Building on those small decisions….

If you are just joining us, I am spending a week sharing insights gleaned from reading Make Room for What you Love by Melissa Michaels. 

Yesterday we covered the interconnection between Chronic Indecision leading to Procrastination which leads to Paralysis….all because of Perfectionism.

As we pull all of that baggage out into the open and see it for what it is, we can start making even just ONE decision…

and it is amazing how ONE decision can open the door to the next and the next…

and well…

it’s a beautiful thing.

Applying it over the course of an average day has proved doable and I am experiencing some growth in this area.

Until I go to look for something that involves opening certain closets or entering the labyrinth of memories stowed in tubs and boxes and piled on top of shelves in the basement and then…

Little Miss “Can’t make up her mind to save her life…” shows up and I am standing in the kitchen with a handful of dark chocolate contemplating a trip to Hobby Lobby to buy some yarn…don’t ask….

This is where Melissa’s chapter explaining how to break the overwhelming down into the manageable gave me a tool that actually works.

She calls it SMART goals…an acronym for

S – specific

M – measurable

A – achievable

R – realistic

T – time limited

The basic principle is to choose a closet or project or corner that needs some de-cluttering/ TLC or completion and then break the task down into a manageable work plan.

The book has a great application of how this works gleaned from Melissa’s desire to pare down her Christmas trim that had grown over the years.

I was able to apply the same principle to rein in my out-of-control supplies for card making.

Using the SMART goals, I was able to scale down from taking up the entire wall of one of our bedrooms. Now all of the supplies are organized into one desk and a couple of dresser drawers.

I set a goal on the amount of materials I had room to store, the amount of time I had to work on it and what I wanted the finished area to look like.

I gave myself  a two day limit and used other suggestions in the book…

like pulling everything out and grouping like items together and then putting back only what was in good shape and would fit in the available space.

And as a result, I actually have made a few cards since the purge; because guess what?

I actually feel creative when I am in an orderly, if not perfect, environment.

The weblink for the book //theinspiredroom.net/make-room-for-what-you-love/ even has nifty printable worksheets including one for your SMART goals to help you get started.

Tomorrow I want to look at another issue about memories that can stall me and keep me paralyzed in ineffectiveness, but for now I hope you are enjoying a taste of why my lovely book ended up looking like this….

I hope these tidbits are giving you some insights and encouragement…and I hope you are beginning to recognize the way clutter in the home often can be linked to clutter in US….

May God bless you as you sort through both <3

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Stuff you should know:

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