January has past and if those New Year’s resolutions have also already started to fade away, it’s time to shake things up a bit. If you are like many of the clients I work with, your homes have become cluttered to a point of no return; not since January, not since last summer, but over many years things piled up. Perhaps these belongings became more important to you in filling voids that life has thrown your way from substantial loss of a spouse or a child, dear friends or a pet, the loss a job or even your health. Perhaps materialistic endeavors cause you to surround yourself with the familiar items that now define you. Regardless of the reason, I believe cluttered living spaces only lead to cluttered minds and depress our thoughts and actions to a point of being paralyzed. I see clients who have become socially isolated and create safety hazards over the years in the process of keeping so much stuff. Too many belongings are the cobwebs our lives become trapped in. Taking action against the clutter is the only way to avoid a stagnant lifestyle and move forward.
I attended a presentation by author, Joshua Becker about his book Becoming Minimalist where the notion of downsizing comes into play. I was inspired because I gained a clearer focus on the impact my profession can have as a Senior Move Manager in helping enable and empower older adults to start new beginnings. “Owning less enables you to live more” is what the author shares in his book through his own spiritual journey to find happiness by embracing and adapting to a more minimalistic lifestyle. Neither he nor I am suggesting some form of Zen philosophy and living with Monks. We all live in the modern world with many of life’s “things”, the author just chooses to live with a lot less of them than most. His definition of minimalism is - The intentional promotion of everything we most value and the removal of anything that distracts us from it. Determining what you value most and then getting rid of all things that keep you from promoting those values is the starting place. Whether you value generosity, relaxation, enjoying grandchildren, gratitude, money – whatever it may be- owning more possessions gets in the way of focusing on those values by distracting us from all that gives meaning, fulfillment, and happiness to our lives. Your life can be dramatically different and significant when you take the steps to become more minimalist because you have more opportunity to pursue your greatest passions. Humans tend to put less value on “things” and more value on relationships as we age. Let the act of clearing your clutter be the catalyst that can redefine your life, a life less focused on holding onto the past and more on pursuing your greatest potential by seeing how life is better with less. Home Again Transitions can help you see 2020 as the year you discover a new you; one who realizes what you offer to the world can be more an act of contribution and love than one of being a tiresome burden with too much clutter.