These 3 questions MUST be answered if you want to get over the barriers that hold you back from achieving your goals. There are no easy paths to the things you want the most – just like you never get a rainbow after a sunny day.
Our surroundings can greatly influence our mood and emotional state. A thoughtfully decorated space that reflects our personal preferences and evokes positive emotions can uplift our spirits, promote relaxation, and reduce stress and anxiety.
Colors, lighting, textures, and natural elements in our decor can have a profound impact on our emotional well-being. You only need to buy a book or Google “Color Psychology” to learn the impact color has on the mind and that it’s quite significant. Look at the colors in the photo above – what do they make you feel? For me, energized and healthy. Imagine living around colors that give you the desired results in your mood. When you live in clutter it’s hard to find the colors that have impacted your life, all you see is overwhelm.
Stress Reduction
A space that reflects you can create a sense of calm and tranquility, providing an escape from the demands and pressures of daily life. When you come home and night and turn the key, you open your door to either a space that feels good or one that doesn’t. You want it to be your haven, your nest. By incorporating elements like comfortable furniture, soothing colors or at least colors that soothe YOU, and natural elements, you can create an environment that promotes relaxation and stress reduction. Do not forget to incorporate cleaning & organizing into your haven!
Productivity and Focus
Focus has become a major issue in recent years. Many people struggle to focus due to neurological reasons or poor choices, such as spending too much time on their phones, saying yes to too many things, or not eating a healthy diet. However, focus and productivity can be improved, even for those with ADHD, by creating an organized and positive environment. Cluttered and disorganized spaces can be distracting and hinder productivity, while a well-designed and organized space can enhance concentration, creativity, and efficiency.
Here are some tips for creating a more focused and productive environment:
Declutter your space. Get rid of anything that doesn’t serve you or that you don’t need.
Organize your space. Create a system for storing things so that you can easily find what you need.
Create a workspace that is free from distractions. This means turning off your phone, closing any unnecessary tabs on your computer, and finding a quiet place to work.
Take breaks. Get up and move around every 20-30 minutes to avoid getting too bogged down in one task.
Reward yourself. When you accomplish a task, give yourself a small reward, such as taking a break, watching a funny video, or eating a healthy snack.
Physical Comfort
Research has shown that physical clutter can create a lot of stimulation for your brain, making it difficult to focus on the task at hand. As a result, cleaning and organizing have been linked to a decrease in feelings of anxiety and an increase in comfort in your surroundings. Seeing clutter around you can be draining. Ergonomic furniture, adequate lighting, and good ventilation are all essential for creating a comfortable and healthy home. What is more important to you: a “social media” sofa or something you can snuggle up on with your kids and watch a movie? Additionally, adding some indoor plants can improve air quality and create a more pleasant and rejuvenating atmosphere. The natural element of bringing the outside in can also be very calming to our nervous system.
Personal Expression and Identity
Our home is an extension of our identity and personal expression. I know it sounds like the opening of a decor book. But it’s true. Decorating our space in a way that aligns with our values, interests, and aesthetic preferences can foster a sense of belonging and enhance our overall well-being because we are allowing ourselves to open up and show who we are. It allows us to create an environment that reflects who we are and supports our emotional and psychological needs even if that’s a rainbow unicorn Squishmallow on our bed (it can go in the closet when guests visit – haha), or a stack of Business & Design books by the bed with our favorite candle, the home isn’t a museum – it’s a nest, a nurturing, beautiful place of refuge and love.
Social Connections and Relationships
What happens when you love your home? You automatically want to share it with others! A home that you like can also facilitate social connections and positive relationships. A welcoming and inviting atmosphere can encourage social interactions, bonding, and a sense of community. Your gatherings can leave memories that get almost stamped into your home for years to come. I always remember every birthday party for my son, the day I brought him home from the hospital and gave him a little home tour through each room, and the great meals I’ve served. When our spaces are comfortable and visually appealing, we are more likely to invite others in and foster meaningful connections.
Mindfulness and Self-Care
Organize & Design for well-being involves a mindful and intentional approach to creating a space that supports self-care. It encourages us to prioritize our own well-being and design our environment in a way that promotes relaxation, mindfulness, and self-reflection. By incorporating elements like cozy corners, meditation areas, or inspiring artwork, we create reminders to take care of ourselves and nurture our mental and emotional health. I have a Prayer corner in my Micro-Workout space, so I actually do it more now because it reminds me of what matters each day since it’s the first corner I see when I wake up and the last one that I see before bed.
Organizing for well-being is important because it can positively impact our mood, reduce stress, enhance productivity, improve physical comfort, support personal expression, foster social connections, and encourage self-care. I mean, what’s not to love about focusing on well-being when you take on your next home project? By intentionally creating a space that nurtures our well-being, we can experience a more balanced, harmonious, and fulfilling life, and don’t we all deserve that?
𝓟𝓮𝓪𝓬𝓮 & 𝓗𝓪𝓻𝓶𝓸𝓷𝔂 ~ Your Organizer & Coach, Cheryl
If you are seeking further guidance beyond this post, my personalized coaching programs may be of assistance to you. Please book a complimentary session to discuss what is holding you back. I look forward to guiding you on your journey to achieving organized spaces in your lifestyle.
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I know . . . it may feel a bit unusual to declutter before the holidays. It took some time but I had finally convinced my organizing clients if you declutter and organize the home BEFORE the holidays you would actually enjoy the season with the family.
Let’s showcase the home and your lifestyle to make room for the holiday festivities either in person or online. You get to choose how you participate in this most memorable holiday season. Being intentional with a clear mindset about how you will celebrate will create a most meaningful holiday with family and friends near and afar.
Declutter the home before the holidays: 20 Ideas to create a mindful holiday
Kitchen Pantry ~ Start in the pantry. There are probably things in there you don’t remember where they came from. Check the expiration date on the items to make sure it still good if it is and you won’t use it put items in a box and drop off at your local food bank. If they are currently NOT taking donation please consider making a monetary donation . . . Thanks!
Closets ~ This is a wonderful time to look at the clothes you purchased in the last year. Will you wear it again? If no, give them to a friend, consign them, donate them or bring to a local thrift shop or Goodwill.
Give Away Warmth ~ Take your extra winter coats, gloves, scarves, and socks (New) to a homeless shelter. Warmth is in high demand this holiday season.
Books ~ I love giving books for gifts! I found this great idea from a vintage book I bought years ago; write a letter on the inside cover about why you choose the book for someone you care about. If you find it as hard as I do to let go of books, Dedicate them to a new heart & home helped me. Looking to re-gift this year ~ start with your books.
Bye ♪ Bye ♫ Bye ♪ Gifts ~ Remember the gifts you ended up with at the company office holiday swaps – you never took them out of the box or bag. Say bye, bye, bye!
Medicine Cabinet ~ Check the expiration dates on anything over a year long. Dump your old stuff responsibly.
Design Items ~ What graces your shelves and countertops? If you’re going to do some holiday decorating it may be the best time to let go of some vases, candlesticks, and other decors you don’t use anymore. Yes To Less Dusting!
Paper management ~ There will be pleather of incoming paper over the next couple of months catalogs, cards, to mention a few. Start the new year with a clean slate along with an organized area.
Junk Drawers ~ Get into those junk drawers and toss all the things you’ve been holding onto – this is a great drawer to re-gift items for grandkids, nieces, nephews, coworkers. My mom used to say “One man’s junk is another’s treasure”.
Make-up! ~ I think we all have simplified our make-up routines since Covid has been in town. Get rid of the stuff you aren’t wearing and don’t enjoy anymore. I want to add a Housekeeping note: this is a good time to replace or clean your make up brushes and wands. TIP: DAWN dish detergent (2 drops) works wonderfully!
DIFY Goodies ~ Do It For Yourself crafts are a great escape. This is a whole season of some very different memories from those of the past. Make room to create scrapbooks, vision boards, crafts to celebrate the year 2020, to make it meaningful.
Health Check-Ups ~ Schedule your routine appointments and screenings now so you don’t have to think about them. See if Tele-Health options are available – I do know at this point of the pandemic you have the option to ask your doctor, for a Tele-Appointment Great health makes life simpler.
Burdens ~ Make sure you make room on your calendar for the things that make the holidays purposeful to you and your family by getting rid of the things that burden you.
The Drama ~ I believe this is more important this year than any other year, clear up the family drama. You can simplify the gatherings you know that are coming either in person or over Zoom this year. This is brain clutter, clear mental clutter so you can welcome peace and calm back into your life. Without this brain clutter, you will become a more productive, happier, and all-around healthier soul.
Your Finance ~ Gift, events, travel and other seasonal items will put pressure on you to spend more. Assess your dollars now and make decisions about what you have to budget for the holidays. Avoid splurges and creating new debt for the coming year – be completely transparent and honest about your finances.
Mental Clutter ~ This pre-season release of all of the mental clutter like perfection, comparison, doubts, and expectations will give the holiday season a chance to delight you and your family.
Morning Chaos ~ Do you ever dream of a morning when having time to watch the leaves blow, the snowfall, or ocean waves rolling in? You can set your alarm clock earlier than usual then you can get up to listen to your favorite music, read a book, or quietly pray or meditate. Simplify the morning chaos and make time for YOU!
Busy & Clutter life ~ Simple. Say Goodbye!
The Guilt . . . Let it go! ~ Give and do what you can. Let go of any quilt that says it’s not enough. It is enough. YOU ARE ENOUGH.
Emails & Cell Phone ~ Clean up your phone by dumping apps and deleting old contacts. Unfollow and unsubscribe in order to make more space in your inbox and social feeds. To really show up this holiday season – show up UNPLUGGED (if you can).
Choose a few or all of these 20 ideas to declutter your lifestyle before the holiday season. Think about how you want to enjoy the holidays. Be intentional and mindful about what rituals, activities or traditions will make it meaningful for you.
Declutter now for less stress and a more merry and easier lifestyle!
~Simply try it. A little effort can go a long way in increasing happiness. There are plenty of experimental studies that have found that simply trying to be happier could actually elevate your mood and well-being.
~Make happiness your number-one goal. People who are happy choose to make happiness among their top goals in life, according to psychologist Tom G. Stevens, Ph.D., author of You Can Choose to Be Happy. Learning good self-management skills, interpersonal skills, and career-related skills along with choosing to be in environments and around people that increase your probability of happiness.
~Linger in those tiny little, positive moments. “Our brains are wired to scout for all that’s bad — the brain is like velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positive ones. This “negativity bias” causes the brain to react intensely to bad news, compared to how it responds to the good news. But we can counter the brain’s negativity bias — which triggers us to form stronger bad memories than good ones — by appreciating and lingering on those tiny, positive moments.” – according to Rick Hanson, neuropsychologist and author of Hardwiring Happiness.
~Choose mindfulness. The secret to happiness could be as simple (and difficult) as becoming more mindful. Meditation — a practice that anyone can do, anywhere, so long as they’re willing to sit and try to silence the mind — is thought to be a happiness-booster. I used to think that this “meditation stuff” was . . . excuse me for saying — bullshit! But, I have been using meditation since 2003. It was actually prescribed to me by my holistic doctor out of Madison, CT. The best tool I have found to calm my mind — no bullshit!
~Smile your way to happiness. The secret to boosting your mood could be as simple as making yourself smile. Fake smiling, on the other hand, results in the worse moods and withdrawal from others. It really is that simple, you create a happy environment when you’re smiling at people instead of frowning or showing a face of anger. Smiling can change our brain. Let’s say you experience a positive situation and you see a friend you haven’t seen in a long time. This means that neuronal signals travel from the cortex of your brain to the brainstem (the oldest part of our brains). From there, the cranial muscle carries the signal further towards the smiling muscles in your face — And you have a smile!
~Practice compassion. Want to increase your brain’s capacity for happiness? “Compassion is the most transforming energy in the universe with all the ingredients that everyone longs for; the embodiment of kindness, of caring, of loving. It is a skill that can be enhanced with practice, it’s not impractical or touchy-feely but a courageous state of mind and heart, with far-reaching consequences in terms of how we experience ourselves, the world and reality” (Mindfulness at Work). Try meditating on compassion.
“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”
The year is half over. Are you keeping up with your awareness of the energy in your living and workspaces?
If you feel that it’s a good idea to be “out with the old” or even time to create space for something new, clear the invisible energies to allow the newness in.
One of my favorite space-clearing rituals is a sage burning. Give it a try!
Here’s what you need and how to do it:
Sage is a potent plant, and burning it is a powerful ritual: Burning sage (aka, “smudging” or “sage-ing”) is a ritual used to cleanse space or the environment from negative energy, to generate wisdom and clarity, and promote healing. The intention is everything with this ritual, so before you light up, ask yourself what you’re trying to purify, and/or heal from or release—inside you or in your space.
Burning sage has roots in Native American tradition: Many cultures follow burning practices; Catholics burn frankincense in their churches, Asian cultures burn incense, and native Amazonians burn Palo Santo. The word “sage” in Latin (salvia) translates “to heal” and it’s also a word we use in our American culture to describe a wise person. In Chinese medicine, we use the Salvia root (known as “Dan Shen” in pinyin) to cool people off, soothe irritability, and calm the spirit.
Sage variety matters less: White sage is preferable but any sage wand (sage wrapped by twine in a bundle to make a stick) will do. It’s really about The intention. You can order them online, or a buy sage at Walmart – Even Whole Foods carries them now!
The best time to smudge…is whenever you feel like your intuition is telling you to: Favorable times to smudge are when you first move into a new home or office. “At my home office, I do it between projects and also between chapters of my book”. Another good time to smudge is on a Full moon to cleanse and purify.
Stay tuned to Part 2 of this blog
Peace Harmony & Happy Sage-ing!
XO Cheryl
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Contact me to schedule a complimentary consultation today! (860)961.6824 or cchomeconcierge@gmail.com