Garage Feng Shui
As a side note, we can even park a car in our garage now which hasn't been the case since we moved in! If any one has ever questioned why ORDER might be on any Bliss Virtue list just know that I found it to be pure delight to behold my garage yesterday. Knowing that we can proceed with getting garage cabinets installed because we have made room for that to happen and knowing that I can put my hands on anything that is still out there without a 20 minute search of digging or climbing over a pile of other stuff IS immensely blissful!! Today as I write this, I feel so light!
We had planned on being out of town this weekend and when that didn't happen it would have been so easy to fall back into our usual lounging weekend routine. We had social invitations we had already declined which we certainly could have attended but having already said no gave us the freedom to be "away" and fully dive into our task. We have previously tried to pick away at the mess but pretending to be away really kept us on task. We both proceeded as if "This was our only chance!" and we got it done! If you have a big job that has been hanging over your head I heartily recommend this approach. We created a deadline and no distractions so we could really focus and working together kept us motivated and was fun!
So with all that behind us what could be left for this Order week you might ask? Actually there is a ton of stuff. Frankly, having the garage mess hanging over our head has kept us from moving forward on any other project for more then six months. Getting this done has opened up space for us to plan renovations, vacations and other family activities. The order and fun is just beginning!
This week's "Bliss Initiatives" are color coded in purple for quick identification. They are concrete things that you too can try, if you want to play along with me. However, because as Earl Nightingale says, "you become what you think about," even if you only follow along, and never take on any of the bliss initiatives, I expect some positive results. I will be exploring and encouraging ORDER this way:
- Just Start - If you don't have a whole weekend to devote to a project, another good method is to JUST START. Pick something you have wanted to organize, you know that junk drawer, your hall closet, your desk, what ever has been weighing on your mind. Get yourself a timer, put 10 minutes on that timer and see how much you can get done in those 10 minutes. Timing yourself makes it a game and you will likely be surprised at how much you can get done in those 10 minutes. My friend Aaron Bartlett gave us 10 Things You can Do in 10 Minutes or Less in this Everyday Bliss post if you are having trouble figuring out where to start. Remember the key here is to just start!
- Bliss work - This one is good for everyone no matter how organized you already are or aspire to be. Each day I will be giving at least one thing away. Less is more and we have way too much stuff. It is a great feeling when one frees themselves from the burden of their stuff and then to know that someone else could benefit makes the whole process highly addictive! If you like how this feels you may even want to consider the 29 day Giving Challenge.
Nothing is planned. I don't know what I'll give away each day. I just begin the day and when I feel moved to give something, I do. This really goes against my control freak nature, but taking contrary action is sometimes needed to create change. Part of me initially wanted to plot out the... days and line up the things I'm giving in my hallway so I have the illusion of knowing what to expect. But collapsing into that old, manipulative way of being would defeat the purpose of the experiment."
- Get in the mood for order - This is a really fun one. To figure out just what is important to me I am going to leaf through magazines like REAL SIMPLE, PARENTING, OPRAH and figure out what organizational tools I want to use and activities I want on our family calendar. I will be creating a vision board to foster the new organized way into existence. (Sample board found at Parentology.)
How will you be Fostering Order this week?!!
Next Post: A terrific Guest Post by Katina Rice of Peaceful Divas
My 13 bliss virtues are
joy, order, creativity, passion, whimsy, serenity, inquiry, community,
romance, gratitude, moxie, humility, and surprise.
This week we are exploring Order.
Next week is all about Passion.
I'm ALWAYS trying to foster order! LOL Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't . I try to plan everything out for each day - but there is always one thing or another that doesn't get done. Some days I actually create lists - other days I fly by the seat of my pants. LOL I'm always looking for more ways to get "orderly" - so I'll be looking forward to this week. :) Theresa
ReplyDeleteKathy - Hi! I have been away for seemingly forever but have seriously re-arrived at a perfect time. Hubby and I were JUST talking about this today! Our last step to order is chucking all of that stuff that no longer serves us...and THEN park our cars in the garage. Hah! Love knowing there is someone else out there who has tackled this.
ReplyDeleteI've been painting & creating like crazy and thus falling behind on my blog reading. It's all good, though, because like you what I do off of the computer only makes my presence online stronger! (At least I hope so)
Good to check back in - promise I'll keep coming back!! :)