Inner Clutter and Outer CLUTTER

Please enjoy this weeks column from the KV Style Magazine. You can read the article here or read it online

Over the past few years I have clearly seen the connection between the inner and outer clutter in life.

Think about how you feel when you come home to a messy kitchen or arrive daily to work in an office that makes you feel less than motivated. Your environment has a direct impact on your inner well being.

The more I learn about stuff and the connections that we have to our things I realize that the organizing industry is about so much more than de-cluttering. It is about letting go of the past; past failures, successes, relationships, regrets and memories. By holding on so tight to the past it is hard to move into the present and in the direction of your future. Living this way is like driving the car while looking in the rear view mirror…you might be able to do it for a few seconds but soon enough you are going to crash.

Perhaps it is time to start looking forward.

I have an awesome library full of organizing resources. This week I want to share some words of inspiration from a few selected books, words that will hopefully inspire you to move forward.

	In “The spirit of getting organized” author Pamela Kristan shares some strategies for letting go of stuff. She says, “Stuff constricts us, drains our energy, confuses us and makes our path through life unclear”. In a technique she calls shedding she suggests to have criteria for deciding what to let go of. For example; if it is out of date, expired, over with or no longer applies you would let it go. This would be a great technique for the kitchen or bathroom where there are specific expiry dates on most items. This technique would allow you to ease into the shedding process. I would suggest this book for those who like to write, the book provides ample space for journaling.
	In the classic book “It’s hard to make a Difference when you can’t find your keys” author Marilyn Paul grabs attention with this profound title. She wrote the book from first hand experience of her own struggles with disorganization and the damaging affect it was having on her life. People who feel disorganized are so hard on themselves and I want to share how Marilyn shifted her self perception. She says ”I brought respect and compassion to my messy ways instead of disdain and impatience”. The bright side is by being gentle with yourself and working through the organizing process you will become more creative, experience emotional aliveness…it is the highest form of self-care.
	At last but not least, Peter Walsh star of TV’s Clean Sweep and author of “Does This Clutter make my Butt look Fat?” shares his advice for living the life you deserve in the body you want. I love how he has made the connection between clutter in the kitchen and the clutter on our bodies. In chapter five he says”if you walked into a new restaurant and saw a messy, disorganized kitchen and dining area, you would leave. You wouldn’t eat dinner in a place like that. So why would you do it at home?” By taking care of your kitchen, the Heart of the Home, you can take care of yourself, your family and feel better about having friends in.

If you want to create your ideal home, office and life…pay attention to where the clutter and stuff show up, then you can better assess how to let go and move forward.