Every Little Bit Helps

If you’re thinking that you would like to move within the next 5 years, I highly suggest that you start going through your “stuff” now. 

Even if you’re not planning to move, act as if you are and that vision will help you to see what is really worth keeping in life. Once you think of whether or not something is worth packing, lifting, moving and unpacking, it helps to put into perspective what is cluttering your life vs. what is creating value in your life.

Start building up efficiency in your home, which will help when moving time comes around. I always thought we were efficient with our space and stuff only because we do not have a basement to store things in.  Well, it’s time to admit that the two-car garage we have has not held a car in years because there is no room for cars. 

Looking at the big picture of organizing, downsizing, purging, selling, consolidating and liberating with regards to “stuff”  is without a doubt overwhelming.  If you find yourself lacking time or enthusiasm to start with what could be a time-consuming project, then start small while envisioning the prize at the end. 

Above is my inspiration photo.  Keeping my eye on the prize helps me to move forward, nearly daily, even with small tasks. While I love Disney World, I also love just hanging out at resorts. The one shown above is the Marriott World Center in Orlando. Lou and I both enjoy visiting resorts, taking in the sounds of waterfalls, the smell of a pool, and a fine pool bar.  In our near future, we see ourselves stopping by these resorts for a weekend lunch or an evening cocktail after work.  Inspiration is invaluable!

Focus on one small corner of a room and assess if anything can be done with what is in that corner.  My most recent job was looking inside of a basket that is in the corner of our dining area.  I hadn’t looked in this basket in months so I truly had no idea what was stored in it.  I found all kinds of magazines that I was previously reluctant to get rid of. 

Most of the magazines were Martha Stewart Living and Celebrations.  The recipes in Martha Stewart’s magazines usually turn out very tasty so I was holding onto them.  Unfortunately, I had forgotten that they even existed so they had not been used. This means the magazines were out!  Their information can always be accessed online anyway. As I stated in yesterday’s blog, I used Freecycle to dispose of them. 

The basket, however, is staying. It is a light object to move, I like it, and it provides not only decoration but usefulness as it can be used for light storage. In the future, I think I’ll use it to store something we use more often such as TV/VCR/Cable remotes or Lou’s guitar stuff.

With this one job that took me about 20 minutes to tackle (including the time it took to decide what to do with the magazines), I feel more efficient and as if I am making progress toward my goal. I’m also happy that I made someone else happy by giving them free magazines.