The panic to have more has some funny side effects. People who had a lot of “stuff” before are buying even more “stuff.” Within the paradigm of chaotic enthusiasm, the folks who were somewhat disorganized before are now even more disorganized than ever!

A simple solution to all of this is to decide now to eliminate chaos from your life. Ask yourself: what are you doing with your life? Is there too much movement going on? Remember your dreams and life goals. Then, look at one week in your life. Does each action during the week aim at positive success for either you or your partnership with others? Are there some actions that you can lessen or eliminate totally? Get rid of what doesn’t work in your life. Eliminate something stressful! But don’t just live for the future – make sure to take some time to enjoy yourself now!

Create Space
In many lives, there is no longer space to grow. When your life is already full to the brim, new things don’t have room to come into it. Make some room. What is in your life that is old? Many of us have boxes of stuff from what we “used to be,” made up of what we used to collect. Those boxes full of stuff just clog up our lives and our current quality of life goes down. Some people love to display items for visitors to view. But quite often they have so many things displayed that their home is like a curio shop in which visitors are overwhelmed. To create space and calmness, choose a few of each type of item to display rather than lots of anything.

When people begin tripping over their stuff, they dream of moving to a bigger house. But many people who move to larger houses, buy even more stuff and the problem quickly returns. Most people’s houses are just fine. It is not the house that needs to change, but the stuff that needs handling. Once my clients begin to empty a room or area, there is a huge feeling of relief as space becomes available again. Additionally, there is a great sense of comfort in having completing something.

Make Room for Completion
Many people have too many things in motion at the same time. It is our nature as humans to want to complete things. Too often, however, we go from partial action on one project to a partial action on another. Try to schedule enough time on one project so that you can fully complete that project. Make appointments with yourself to get it done. We need to feel we completed something; even if it is a small task. Once you complete something, make sure to acknowledge yourself!

For example, here are a few ideas on how you can both simplify and complete projects in your home:

Laundry and clothes: Set up special containers for laundry in various rooms. Create a schedule with specific responsibilities within the family so that each person knows their role and what is allowable and expected. Give all family members, even young children, some role in the laundry process.
Food and groceries: As often as possible, pre-plan food for the week to minimize shopping trips and putting items away. Have backups on hand (soup, rice, frozen meals) for quick meals when needed. Instigate an “our favorite meals” family list and have the specific ingredients on hand in quantity for these meal choices.
Mail and getting bills paid: These needs require specific locations and just a bit of organization. Make sure that all mail is placed in one area. Pull out all critical mail and create a separate pile for mail that you will review at your leisure. Put Bills to Pay in a folder and set up a specific time and location for handling bill paying.

Appreciate What You Have!
It is amazing to me how many people have everything they need and more! All their basic needs are fulfilled and yet they are brainwashed into believing this idea of “not having enough.” This only results in chaos. Choose to do the actions you do because they will improve the quality of your life, not just because they are things you can do.