Dear Jenny,
I recently had a friend come over to my house. I invited her in and watched as she looked around my home and then told me she would wait for me outside. It was the strangest thing! When I later asked what the problem was and why she left my home in such a hurry, she replied, “all that clutter makes me uncomfortable.”
I honestly don’t think I have clutter. I have a cute house and great accessories inside. I don’t have paper and trash lying around. But my place is full of wonderful memorabilia. Everything that I display has a meaning to me. That is definitely not clutter, is it?
What do you think? What’s the fine line between clutter and having your home nicely decorated?
Thanks, Catherine
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Hi Catherine,
Yep, clutter can be a big problem. A common misconception about clutter is that if it’s not garbage and we could use it, someday, it’s not clutter. But sadly, that’s not the case. Clutter comes in all shapes and sizes. The easiest way for me to describe it to you is, if there is anything around your home, or place of business, that takes up space, it’s clutter. You may use something and choose to display it, that’s fine, but please, know, it is clutter. Simply put, clutter gets in the way of free flowing chi, which is moving, living energy.
The reason that clutter has such a bad rap (rightfully so) is because it is responsible for taking our living energy and holding it in one place, becoming stagnate. Once energy become stagnate it breads more stagnate energy. Pretty soon, everything in that space is not moving. Then the inhabitants become depressed, sad, lazy, I could go on! When depression is involved, it can consume a person. Depression makes it literally impossible for creativity to come into the picture. In other words, if a person is depressed and they are expecting to have a grand idea, to bring them out of the depression, it won’t happen. You must first, get rid of the depression. Be willing to release it then start letting in the creativity and seeing things in a new light! We all have clutter in our lives, but let’s try to keep it to a minim.
The following pointers may help you rid yourself of clutter in your home or place of work:
- Take a walk from room to room and make a mental note on what clutter you see and what you would like to clear. If you have not used something in the last year or especially two years, and you don’t absolutely love it, then it is probably time to let it go on its way.
- Make the decision to clear out at least one drawer. Try not to overwhelm yourself by intending to clear your whole house or whole room at once. Most people find that after clearing out one drawer, they feel pretty good and liberated and decide to do another. You can clear your whole house, small segments at a time.
- While you are sorting out what you want to keep and what you want to throw away, ask yourself the prominent question, “What does this do for me? Does it lift my energy or does my energy drop when I think about it or even look at it?”
- Clearing clutter is about letting go and trusting the process of life to bring you what you need rather than keeping things, “just in case.”
- Realize that everything you own has a hold on your attention. The more clutter you have, the more your energy is tied up in mundane matters.
When your home is filled with objects that you love, it becomes an incredible source of nourishment for you. Your environment actually supports you. Possessions you love have a strong, vibrant energy around them. Belongings that are unwanted have uneasy, conflicting energies attached to them, and that drains you rather than energizes you.
- ❤Jenny
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