For the last month I have been purging and packing to move. This has created unavoidable clutter in my house and in my brain.
In my house boxes increasingly encroached on my living space. There were very few spaces where my eyes could land with peace. Empty spots on the floor were quickly claimed by yet more boxes. It seemed they were multiplying like rabbits.
In my brain, what do I keep, what do I get rid of? What do I try to sell, what can I give away, what goes to Goodwill? What needs to be done before moving day? What can wait, what plans do I need to make to prepare for this move? How many more boxes can I lift today and still get out of bed tomorrow? It seemed like a steady supply of decisions to make.
Moving day the physical clutter got moved to my new place. The stress of the move was over, the stress of the physical clutter was not. Brains and bodies do not like chaos. As much as I knew peace would again reign, my mind wasn’t satisfied. Now I was too tired to push myself to remedy the situation.
The next day a friend blew in and with fresh energy emptied the boxes, put away, organized and the floor appeared! My whole body relaxed. And my stress felt like it melted away. Peace returned and I finally slept.
I feel like this was a magnified state of what I often allow for my mind. Clutter. Procrastinations, feelings of guilt that I don’t address, anger that I nurse, the fears and doubts that I allow to simmer under the surface. All due to postponed decisions.
Like malware running in the background, robbing me of peace, stealing my joy. Mental clutter is an energy drain.
James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits says that “clarity is the elimination of mental clutter”.
Business coach Barbara Hemphill has trademarked a phrase that sums it up: “Clutter is postponed decisions.” Is it really that simple? We will always have decisions to make. But when we put them off and let them stockpile we increase our mental stress, affect our productivity, our peace and our health.
Let’s not underestimate the power of a decision.
Are you stuck? Would some scheduling tips to make peace with your to-do list be helpful? Download free tips from my home page and get started today to see results tomorrow.
0 Comments