 I was part of the moving crew to help my daughter move last week...Part way through the unloading, she turned to me and asked, "Do you think we have too much stuff? You'd tell me, right?"
Here's how you know if you have too much stuff:
Here's what to do about it: Plan ahead! Start at least 6 months ahead of your move to downsize your items. For some people it's easiest to work on one room at a time. Other people like to choose a category, like books, and go through the whole house plucking out books that they no longer read or that no longer delight them. Give yourself time to sort through and edit everything before you even think about packing. It's way too much to do all at the same time. Ask yourself the hard questions, and EDIT ruthlessly! "Do I want to carry it?" (Even if you're not actually going to carry the boxes yourself, use that as a measuring tool and figuratively ask, "Do I want to carry this ______ with me into my new life?") "Does it serve the future me?" "Do I get excited at the thought of unpacking it?" "Do I Love it? Need it?" "Will I ever miss it if it's gone, or does it thrill me that someone else will love it?" Give back! Many of us are keeping items for others, and this is often well intentioned, done out of a spirit of helping, love and kindness. What I often see, however, is that these items become a burden. They are items that belong to our children, our parents, or our long-gone relatives. We are the ones that keep this stuff because we have a basement, an attic, a storage locker. I am here to tell you that the time is now! If you are contemplating a move...send out the word to the relatives: YOU HAVE 3 MONTHS, (UNTIL {3 months from date...}) TO CLAIM YOUR ITEMS! AFTER SUCH TIME, THEY WILL BE DONATED AND SENT BACK OUT INTO THE WORLD TO ENCHANT SOMEONE ELSE. I WILL NOT DRAG THEM WITH ME INTO MY NEW LIFE! (or something like that...) Blame me, Blame the blog, Feel the pinch and do it anyway. (If you must, try a nicer approach first...nice does not usually convey a sense of urgency.) A move is such a big transition and if you happen to also be downsizing, this is a crucial step. Now, unpack, enjoy, CELEBRATE! You did all of the hard work, enjoy the beginning of your new life feeling lighter, sparkly, and spacious. If you are NOT moving, apply the above principles to your current location and have the sparkly and spacious feeling right now! If you are headed for a move, let me know how I can support you, I have helped dozens of people get real about what to pack and move. I would love to help you, too! Lots of love, Jane
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Last week, I worked with one of my favorite families to create a fully functioning recreation section of their basement. As you can see from the picture, there were many categories of sports stuff (and a few non-related items :)) tangled up in this area of the basement. This family is busy! Sporty! Active! They love to travel and even go for months at a time on sabbatical. So, time is valuable to them, as it is to all of us! The whole family knew that if they needed ski, soccer, tennis, football, picnic, basketball, biking, or skating gear that they came to this area to look for it. And, as you can see, it had POTENTIAL to really get better and make their lives easier saving them some precious time in the process! We built wire shelving, and labeled clear tubs with categories for easy access. the tops are OFF the tubs and they pull out like drawers so that finding and putting away items is very easy for everyone. Not only is the non-related stuff gone, but the storage looks beautiful and most importantly, it will save this family tons of time locating and then returning their items to their respective spots. Now, imagine applying this idea to your home office, your attic, your garage, and closets. What if organizing and creating accessible storage saved you 15 or even 30 minutes a day? Wouldn’t you LOVE that? What would YOU do with extra time? Please leave me a comment below and let me know... Until next week! Love, Jane |
Jane Antonovich
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