Is your life in need of some “spring cleaning?”
Almost everyone has too much STUFF in their lives. Things we’ve bought but have never used, or things we used to love but haven’t used in years.
Gifts people have given us that we never needed. Old newspapers, magazines, and junk mail. Clothes we no longer wear. Broken, useless stuff that we’ve never gotten around to throwing out.
All of these things mess up our home and our office, disturb our peace of mind, and fill our world with useless clutter.
And that’s just the physical stuff! I’m not even talking about the way we fill our lives with too much “busy-ness” and too many unnecessary distractions that pull us away from the important things we should be focusing on.
So today I’d like to share five powerful spring-cleaning strategies that you can use to declutter your life at all levels, so you have more focus, clarity, space, and freedom to focus on what truly matters most to you.
I’m pretty sure at least one of these strategies is going to surprise you.
1. Declutter Your Home & Office
My first tip is to physically declutter your home and office.
Put everything you own through the “Love it, sell it, or toss it” test.
If you don’t absolutely love it, then sell it, or toss it.
Giving it to someone who might love it or need it, or recycling it are also options, of course—as long as you get it out of YOUR home or office.
I encourage you to be ruthless with this.
I know it can be hard to let go of old things, especially when you have positive memories attached to them.
But remember, the memories of your childhood aren’t going to disappear just because you give away a bunch of old books, games and broken toys!
Release them with gratitude, and enjoy the space that opens up in your life when they’re gone.
Because when you get rid of the things you don’t want or need, you create more space for the things you DO want and need. @JackCanfield (Click to Tweet!)
And I guarantee that when you create the space for them, they will begin to show up. It’s pretty magical.
2. Declutter Your Thoughts
My next tip for you is to declutter your THOUGHTS.
Our homes aren’t the only things we fill with too much “stuff” we don’t need.
We could say the same thing about our minds.
We cram our heads full of so many useless or even harmful thoughts that don’t serve us in any way.
We read too much gossip about celebrities.
We get caught up in the negativity of the news cycle.
We watch TV shows that don’t uplift, enlighten or educate us in any way.
We spend too much time listening to our “inner critic,” who tells us we’ll never be good enough or worthy enough to achieve our dreams.
And so our minds become crowded with useless, self-defeating thoughts that hold us back from showing up as our best selves.
A great way to declutter your mind is with the practice of regular meditation.
I am a huge fan of daily meditation – I can honestly say it’s changed my entire life.
You’ll discover that the more you meditate, the more you’ll find yourself no longer giving any attention or power to your negative thoughts, and focusing instead on inspiring, motivating and uplifting thoughts that spur you on to do your best.
3. Declutter Your DIET
My next powerful decluttering strategy is to declutter your DIET.
Many of us consume too much food and drink that doesn’t give us the nourishment and nutrients we need to thrive.
And when you fill yourself up with too much unhealthy food or drinks such as sugar-laden desserts, soft drinks, pastries or alcohol, you rob yourself of the vitality you need to accomplish your goals and achieve more in life.
So I encourage you to spend some time reviewing your eating and drinking habits and look for ways to eliminate the food and drinks that aren’t serving your nutritional needs – and replace them with healthier options that will give you more energy and improve your mental and physical well-being.
4. Declutter Your Friends
My next piece of advice is to declutter your FRIENDS.
Take time to examine who are the people in your life who are always dragging you down and preventing you from showing up as your best self?
I’m talking about the kind of people who are always negative and never support or encourage you.
Maybe they laugh at your dreams and say that you’re crazy for having them.
Or maybe they’re always wanting you to slack off or indulge in your “bad habits” because they’re somehow threatened by your desire to improve yourself.
I encourage you to eliminate people like this from your life, or at the very least seriously limit your exposure to them, because they are holding you back from unlocking your full potential.
And I guarantee that when you get them out of your life, you will find it so much easier to attract the kind of people who WILL give you the support and encouragement you need to stay on track toward your goals and good habits, and create a life you love.
5. Declutter your Goals and Dreams
Finally, my last piece of advice is to declutter your GOALS and DREAMS.
By that I mean, take a good hard look at all the life goals you’re currently pursuing.
Chances are you can’t achieve them all at once.
For example, you may not find it possible to write a novel and take your family to Europe and save money for your child’s university education AND start a new business, all in the same year!
So think about which goals or dreams make the most logical sense to achieve FIRST – because once they’re accomplished, they’ll make it so much easier for you to achieve the next one and then the next one – and then focus on completing those few goals before you put any more effort into the rest of the big goals on your list.
This doesn’t mean you should give up on the rest of your goals — it just means figuring out how to achieve them strategically, in the order that makes the most sense for your life.
Because when you focus your energy and intention toward accomplishing one big goal at a time, you will find it so much easier to attract what you need to achieve that goal, as well as faster than you thought possible.
I want to encourage you to use these tips to “spring clean” your life and make sure 2019 is a year in which you accomplish amazing things.
As the beloved originator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul® series, Jack Canfield fostered the emergence of inspirational anthologies as a genre—and watched it grow to a billion dollar market. As the driving force behind the development and delivery of over 100 million books sold through the Chicken Soup for the Soul® franchise, Jack Canfield is uniquely qualified to talk about success. Jack is America’s #1 Success Coach and wrote the life-changing book The Success Principles: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be and Jack speaks around the world on this subject. Check out his newest book The 30-Day Sobriety Solution: How to Cut Back or Quit Drinking in the Privacy of Your Own Home. Follow Jack at www.jackcanfield.com and sign up for his free resources today!
Image courtesy of Sarah Dorweiler.
