Posts Tagged ‘declutter’
Hi creative peeps,
Since it’s spring, it’s a natural time to tackle decluttering. Did you know that I consider decluttering a transformational practice for creatives?
-Are you feeling stuck or stagnant in your creative life?
-Are the techniques you have relied on to expand your creative life not working (i.e. vision boards, affirmations, submitting your work)?
-Are you struggling with clutter?
Ah, Houston, we have a problem!
Clutter is the physical manifestation of unmade decisions fueled by procrastination.
-Christine Scalise
I have created a self-paced declutter challenge course specifically for creatives. It’s based on Feng Shui (the Chinese art and philosophy of placement) and it’s not like any decluttering process you’ve done before. It tackles physical clutter and supports inner transformation. It recognizes the unique challenges that creatives can have with physical clutter and mental clutter (e.g. inner critics) and how they can reinforce each other. This declutter challenge is FUN and manageable. If you’ve got anywhere from 20-minutes to an hour a day for a few days this declutter challenge is for YOU!
Sign up by April 8 and you can join me on a live call and also have access to a bonus conversation with me and a therapist about the relationship between trauma and clutter. More details here.
Want to know more about how I approach this issue of creativity and decluttering? I’ve got three videos that explore the decluttering process, our resistance to it and why I’m so passionate about it as a practice for creatives.
The 5 Things You Say Over and Over Again that Stop You From Decluttering (and How to Overcome Them)!
5 More Things You Say Over and Over Again that Stop You From Decluttering (and How to Overcome Them)!
Shame, Fear and Anger and the Decluttering Process + Why I’m Passionate About Decluttering:
Ready to have a workspace that is welcoming, functional, and mirrors your highest intentions? Ready to be filled with energy and creative magic MOJO? Don’t miss out on this declutter challenge course
Join Me 5/14 ON YouTube Livestream-Spring Cleaning for Creative People: 3-Steps to Transformation
Posted on: May 9, 2023
- In: creativity | writing
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Since it’s spring, it’s a natural time to tackle decluttering. Did you know that I consider decluttering a *transformational practice* for creatives? Decluttering includes examining our space, schedule and patterns of mind.
I’ll be talking about the whys and hows of spring cleaning for creative people at a Youtube Live event on Sunday, May 14, 3pm EST. It will be my first livestream event and I think it will be a blast!
Come join me, ask questions and let’s talk about the joys and challenges of decluttering. At the end I’ll do Q&A and take your writing questions.
Also, during that time, you’ll be able to receive my new Spring Cleaning for Creative People: A 3-Step Decluttering Guide.
It’s been a week into this challenge (giving away or tossing/recycling 27 items daily for 9 days) and I am still loving it. More about the origins of the challenge here. What’s surprised me are the items that I am tossing/giving away and the areas that are getting decluttered because of actions that I am taking. Case in point–tonight’s work was organizing my packing/wrapping boxes/bags/ribbons area over my washer/dryer. That area is always a hot mess as I am constantly trying to save wrapping paper to recycle/reuse, gift boxes to recycle/reuse and store future hostess gifts. Since things are stored willy-nilly, I’m always frustrated when I look at that area and can’t find anything very easily. When I took everything down and went through it, I discovered that much of what I was saving was old, unusable, or multiples of items that was overkill. I’m actually not doing that much shipping or wrapping as it turns out, lol.
Every time I do this exercise, I feel lighter and more peaceful…and that has got to be good for my creativity.
Some folks who follow my author Facebook page are also doing this challenge. If you are too, let me know how it is going!
Just thought of a good prompt for those of us writing fiction–What items does your main character need to get rid of? How would they go about decluttering their workplace or home? Are they very tidy or are they drowning in clutter?
Around this time of year, I like to share my ‘spring cleaning for the creative person’ process. It includes the steps of reassess, reorganize and rededicate. You can find more about that here. Spring is a great season to declutter as we generally have more energy (and patience) to assess what needs to go.
For the next nine days, however, I will be attempting a specific letting go & decluttering challenge. I love challenges that jump-start an area that I need more work in.
And, this one promises to do just that.
I recently heard about this challenge while watching a recent television special that featured author Marci Shimoff. She said that she learned this technique through a Feng Shui practictioner. Feng Shui is the Chinese art and philosophy of placement. I have used feng shui approaches before with much success.
Instructions: Give away (or toss) 27 items each day for 9 consecutive days.
This approach is simple, but obviously not easy. As soon as I heard about it, I knew that I wanted to try it. I want to make more mental and physical space for new projects ripening later this year.
Tonight after arriving home from seeing a friend in Virginia, I got to work. In under an hour, I was able to gather my 27 items. I was able to toss several non-working pens and highlighters!
These are items that I have been wanting to give away for some time.
Here is a link to a post that quotes from Marci’s newsletter where she talked about what this process did for her.
If you google ‘letting go of 27 items in 9 days’, you’ll find lots of posts about people’s experiences with this process. I have also seen people say that in some feng shui lineages, the number 9 is auspicious and so are multiples of 9.
I’ll keep you updated on my progress. I’d love for you to join me on this challenge if it speaks to you! It’s only nine days! We’ll support each other.
- In: creativity | writing
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Wow, we’re in the middle of the second quarter of the year! Can you believe it? It seems like only yesterday when we were writing down resolutions for our creative lives for 2018. Have some of those commitments and intentions gotten sidetracked since then?
Totally understandable. Spring can put us back on track. This season enables us to connect with a feeling of renewal that we begin to see physically manifested all around us. Spring also powers us with the energy to tackle the physical spaces (and states of mind) that no longer serve our creative life.
Several years ago, I started writing about the power of spring cleaning in support of one’s creative life.
Spring presents us with a perfect time to reassess, reorganize and rededicate ourselves to the projects that we most want to bring into the world.
Here is my three step process that I have found useful for spring cleaning:
1) You reassess your space, your schedule, and patterns of mind to see what is supporting or not supporting your creative life.
2) You reorganize your space, schedule, and patterns of minds to allow you to create with more ease.
3) After reassessing and reorganizing, you rededicate yourself to having a productive and joyful creative life!
Clutter can immobilize our creative lives.
Ah, Houston…we have a problem!
I know from personal experience how debilitating and draining it can be to work in a perpetually cluttered space. I’ve written about how powerful it was to tackle clutter and re-imagine my home writing space.
My desk=before
My desk=after
In upcoming posts, I’ll talk more about the 3 ‘R’s as it pertains to schedule and patterns of mind. But, let’s start with reassessing your space.
What about your creative space? Does it need a spring tune-up?
Go and look at your creative space. What’s the state of it? Do you feel a sense of ease when you look at it? Is it crammed with stuff that belongs in other rooms of your house? If you live with other people, is this space known as your special writing/photography/painting, etc., area?
Have you even claimed some special place yet, or are you waiting for permission from someone else? If you’re struggling with this, see my post on claiming creative space.
Survey your space and make a quick list of what you feel needs your attention most. The questions below are not exhaustive*, but offer a good place to begin.
-Do you need to organize and sort your paper files?
-Would it be useful to create an index for your piles of journals, scripts, flashdrives, DVDS, boxes of sewing materials (i.e. whatever you consider your primary creative material)?
-Are there notes from conferences, master classes, residencies and/or workshops that need to be reviewed and filed?
-When was the last time you did a backup of your computer files? Do you need to delete or add programs?
-Are there financial records related to your creative life that need to be updated?
-Are there creative projects that you’ve abandoned that still take up lots of physical space? Can they be re-purposed or stored elsewhere?
-Do you need to physically clean your computer?
-Do you have visible reminders of your creative accomplishments? Is it time to take some down and put up new ones?
-Do you have too much or too little of something in your space?
-Do you need more or less shelf space?
-Are there big physical jobs you’d like to do (e.g. paint)?
Once you have your list you can break each item down into specific tasks.
It’s important to not get overwhelmed during spring cleaning. Many people decide they will devote a day to a spring cleaning project and then realize that they’re cranky after two hours and that the task requires at least two days. Start small and reward yourself often. Why not take from now until the official start of summer to spring clean? You could choose one project each week. I suggest working in 15-30 minute intervals so there’s less chance of getting frustrated and overwhelmed. I enjoy using an online stopwatch.
What plans do you have for spring cleaning in relation to your creative projects?
*adapt this question and others to your needs if writing isn’t your primary focus
Affirmations-366Days#23-My writing space is a sanctuary. I keep this space decluttered and organized.
For new readers, here’s why I’m committing to writing affirmations, about the creative process, during the next 366 days.
Commentary:
How is your writing space looking and feeling these days? Your writing space may mean a desk, a kitchen table, an office or your laptop.
One look at my desk and you might believe that paper monsters had invaded, had sex on my desk and left their offspring behind.
Ah, Houston…we have a problem! This is not my office, BTW, but I have been there.
January is the perfect time to assess one’s space and make small adjustments. I usually save big stuff for spring cleaning.
I did these three tasks which took almost no time at all, made me feel great and organized my space:
-I organized the growing stack of business cards and notes about writers I’ve met during 2015. I’m setting aside some time tomorrow to follow-up with a few people by email.
-I take many writing workshops and classes and tend to keep examples of other students’ work. I find it useful to see how someone approaches a style of writing or technique that I am interested in (e.g. writing a persona poem). The challenge, of course, is that these kinds of papers can accumulate. Today, I flipped through material I had been keeping for years, made some notes and then pitched the stack.
-I tend to have idea cards and sticky notes around my house and home office. I gathered them up, read through them, clustered several together (e.g. Zora Neale Hurston ghost story), and put them in my ‘idea folder’. I love going “shopping” in this folder from time to time.
What are three small tasks you can do that will help your writing space look and feel great?
- In: creative writing | creativity | writing
- 2 Comments
This week ushers in spring for many of us. It also marks passage of the first quarter of the year. Can you believe it? It seems like only yesterday we were writing down our resolutions for living an even more inspired creative life in 2015. Have some of those commitments and intentions gotten sidetracked since then?
Totally understandable. Spring can put us back on track. This season enables us to connect with a feeling of renewal that we begin to see physically manifested all around us. Spring also powers us with the energy to tackle the physical spaces (and states of mind) that no longer serve our creative life.
It also presents us with a perfect time to reassess, reorganize and rededicate ourselves to the projects that we most want to bring into the world.
Here is my three step process that I have found useful for spring cleaning:
1) You reassess your space, your schedule, and patterns of mind to see what is supporting or not supporting your creative life.
2) You reorganize your space, schedule, and patterns of minds to allow you to create with more ease.
3) After reassessing and reorganizing, you rededicate yourself to having a productive and joyful creative life!
Clutter can immobilize our creative lives.
Ah, Houston…we have a problem!
I know from personal experience how debilitating and draining it can be to work in a perpetually cluttered space. I’ve written about how powerful it was to tackle clutter and dramatically change my home writing space.
My desk=before
My desk=after
In upcoming posts, I’ll talk more about the 3 ‘Rs’ as it pertains to schedule and patterns of mind. But, let’s start with reassessing your space.
What about your creative space? Does it need a spring tune-up?
Go and look at your creative space. What’s the state of it? Do you feel a sense of ease when you look at it? Is it crammed with stuff that belongs in other rooms of your house? If you live with other people, is this space known as your special writing/photography/painting, etc., area?
Have you even claimed some special place yet, or are you waiting for permission from someone else? If you’re struggling with this, see my post on claiming creative space.
Survey your space and make a quick list of what you feel needs your attention most. The questions below are not exhaustive*, but offer a good place to begin.
-Do you need to organize and sort your paper files?
-Would it be useful to create an index for your piles of journals, scripts, CDs, DVDs (i.e. whatever you consider your primary creative material)?
-Are there notes from conferences, master classes, residencies and/or workshops that need to be reviewed and filed?
-When was the last time you did a backup of your computer files? Do you need to delete or add programs?
-Are there creative projects that you’ve abandoned that still take up lots of physical space? Can they be re-purposed or stored elsewhere?
-Do you need to physically clean your computer?
-Do you have visible reminders of your creative accomplishments? Is it time to take some down and put up new ones?
-Do you have too much or too little of something in your space?
-Do you need more or less shelf space?
-Are there big physical jobs you’d like to do (e.g. paint)?
Once you have your list you can break each item down into specific tasks.
It’s important to not get overwhelmed during spring cleaning. Many people decide they will devote a day to a spring cleaning project and then realize that they’re cranky after two hours and that the task requires at least two days. Start small and reward yourself often. Why not take from now until the official start of summer to spring clean? You could choose one project each week. I suggest working in 15-30 minute intervals so there’s less chance of getting frustrated and overwhelmed. I enjoy using an online stopwatch.
*adapt this question and others to your needs if writing isn’t your primary focus
What kind of spring cleaning are you planning to do in support of your creative life? I’d love to hear.
Spring is here–finally!
I’ve just said goodbye to the graduating seniors at my university and am beginning to scheme about which creative projects I can move forward during the summer. Although I don’t teach during the summer, I still have to continue my research and academic writing as well as make time for my creative work (primarily creative writing and my coaching practice).
Spring powers us with the energy to tackle physical spaces (and states of mind) that no longer serve our creative life.
It also presents us with a perfect time to reassess, reorganize and rededicate ourselves to the projects that we most want to bring into the world.
Here is my three step process that I have found useful for spring cleaning:
1) You reassess your space, your schedule, and patterns of mind to see what is supporting or not supporting your creative life.
2) You reorganize your space, schedule, and patterns of minds to allow you to create with more ease.
3) After reassessing and reorganizing, you rededicate yourself to having a productive and joyful creative life!
Clutter can immobilize our creative lives. Last year, I wrote about how powerful it was to tackle clutter and re-imagine my writing space at home. Last summer, I also spent a little time each week decluttering my campus office.
All that hard work has paid off. I have great systems in place and now my focus is about maintenance.
What about your creative space? Does it need a spring tune-up?
Go and look at your creative space. What’s the state of it? Do you feel a sense of ease when you look at it? Is it crammed with stuff that belongs in other rooms of your house? If you live with other people, is this space known as your special creative area?
Have you even claimed some special place yet, or are you waiting for permission from someone else? If you’re struggling with this, see my post on claiming creative space.
Survey your space and make a quick list of what you feel needs your attention most. The questions below are not exhaustive, but offer a good place to start.
-Do you need to organize and sort your paper files?
-Would it be useful to create an index for your piles of journals, scripts, CDS, DVDS, etc. (i.e. whatever you consider your primary creative material)?
-Are there notes from recent conferences and workshops that need to be reviewed and filed?
-When was the last time you did a backup of your computer files? Do you need to delete or add programs?
-Do you need to physically clean your computer?
-Do you have visible reminders of your creative accomplishments? Is it time to take some down and put up new ones?
-Do you have too much or too little of something in your space?
-Do you need more or less shelf space?
-Do you need new supplies?
-Are there big physical jobs you’d like to do (e.g. paint)?
Once you have your list you can break each item down into specific tasks.
It’s important to not get overwhelmed during spring cleaning. Many people decide they will devote a day to a spring cleaning project and then realize that they’re cranky after two hours and that the task requires at least two days. Start small and reward yourself often. Why not take from now until the official start of summer to spring clean? You could choose one project each week. I suggest working in 15-30 minute intervals so there’s less chance of getting frustrated and overwhelmed. I enjoy using an online stopwatch.
Between late December and most of January, there is often a lot of buzz about creating one’s vision and the visioning process. I think creating a vision can be a powerful and life affirming process.
But…developing a vision isn’t like choosing a new pair of socks.
What do I mean?
A vision is something that should sustain you, wow you and feed you all year. You should feel an inner sizzle throughout your body every time you think about your vision.
I find that people try working on their New Year’s vision (through creating affirmations, a treasure map, resolutions, a vision board, writing goals, a vision statement, etc.), in the midst of the holiday frenzy or right after. We’re often still pretty tired well into the first two weeks of January. Aren’t you?
Preparatory work needed prior to vision creating often gets tossed aside in the rush to ‘get something down on paper’. This means you can wind up with a vision that doesn’t really serve you and is abandoned by spring.
Here are some things that you might consider doing before you set aside time to work on your vision.
Declutter
Have you begun to declutter? Now is a perfect time to do so as you prepare to envision 2014. Let go, release, and get curious about what will fill the empty space.
Choose
What’s the one thing you’d like to work on shifting (or releasing, changing, etc.), in order to live your highest vision? Identifying one concrete thing to focus on for personal transformation is much more promising than trying to tackle a laundry list of concerns. Good questions to follow: What support do I need to make this shift a reality? And, am I willing to ask for that support, or pay for it?
Identify
Consider working in a group to develop, support and amplify your vision. When focused friendly people come together to support each other, they can produce incredible results. Many different structures exist for creating groups: including The Artist’s Way, MasterMind and Your Heart’s Desire. All are free to start and are based on collaborative and mutually beneficial principles. You could, of course, start your own group and call it whatever you want– ‘Idea Party’, ‘Dream Tea Talks’, ‘Manifesting Circle’, etc. There’s strength in numbers!
There’s still plenty of time to envision what you want for 2014–don’t rush the process. Is there something you do to prepare for the visioning process? I’d love to hear!
Spring is here!
Spring presents writers with a perfect time to reassess, reorganize and rededicate ourselves to the projects that we most want to bring into the world. Spring powers us with the energy to tackle physical spaces (and states of mind) that no longer serve our writing life.
Last December, I made a major commitment to re-imagining my writing space. I was tired of being one of those people who always seemed to ‘be in the process of organizing’, arguably one of the most important rooms in my house, without ever accomplishing a significant change. My writing career during the last two years has taken off in remarkable ways and I began to view my perpetually cluttered room as a pattern of self-sabotage.
These before pictures show that my space definitely needed some attention!
I hired a painter. I spent two days packing up, two days watching the painters work their magic and then three weeks unpacking.
The challenge came as I began to unpack. I needed to create new systems and to let go of stuff. During the cold days of December I often found myself frustrated, overwhelmed and entirely baffled that I could feel so emotionally undone by this process.
I began to explore how some of my discomfort in relating to space was closely tied to childhood patterns. Due to financial constraints I shared a room with my mother from the age of nine until eighteen. I missed out on a lot of developmental experiences of the joys and challenges of having one’s own room and caring for it. Although this wasn’t the sole cause of clutter in my life, I understood why I held onto things too long (often coming from a place of scarcity or deprivation), and also how I simultaneously paid little attention to the aesthetics of space. After these insights, the organizing went a lot smoother.
Although this spring I still have a few more things to work on in my new space, I am in love with it!
Spring cleaning, for you, may not involve any deep-seated emotional issues. But, if you think it could, you can begin by asking the following questions:
-Is clutter an ongoing issue for me?
-Have I experienced patterns of deprivation that may effect how I relate to material objects?
-Do I feel unusually sad, frustrated, or angry as I try to declutter and organize my space?
Depending on your answers, you may want to solicit support from a coach or therapist who specializes in organizational issues.
The first step in my spring cleaning process is to reassess your space, your schedule, and patterns of mind to see what is supporting or not supporting your writing life.
Go and look at your writing space. What’s the state of it? Do you feel a sense of ease when you look at it? Is it crammed with stuff that belongs in other rooms of your house? If you live with other people, is this space known as your special writing area?
Have you even claimed some special place yet, or are you waiting for permission from someone else? If you’re struggling with this, see my post on claiming creative space.
Survey your space and make a quick list of what you feel needs your attention most. The questions below are not exhaustive, but offer a good place to start.
-Do you need to organize and sort your paper files?
-Would it be useful to create an index for your piles of journals?
-Are there notes from conferences and workshops that need to be reviewed and filed?
-Are there writing exercises that could be useful to you if they were typed up?
-When was the last time you did a backup of your computer files? Do you need to delete or add programs?
-Do you need to release some writing books? Welcome others?
-Do you need to physically clean your computer?
-Do you have visible reminders of your writing accomplishments? Is it time to take some down and put up new ones?
-Do you have too much or too little of something in your space?
-Do you need more or less shelf space?
-Are there big physical jobs you’d like to do (i.e. paint)?
Once you have your list you can break each item down into specific tasks.
It’s important to not get overwhelmed during spring cleaning. Many people decide they will devote a day to a spring cleaning project and then realize that they’re cranky after two hours and that the task requires at least two days. Start small and reward yourself often. Why not take from now until the official start of summer to spring clean? You could choose one project each week. I suggest working in 15-30 minute intervals so there’s less chance of getting frustrated and overwhelmed. I enjoy using an online stopwatch.
What are you reassessing right now in support of your writing life?
The Practice of Creativity 