Clutter has a purpose. It prevents you from seeing, moving and living with clarity. Many of us collect physical clutter subconsciously to create a divide between ourselves and our world and yet, we seem so frustrated when our mess becomes “out of control” with no one to blame but number one.
The tangible trash we collect can feel icky and suffocating, but I believe mental clutter can be just as, if not more, damaging to ourselves. So, let’s look at some quick and easy ways to clean up the physical and mental clutter in your life because, after all, the two are intertwined! The goal of this post and my entire blog is to empower you to see that all you ever need in this life is Two Feet and a Heart Beat…all the rest is extra!
TANGIBLE TRASH:
Clean out your car– If you’re driving around with old Timmies cups up to your armpits, it’s time to clean out your car. I’m a traveling Yoga Teacher and I collect mats, towels, old tea cups and other trash VERY quickly. I also VERY quickly start to lose my $&*% if I stay in a swampy car for too long. It’s always better out than in…
Declutter your dwelling- Whether you live in a house, apartment, car or shack you deserve to have space and cleanliness around you. My man and I created a system of sorts to get the gunk out of our apartment: we start by thoroughly cleaning (sweeping, dusting, organizing, de-trashing, donating old clothes) a room at the back of our place and day by day, step by step, work towards the front. The result: our apartment will be decluttered and clean from top to bottom!
All you need is Two Feet and a Heart Beat. Clear clutter to access true freedom.
Organize your workspace- Check out your working area right now. Do you have extra papers, old wrappers, and a ton of “stuff” on your desk? Take that tiny waste basket the working world loves so much and throw all your excess in it. Label and re-label what you have to and keep your personal calendar up to date and easy to read.
MENTAL MESS:
Meditate- It’s a natural and incredibly powerful tool for clearing your mind. Regardless of if your meditation is short and infused with frustration or long and serene, you’re doing yourself a major favour by just doing it. In time you will create stronger awareness around your thoughts, while working towards letting them go and creating more space in your mind.
Get REAL with your To-Do List- Some would say I’m a bit of an over-achiever and I agree, on some level. This means two things: 1) I get stuff done and generally accomplish what I set out to do, at one time or another–and 2) I trick myself daily into believing I can take on way more in my 24 hour day than I actually can. So, to avoid burnouts, sickness and getting the Losing-My-$&*% Disease I’m capping my list at 8 items/day MAX. When we whittle our daily, weekly or monthly goals down a little and make our lists more realistic our lives seem that much more manageable and enjoyable!
Set an Intention- In the same way that lists give some of us direction and accountability, so does setting an intention. Get out your journal or start up your computer and write down what your desired way of being is for this month, and then do that at the start of every month. Under your intention, which could be something like: “This month, my intention is to feel more ease in my everyday life,” write down 3 key action steps for getting there.
For example, this month MY intention is to declutter my life, so my 3 key action steps would be:
1) write this post
2) clean out my car & apartment
3) refine my goals around teaching yoga & writing (key for not feeling pulled in a million different directions)
Find SPACE in your life to unwind. Open up to let love and joy in.
Don’t put more roadblocks between ease and YOU. Declutter your life one area at a time to create more space for positivity, freedom, ease or whatever you need in this moment. Remember, your physical world is a reflection of your mental world and vice versa. Begin decluttering your life right now, one step at a time.
Namaste.
❤
Photography by Claire Cole.