Clutter clearing can change your life!

Mums Tips

Published on Monday, 05 November 2012 08:00

Last Updated on 25 November 2020

Birgit Medele

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What is clutter? On a physical level it is anything we do not use or love; on a non-physical level it is anything unfinished. It keeps us stuck in the past and prevents good new things from coming into our life. On average every one of us owns about 10.000 things which is a lot of stuff to handle, quite literally.

Chaos theory turns into reality in our lives, we experience it first hand, every day. “I’m the only person on the planet who hasn’t got a proper filing system in place” you might secretly think – but hey, we are all familiar with the scenario where the desk has disappeared under heaps of dodgy bits while documents have developed a life of their own and spread to all sorts of funny places around the home…

Despair not! – Here is some hands on advice coming up how to stay on top of the clutter.

When it comes to clearing, the most difficult step is to make a start at all. Try not to be overambitious and kid yourself into thinking you will sort out an entire wardrobe in one go “when I am less busy/find the time/next week…” (as in: never)

Top tip: only ever tackle one small area at a time. One drawer, one file, half a row in a book shelf, 10 items of clothing.

Secondly: don’t remain vague about the when. Make an appointment with yourself, and show up. To pencil in 10 minutes is realistic and achievable and with that success under your belt, you will be all fired up to move on to the next project.

Clutter Clearing can be regarded as a chore. However, as from today, you could see it as a means of clearing the energy of the space around you, so you can be closer to your vision and goals. How exciting and empowering is that! So, make a start right now: out with the old, in with the new: there are only two days in a year where you cannot do any clearing – one was yesterday, the other one is tomorrow 🙂

Clutter clearing can be the most fascinating journey of self-discovery. What essence do you collect? Paper might symbolise information or education. It could stand for intelligence, open-mindedness… Things are never just things. Even a piece of paper tells a story: your story. Stories of memories, hopes or future plans…

Try this:

• Take everything off your desk and put back just the essentials.

• Always clear from the inside out. However tempting it might be to just tidy the surfaces, for real clearing success you need to create storage space first. Everything must come out (of that drawer or file) initially.

• Sentimental paper clutter like cards: keep the best and fling the rest. Open the door to new happy experiences in your life instead of clinging to the past.

• Don’t try to tackle too much at a time and set yourself up for frustration. We have thoughts and emotions invested in everything we own, and that’s why it can be tricky to sort through things. Even bits of paper have our memories, fears or hopes written all over them. It’s never ever just about things! Give yourself credit for that.

And most importantly: while clearing, always focus on what you have achieved already – not what is still to do. Celebrate, one drawer at a time. Congratulate yourself on how far you have come!

Happy clearing!

For more inspiration whizz over to www.clearofclutter.com or look at my book “Clear your Clutter – Manifest your Dreams”