How to Move Forward

You've had a big life change or you want to propel yourself forward; but how? The space around you significantly influences the person you are and the person you will become. So, if you want to move onward and upward, start by looking around you.

Start by going through your decor and decide what no longer reflects the person you want to be. Take it all down and gather it in a pile. Look around for pictures, knick-knacks, books, etc. You can keep everything you don't want to let go of, but you don't have to display it. As for the things you're willing to part with, donate them to a local Goodwill or Salvation Army. Get a box to put your sentimental items in, label it, and store it in a safe place.

Next you'll do this with your clothes, and any wearable items. As you go through your things, ask yourself, “if I walked into a store today, would I still buy this?” We all have things just because we've always had them but that doesn't serve us. Let the item go to a new home to find a new purpose. Keep in mind your goal and start to envision the person you want to be and what kind of wearable items reflect that.

Lastly, take stock of your furniture items. Is there anything you want to replace? Consider taking this time to rearrange your furniture for better flow of your new energy. You can visit Facebook marketplace and post items for sale and find some new pieces that embody the environment you're creating.

The last step requires your utmost focus and attention; you'll now begin to replace your items. As you do this, to slowly and carefully through your home and make a list of specific things you want. Before you go to any store, you must know what you're searching for to avoid coming home with random items that don't belong in your new space. An item must be truly special to be brought into your space. Try to hone in on colors, style, and overall appearance of your new items. Once you've taken time to consider these things you can start filling your space again! Enjoy!

Personalize Your Space

Organizing is the ultimate personalization of your space. Its putting things in their place based on what you use and how you use it. It also means your space will better reflect you. So, how do you begin to personalize your space? Most importantly, spend time in the space and consider what works and what doesn't, what you like to look at and what you don't. Even if it's a mirror in your bathroom. Simple swaps leave you feeling refreshed and better represented. What does your home say about you? What do you want it to say? Do you want to walk in to one room and feel calm and another room and feel energized? Paint, furniture, and decor can help you achieve this. Be selective in what you display and know why you've chosen to display it.

Even changing the height of a shelf is personalizing a space. It's making items easier or harder to access based on how you use them. If something is frustrating because it's out of reach or you don't use things because they're hard to access, consider personalizing to your needs. Change a shelf, add a shelf, create new spaces for items with furniture. If you don't like the way something looks, consider finding furniture with drawers or cabinet doors. You can even find a cute basket to hide things in. Whatever it is, spend time making sure that each space in your house makes you happy and reflects you. If you don't know where to start, think about a space that you don't like to spend time around. What would make it better? Even consider colors that make you happy or little things like fresh flowers. You can do anything!

Prioritize for Happiness

We know what we want to do, but we just don’t get around to doing it. Our daily activities may get in the way or we may get overwhelmed and avoid doing the thing we wanted to do because the things we had to do took up too much of our mental or physical energy. We have to prioritize what we want because what we want is just as important as what we are obligated to do. 

Maybe we are so out of touch with our needs that we aren’t even sure where to begin. Make a list of things you want to do as they pop into your mind. As you start considering this more, it will become easier and easier. Nothing lofty or expensive, just simple, attainable things. For example, go for a hike, plant some flowers, go to the local antique store, or finally go to the local art walk. Set a day and a back-up day for this. Just once per week, prioritize yourself.

Life has many different areas that come together to form our sense of overall content or discontent. Be sure to group these areas of your life and make sure no area is going neglected that matters to you. For example, our lives include social interactions, family/community connectedness, career, education, hobbies, physical health, mental health, adventure… ask yourself what matters to you and list all the things you do in a typical month that go into each category. Then, see if one is lacking and ask yourself if that’s okay. This will help you steer the course of how you spend your time. If educational fulfillment is what matters most to you right now, find a way to devote more time in that area. After a few months, you will see the greatest return on investment from the areas you gave the most attention to. Be intentional with how you spend your time and you can develop whichever areas you want. This should help with your sense of control over your life and your sense of fulfillment.