New Beginnings Series #5: Think Global, Change Local

#5 of our 10 Day New Beginnings series. This famous quote from Jack Kerouac (featured in the famous "Think Different" ad campagin for Apple), “The ones who think they are crazy enough to change the world are the ones who do,” is particularly relevant for our series.

Especially if we change the word THE to OUR. When we change OUR world, we set up a ripple effect of change ... for good.

If we think about everything we want to change about THE world, it's easy to become overwhelmed. And when we're overwhelmed, we're immobilized.

A reader of my SOMEDAY book told me this one idea in the "Let It Go, Let It Go, Let It Go" chapter changed her life.

She said, "I've been so busy the last few years, I've really let my house go, and not in a good way. I just haven't had the time or energy to clean it, and the clutter has really stacked up. It got to the point where it was depressing and embarassing. And the worse I felt, the less I felt like doing anything about it.

You suggested we tackle one drawer at a time, and gave us a list of 4 questions to hold ourselves accountable for DOING something with each item instead of just throwing it back in the drawer because we don't want to deal with it. You told us to have a large trash bag handy and a box for any items we want to gift.

The de-clutter criteria are:

1. Have I used this in the last year? (Studies show if we haven't used in the past year, we probably won't use it THIS year or NEXT year .. and that we wear the same 7 outfits again and again. If you believe things have energy, maybe that dress or that picture frame or extra set of silverware doesn't deserve to sit around, unused. Who do you know who would love it and could put it to good use?)

2. Is it functional and in good working order? (If it's broken and needs to be repaired, it's probably not going to get repaired. If it has value, donate it to Goodwill, Salvation Army, Dress for Success, or an individual or charitable organization who could fix it and enjoy it or sell it.)

3. Is it beautiful and meaningful? (That clock may not work, but it was given to you by your dad and it's a treasured heirloom. That beautiful vase could be filled with flowers and placed on your desk instead of being stashed in a dark closet where no one sees it.)

4. Do I want/need this, but there's a better place for it? (Maybe instead of leaving shoes by the doorway, you can put them in a shoe organizer on the inside door of the hall closet. Maybe you can store magazines on the book shelf in your home office instead of letting them stack up on the floor by your living room couch.)

She said, "What I couldn't have known is the energy that was freed up as I de-cluttered my home. I didn't realize how much that mess was weighing me down. I've even had friends over for dinner and I NEVER used to do that becaue I was so ashamed of the way my place looked."

(By the way ... did you notice a question that was NOT part of the criteria? "How much did this cost?" I had an expensive blender that broke the first time I used it. It cost a lot of money so I put it away, promising myself I'd get it fixed ...someday. Well, it was still sitting there 3 years later. So, the question wasn't "I can't throw that away, do you know how much I paid for it?!" The question was, "Be realistc. Am I going to send that in to the manufactuer and pay to get it restored! NO. Bye-bye blender. Whew. Felt so much better to have DEALT with the decision instead of DELAYING it once again.)

Get crystal clear. Changing ONE thing can lead to ANOTHER thing which leads to ANOTHER thing. All because doing one thing at a time is doable instead of daunting.

How about you? What is one thing you will tackle today you've been wanting to do?

Nike it. Just do it. Think global, change local. Be crazy smart.

P.S. I will ALWAYS be grateful to Mary LoVerde who taught me this, modeled this, and held me accountable for doing this, even when I pleaded, "Can't we just leave it there for now?" when it was time to move the heavy box stuck to the floor of the entryway closet:-)

Because of Mary and my good friend Judy Gray, I know first hand how good it feels to live in a beautiful home where every single item has auditioned and earned its place and is in just the right place ... and where there is an absense of soul-sucking clutter.

- - -

Sam Horn, CEO of the Intrigue Agency and The Tongue Fu! Training Institute is on a mission to motivate people to create the life-work of their dreams .. now, not someday.