As I’ve been developing this blog, I’ve found it difficult to zone in and focus my mind.

Many days, I find myself at home, instantly making my ability to focus that much harder. The sink is full of dishes; laundry is starting to spill out the hamper; the floor could use a vacuum.

But that’s just the cleaning list clutter. I didn’t even mention the on-going to-do list in my mind, or the random items lying on the table around my laptop. All this to say, clutter becomes a quick and easy distraction anytime I’m attempting to get work done. Anybody else?

But how often does this apply to our daily lives?

Day by day, we go about our schedules bombarded by endless (sometimes pointless) distractions. Why do we accept this as normal and okay?

[Side note: this is not in reference to our humanity and going off track once in a while (or ADHD). We won’t always stay perfectly focused, but the world brings up things that keep us from accomplishing what is important. Think: social media, ads/online shopping, etc.]

Life is too short to let the world go on telling you what to spend your time thinking about. Maybe it’s time to only hold on to the things that are valuable.

I’m on a journey to take back my life ~

Okay, “taking back my life” might be a little dramatic and… falling into “self-help.”

I’ve been following this other blog that explores the bombardment of clutter. Bonnie expresses this same slowing-down idea, that there’s so much around us to consume.

There’s new material everyday; new authors popping up everywhere (myself included). A new person has entered the chat. Another story or podcast being added to the queue. Honestly, I struggled with this at first. Why would I write about eliminating distractions when I’m just adding to the noise surrounding us? If I really leaned into this, I could talk myself out of writing.

But the truth I keep reminding myself is that each of our lives, each of our stories, is helpful for someone else. We all long for connection, and there’s a person out there who connects with your journey.

So, yes, I am adding yet another result to pop up on a Google search… but I’m also putting my story out there for anyone who needs to hear it.

Clean out your Mind: Tune into what builds You up

Only follow the things you value, and eliminate the noise that doesn’t encourage or build you.

Why would we surround ourselves with content that just diminishes us? Old me, she wouldn’t have cared.

She wanted to self-deprecate and feel like everyone had it better. But, comparison, it’s always a losing game. And again, life is too short to let these things dictate our minds. You are right where you need to be. Tune into those who make you better and feed contentment.

More outside noise blocks out our own Noise

At the beginning of this blog, I consumed a lot of information for research and to spur inspiration. Absorbing all this content, however, dilutes original ideas. I was finding it hard to articulate what I wanted to say just by merely thinking about my own experience, and was quickly falling into using others’ ideas, AKA plagiarism! This is one example of how consuming so much content can infiltrate our minds.

Clean out your Home

Decluttering until all that’s left is what I use or enjoy.

Courtney Carver, Soulful Simplicity

This is now my motto for decluttering. Over the years, I have held onto and collected numerous pieces of memorabilia. Artwork from elementary school, papers I wrote in college, journals I kept in high school. While these items are special to me and hold some deep emotions and memories during those years, holding onto materials like these keeps us in the past and strains our ability to make new memories.

I certainly believe it’s important to remember our past; the mistakes we’ve made, the roads we’ve walked. Simply and completely blocking out memories can create ignorance around the lessons we’ve learned.

We should always remember where we’ve come from. But at the same time, our eyes must stay focused forward. Our trajectory should always be the future. Each day is fresh and new, not to be held down by the baggage of yesterday.

“His mercies… are new every morning.” (Lamentations 3:23)

When we don’t eliminate the physical and mental clutter that keeps us distracted by who we used to be, or had hoped to become, we leave no room for our current selves.

I know this sounds a little “New Age”, but the point here is that we have exactly what we need for each day, nothing more and nothing less. Wishing for another time than right now keeps our hands tied.

My own journey…

The month of June has so far seen a lot of purging, decluttering, and re-organizing. I’ll admit, decluttering and cleaning has become a hobby for me at this point.

I don’t know how to let go of items, and I hold onto stuff “just in case.” I want my mind to be transformed into seeing my possessions as merely material items; it’s a struggle.

I’m seeing much more progress than I have in the past, as I’m remembering these 3 things:

My stuff should only be…

• What I use
• What I love (and truly love)
• If I’m holding onto it just in case, then say out loud what that reason is… it might change your decision.

Getting Rid of Decision Fatigue

When we eliminate the unnecessary and only keep what we use and cherish, we minimize decision fatigue.

Time for lunch? Here are two options to eat everyday.

Getting ready and dressed for the day? Pick from these ten outfits, and these seven pair of shoes.

Have a bit of free time? Which of your three hobbies will you pick from?

Creating an environment of less clutter allows us to spend less time on making decisions, and more time on the things that matter.

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Confession: My home finds its way to messiness quickly. Cooking a big meal, a trip running errands, or any project quickly turns my home into a stressful space, rather than one I want to be in.

Decluttering won’t keep your home tidy and spotless all the time, but I do believe that owning less things will make you more of a steward of your home than just a manager of your stuff. And hopefully create a home that you do want to be in.

Some resources I’ve been loving:

Disclaimer: some of these resources contain worldviews I don’t agree with and follow, so please filter out practices you may not agree with.

• Soulful Simplicity by Courtney Carver
• Decluttering Your Heart and Your Home by Julia Ubbenga
• Slow: Simple Living for a Frantic World by Brooke McAlary

I hope this leaves you feeling encouraged and inspired to minimize the unnecessary and take back your life.

OG