New Year, same (wonderful) you!
As we head into the new year (enter obligatory “how is it almost January already?” here), we are all hearing the old “new year, new you” that inundates our feeds and inboxes. While I absolutely love implementing new ways to bring more joy into my life by reducing clutter, I will never endorse the idea of “messy is bad”.
I cannot tell you how many times I have been invited to the home of a friend, one of my daughter’s classmates, and even prospective clients with the disclaimer and apology of, “sorry it is so messy!” or “I am so embarrassed to show you…” If you are feeling this way, or if you are feeling shame around the state of your home, office, car, etc. please note this: Tidiness is morally neutral. Messiness is morally neutral.
Now that we have that out of the way, I wholeheartedly encourage anyone feeling this way to read How to Keep House While Drowning by KC Davis, LPC. I found her book incredibly insightful and truly aware of the pressure we face, especially as parents, to juggle it all.
So many of the folks I worked with this year expressed similar sentiments to that of the author, and I believe giving ourselves a little grace is an excellent way to approach the new year.
If you are feeling inspired to make your home feel fresh for 2025, I would encourage you to walk through your home with a note-taking app or paper and ask yourself how you want each space to function and feel. Don’t write down the negative feeling the spaces give you now, but focus on how the space would be in an ideal world. Feel free to praise the space as it is too!
Once you have noted how each space would best function and feel, focus on one space to start and write down some quick action items to begin the process. I like to break down each action item to be as basic as possible. For instance:
Playroom:
Review books, set aside any that have been outgrown
Put books to be donated in box by door
Review stuffed animals, set aside any that are too worn, not played with, or duplicates
Put stuffed animals to be donated in box by door
etc. etc.
I like breaking down each category into two separate steps because it segments an entire project into bite sized pieces. Whether you do one category per day or an entire room, the steps are laid out so you know exactly where you stand on progress.
Side note: If you are doing this over multiple days with kids’ stuff, put the box of donations out of reach between sessions. Trust me.
Feeling like you need an extra hand getting your space in shape this coming year? Email me, I’d love to help!
