This article began as preparation for a presentation I am set to give at a local bookstore. I was asked to talk about how clutter affects our lives and some solutions on how to eliminate it, hopefully forever. What came up next really caught me by surprise. Our house, which we have lived in now for about 2 ½ years is neat and tidy. Oh, don’t get me wrong, there are events that create major messes, but 99percent of the time I can walk into my house and feel great to be there. That is, until I started to plan my presentation. It was as if clutter started to appear from nowhere, closets that days before had appeared neat were now overflowing with towels and toiletries. How can this be? What happened to my tidy house?

Well, once I settled down, I could easily see that nothing had happened to my house- it was merely my perception that had shifted. I had become immune to some of the places of clutter in my own home, which was now staring me straight in the eyes and challenging me to a “clutter off”. There are many occasions where I work with my clients on eliminating clutter from their lives because of the energy drain it creates, and somehow I had allowed myself to get off track.

Clutter reflects where your life is Your home and office mirrors your inner self- in short YOU ARE YOUR CLUTTER!! Scary thought isn’t it? The clutter in your home and office and the clutter in your life are connected. Clutter can actually be holding you back in your life! A re you laughing right now? Well, think back to when you spent some time and organized your garage for example; remember how exhilarating it felt to actually fit the other car in? Or the time you went through your closet and got rid of clothes that were no longer appropriate for whatever reason- the sense of relief that it gave you to see the clothes you had left hanging neatly ready to be worn. Not to mention the thrill you experienced when you (or someone else) cleaned out and organized your files. There are even reports of increased business shortly after this event.

Each of us has had a similar experience. It just feels good to create this kind if orderliness in our lives. And when we are not doing this, every time we walk into that disorganized garage or climb over shoes to get to that sweater that probably should have gone to the cleaners, it drains our energy. In basic terms, it makes us feel bad- even if we are not consciously acknowledging it, our subconscious observes this mess and it does register!

Now, the good news- clearing clutter can be easy and fun! The main concept to keep in mind is that the more material goods you throw out of your life, the more space you create to allow positive energy to flow into your life, and consequently there will be a more positive effect on your life. So, let’s get started: grab your hard hats and away we go

Begin by scheduling some time so that you can work on the clutter in small chunks. Unless you are feeling superhuman, it is usually wise to start with baby steps. The following steps came from a great book called Clearing the Clutter for Good Feng Shui. Don’t worry about the Feng Shui part; these are great practical steps that are easy to implement.

1. Go around the house or office and write down main garbage areas and write down each mess, noting if it is large or small.
2. Highlight the ones that irritate you the most.
3. Now, start to tackle slowly, one closet or drawer at a time.
4. Sort it- get five boxes and label each one: 1. junk; 2. thrift store or friends; 3. things to be repaired or altered; 4. things to sort and move; and 5. things you’re not sure you can part with yet (keep for six months then go back and decide).

Some questions you might ask yourself during this process are:

1. Am I going to use this item?
2. What is this item for?
3. Is this item a “want” or a “need”
4. Will I seriously be inconvenienced if I throw this item away?

If this task still seems overwhelming, solicit the help of a friend, one who not have the emotional ties to your possessions. You may want to trade help with each other. Another person will be more inclined to clear out and it makes the event more fun to have help.

Once you are on top of the clutter situation, it will be much easier to keep your home and office clutter free. You will find that your life will move into new desired directions, and you will even find that you save money by not buying items that will mean more clutter.

You will have more energy to put into the other things in your life that are important to you.

Happy Cleaning!