Time to Sort, Donate & Clear Clutter

Recently, I had to face some hard facts. During the past three years, ever since my mother died, I’d become a pack rat — worse than I’ve ever been. And all those mounds of papers, decorative objects and various doodads were dragging me down.  Uh-oh, it was time to get organized!

Are you, too, being held back because you’re not organized? Tell us now on Facebook.

The words, “How Organized are You?” on a thermometer remind you that now is the moment to get things in order, straighten out your mess, and create a process or system to keep things tidy, clean and neat.

Recently, it hit me that I’ve been stuck in an organizational predicament. All that STUFF has been keeping me stuck and holding me back from my cherished goal, which is to help exasperated sugar junkies and carb addicts break free of their addictions and Crush their Crazy Cravings™ (as I put it).

Sure, I’d made lots of progress. For three years, I’ve spent many hours — often with the help of others — wading through, saving or tossing thousands of Mom’s photos, mementos and many other things that I’d stored in four places in three cities.

But for the last two months, as both the anniversary of Mom’s death and the Jewish High Holidays drew near, I ramped up my organizing. I’ve become determined to clear my massive amounts of clutter.

[shareable cite=”Connie Bennett”]Getting organized is freeing, and it moves you forward.[/shareable]

Why get organized? Because clearing clutter is freeing, and it moves you forward.

You reap many benefits from getting organized and clearing clutter.

For instance:

1. When you get organized just a little bit every day, you relieve your stress and reduce feelings of helplessness, according to the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists News Bulletin.

2. When you live in an organized environment, you’re more likely to make healthy food choices. If you’re a junk-food junkie, you’ll find research by the University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management’s  Kathleen Vohs. Indeed, in her eye-opening study in Psychological Science, Vohs found that 67 percent of participants in a neat room chose an apple over chocolate for a snack, as opposed to only 20 percent the messy room.  (The neat-room crowd were also were more willing to donate money.)

3. When you clear your clutter, you can take precious “me” time in the morning. That’s my favorite time to meditate, work out, spend time in nature, be grateful, and write either in my journal or on my next book.

4. Getting organized also makes you more productive.

5. You even develop a laser-like focus.

6. You can dream bigger, as I’ve been recently experiencing.

7.  What’s more, as I’ve personally found, getting organized makes you happier, calmer and freer. Let me know if you find a study that backs this up. I’ve been searching for one.

Now I’m off to get more organized so I can be ready to serve you even better.

Please join the conversation. Let’s get organized together. Why do you want to get more organized? Share your experiences here, on this Sugar Shock Blog, or tell us now on my Facebook page.