Modern living comes with a lot of conveniences and advancements fueled by our insatiable penchant for consumerism. Indeed, the lives we lead now are far more complex than it was just a century ago. With the complexity and convenience comes a price which many of us do not recognize as an impediment to our mental and emotional fitness. That price is the accumulation of clutter.
That’s the impediment? Clutter? A lot of ado over not much, you would think. Truth is clutter does have close ties with stress for many people. It is true though that there are a handful whose creative juices thrive in a messy environment; but for the majority of us, removing clutter improves our psychological life and overall sense of well-being.
The ancient Chinese had known the immense value of harmony between the self and his environment with the practice of a philosophical system very much alive today --- Feng-Shui. This ancient 3,000 year-old practice is both an art and a science which deals with balancing the energies of a given space to primarily maximize luck and health for people who use or inhabit said space.
What Exactly Is Clutter?
The word clutter usually conjures up a visual image of a pile of accumulated things---a mound of DVDs, old clothes, magazines, and hey, even emails ---you know your junk. Clutter, however, can also mean the accumulation of intangibles such as negative personal beliefs, relationships, and emotional baggage. In other words, clutter is the stuff complications on every level are made of, stuff which you definitely do not need. Your goal must be to rid yourself of the negative mess and focus on a living a simpler, streamlined life.
But let’s keep this short and sweet and concentrate on material clutter or that pile of things you do not need.
I Love My Stuff!
“I can’t bear to throw anything away; I might need them later,” one among the many justifications we often hear why one cannot simply donate a closetful of clothes that no longer fits or have long worn out its fashion welcome.
You may love your stuff because it offers you a sense of security, false as it is, that you will never want since you have it. Unless you are hoarding jewellery or things that appreciate in value over time, it makes no modern sense to go against the grain of a little more “Zen-living.” The clothes you have kept in case you lose the extra 20 pounds you’ve put on will never be worn when you actually do because why wear passé tops when you’d get more of a kick donning on the latest, cutest trend for your money?
In the days when people had to mostly make what they owned, it was crucial to keep what one had for survival because if one did not, you would certainly want...and badly at that. If you lived in those times and threw away a piece of ribbon, you just threw away something that could not be purchased readily unless a travelling merchant came your way, six months down the line, granting he had got ribbons to offer. In those times, it made a lot of sense to keep stuff.
Why We Should De-Clutter
As the venerable philosophy of Feng-Shui emphasizes the harmony of space and the individual, so does the Zen ideal of letting go to create inner calm. It makes a lot of sense to live in an ordered environment which encourages clear thinking, a peaceful disposition, and a stress-minimised lifestyle.
It is a mistake to trivialize clutter clearing as a significant step towards personal improvement.
- Clutter induces stress. The disorganized and messy environment clutter usually engenders gets in the way of serenity, ordered thoughts, and inner peace. Not many people realize this. A plethora of things dotting the landscape of your space can cause low-grade stress. In any degree of stress, cortisol levels are chronically elevated which in turn bring fatigue, sleep difficulties, and some anxiety. This brings the conclusion that clutter in the long run impacts negatively on our health.
- Clutter wastes our time. If you have a habit of leaving your keys or ball point pens on a pile of stuff, chances are they can get buried in it. Imagine the anxiety, not to mention the time you waste, just looking for something as small as these. If you are in a hurry, your clutter has just seen you off to another bad day.
- Clutter can impede your focus. So many things, so much distraction! The human senses can take only so much. We don’t know it but unconsciously, we are being overly stimulated by all our possessions on display on a daily basis. Scientific studies have proven that physical clutter competes for our attention, thereby lowering our ability to process information. This in turn hinders productivity, creativity, and clear thinking.
- Cleaning up and clearing out gives you a sense of achievement and control. De-cluttering is work but it comes with a highly satisfying sense of achievement once you have done it. Your self esteem will get a boost because you will get a real feeling of being in control of yourself and your environment. It is a happy, satisfying emotion you should indulge in.
Many people do not recognize that clutter can chip away at self esteem bit by bit with daily visual reminders of the unused, the wasted, the broken, and the irrelevancy of a lot of what we own. To energize ourselves, we need to be rid ourselves of our material baggage.
- Bottom line, you’ll just feel great! A clean, ordered environment is just plain liberating! Minimizing your clutter will lessen your anxiety, improve your mental sharpness, usher in personal serenity, and yeah, even cause you to lose some weight! Just taking that trivial step of decluttering could momentously impact your desire to better yourself. As you feel mentally and emotionally fantastic, you’re apt to crave physical fitness as well. Think about it.
Learn the discipline of controlled consumerism. Do you really need those adorable pair of stilettos with a fantastic sale price tag for a just-in-case party? Well….maybe, as long as you could make way for these by donating that “just-not-your-style” pair gifted by grandma. Your choice; but if you want to feel good real quick...start cleaning up and clearing out.
