What Clutter Clearing Can Do For You

You can get a pretty good idea of the benefits of clutter clearing simply by imagining your life free of all the negative effects of clutter: lack of focus and clarity; feelings of being professionally, creatively, spiritually, and/or romantically stuck; insufficient time and attention for self and family; increased stress, irritability and depression. Wouldn't it be great to be free of all these?

No matter what other factors may be dragging you down, I guarantee you that clearing your clutter will dramatically improve your mood and energy. And then any other problems you are confronting won't seem quite so bad.

When you first start clutter clearing you may be surprised at the emotions triggered by the simple act of dealing with your stuff. You think you're just cleaning out your home, but what you're really doing is rooting around in dusty corners of your psyche and coming eyeball-to-eyeball with unresolved business from the past. The personal relics that lurk within your clutter - college papers, family memorabilia, detritus from a long-dead marriage - can be easier to ignore than to carry to the dump, which is why they've been haunting the back of your closet for so many years.

As you persevere with clutter clearing a moment will come when you realize how much lighter and happier you feel. In the process of coping with your clutter, you've reconnected with your inner self, with dreams and wishes long ignored. Those you've outgrown can be released with a fond smile. Those that make your heart leap with recognition and longing... well, now you have the space, time, and energy to pursue them.

Clutter clearing gets you out of your rut. It shakes loose frozen aspects of your soul and allows them to journey into your heart where they belong and where you can listen to and act upon them.

Eventually, you will find yourself turning to clutter clearing instead of aspirin or caffeine when you notice that you're not as clear-headed, focused or insightful as you'd like to be. If you're feeling lethargic and don't want to exercise, you'll know to examine whether you've allowed a zone of stagnation to creep in around the couch (where you are most likely to be having lazy thoughts in the first place). If you can't seem to decide on priorities for your business, you'll realize it's time to clear off the desk and catch up on paperwork. And if you're not eating as well as you should, you'll remember that clearing off the kitchen counter and cleaning out the fridge will help get your eating habits back on track.

What this all boils down to is that managing your clutter helps you feel like less of a victim and puts you back in control of your moods and your life. You have greater confidence in your abilities and decisions, so you feel more hopeful and optimistic about the future. You respect yourself more, and will probably find that other people treat you better as well. You feel less stressed, and have more courage to try and do new things. You stop turning to material objects to make you happy, because you are content with less.

Clearing out your clutter creates space for possibility. You may find yourself deciding to go back to school, change your career, start your own business, go out on a date, take up painting or singing or ballroom dancing, try out for a part in a play, or... what's your dream? (No wonder clutter clearing can be a little scary! Suddenly there are no more excuses for why you can't pursue that dream.)

Your friends will say you look terrific. They'll wonder where that sparkle in your eye came from, and how you manage to look both energized and serene at the same time. It's because you have released from your life everything that is no longer useful to you. You have let go of the past and are no longer hoarding for the future. You have made space for living freely in the present, where peace resides.

© 2003 Stephanie Roberts

[excerpted from "Clutter-Free Forever!", Lotus Pond Press, 2003]

About The Author

GOT CLUTTER?!? Clearing out clutter is the most important and powerful way to dramatically improve the feng shui of your home. Stephanie Roberts' "CLUTTER-FREE FOREVER!" Home Coaching Program provides all the insight, motivation, and step-by-step guidance you need in an in-depth ebook and 6 weekly lessons. Plus, you can join our Affiliate Program and earn a commission on every referral sale. Find out more at http://www.clutter-free-forever.com.

stephanie@clutterfreeforever.com

---

5 Steps From Clutter To Control

Are you overwhelmed by clutter wherever you turn? Here are 5 practically painless steps to a clean slate.1. Begin by identifying the areas which are most impacting... Read More

The Love It Or Lose It Principle: One Simple Key to Living Clutter-Free Forever

It wasn't long ago that you spent an entire weekend "decluttering" ? and now you are expecting guests in two days, and the guestroom is full of... Read More

How To Organize Your Paperwork

Many people have a huge challenge coping with the incoming paperwork. (Whatever happened to the paperless office?).Paperwork lands on your desk and somehow finds its way into... Read More

How Clutter Affects Your Love Life

Clutter in any area of your home is a sign of stuck, stagnant energy. The more clutter you have, the more sluggish the energy becomes. When the... Read More

Organizing Your Day

One of the hardest things for most individuals working from home is to stay focused. One of the best ways to stay focused is organization. In addition,... Read More

10 Tips to Get Organized and Clutter-Free- Now!

1. THE LOVE IT OR LOSE IT PRINCIPLE: Every item around you represents a choice you made. You either went out or selected it; or it came... Read More

Clutter Crisis?

Clutter costs you time, money, space, and peace of mind. Most of us complain about our cluttered desks, closets, bedrooms, kitchens, attics, basements, and even our cars,... Read More

Improve Your Workplace to Make Your Life Better

What does "quality of life" mean to you? If you want to improve it, you have to define and measure it. Most people think of it in... Read More

Kids Clutter: Organizing at Every Age

Our children are probably the biggest clutter creators we have in our homes -- even more so than the dreaded paper flow. It starts out innocently, when... Read More

7 Little Things That You Can Do to Organize the Kids Rooms

1. Sink to their level. Get on your knees in their room to view things from a kid's level. Convenience is an important factor in getting anyone... Read More

Letting Go Of Your Excuses

At this point, you have probably run across some belongings that don't exactly serve a practical purpose in your life. Some items simply cannot be judged according... Read More

Declutter for Sucess

Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in, forget them as soon as... Read More

Compartmentalize

The word "compartmentalize" means to separate into distinct parts. I am intrigued with the fact that the word "mental" is in the word. For me, it illustrates... Read More

Spring Cleaning: Mission Garage Organization

Spring is here and the garage door is open. This is a scary thought for Cindy. Her garage is so stuffed that she can't even park her... Read More

Clutter Campaign - Maintain Your Success

To want in one's heart to do a thing for its own sake; to enjoy doing it; to concentrate all one's energies upon it-that's not only the... Read More