What Clutter Clearing Can Do For You

You can get a pretty good idea of the benefits of clutter
clearing simply by imagining your life free of all the negative
effects of clutter: lack of focus and clarity; feelings of
being professionally, creatively, spiritually, and/or
romantically stuck; insufficient time and attention for self
and family; increased stress, irritability and depression.
Wouldn't it be great to be free of all these?

No matter what other factors may be dragging you down, I
guarantee you that clearing your clutter will dramatically
improve your mood and energy. And then any other problems
you are confronting won't seem quite so bad.

When you first start clutter clearing you may be surprised at
the emotions triggered by the simple act of dealing with your
stuff. You think you're just cleaning out your home, but what
you're really doing is rooting around in dusty corners of your
psyche and coming eyeball-to-eyeball with unresolved business
from the past. The personal relics that lurk within your
clutter - college papers, family memorabilia, detritus from a
long-dead marriage - can be easier to ignore than to carry to
the dump, which is why they've been haunting the back of your
closet for so many years.

As you persevere with clutter clearing a moment will come when
you realize how much lighter and happier you feel. In the
process of coping with your clutter, you've reconnected with
your inner self, with dreams and wishes long ignored. Those
you've outgrown can be released with a fond smile. Those that
make your heart leap with recognition and longing... well, now
you have the space, time, and energy to pursue them.

Clutter clearing gets you out of your rut. It shakes loose
frozen aspects of your soul and allows them to journey into
your heart where they belong and where you can listen to and
act upon them.

Eventually, you will find yourself turning to clutter clearing
instead of aspirin or caffeine when you notice that you're not
as clear-headed, focused or insightful as you'd like to be. If
you're feeling lethargic and don't want to exercise, you'll
know to examine whether you've allowed a zone of stagnation to
creep in around the couch (where you are most likely to be
having lazy thoughts in the first place). If you can't seem to
decide on priorities for your business, you'll realize it's
time to clear off the desk and catch up on paperwork. And if
you're not eating as well as you should, you'll remember that
clearing off the kitchen counter and cleaning out the fridge
will help get your eating habits back on track.

What this all boils down to is that managing your clutter helps
you feel like less of a victim and puts you back in control of
your moods and your life. You have greater confidence in your
abilities and decisions, so you feel more hopeful and
optimistic about the future. You respect yourself more, and
will probably find that other people treat you better as well.
You feel less stressed, and have more courage to try and do new
things. You stop turning to material objects to make you happy,
because you are content with less.

Clearing out your clutter creates space for possibility. You
may find yourself deciding to go back to school, change your
career, start your own business, go out on a date, take up
painting or singing or ballroom dancing, try out for a part in
a play, or... what's your dream? (No wonder clutter clearing
can be a little scary! Suddenly there are no more excuses for
why you can't pursue that dream.)

Your friends will say you look terrific. They'll wonder where
that sparkle in your eye came from, and how you manage to look
both energized and serene at the same time. It's because you
have released from your life everything that is no longer
useful to you. You have let go of the past and are no longer
hoarding for the future. You have made space for living freely
in the present, where peace resides.

© 2003 Stephanie Roberts

[exerpted from "Clutter-Free Forever!", Lotus Pond
Press, 2003]