We are thrilled to introduce our readers to Lorie Marrero – she’s a pretty big deal in the world of de-cluttering and organizing. We hope you enjoy getting to know her, and get some useful tips on how to just LET IT GO!
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“I’ve got whozits and whatzits galore, you want thingamabobs? I’ve got twenty!” If this sounds like you, but you aren’t hanging out in an undersea cavern with a lobster named Sebastian, it may be time to declutter. Watch this video, and learn how to let go of the gadgets and gizmos a-plenty that you really don’t need. Say good riddance to your trove of “treasures” untold and let it go so you can make room for something fantastic to be Part of Your World!
Transcript:
Hi. I’m Lorie Marrero, creator of the Clutter Diet book and on-line program, and when you’re organizing sometimes, it can be very difficult to let go of things, to get rid of things, and let’s talk today about five reasons that might make it a little easier for you to say not only goodbye, but even good riddance to some of your things.
First of all, you can’t have anything new and useful and beautiful come into your life if you don’t have room for it. So if your closet is stuffed full of clothes that you don’t wear, you can’t even see what you have, how are you going to make room for anything new and gorgeous and fun to come into your wardrobe? You’ve got to get rid of that stagnant stuff so that you can see what new is coming in and enjoy that and have a flow in and out.
Secondly, some of your possessions may have memories associated to them that are not serving you right now. So they may be very unpleasant memories, you might want to say buh-bye to some of the possessions of your ex that are still laying around from some kind of painful breakup or divorce. That can be very therapeutic to get rid of those items. You also might have other unpleasant memories sitting around that you haven’t thought about. Like a binder from some training class from a job that you used to have and didn’t like. Or, you know, other things that represent a person that you used to be and not the person that you are now. The other things you might have around are memories that are actually pleasant memories of someone who you’ve lost, that you have been missing. They are a loved one that you wish were still around, and you want to honor that person. But what you don’t want is for that person’s belongings and all of those memories to be the predominant influence in your space to the point where it confuses your present and obscures your future and doesn’t allow you to move on to a new chapter in your life. So, again, whatever things you’re keeping, make sure the memories associated with that are serving you right now.
Third, let’s talk about things that are taking up a lot of your time, being a slave to your possessions. You might want to get rid of things if they require a lot of maintenance. So, how much are you dusting and polishing these things? Replacing the batteries? Replacing parts? How much of your stuff requires care when you go out of town? This takes a lot of your time, and maybe this factor might be the reason that pushes you to decide to get rid of something.
Next, let’s talk about the phrase “perfectly useful.” So you may have something that’s perfectly useful but it’s not perfectly useful to you. This is why I love donating my clothing and household goods to Goodwill, because I know not only is the person purchasing that item going to enjoy it, and that person is going to have a good home for that item, but the revenue from that is going to go directly to help someone in my own community, my own neighbors, to get job training, job placement services, and many other kinds of services that are really needed. So that helps me to get rid of things, because I know they’re going to a good home, and they’re going to do good in the world.
Next, let’s talk about how your possessions really complicate your life, and you can simplify your decisions by having fewer things. So essentially, fewer choices mean easier decisions. So, if you are going to select a pair of shoes, it’s much easier to choose a pair from a 30-pair collection versus having, you know, 80-something pairs of shoes. It’s going to take you a lot more time to decide that every single morning.
Essentially, you want your possessions to represent who you are and who you want to be, and you want your environment every day to support your goals moving forward. So if things that you’re debating about, whether to keep them, should you let go of them. If they are not meeting that criteria, then you should probably get rid of them. Think about it. And if you’d like more tips you can find a lot more where this came from at http://www.clutterdiet.com/freetips.
See you next time, and may you always be happy and grateful for having more than enough.
