Personal Change
Today while visiting a client we started to engage in a conversation about our collections of stuff we cannot bare to part with. The biggest problem was that the stuff we wanted to keep was small or we thought we might use again and did not want to throw it away. However, the extra stuff had created a situation where we are living on top of our stuff.
I remember many years ago when my paternal grandmother past away, my family went through her piles and collections. She even had a collection of used zippers and buttons she saved out of a lifetime of clothing she was finished wearing. I swore to myself I wouldn’t be the same. I would throw things out or give them away when the items weren’t useful anymore.
When one of my girlfriends passed away suddenly last year, I had another reminder of how too much stuff could be a problem. After two days of her family cleaning her suite I still couldn’t see how there was two bedrooms in her condo. There was so much stuff it was unbelievable. Still, I took some of her furniture into my small place making it even smaller.
I constantly wonder why we collect things in life. Why do we need things? Why does having things provide comfort? We certainly can’t take it with us in the end, so why have it to begin with?
Feng Shui suggests that if we remove old, used items from our space we are making room for other new items to appear in our lives. Often I’ve used this philosophy to figure out if a person was open to having others in their life. If your living space has only room for you, then how can you invite another into that space?
Every year around this time I get itchy for change. Especially when I’ve been looking at the same walls for a while. I have decided to get rid of the extra furniture and any extra clothing, paper, etc. I can part with.
The only I have as suggestions for getting rid of your excess stuff are the following: Have someone, a friend help you part with your stuff - going it alone will only have you do the minimum. Set up rules with that individual before hand so that your most prized possessions do not get thrown out but at the same time you do not hold onto everything you don’t need in your space. Get rid of all items that are on a someday course (someday I will read, someday I will finish this project, someday when...). Anything you are unsure of throwing out or giving away put in a designated place until you feel comfortable giving them away or throwing them out. I usually give items a maximum time limit of a year. If I do not touch it in a year I get rid of it. The main thing to know is, it’s hard to change and we get comfortable (develop habits of laziness) quite easily. The best way to do this type of change is like ripping off a band-aid – quickly!
Tracy Slotin, MBA
CEO and Grand SandMaster
The Executive Sandbox ® Change Consultants
www.ExecutiveSandbox.com
I remember many years ago when my paternal grandmother past away, my family went through her piles and collections. She even had a collection of used zippers and buttons she saved out of a lifetime of clothing she was finished wearing. I swore to myself I wouldn’t be the same. I would throw things out or give them away when the items weren’t useful anymore.
When one of my girlfriends passed away suddenly last year, I had another reminder of how too much stuff could be a problem. After two days of her family cleaning her suite I still couldn’t see how there was two bedrooms in her condo. There was so much stuff it was unbelievable. Still, I took some of her furniture into my small place making it even smaller.
I constantly wonder why we collect things in life. Why do we need things? Why does having things provide comfort? We certainly can’t take it with us in the end, so why have it to begin with?
Feng Shui suggests that if we remove old, used items from our space we are making room for other new items to appear in our lives. Often I’ve used this philosophy to figure out if a person was open to having others in their life. If your living space has only room for you, then how can you invite another into that space?
Every year around this time I get itchy for change. Especially when I’ve been looking at the same walls for a while. I have decided to get rid of the extra furniture and any extra clothing, paper, etc. I can part with.
The only I have as suggestions for getting rid of your excess stuff are the following: Have someone, a friend help you part with your stuff - going it alone will only have you do the minimum. Set up rules with that individual before hand so that your most prized possessions do not get thrown out but at the same time you do not hold onto everything you don’t need in your space. Get rid of all items that are on a someday course (someday I will read, someday I will finish this project, someday when...). Anything you are unsure of throwing out or giving away put in a designated place until you feel comfortable giving them away or throwing them out. I usually give items a maximum time limit of a year. If I do not touch it in a year I get rid of it. The main thing to know is, it’s hard to change and we get comfortable (develop habits of laziness) quite easily. The best way to do this type of change is like ripping off a band-aid – quickly!
Tracy Slotin, MBA
CEO and Grand SandMaster
The Executive Sandbox ® Change Consultants
www.ExecutiveSandbox.com
Labels: organization, Personal Change
posted by Tracy Slotin at 12:49 AM
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