Step Five - SCHEDULE
I love this part of the Spring Clean; this is where you truly begin to feel empowered.
At the moment, we have had to down tools and clear the calendar and re-schedule a huge amount of appointments. It is a perfect time, to declutter your schedule and re-evaluate.
Let’s begin,
Firstly, how many devices, notepads or diaries do you currently have on the go? do you use the calendar on your phone? do you have a wall or desk calendar in your office? do you have a diary in your bag? Or like I did do you have one of each?
You will be surprised at how many of us do this especially with the excuse of my physical diary is for family stuff, my phone is for day to day appointments and my desk calendar is for work meetings.
Then we get stressed when we double book or worse forget.
Choose a diary (just one) - now we are going to merge them. but before you do that let’s have a bit of a revamp.
We are going to add, Family, Work, YOU.
List down what is most important to you, this is your chance to begin living the life you want, be honest with yourself.
I would like to share this story to give you clarity here:
A philosophy professor once stood before his class with a large empty jar. He filled the jar with large rocks and asked his students if the jar was full.
The students said that yes, the jar was full.
He then added small pebbles to the jar and asked again, “Is the jar full now?”
The students agreed that the jar was indeed full.
The professor then poured sand into the jar and asked again.
The students then agreed that the jar was finally full.
The professor went on to explain that the jar signifies one’s life.
The rocks are equivalent to the most important things in your life, such as family, health, and relationships. And if the pebbles and the sand were lost, the jar would still be full and your life would still have meaning.
The pebbles represent the other things that matter in your life, such as your work, school, and house. These things often come and go, and are not permanent or essential to your overall well-being although important.
And finally, the sand represents the remaining small stuff and material possessions in your life. These things don’t mean much to your life as a whole and are likely only done to waste time or get small tasks accomplished.
The metaphor here is that if you start with putting sand into the jar, you will not have room for rocks or pebbles. This holds true for the things you let into your life too.
If you spend all of your time on the small and insignificant things, you will run out of room for the things that are actually important.
So in order to have a more effective life, you should prioritize important things in your life and then worry about pebbles and sand at a later time.
As you begin to populate your one calendar, ask yourself, are they a Rock, Pebble or Sand
We are looking for balance here, you may find it useful to colour code, work, family, you – this way you can see at a glance if your days or weeks are balanced.
Don’t add coffee with someone to your calendar if that someone always leaves you feeling negative.
Colour code the appointments that are non-negotiable - School Play for example.
Add the non-negotiables in first. Now everything else can be scheduled in around this…. Tada… Balance.
Remember if you can’t enthusiastically say YES! to something it should definitely be a NO.
Step Six - RELATIONSHIPS
This may seem a bit brutal but it is essential.
We are influenced by the people we choose to be around. We need to surround ourselves with people who love, support, empower, inspire and motivate us.
After Spring Cleaning our schedules you realise how important time is, spend it wisely.
We have all been around people who are incredibly negative, or selfish or just rude, how did this make you feel?
Open the contacts in your Phone and Social Media and begin….
• Does this person bring joy and happiness into my life?
• Is this relationship beneficial to me in anyway?
When you are a good person, who loves and respects themselves you deserve to be around like-minded people who elevate you.
If our children’s personalities begin to change and they begin being rude or miserable the first thing we look at is who they are spending their time with.
You are in control of your life and environment, choose for it to be positive and happy.
Surround yourself with like-minded people, successful, happy, positive, inspiring individuals people who want to make a change and live The Purposeful Life
This is actually a lot simpler than you would imagine, it is liberating.
“Walk with the dreamers, the believers, the courageous, the cheerful, the planners, the doers, the successful people with their heads in the cloud and their feet on the ground.”
Step Seven – YOUR ENVIRONMENT
We have looked at our body, mind, sleep, food, schedule, and relationships.
You are now well equipped to declutter your environment.
This is a fun one.
No 1 rule - if you don’t use it- lose it. sell, donate, add to a memory box (do this wisely otherwise you will end up we a very large box) or throw away.
There are 3 main areas in the home that we can declutter, Kitchen, Bedrooms, and Bathroom.
The benefits we declutter our environment are amazing:-
• Increased energy
• Reduction in anxiety
• Reduction in Stress
• You can find what you are looking for immediately
• You don’t trip over stuff
Top tip - don’t over complicate the process, choose a room and begin, drawer by drawer cupboard by cupboard, floor by floor.
If it is out of date, bin it, if you have no use for it anymore, something is too big or too small, hasn’t been used in over a year, you get the idea then use the No 1 rule - if you don’t use it- lose it. sell, donate, add to a memory box (do this wisely otherwise you will end up we a very large box) or throw away.
Then clean every drawer, cupboard, shelf, window, and floor, until they are super sparkly.
Now put everything back, neatly!
Remember ‘A place for everything, everything in its place’
You only have to go on Amazon and type in storage solutions and you will be in Marie Kondo heaven.
You will feel calmer, less stressed, your sleep will improve.
Once you have done this your office and desk will be a breeze
My suggestions here is to start with your online folders, do you have a folder on a memory stick and similar on your desktop – merge them.
How many downloaded items have you got sitting on your computer that are unnecessary?
Then clear your desk – clear desk, clear mind.
“As I unclutter my life, I free myself to answer the callings of my soul” Unknown
