The first step to happiness in our life is to get rid of everything we don't want from our lives.
I decoded this message by starting with - ‘My Palace of Things’. I was quite convinced with the idea of decluttering because it will help me to appreciate things that are important to me and reduce things that are not. I decided to downsize my years of accumulated treasure. In the following paragraphs, I would like to share my story of decluttering as it may resonate with you and can help you to take a step forward.
Step 1 : The first stage was the most difficult stage. It was crossing the emotional barrier to reach out to the treasure of things which was once gifted or collected. I had to mentally eliminate the possibility of reconditioning every item till antiquity.
A Pro tip to handle the emotional baggage while parting with my possessions, is to ask yourself: “Does the things I own enrich my life and do I use it now,?” If the answer was no, I had to let it go. Therefore now is your time to let go of things that no longer serve you.
Step 2 : When I entered into my gallery of things I did not know where to start . To make things easy I used my management skill. I made a look alike of a
gantt chart. ( attached below)
Step 3 : Next, I used a three-pronged strategy:
Throwaways - I started off with the definite throwaways. They were the easiest to do because they were of no value either to me or to anyone yet they were there. For instance, expired medicine, food items, cosmetics, etc.
Sell Aways - These were the things where I had spent a lot of money but now they were out of use or replaced by new ones. They were sorted and sold out at a good price. It gave me some cash and a sense of achievement. For instance, laptops, electronic appliances, cables, mobiles, etc
A Pro tip. I asked myself for every expensive item - did i use this in the last five years? If the answer was No, I sold it off.
Giveaways - Now things like bed-time story books, small cups and plates, puzzles and board games surfaced. Each piece of item had a story to tell and memories of good olden days flashed back. It was very difficult but I gave away the precious old things to someone who can use it . In the process i devised a way to hold onto the memories of these things.
A Pro tip. I clicked a pic of each item and saved it on my mobile with a personal note on it. Now whenever I want a flashback, I scroll the album in my mobile and smile
During this project of 10 days, I learnt many lessons. First, I realised giving away things was cathartic and there is so much peace and joy in living light. Second, the less stuff we own the more we are able to focus our lives on things that matter. Third, once we make decluttering a practice the easier it is to find more things you can do away. Lastly, when times are tough outside and out of your control, do the things which are in your control. In the crisis of 2020-21, decluttering was sure a winner for me.
I recommend to all my readers, if you have time during this lockdown 2.0 and your family is not in trouble, sort out your 'palace of things'. In the beginning, decluttering is hard. Sometimes you will have to make difficult choices and sometimes it can be overwhelming. But you can get started with the above ten things to get more space inside the house and more blessings straight from the heart.
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