More mindfulness. Less clutter.
Less clutter. More life. This is what Organized for Life’s tag line has always promised. (Are you ready to rise above your clutter, and find the freedom of getting organized for life?)
Later, as my focus and service offerings changed and grew, I advocated: Less clutter. More stories. (Are your photos and memorabilia organized and shareable? Is it time to tell your story?)
And another promise: Less clutter. More peace. (Create peace of mind, for you and your family, by making decisions now so they don’t have to later.)
Now I am proposing that the whole process really starts here: More mindfulness. Less clutter. (The more mindful you are of your environment, your thoughts, and your actions, the less clutter you will have in all areas of your life.)
The more mindful you are of your environment, your thoughts, and your actions, the less clutter you will have in all areas of your life. Click To Tweet
Am I mindful? Not always!
You may know that I regularly contribute to the Productivity & Organizing Blog Carnival. Enough so that I have earned the top designation of Megastar Blogger.
Each month a topic is announced. Once in a while I skip because I don’t have anything suitable to submit, and also don’t have the inclination to write something new. This was almost one of those months. Until I became more….um….mindful of the topic (which was mindfulness).
What is mindfulness, anyway?
Mindfulness is the quality or state of being conscious or aware of something.
Easy to say, not as easy to do. That’s why people practice mindfulness by meditating, doing yoga, coloring, and such.
I searched my entire website for the word mindfulness. Nada.
Then I tried mindful, aware, awareness, notice, noticeable, conscious, and other variations.…and got lots more hits.
The fact is, whether or not I have used the word before, mindfulness is the key to, well, EVERYTHING. Is it not?
It’s like in my post “Those Magic Little Words”, where some people resonate with one phrase or another that all mean the same thing.
The more mindful we are….
The more mindful we are of our environment, the more we….
- notice our clutter and can do something about it.
- can make changes in our space that make life easier and more pleasant.
The more mindful we are of our actions…
- the more we remember to put our things away and not let them end up as mystery piles.
- the fewer mistakes we make.
The more mindful we are of how we spend our time….
- the less time it takes to do what we have to do, freeing up more time for what we want to do.
- the fewer opportunities we miss.
The more mindful we are of how we spend our money…
- the more we can save toward our financial goals.
- the less we are surprised by late fees and undesired automatic (or lapsed) re-subscriptions.
The more mindful we are of our stuff, and how we use it…
- the more grateful we are for what we have.
- the easier it is to organize and maintain.
- the fewer new purchases are necessary.
Mindfulness is just paying attention
Mindfulness is paying attention….
…to our surroundings (so we can be safe).
…to how we feel when people treat us badly (so we can stand up for ourselves or avoid them).
…to our health (so we can keep it).
…to what’s going on right now, here, today (so we don’t miss it by being consumed by guilt for the past, or worry for the future).
What other examples can you think of where being more mindful will help make your – anyone’s — life better?
Please leave a comment. I’d love to know what you think!
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Copyright 2020 by Hazel Thornton, Organized for Life.
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I think mindfulness is both wonderful and challenging. So often we want to “stuff” our feelings, especially the bad ones… our fears, our worries, our regrets, our feelings of shame. However, when we pull them out and acknowledge them, that this the first step we can take toward making things better. I think paying attention to our thoughts right now is so important. We are all carrying more stress than we realize I think.
Hazel, I’m thrilled that this month’s Blog Carnival inspired you to write a new post, especially one as meaty as this!
You were so thorough that I honestly can’t think of an example that you haven’t already covered.
Thanks, Janiet! I was reading the other Blog Carnival posts and realized that this one would have worked too: Are you too busy to live your life?
What a wonderful exploration about mindfulness. I’m glad you were inspired by Janet’s POBC topic. Like many of the decision trees that you’ve shared, you’ve sort of created a mindfulness decision tree. I can see a chart coming, Hazel. Seriously though, this is not only one of my favorite topics, but it a way of being. There is living mindfully, and doing mindfulness meditation. I have been living mindfully and writing about it for a long time. But about four years ago, I started doing daily mindfulness meditation. That added another dimension to mindful living which has helped with things like attention, acceptance, and stress management.
I’m glad you made a distinction between mindfulness and meditation because I think some people think (and fear) they’re the same thing. Meditation is a (not-actually-scary, but sometimes misunderstood) path to mindfulness, but there are many other paths.
Great post about mindfulness, Hazel. Paying attention is important to bring forth gratitude for the things in your life. Being grateful for the small actions that occur and the people who help gives one a more profound life with greater purpose and love.
Thanks, Sabrina! I think gratitude is one of the MOST important mindful practices!
This is great, Hazel. I have not yet started practicing mindfulness meditation. I am, though, mindful in how I approach my daily living. I don’t write specifically about mindfulness but I believe it is the undercurrent of most of my writings. Thank you for this – I agree with Linda. There is a chart here.
I have been practicing mindfulness through meditation for almost three years. I appreciate what I’ve learned about impermanence, nonreactivity, and loving-kindness. I cherish my 10 minutes with the Calm app.
I do like the Calm ads on TV. Might have to pay for the app!
This has never been more important than right now. I’ve noticed people becoming more mindful the last year, and examining their actions with care. I know I have too. It’s not always clear or easy to know if you’re doing the right thing in the moment but cutting down on distractions and clutter certainly helps. Thanks for sharing!
For sure. I said, “More mindfulness. Less clutter.” But I guess it works the other way too! “Less clutter. More mindfulness.”
I do agree that mindfulness is about paying attention. I work with people who shop too much and although I am not a coach or therapist, I talk with them about why they bought certain things. I ask questions about what they were feeling and thinking while they were shopping and purchasing the items that they did do anything with once they left the store.
I believe that if they were more mindful while they were shopping or better yet, before they even go into a store, they could avoid making these unneeded purchases.