Grace feels horrible every time she walks into her office. Piles of paper, stacks of books, and random bags of “stuff” cover almost every surface and trail onto the floor. Each time she walks in, it feels like someone is poking her, saying, “You still haven’t done this yet? What’s wrong with you?”
It has gotten so bad that she doesn’t even want to walk in there anymore because it just makes her feel so bad about herself.
“What do you think needs to be done for you to feel better in this space?” I asked.
“I need to finish these random tasks so I can get that stuff out of the way. Then I won’t have to see it anymore, and I’ll feel better.” She responded.
I totally get thinking that, but it got me thinking…
…do we really need to finish what we start?
Think about it. How many things are you better for not having “finished”? That relationship with the toxic guy from your 20’s. The horrific rom-com you started on Netflix. The hobby you never actually liked once you got started. The job that made you feel like your soul was being sucked dry.
Why in the world would you want to finish any of those things?
Some things are not meant to be finished.
And when it comes to your spaces—Do you really want to read and apply those notes from the conference you went to 4 years ago? How important is it to read that book that you started but clearly have no interest in finishing? Does making a t-shirt quilt from your concert tees actually feel like a fun way to spend your weekends?
Be honest with yourself.
How much of this stuff is more of a “should” than a want? Or a really great idea that just doesn’t mesh with your priorities?
Are these items and tasks adding to your life? Or are they weighing you down and keeping you from feeling great in your home?
Let’s try an experiment. Set a timer for 20 minutes and walk through your house looking for things you do not want to finish. Things you can release from your life because you don’t actually want or need to complete them. Gather up as many as you can and move them out of your house and into their next life.
It’s time to set yourself free.
Books you’re never going to finish can go to the local library. The pants you’re never going to hem that can be taken to the shelter downtown for women re-entering the workforce. The gluten-free flour you never even tried can go to your friend with celiac disease. You get the idea—these items get a new life, and you get some space and sanity back.
This is such a freeing activity. You don’t have to organize every item in your house to set yourself free. Just removing items that taunt you when you walk by can be so uplifting.
Even if you only remove two things from your home, you’re freeing yourself from two things that scream at you every time you walk into the room.
Organizing doesn’t always look the way it’s shown on TV. Sometimes, it’s a softer, more gentle process that allows you to rethink your life one small decision at a time.
Progress is progress, and I’m so glad you’re here with me.
Leave a comment below and and let me know what you’re going to send to its next chapter.
