Let Go and Let Flow!

Out with the old, and in with the new… Well, it’s still January, so I’m taking the liberty of the continued use of New Year slogans! Feng Shui enthusiasts declare that clutter creates a state of confusion and interferes with the flow of good energy – Chi. It’s certainly not hard to understand how that happens. In America we have become so accustomed to accumulating things that we now buy bigger houses to accommodate all of the extra stuff that we really don’t need (that is if we’re brutally honest with ourselves). How can we need it if we’re storing it away? The use of off-site storage centers, pods and the like are widely used and are paid for with regularity and carefree ease. Have you unconsciously allowed your home to become a catch all? Why not begin this year with a mission? This is your mission if you choose to accept it… (yes, the mission impossible theme music is playing). If you find that you have things just lying around; things that you really don’t need, that are serving no purpose or things that you no longer enjoy looking at, begin the process of letting it go. So as not to be overwhelmed, take a few minutes each day to begin the purging process. If you can spare one hour a day, start there. You will begin to feel the difference in your home and in your soul.

I, along with some of my girlfriends decided late in 2007 that we would feng shui a few things. Our offices, family rooms, bedrooms etc. What began as a simple purge, declutter, organizing venture ended up as a maze of bagua map drawing and quadrant color coding. I’m not saying that you should go all Feng Shui, but getting organized and clearing away clutter really does make you feel better.

Check out Julie Morgenstern's book “Organizing From the Inside Out”. It’s filled with useful tips and ideas. She recommends that you start in the room that you spend the most time in and begin with the visible clutter for an instant lift.

Sanaa Lathan starred in a movie a few years ago entitled “Something New”. In it, her girlfriends convinced her to “Let Go and Let Flow” in search of love. I’m going to take another liberty and encourage you to do likewise. Let go of the clutter that has been weighing you down – purge, sort, file, organize and then let your creative juices flow as you make it pretty! Do it in measurable doses and don’t stop until you’ve completed your mission. It’s not impossible.

One of my clients shared a story with me recently about overhearing a receptionist at her doctor’s office tell a patient that had arrived that morning that she could not be seen as she didn’t have an appointment. Her name was not written in the appointment book so obviously she was mistaken. Fortunately, this woman had her appointment card (BAM!) to show as proof and they could not deny that the mistake was their own. How many of us can say that we are so organized that we can reach into our purses to find an appointment card given to us 6 weeks ago? Another lesson - another inspiration. Let’s let go and let flow! If it’s any consolation, I still have a little more organizing to do, so we’ll be doing it together.

Be Inspired.