When I finished college, all my belongings fit into one suitcase and a couple of boxes.  My first one-bedroom apartment in Seattle, Washington was half empty and it stayed that way for a little while. The more my career and paycheck grew, the more stuff I accumulated. Today, I would describe my apartment as ‘organized chaos’. I know the general vicinity of where things are, and I would consider it to be an organized space. I’ve always been mindful of the importance of keeping spaces tidy, so I established what I affectionately called a clutter maintenance program which allowed me to survive the time spent in each space.  For me, this system worked well. Because I spent about 35 percent of my time traveling and another 10 percent of my time preparing to travel, I was never in a position to take a real good look around to examine my space.  Now that I have more time to spend in each space, I’m taking a closer look, and it is evident to me that I’ve been stuck in a transient living bubble.  It’s time to fix this and turn my living spaces into areas that foster relaxation and allow me to focus.

DECLUTTERING

The thought of decluttering my space created greater anxiety than leaving it as is. I found myself nearing analysis-paralysis, making mental arguments about how the current state wasn’t ‘so bad’. So, I decided to start by blocking off chunks of time and spending 2 hours a day this week to declutter my space.  I started in the places where I spent the most time.  Once I began, it was clear to me that the hardest part was getting started.  I set my timer for 2 hours but when the timer went off, I was so far into my stride, I continued until I reached my desired stopping point.  As a goal-oriented person, I also found that the more I did, the better I felt and the less anxiety I felt.  By the end of week 2, I had largely decluttered all my visible spaces.  I still have one room and 2 closets to go but I truly feel a sense of accomplishment.

Don’t put it down, put it away.

Truth is, I am horrible about immediately putting things back where they belong.  I often place things where they are convenient and over time most things find their way to the appropriate spot. However, this approach leads to an amazing amount of clutter.  Fortunately, given the size of my Brooklyn apartment, it hasn’t led to many lost things. It is easier to place things in random places, especially when you’ve had an exhausting day,  so I’m building the habit now to follow the rule: Don’t put it down, put it away. Placing things back where they belong is a concept that I learned when I was 5 but I feel that I am not the only person who lives like this.  Hopefully, following this mantra will increase my chances of keeping a clutter-free space going forward.

…you need at least two weeks for vacation – the first week to reset and the second is to actually feel like you are on vacation.

REFLECTIONS

The good news is, I was also able to maintain the habits I established in Week 1.  I exercised every day for a minimum of 30 minutes and I was able to cook most of my meals during the week.  I have not switched to doing meal prep for the week since cooking and baking allows me to continue to bring down my stress levels. At the end of week 2, I felt completely refreshed. However, I also noticed that none of my stress indicators had changed substantially.  My resting heart rate (67 bpm) was essentially flat from the beginning of Week 1 and my blood pressure had dropped only slightly.  I found this interesting because I often take vacations for one maybe two weeks and according to my U.S. friends you need at least two weeks for vacation – the first week to reset and the second is to actually feel like you are on vacation.

Your mind may feel refreshed long before your body stops showing signs of stress.

If I have learned anything from this current experiment, it is that:

1. Your mind may feel refreshed long before your body stops showing signs of stress.
2. Once your body is under heightened stress, it can be hard (if not impossible) to manage. Taking time to develop habits that manage your stress during this time is extremely important.
3. When things feel overwhelming, look for opportunities to set micro-goals (smaller goals that reduce the time spent to achieve a result). Setting micro-goals helps to make tasks look less daunting and build momentum to get things across the finish line.  Ironically, this is a lesson that I learned in public policy where outcomes can take years, but I apparently hadn’t implemented this in my personal life. It’s never too late!

STAY TUNED FOR WEEK 3!