Clearing Out the Clutter

Happy New Year! A new year is a very appropriate time to consider cleaning out and clearing out the old to make room for the new–and that’s the focus of this solo episode. I’m starting a new group to be a supportive place for moms of all ages and stages. You can find the link in our Resources section, so come join us with a free membership for a limited time.

Regarding New Year’s Resolutions–or the lack thereof, I’m sharing what I’ve learned with the hope that my experiences might inspire you. This show and my attitude are prompted in part by the chaos of our family’s “COVID Christmas of 2021.”

Show Highlights:

How a new year has ingrained us to decide what we can change and do differently in a near frenzy of goal-setting
How COVID has trained us that in making plans, we feel tenuous and uncertain about what’s next
Why I’m slowly stepping into January
How our family become accustomed to clearing out the old to make room for the new
Why I’ve been feeling “cluttered” in my mind and in my house
Why I want the clarity of mind that comes when my physical space is clean and uncluttered
How your physical space and mental space are connected and usually are both either clean or cluttered
Why we need to get rid of some things to clear the emotional weight of having them around
How clearing out can be an emotional recognition of the passage of time
Why it’s important to figure out how you got to the point of physical clutter
How to start clearing your physical space:
- Begin with the room where you spend the most time or the one you tend to avoid.
- Identify what you want to change and why.
How to know you have a “cluttered mind”
How meditation, breath work, and journaling can help clear your mental space
How to use questions to point you toward new goals (“What do I want more of? What do I want to let go of?”)
Why the awareness of new goals as a regular routine is less overwhelming than putting every intention into a New Year’s resolution
My advice: “Start with clearing out and letting go. That’s the only way to make room for more of the good stuff to come your way.”