Diminish your clutter and reduce stress – A cautionary tale

I’m not a Feng Shui expert, but I do agree completely with some of its precepts, two of which are:

  1. a beautiful, calm and uncluttered environment gives us a sense of peace and well-being, quite aside from increased effectiveness and efficiency
  2. we lose energy on both a physical and a psychic level if we have broken or damaged things in our environment

A recent experience has made me even more convinced of the importance of these two principles to easy and effective living.

To read the full article, members please log in here. To subscribe please click here.

I’d received an invitation to visit a new friend. As she walked me through her small apartment I wondered why I was feeling a bit uncomfortable. It certainly wasn’t her personally – she’s a lovely lady and very hospitable.

Then I began to take more notice of my environment. Although the house was clean, almost every inch of the place was crowded, most of it with things she rarely uses.

For example:

  • Multiple collections of teapots and condiment sets decorate many of the kitchen shelves – not just high shelves but also easy-to-reach ones that you’d expect to hold regularly used kitchen equipment or food items.
  • The available working space beside the kitchen sink is no more than a few inches – ‘stuff’ crowds the rest of the small space.
  • Only two of the elements on the stove top can be used without shifting several piles of other utensils. (They are clean, at least!)
  • It is a nuisance to use the oven – first you have to clear it of a pile of casserole dishes and other crockery, presumably stored there because there is no more cupboard space.
  • The small dining/kitchen table has just enough room for two to sit at. The rest of the table carries a random selection of books, papers and magazines.
  • In the bathroom are multiples of all the normal paraphernalia – and it’s not for anyone else. She lives alone.
  • ‘Is it possible to borrow your iron?’ I asked on Sunday morning. We were about to head out for a relaxed luncheon with friends and I wanted to wear the new white cotton dress I’d bought in Southern Italy. For a moment she looked a bit bothered but then said, ‘Hang on, I’ll get it.’ The next four minutes were spent pulling out a plethora of seldom-used things from a hard-to-reach cupboard so she could reach a box containing the iron. (I did say ‘don’t worry’ but once she started she was unstoppable.)

What I noticed was a complete lack of logic in placement of commonly used items, and maybe a compulsion to acquire ‘stuff’. (We didn’t discuss it but the environment indicated this possibility. Some hoarders have an acquisition addiction.)

But it was more than clutter – I quickly discovered that many items in the house didn’t function properly.

  • Some of the cupboard doors are very difficult to shut – when I went to help with something in the kitchen I was warned not to open them or we’d never get them shut. Too bad if you want any of the many items in that particular cupboard.
  • The washing machine is hidden underneath piles of kitchen clutter and never used. Instead she does most of her laundry by hand and when she has a large amount of linen she uses a friend’s machine.
  • Most of the windows can’t be opened properly – there are too many things on the window sills.
  • It was hot so I turned on my bedroom fan when I went to bed. It ran for fifteen minutes and then started making an excruciatingly loud noise. Result: no ventilation on a very hot night.
  • Half the light switches don’t work – or maybe bulbs need replacing?
  • ‘Be very careful not to touch that mirror’, she said as we crowded past a tall mirror on the wall. ‘It will fall down if you do.’
  • Even the front door can’t be fully opened due to things piled up behind it – we slid in sideways.

Result: underneath the kindness and very genuine hospitality she often displayed an aura of frustration and low-level stress, sometimes triggered by seemingly small and unrelated issues.

It’s certainly not for anyone to say how much ‘stuff’ is right for another – we all have different standards and comfort levels. But I do know that my friend would improve the quality of her life and greatly diminish her stress levels if she could clear some of her clutter and also develop a habit of fixing broken things as soon as they become a problem. If we attend to a niggling issue as soon as it surfaces we keep our energy high. However, if we allow things to build up, the job of fixing everything begins to feel like a mountain of problems. Stress at multiple levels, a diminishment of energy, and compounding inefficiency is the result.

Is there anything in your life that could profitably be decluttered or fixed? Follow the frustration path and you’ll have your answers.

Related Posts

12 TIPS To Being Super Organised

12 TIPS To Being Super Organised

Driving the School Bus

Driving the School Bus

Overwhelmed, Overloaded or Feeling Out of Control?

Overwhelmed, Overloaded or Feeling Out of Control?

About Time for Teaching

About Time for Teaching

Robyn Pearce


Robyn Pearce is known around the world as the Time Queen, helping people discover new angles on time. Check the resources on her website www.gettingagrip.com, including a free report for you: How to Master Time in Only 90 Seconds. She is a CSP, a Certified Speaking Professional. This is the top speaking accreditation in the profession of speaking and held by only about 800 people around the world. www.gettingagrip.com