Spring has officially sprung! Along with sunny days and rising temperatures comes the much-needed spring cleaning. Traditionally a ritual that marks the clearing out of clutter and cobwebs from our homes, the concept of spring cleaning can serve our lives in a multitude of ways.
There’s an inherent link between how we live externally and how we feel internally. Our physical environment has a huge effect on our mood, our self-esteem, and our outlook on life. Princeton’s Neuroscience Institute tells us that organizing your home can produce more focused and efficient brain functioning, not to mention significantly decreasing stress, distraction, depression, and frustration.
So, if a clean house can lead to all this, why stop there? Why not kick it up a notch? What if this year we don’t just purge the junk drawer, but all facets of our lives? It’s the perfect time to throw out the junk that’s been piling up in our bodies, minds, schedules, and relationships.
In the spirit of real action, here are some tips to kick off your whole-life-spring-cleaning. Just imagine how good it will feel when you start summer lighter, more focused, and completely motivated…
Spring Clean Your Home: Cleaning out your entire home can feel like an unattainable dream requiring an overwhelming amount of time and effort. Let me introduce you to a concept called “chunking.” Chunking is the practice of taking something huge and breaking it apart into smaller, bite-sized pieces. The most popular way to chunk down the spring cleaning of your home is to focus on one room at a time.
As you begin to clean out the closets and dump out your drawers, create three piles: “Keep”, “Give Away” and “Throw Away”. Employ the Marie Kondo litmus test, asking whether items in your home and closet “spark joy” in you. If they don’t make you feel good, consider getting rid of them to make space for new things that bring you more joy.
Notice what emotions arise when attempting to let things go. . . Do you feel anxious? Guilty? Maybe a little sad? It’s normal for all sorts of emotions to arise when getting rid of possessions. Use this as an opportunity to practice feeling uncomfortable and doing it anyway. Remind yourself that in a year, you won’t even remember what it was.
Spring Clean Your Mind: Your mind is the most precious real estate you have. Don’t waste it storing to-do’s, worries, resentment, guilt, anger, or anything that prevents you from living the life you want to live. Take a mental inventory—is there anything you’ve fixated on over the last few weeks, months, or even years, that detracts from the quality of your life? Whether or not you’re conscious of it, these toxic mental anchors are weighing you down, draining your energy, and affecting your mood.
Dump out your brain (just like you did your drawers). Make a list of your “energy drainers”—things you need to do that have been weighing on your mind, but you seem to keep postponing. Change the oil in your car, schedule your dentist appointment, call your cousin back, etc. Then set aside a day to handle all of these tasks at once. At the end of that day, I guarantee you’ll feel remarkably better.
What other daunting thoughts have you been harboring? Are you worried about something specific or everything in general? Stop wasting energy focusing on what you don’t want to happen. Worrying has no constructive value and only guarantees you experience the very pain you’re trying to avoid. Decide to let that worry go, and instead, refocus on what you want and what is in your control, so you can enjoy your life.
Holding on to resentment or bitterness from your past is equivalent to drinking poison and hoping the other person dies. You’re the one doing the suffering. It’s not worth it. Make peace with the past to enrich the present and future. Just decide you are ready to let it go. Have the conversation you need to have in order to move on. If your situation feels too complicated to handle alone, seek the help of a professional, but get your closure.
Spring Clean Your Body: Alright, the jig(gle) is up. We no longer need those extra pounds to stay warm so it’s time to get fit. Let’s clean out the toxins we’ve been carrying around since the holidays with some green foods and a good sweat. The human body is a complicated machine, and like any machine, it requires regular maintenance in order to function properly. This isn’t about looking good in your swimsuit, but rather having the health and energy for warmer weather’s surge in activity. (But also—who doesn’t want to look bomb in a bikini? Keep it real… Real tight!)
There are plenty of healthy ways to eliminate toxins from your organs, reaching your body’s optimal state. Your basic whole-body cleanse involves a regiment of purified water, herbal teas, fresh juices as well as living fruits and veggies. But if that sounds like a lot at once, start by increasing your water intake to half of your body weight in fluid ounces, and eliminating processed foods (and sugar!?$%!), from your diet for at least a few days. This includes alcohol—the sangria can wait a week. Also, move your body!
Just make sure to get an OK from your doctor before embarking on any of the more extreme detox plans that are out there.
Spring Clean Your Schedule: Time is an invaluable resource. Don’t waste it on anything that doesn’t serve you, grow you, or make you happy. As human beings, (especially women), we tend to put our needs last to avoid disappointing those we love. This results in stress from over-committing and dread of things we don’t actually want to do.
Well I’m here to remind you: LIFE IS TOO DAMN SHORT!
Instead of giving a knee-jerk “yes” to every request you get, ask yourself “is this something I really want to do?” If not, then it’s time to practice your hand at lovingly declining… a.k.a. learning to say “no”. Be honest with yourself and others about what you can and can’t do.
Look over your schedule and get rid of the things you don’t enjoy and aren’t absolutely necessary. Just because you’ve been involved with an organization or group for years, doesn’t mean you have to stay there forever. If you feel you’re no longer of real service and/or the experience is no longer serving you, it’s time to move on and find a better outlet for your energy.
Clear out space in your schedule to do more things that make you happy or that simply allow you to slow down and breathe. When you start living true to your own wants and needs and filling your cup up, you will have more to offer your clients, loved ones and the world.
Spring Clean Your Relationships: It’s been said that you’re a product of the five people closest to you. Your relationships affect how you feel about yourself, the standards you set, and the impression you give off to the world. Assess your relationships and let go of anyone who is perpetually negative, puts you down, or treats you poorly. No need for a formal breakup, just be aware of their impact on your life and budget your time with that person accordingly.
Conversely, heighten your awareness of positive people with whom you’d like to spend more time— maybe an acquaintance you want to get to know better or an old friend you’ve fallen out of touch with. You can’t choose your family, but you can choose your peer group. Cultivate yours to contain only enriching, fun, healthy relationships.
What are you still doing here?!? You should be busy optimizing your home, body, mind, time, and relationships… By clearing out the things that have weighed you down in the past, you’re creating space and energy for this season’s new and infinite possibilities!
Much love,
