The Clutter Fairy Weekly #145
Ask Us Anything: Motivation; Organize Papers for Tax Season; Stuff for Company
In this week’s “Ask Us Anything” (AUA) show, we answer your questions and discuss topics suggested by our viewers and listeners.
In this episode:
- Tips to cultivate motivation or keep your motivation fresh
- Organize papers to be ready for tax-filing time
- The stuff we keep to be ready for company
In episode #145 of The Clutter Fairy Weekly, Gayle Goddard, professional organizer and owner of The Clutter Fairy in Houston, Texas, answers audience questions and discusses these topics, as well as other organizing and decluttering issues.
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The Weekly Tittle is an exercise designed to focus your attention on a specific space, aspect, or challenge of decluttering and organizing your home. We assign a new tittle in each webcast/podcast, then check on your progress the following week.
Reconnect to Your Motivation
This week’s objective is to strengthen the connection between your motivations and the sometimes difficult and tedious process of decluttering:
- Reflect on reasons that you’d like to declutter and organize your home. Write down three or four that you find powerful or compelling.
- Select a small decluttering project, or isolate a piece of a larger project, such as one drawer of a dresser or one shelf of a bookcase.
- Schedule a time to work on the project. Mark the date and time on your calendar or in your day planner.
- On the day of your decluttering date, review the list of reasons for getting organized that you wrote down.
- Decide how much time you’re willing to commit, then work on the project for the time allotted.
- Notice any change in your mood, attitude, energy level, etc., between the start and end of your work, then answer these questions:
- Did reflecting on your reasons for decluttering make the work harder, easier, or have no effect?
- Did focusing on your reasons for decluttering make decision-making easier, harder, or have no effect?
- Do you find the reasons you wrote down “motivational” for getting the work done?
- In a few weeks, revisit your list of reasons for decluttering and organizing and try this exercise again.
For the full discussion of this week’s tittle, watch the Weekly Tittle segment on YouTube.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for the section on motivation. There was so much packed into those few minutes.
I managed to settle on one reason to get my act in gear and that is to honor my Aunt Nana who meant so much to me. I’m still pondering other reasons but they all seem so trite compared to honoring Aunt Nana. Still working on the thought process.
Designating 2 hours max over weekend just past, I chose a small piece of a much larger project. De clutter my main vehicle of residual items left behind of travels with my beloved cat Sis. Honestly reflecting/writing on the Why? of my reasons simply created my ability to just start. As I wrote down the mindful steps to follow focusing and supporting each decision I made in what to keep, throw or donate forward. The actual emotional effect became astoundingly easy for I began to smile handling her toys and cry as I de cluttered the space holding her travel bed and litter box. By working with in this powerful Tittle I honored the deep loss (event) first, then becoming re=energized to drag my garbage can into carport getting the whole vehicle done. My total time 3 hours/Sun afternoon. Sad mood to feeling privileged and successful as it snowed around me. Beautiful.
All done. Thank you Gayle, Ed and All.
In this household, we have several reasons to declutter, the main one being that we might have to move. I therefore went through my yarn stash and decided to donate some yarn. I also tossed an old planner that contained useful information for a business I no longer have. Looking at the list of reasons for declutering was a really helpful tool for staying on track. Thanks again everybody!