Mind Over Clutter

Does the Clutter Drive You Crazy Enough?
by Sharon Crosby

I like to take note of the differences of those who are cluttered and those who are not. One of the differences I've noticed is that clutter drives some people crazy. But you already knew that, right? You probably have friends or family who can't stand to have clutter in their homes. In fact, they might often say to you, "How can you stand it!" I know my sister certainly said that frequently to me. The fact is that the clutter never bothered me as much as it bothered other people. And THAT was a big part of my problem.

Be honest. How likely are you to change something that only mildly bothers you? Not very likely. When things bother you mildly you occasionally think of doing something about it, but you usually don't. And if it doesn't bother you much, if the task is difficult, you'll quit prematurely during the times you do make an attempt to do something about it.

But the fact is that on some level the clutter does bother you...or you wouldn't be reading this. You just haven't learned to take advantage of that bothered feeling yet. Right now perhaps, to your way of thinking, the clutter is just a minor annoyance. But you could feel differently if you allowed yourself to.

Now normally you probably wouldn't think it would be a good thing to feel extremely annoyed, frustrated, or maybe even really mad. But I'm telling you that this could be the greatest force that you have within for helping you finally get organized and decluttered. I consider all of these feelings as ultimately bringing about pain. And that can bring about change. Anthony Robbins, author of Awaken the Giant Within, has said, "...if we associate enough pain to anything, we'll change."

However, it doesn't have to be pain that brings about this desire to change. But it does have to be a STRONG emotion. As I mentioned above anger could be that motivating force...that feeling of "I am so sick of this!" or "This is driving me crazy!"

Think of the times you finally made any change, big or small. It may have been as simple as you got sick of always wearing blue so you suddenly bought something red or purple. Or it could have been something big like finally breaking up with that person who ultimately was bringing you a lot of heartache. Chances are that whenever you made a change it
was because you just couldn't take it anymore. You can actually cultivate those feelings in order to motivate yourself to once and for all get organized or get rid of clutter. Change your attitude. Start saying aloud that the clutter bugs you. State specific things that are a problem. List all the formerly mildly annoying things and allow yourself to gripe about them. Tell yourself you deserve better, get annoyed with the way your home looks, the way you constantly lose things, etc.

You can become more like your organized and clutter free friends. As strange as it sounds increasing the frustration that clutter causes you can motivate you to make changes. Changes that will bring you a whole lot of enjoyment and pleasure. Which is probably what you really wanted all along.

Copyright 2002 Sharon Crosby - Mind Over Clutter
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AboutThe author: Sharon Crosby started the resource known as Mind Over Clutter in response to her own struggle with clutter.
You can visit the web site at http://www.mindoverclutter.com.