Clutterbugs: Take Action
How much pain is your messy house causing you and your family? Probably a significant amount. Even though you try to convince yourself that it doesn't matter and that is really isn't so bad, the problem with living in clutter is that you constantly feel out of control and are critical of yourself because of it.
It's natural to feel that way because our brains are wired to want order and control over our surroundings. Plus we have the opinions of others driving us. Every time we see a TV show with a beautiful house, or a friend talks with disgust about her messy family, or we drive by our neighbor's immaculate garden, we unconsciously compare it to our situation and feel a sense of inadequacy and frustration.
The best way to fight these feelings is with action. But you have to go about it in a sensible way. Your house didn't get in this shape overnight and it isn't going to get better overnight either. And the habits of a lifetime aren't going to change like magic just because you want them to.
But what you can do is make one positive change right now and then follow it with another one. Create a chain of positive action. What if you were to take a piece of paper right now and write down your top three challenges? Could be your laundry pile, your dining room table, and your guest bathroom. Now write down three small things you could do in each area - one to be done right now, one to be done in a couple of hours, and one before bedtime or first thing in the morning if it's getting late. That's not too overwhelming, now is it?
How do you think you'll feel after doing those nine things? Your house may not look measurably better, but you will have given yourself a push in the right direction, and that will give your spirit a lift and get your brain working in a positive direction rather than beating yourself up about it.
Then tomorrow pick 3 other areas and 3 small tasks you can do in them or even three small habits to work on - making the bed, folding your laundry right away, and putting your shoes in the closet instead of the living room. Don't forget to allow yourself a little time to just admire what you've accomplished. That's important. And even though you will want to, don't add four more things, or twelve. Just let those be enough for now and give yourself praise for doing them, just like you do when you want to encourage your kids.
And if you forget, or if you don't do one of the items perfectly, let it go. Don't stew and fuss about it, or call yourself names. Just pick a positive action you can do in the moment and follow it up with another one.A little bit of action is a beautiful thing....
Be sure to come by every Monday for a fresh dose of Clutterbugs. If you'd like to see a list of previous Clutterbugs posts, just click on the link at the bottom of this post for a complete list.
By TwitterButtons.com
3 comments:
You are my de clutter inspiration... well if I ever get around to decluttering. When I do... I plan on pulling up your blog for all the tips.
Love this! Our house isn't to bad, but I know I get frustrated when I see a dirty dish go into the sink rather than the dishwasher. My husband gets annoyed if I leave a load in the wash. We all have our "thing". Great idea breaking it up in smaller tasks!
I'm glad you mentioned not doing the tasks perfectly--that's what slows me down the most--avoiding tasks because I'm afraid I won't do them "right." I also find I can get a lot done if I set the timer for 10 minutes--it's a defined amount of time, I can tolerate it, and most things take less time than I imagine.
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