What's the Key to Create Change?

Is getting organized your number one New Year’s resolution? Here’s how to achieve it: AWARENESS! How can awareness help to declutter and organize? And how do you become aware? (Click on Read More)

​Awareness is not a new concept. Know thyself was proposed by early philosophers as a way to make the most of our life, to improve it, or to gain wisdom. Knowing ourselves helps in decluttering because it reveals who we are and what’s important to us, which helps us to make decisions about what to keep and how to maintain our homes and lives. How do we get to know ourselves better? One way is to ask personal questions about what’s important to us, what we value and how we want to live. This self searching can bring about awareness regarding our possessions if that’s where we focus. Almost magically, awareness leads to change. AWARENESS IS THE KEY TO CHANGE.
 
This New Year, if you genuinely desire to improve your space and your life take the initiative to ask some clarifying clutter questions. Keep in mind that clutter is often a sign of some other issue(s) going on. You will be digging deep into why you have so much stuff or why you are keeping things. Your probing may help to discover underlying causes. Then you can use this newfound awareness to unlock actionable changes. Ask yourself:

• Why am I hanging onto this?
• Does it support my current lifestyle?
• If I were moving would I take it with me?
• Does this add value to my life? How?
• And, of course, does it bring joy?
• Do I have “excuses” for hanging onto things?
• Do I lack motivation, focus, or patience to declutter? Why?
• Does decluttering make me feel uncomfortable or anxious? Why?
• What is standing in the way of my moving through this stuff?

 
Analyze your responses and feelings to these important questions. Exploration can feel uncomfortable. If you feel resistant to the process, so much the better. That means you are getting closer to becoming more aware. It is not necessary to work through your feelings. Just being aware of them will help you move forward. You will likely see your situation more clearly and your belongings more objectively. What are you waiting for? Life is short. Get started!