Spring is here and so is spring energy! Take advantage of the seasonal energy to clear away things in your house or office.
My spring energy sometimes feels like 'big black trash bag' energy, if you know what I mean. When I'm ready for the spring change, I come at it with a big black trash bag to clear things out.
While that's not always necessary or maybe not where you are currently, remembering a few mantras while you begin the process may help you keep that energy up and make real progress.
Spring cleaning may include deep cleaning for your home, seasonal swaps of furniture or art or a major update to your space as the weather gets warmer.
This is typically the time we start thinking and acting on spring energy but it can be easy to start something, get distracted and not finish.
I started a paint job in our master bedroom several months ago and had just a few tasks that lingered.....for weeks.
I was tired of walking around the furniture in there because it was arranged for painting. This last weekend, I used my spring energy to get that project across the finish line and am ecstatic to now enjoy a refreshed master bedroom.
What mantras should you consider as you dig into your spring cleaning project?
Define Your Why
What is your ultimate goal? Are you trying to clear out a space for something new? Do you simply want a less cluttered space? Tired of losing things?
For my solution to losing active paper around your home, read more here.
Write your why down or find an inspiring picture of a space that represents what you are working toward. Use this to keep you moving forward.
I had an inspiration picture saved on my phone that I went back to several times to keep me moving on the lingering painting project. I wanted the walls and ceiling refreshed but I also wanted space where I could spend more time reading and journaling. That reminder helped me keep taking small actions to reach my goal.
Don't organize what you should declutter
In the organizing process for any space, the first action step should be decluttering. Take the time to remove what is no longer needed or organizing solutions may have to be reworked once you declutter. Declutter first and organize what remains.
When I am looking to declutter, here are my guiding questions:
Do I love it?
Do I use it?
If the answer to either of these questions is no, then it can go.
The caveat here is that I can only answer those questions for my belongings. I can make decisions about anything that I own or manage (the medicine cabinet is arguably mine). I can ask others in my household about their items but they must make the decision.
Side note: A helpful way that my kids have learned to declutter with more ease is with a simple question. When I notice that they moved on from using a toy or clothes no longer fit, I asked if they were ready for us to share the item with another kid who may want it. They could answer that honestly, sometimes be excited to share something they used to love and it changed the tone of the decluttering discussion.
Schedule It!
We make time for the things we value. If you can identify your why from above, you are placing value on the result of this process.
Will you carve out 2 hours on a weekend or commit to 15 minutes an evening to inching closer to your goal? Now put time on your calendar to devote to the spring cleaning!
Maintain an Outbox
In order for decluttering to move to a proactive, real time activity rather than a major event, create an outbox. Set a box or location for items that you deem ready to be donated and toss them into the box, in the moment.
As you see an item that you notice hasn't been used, add it to the box. As you look for a certain piece of clothing and have to pass an item that never gets chosen, add it to the box.
As the box gets full, take it regularly to be donated.
A small shift is better than no shift at all
Marie Kondo may have an opinion on the right way to do spring cleaning and decluttering but I don't happen to think that's the case.
Even if you start small and use your spring energy to get a junk drawer cleaned out, that is a win!
Keeping these mantras in mind, use your spring energy to complete something that you haven't completed before. Consider defining your why, start with decluttering, scheduling time and maintaining an outbox as you enter spring cleaning this year. The shift could begin to make the process part of your regular routine in all the seasons.
Leave comments below, I'd love to connect!
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