How Clutter Keeps You Stuck; How Organizing Can Get You the Life You Want

What are your greatest frustrations? Where in your life are you feeling out of order, internally or externally? How does your clutter reflect those places that you’re stuck?

Barbara Hemphill, author of “Taming the Paper Tiger”, popularized the phrase: ”Clutter is postponed decisions.” Everything in your life that has been dropped, tossed, piled, shoved away into a corner/closet/drawer, represents a decision that you were unwilling to make in the moment: Keep this or eliminate it? Find a place for it to live? Put it back where it belongs? Take a required action on it? You haven’t made the decision or acted on that decision, and the item becomes clutter.  And clutter creates more stuck energy. Recently, I read the latest post by Michael Bungay Stanier, who writes The Possiblity Virus. The topic was, “Why Are You Resisting Great Work?”  Michael says, “I’m all about doing more of the work that has meaning and makes a difference … and less of the other stuff that fills up our days.”  Michael goes on to ask, ”What can you do more of that makes a difference, shifts the balance, has an impact, adds beauty, changes the status quo, creates something that’s worth being created, improves life, moves things forward, stops waste, engages people, allows love?” This question really struck a nerve with me.  Over eleven years of organizing, I have seen over and over again how clutter, chaos, and disorganization does the opposite of this question, so let’s deconstruct what Michael asks below. What Michael suggests comes first on each item, what clutter manifests comes in response:

• Work that has meaning, makes a difference: clutter inhibits your ability to carry out meaningful work
• Shifts the balance: creates imbalance
• Has an impact: has a negative impact on your psyche, your well being, your quality of life
• Creates beauty: destroys beauty
• Changes the status quo: keeps you stuck
• Creates something: destroys what you’ve created, inhibits new creativity
• Improves life: wrecks life
• Moves things forward: keeps you stuck
• Stops waste: creates enormous waste
• Engages people: keeps people away
• Allows love: allows for judgment by others

How is your clutter preventing you from creating the life, the work, the love relationship, the financial abundance of your dreams?
Do you dream of doing any of the following example things but your clutter prevents you?

• Parking your nice car in your garage currently filled with junk
• Having house guests, entertaining on holidays
• Building a successful business
• Collecting revenue from clients
• Avoiding late fees, finding lost checks, reducing your debt
• Finding anything you need in under three minutes
• Never having to buy an item you know you already have… somewhere
• Having a safe haven for small children to play or elderly parents to safely maneuver

I know some readers would rather eat glass than deal with your clutter. But consider the financial cost, the emotional cost, and all of the ways that clutter is preventing you from living your best life and doing the work (paid, volunteering, parenting, writing that novel) that has meaning. Get unstuck. You don’t need to know how, you just need to say, “Yes.”

If this posting strikes a chord and you need a leg up from your organizer whom you haven’t seen in at least three months, call me and I’ll tell you about my special offer to you.

If you go to Stanier’s site, be sure to click on the link to “The Eight Irresistible Principles of Fun”.  I have it bookmarked, it’s so inspirational.