As we are forced to stay more at home again,
it’s a perfect time to reflect upon:
how you want to spend the coming season holidays.
Are we going to buy all those useless presents again?
Are we going to stress about what we need to buy for whom?
Are we going to stress when asked
” What would you like to get this year?”
Take your time and think about:
what is already in your home,
what is in your closets,
what you own.
Always remember
Everything you own, owns you
So, I think it might be wise to spend some time reflecting upon all the stuff you own.
Considering we all have way too much,
talk with the people you normally swap presents with and be open to alternatives.
Maybe this year you can:
donate to a good cause,
share experiences instead of giving wrapped presents,
help each other with a huge task,
take a course together,
just enjoy being together, talking, listening to each other.
There are a lot of alternatives,
all you have to do is talk about it and be open to new kinds of presents.
It’s way better for
the environment: less consumption, less waste, less pollution,
the community: you donate to a good cause, you help out where help is needed,
your energy:
you do not stress out, so you don’t feel tired;
there is less clutter in your house, so you don’t feel so overwhelmed;
everyone is happy because there are no ‘wrong’ presents, so you feel lighter, more energized;
only good feelings!
Try it and you’ll see how fun it can be.
Just communicate, talk it over with your friends and family.
While you are considering all the stuff you already have,
it might also be a great time to get rid of
all the things you never use,
all the things that are broken but still lying around,
all the things you have more than one of but you only use the same single one every time,
all the clothes that do not fit you anymore,
all the clothes that you never wear,
The list is endless.
If you already sigh and feel tired only thinking about this task:
choose a fun way to declutter:
play The Minimalists’ game.
Let’s say you start next month:
November 1st
designate a decluttering partner
and play the game.
On November 1st: you get rid of 1 item from your house: you take a picture of it, send it over to your decluttering partner and make sure the object leaves your house! (otherwise you’ll pile up stuff in a new place and it will still be cluttering your house, hence it will still be blocking your energy.) Your designated partner does the same and sends you a picture of what they got rid of that day.
November 2nd: you get rid of 2 objects,
November 3rd: 3 objects,
…
November 10th: 10 things,
…
November 30th: 30 things.
At the end of the month: 465 items will have left your house!
Amazing isn’t it!
And it’ll be fun!
You do it together so it stays fun and you’ll be absolutely gobsmacked when you see all the stuff there is in your house!
Look in your wardrobe, in your bathroom cupboards, in your kitchen drawers, in your pantry cabinets, in your living room, in your basement, in your garage, in your attic, … just look around and get rid of all the ‘too much’.
What isn’t useful to anyone anymore: just put it in the trash.
What is still useful: donate or sell if you think you can still make some money out of it. Just be sure that it is worth putting it on a second hand sales site because if you can’t make any money out of it: it’ll be just lying there, waiting for a buyer and it will still eat all your energy.
Who is up for the challenge?
You?
Come on, it’ll be fun!
And it will motivate you even more to not go into that over-consuming rat race at the end of the year!
Your house will be lighter, will feel cleaner,
and you will not want it to get all cluttered again at the end of the year.
I think you’ll even go further than the game and you’ll organize your whole house!
Once you feel that energizing, light, clean breeze going through the decluttered cupboards, rooms, … you’ll want to continue!
And once all finished, you’ll want to keep it that way because it feels so good:
you’ll feel lighter, happier, less tired, less overwhelmed.
Just beware to keep it light and decluttered.
Don’t let the little things creep back into your place!
Don’t accept things/ samples you’ll never use,
Don’t let leaflets, flyers come inside,
Leave everything outside or put it immediately in the designated garbage bin.
Be on guard, keep them out,
Because once inside they are very social creatures and they immediately gather companions and before you know it, the place gets filled up again.
I wish you all a very fun game and enjoy the decluttered spaces!!
Katrien
www.lifecoachwomen.be