Get Ready for Your Future - Clear Your Clutter Now

Lack of organisation and untidiness; 'Clutter' saps your energy and leaves you less able to work effectively, and wastes time as you try to sort through it. Clutter can be a distraction for you and anything that distracts doesn't allow for effective use of your time.

When most of us think of clutter, we think of physical mess:

• A stack of paper on the desk
• A pile of clothes on the floor
• An overfilled drawer/wardrobe
• A garage we can't fit our car into

But clutter extends beyond our surroundings and can take over and affect our state of mind. Any type of clutter can cause confusion and it becomes impossible to get clarity. Living with clutter puts your life on hold, keeping you locked in the past. Clutter is anything you don't need or love, anything that takes up time, energy, space, money without giving you a tangible result.

Clutter is like an addiction - if you have tried to get rid of your clutter but were less than successful, you are not alone. Many people find it hard to let go of things they no longer need.

It is important to examine the role of clutter in your life and why you keep clutter. For example:

• Sentimental reasons
• Fear that you may need it some day
• Represents a part of your identity
• Provide a source of comfort, security and safety

Other reasons are:

• Some people refuse to let go of their old junk until they've really got their moneys worth.
• For some, clutter suppresses unwanted emotions; loneliness, fear of intimacy or some other buried emotion.
   

Having clutter can keep you in the past and will stop you from moving forward. Your thoughts tend to dwell in the past and you feel bogged down with problems. When all your available space is filled with clutter, there is no room for anything new to come into your life

Clearing clutter allows you to begin to deal with your problems and move forward - you have to release the past to create a better tomorrow. Clearing clutter helps you think more clearly and life decisions become easier.

How to clear clutter and free your mind

1. Set yourself a goal - identify one area you could tackle. Keep it small - a drawer, part of a desk, small area of floor space
2. Set a date for when you want to have this completed and visualise what that final result might be and how you would feel.
3. Keep focused on why you are doing this and the benefits - "when you have more space in your life, you will be able to focus on the bigger picture - Your Ideal Life, Your Dreams, Your Goals and Aspirations.
4. Get organised - schedule a time, regular 30 minute slots daily/weekly. Put this time a side to go through the clutter in that specific area.
5. Identify permanent homes for the things you want to keep e.g. cupboards and temporary homes for the things you don't want e.g. give to charity, friends or simply bin. Place your clutter in their associated piles.
6. Transfer the clutter you want to keep to their permanent home and dispose of the clutter you don't want within a week of doing this activity

When clearing clutter remember the sayings 'If in doubt, theow it out', and 'Hanging on requires far more effort than letting go'.

Finally, make two new rules:

• When something new comes in, something old goes out
• Think twice before you buy - this will stop clutter before it starts