innovative, longer-lasting solutions. She has worked with hundreds of clients, and understands that every person is unique and requires systems that work for them. You don't have to do it our way, because we help you find your way!™

She is an active member in many professional organizations and is an active community leader. As such, she has received numerous awards recognizing her for her contributions.

Why Calahan Solutions, Inc.?

Calahan Solutions, Inc. was not her first venture into entrepeneurship. She has had a number of exciting business ventures in her life - some successful and some ultimately complete flops. She started her first business when was 8-years-old as a holiday card selling specialist. For a number of years, she raised money to buy Christmas presents for family and friends. "I learned a number of good lessons with that work, but the number one thing I learned was that I did not like going door to door selling something that people bought out of guild from a then cute little girl!"

Working as a Delivery Group Manager for Hewitt Associates opened Stephanie’s eyes to the need for organizational and productivity strategies in the workplace. Her job included project management, staff development, overseeing client management, and developing content database management systems. Knowledge management was her main area of passion and she worked to improve efficiency and work enjoyment for both her team and other teams in the firm. She knew she had a knack for prioritizing and organizing, and she wanted to share her skills with others. Founding her own business makes it possible to achieve these goals.

Her Inspiration

So who does Stephanie look to for inspiration? "My dad, through all of his various jobs, has had a huge positive impact on me and on thousands of people in his life by helping them grow and develop into better individuals. He has done so with a huge amount of modesty, passion and charisma. I can only hope to have such a positive impact on those I work with!"

Has She Always Been Organized?

"No, not really. There are some things that I naturally do quite well, but there are others that I have learned how to manage." She grew up in an organized household; in fact, a label maker is not an odd gift in her family! Stephanie's Mom and Dad have different approaches to organization and Steph has picked up skills from both of them. Studying Chronic Disorganization came early in life — she started studying ADD/ADHD when she was in junior high. "My youngest brother was diagnosed with ADD and I wanted to understand what that meant and help him to understand." Many of her research papers in both high school and college were on the topic of learning differences and she continues to pursue further knowledge in that area today.

Her All Time Favorite Job - Outside of the Present One of Course

Steph has had a number of jobs in her life from cat sitter to Dairy Queen drive-up server. "I learned a lot about great customer service during my years at Dairy Queen. I used to make it a goal to see how many smiles I could put on customer faces by the end of my shift." Since she is a chocoloholic, leaving this job was even a bit difficult!

Her favorite job happened while she was in college. Stephanie learned about diversity first hand with her job as a Lead Supervisor of Night Operations for Illinois State University. She worked shifts from 7 at night to 7 in the morning. "I met the most amazing people and faced challenges I never imagined I could handle. You can learn a lot about people when you are talking to them at 3 in the morning!" she says. She learned time-management and commitment to completing the task at hand are vital in maintaining a healthy relationship between work and life. Her mentor, A.C. Beale, helped her learn about leadership vs. dictatorship and how to be a strong business woman.

Her Free Time

Organizing is about making time and room for what is important to you. Practicing what she preaches, she balances the demands of a business owner with her personal and volunteer schedule by developing systems that work specifically for her family's needs. As a result, Stephanie has plenty of time for her favorite pastimes: spending time with family and friends, reading, singing, volunteering, taking photos with her son and playing with/training her puppy.