By Maureen Killoran, MA, DMin
I recently heard a professional organizer refer to clutter as filling up space in a disorderly way. Space -- your physical surroundings . . .your emotional or energetic connections . . . your mental processes . . . your priorities and values.
Another way of looking at clutter is through Feng Shui eyes if something lowers your energy, it's clutter. 'Clutter' is what fills up the space so that there is less psychic energy or physical room for things you truly cherish.
It?s important, though, to keep the moral entrepreneurs at bay. One person's chaos is another person's creative work space -- so let other folks and their opinions step aside. Only YOU can decide if your various forms of 'space' are cluttered or not!
One of my favorite clutter-buster tools involves a simple tool: Take a clean sheet of paper and fold it into four. Open the page, and you have what's called a 2x2 table. Write one of the following headings in each of the four sections: PROFESSIONAL LIFE; HOME & FAMILY LIFE; FINANCIAL LIFE; PERSONAL &/OR SPIRITUAL LIFE. This is your work sheet -- ready?
Before you go any farther, stop for a few minutes, and think. Then, under each of your four categories, write several words that describe what is really important to you. (Health . . . love . . . riches . . . caring . . . success . . . peace and quiet . . . relaxation . . . adventure . . . serenity . . . generosity . . . safety . . . only you can say what matters to YOU).
Looking at those words you've written, ask yourself, ?WHAT IS DRAINING MY ENERGY, keeping me from achieving these values or goals?? Using a different color pen, write in each quadrant at least ONE THING that is 'cluttering' this area of your life.
If you?re having trouble deciding if something qualifies as ?clutter,? you may find some of the questions asked by professional organizers to be helpful. (After all, if it works for your closet, maybe it can work for the rest of your life!)
(1) Is this something I absolutely love?
(2) Does it support my values?
(3) Has it already served its purpose?
(4) Can someone else use it now?
(5) Can I stay connected with [whatever this represents] in some other way?
(6) What's the worst thing that can happen if I let this go now? . . .
If clutter is stopping you from being all you can be -- then there's only one way to deal with it: START. Deal with one teeny, tiny bit at a time. BUT START, not tomorrow, but today. Remember the old union song: "Step by step, the longest march can be won. Many stones can form an arch, singly none."
To take a giant step on the path towards clutter-free living, ask yourself: For each of those 'clutters' that you?ve identified -- WHAT ARE YOU WILLING TO DO to reduce its impact on your life? What are you going to do this week? What will you commit to doing TODAY?
? Maureen Killoran, 2005
Maureen Killoran, MA, DMin, is a Life Coach who specializes in liberating people's strengths, values and passion. Don't miss Maureen's great new e-workbook, "Spirit Tickling: A Workbook for Curious Souls" -- a selection of her absolutely best articles, with questions to encourage your path of personal and spiritual growth. And for ongoing connection and monthly inspiration subscribe to Maureen's free e-zine, Seeds of Change. http://www.spiritquestcoaching.com/
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