Clear Out the Clutter

“Clear out the clutter” has become my battle cry over the years. If you’ve ever had to dispose of the property of someone else, you understand why I’m so adamant about this. In 2001, I had to clear out my late mother’s home. She had lived there for over 40 years, so you can just imagine the amount of stuff she had accumulated. In 2010, I moved from a 5-bedroom house to a 3-bedroom apartment, so I had to downsize. I had lived there for 16 years. In 2015, I had to clear out my late brother’s home. He lived there for 40 years, and I don’t think he ever threw anything away (as evidenced by the 8-track player he still had plugged in). UGH!!!

Those moving experiences were harrowing because there was so much stuff. It’s amazing how quickly things pile up; what’s more amazing is the fact that we often don’t notice the slow, incremental increase of clutter. We acquire new things without removing the old stuff—the things we no longer use or are no longer practical. Why is that?

Sometimes, the amount of physical clutter we allow in our lives is symbolic of the mental and emotional clutter we hold on to.  Do you currently have emotional clutter in any of the following areas?

• Old Hurts

• Toxic Relationships

• Limiting Beliefs

• Self-Destructive Behaviors

• Bad Habits

• Unforgiveness

Holding on to any of these blessing blockers delays your progress toward your best life; so why do we hold on?  Have you become comfortable in your discomfort? Contrary to the belief that we would do anything to release those burdens, our actions prove otherwise. We repeat the same mistakes thinking that eventually they will pan out for us. We stay involved with the wrong persons because at least we know what to expect. We don’t forgive because we think we are avenging the offender by keeping the memory entrenched in our minds. Generally, we wallow in our despair as we focus on how bad everything is instead of taking action to change the situation.

That same feeling of overwhelm that you experience when you look around a room and see nothing but piles of clothes, papers, and books, is what you’ll feel when your head is cluttered with the emotional burdens you are carrying.

Stop the madness! Here are six steps to help you begin the clearing out process.

1.      Identify the problem – you can’t fix what you don’t acknowledge. What are you holding on to that is draining your energy?

2.      Ask yourself what you are getting out of holding on. As much as we’d like to place the blame on someone or something else, we’re getting something out of holding on to the pain or we wouldn’t hold on so tightly.

3.      Select one area or challenging situation to work on.

4.      Devise your strategy for attacking the problem. Take one step at a time.

5.      Commit to resolving the issue once and for all. Once you’ve let something go, don’t allow it to resurface.

6.      Prevent future pile ups. When you see something surfacing, stop it in its tracks by handling it immediately. Recognize that you deserve better, and you’re the one that can make that happen.

Example: You’re trying to change your bad eating habits, but you’re constantly tempted by the assorted sweets and pastries that your co-workers bring in. Create an affirmation that will reinforce your resolve. Your affirmation might be: “I am enjoying improving my health by choosing to eat healthy foods over unhealthy foods!”. Then turn and walk away.

Recognize that most situations can be changed. The challenge is that we must be willing to do the work to bring about that change—either by our actions or our attitude. Getting rid of emotional clutter will yield great benefits—your mind is free to accept the good, you’ll have more energy,  and experience a feeling of well-being you haven’t felt in years.

Give it a try and let me know your results.