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Stop Searching. Start Living! |
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July 15, 2005 |
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Space Inventors 484-547-7304 SpaceInventors@gmail.comP.O. Box 3056 Allentown, PA 18106
Space Inventors provides hands-on and coaching assistance to make the most of your time and space. Our clients seek a nurturing space to spend more time with loved ones, enhance the community, create art, continue learning, and grow professionally. If you’re inspired to do more with your life but clutter and mundane tasks stand in the way, contact us for a free consultation.
Just the Basics: www.obviously.com/junkmail
Something on your mind? Don’t just sit there! Send an e-mail to SpaceInventors@gmail.com with the subject Comment and tell me what you think. I’d love to hear about your experiences getting organized. Got a question? Ask the Organizer! Send an e-mail to SpaceInventors@gmail.com with the subject Question. Maybe I’ll feature your question in a future newsletter. Find this newsletter useful? Please pass it along. The only thing I ask is that you forward the entire newsletter. Got this newsletter from a friend? Want your own copy? Send an e-mail to SpaceInventors@gmail.com with the subject Subscribe. No longer interested? Reply to this message and change the subject to Remove. Your wish will be granted with no hard feelings.
Space Inventors 484-547-7304 SpaceInventors@gmail.comP.O. Box 3056 Allentown, PA 18106 |
Summertime! Most of us are gobbling up the fresh air and sunshine. If you’d rather be enjoying the simple pleasures of an afternoon outside with a good book and a glass of iced tea instead of inside decluttering, read on. This issue we focus on keeping the junk out of your home and office. I want to thank Fern Hill of F.J. Hill Letterwright and Vice President of the Greater Lehigh Valley Writers Group (www.glvwg.org), for introducing me to the Two Rivers Area Chamber of Commerce. Fern has been generous with her advice about the world of self-employment. If you need writing or editing assistance, contact her at 610-746-4163 or fjhill125M@msn.com. Namaste, Slow down. Think. Each time you leave your office or home, each time you speak with someone in person or on the phone, you might have the opportunity to let something new into your life. Slow down. Think. Will this object or commitment enhance my life? Will it enhance it enough to justify the space to store it and the time take care of it? Or will it become another bit of homeless clutter? Your Own Worst Enemy Think about the last time you stepped out of your car. What did you unload and bring into your home? How much baggage did it come with? Groceries have packaging. Some have a lot, filling your trash can as you prepare a meal. Books overflow shelves and spill on to the floor. Tools for your favorite hobbies leak out of the closet and across the floor. Am I recommending you stop eating, reading, and playing? Of course not. Just be aware that each decision you make about how to spend your time and money has implications to how you manage your office or household. Either plan to address the influx downstream or choose not to bring the item into your life. When purchasing, buy groceries and other goods that come with minimal packaging to reduce your recycling and trash. Buy books only if you expect to read them for multiple times; otherwise make use of your library. Devote yourself to one or two hobbies at a time. Try to rent or borrow items instead of buying. For more hints on low-impact consumerism, check out www.newdream.org.Do this long enough, and you may find yourself moving into a smaller home! Clutter Pushers Clutter Pushers are well-meaning people who are cleaning out their own closets. They don’t want to donate or discard their unwanted items, so they call you instead. "Do you like to garden?" you friend asks. If you answer "Yes," your friend will respond "Oh, good! I’m cleaning out the garage and have three trowels, a couple of shovels and some old seed packets I don’t need. I’ll bring them right over!" These people pretend to be generous, but they are really just using your home as a free storage unit. I know Ma taught you to be polite, but she probably also taught you to clean your room and take care of yourself and your family. When you give in to Clutter Pushers, you are protecting their feelings at great expense. Honestly, what’s more important to you? Your health and emotional comfort? The people you love and choose to live with? Or someone who doesn’t respect your space? If you feel confused, resentful or overwhelmed when bringing home a box of goodies, you’ve probably just visited a Clutter Pusher. I long ago learned to walk into polling places on Election Day with my hands in my pockets. That keeps the Pamphlet Pushers from unloading their paper on me. Similarly, if you have Clutter Pushers in your life, learn to keep your hands in your pockets when visiting them. People Who Want Something And finally there are people who want money, so they clutter your dinner with phone calls and jam your mailbox with junk mail. Or they want you to do work, cramming your calendar with committee obligations. I handle telemarketers by answering "We’ve already decided which charities we can support this year, and I’m sorry but yours didn’t make the list." No solicitor has ever asked when I would make the decision for the coming year so he could be considered. Be judicious about which organizations you join. You can’t be everything to everyone, so pick only a couple and focus your energy on them. They will love you for it. Junk mail is a no-brainer. Dump it right into the recycle bin. * If you frequently order from a specific company, by all means keep their catalog. For any others that look interesting, note the company’s website and pitch the catalog. * Donate once or twice a year to favored charities, and throw out all solicitations. They’ll cash your check even if you don’t use their fancy forms. If you’re undecided about supporting a cause, pitch the request. They’ll ask again in a couple months. And if you forget about it? That ought to tell you something! * Get off the junk mail lists. Here’s a great overview detailing plenty you can do to end the onslaught: Once you train yourself to consider downstream consequences and master a few ways to say "no thank you," you’ll be amazed at how much time you won’t spend decluttering. It is so much easier to keep the clutter out than to get rid of it. Remember, possession is nine-tenths of the guilt! |