Cluttered Mind, Clean Space

Admittedly, I love to organize. I see clutter and immediately my mind jumps to all kinds of exciting time-saving, organizing solutions. Bins! Boxes! Matching folders and coordinating labels! I love the challenge of seeing how best to organize my own stuff, not to mention the stuff of unsuspecting friends and family who may not actually want my help.

But what about the time when my to-do list is endless and I can feel my blood pressure rising and I open my junk drawer and get to work cleaning? Going through every nook and ribbon scrap and paper clip. Scrubbing the bottom and sides until it shines. What’s going on then? I don’t have time for this! Yet I feel compelled to organize and present the most amazingly clean junk drawer there ever was…and I don’t know why.

Let’s break that down.

At times, when a person organizes, something truly needs to be arranged properly. Things are a mess and need to be taken care of. But what about those times when you feel like you just need to give something some order? The times when organizing is an unplanned event and not a deliberate act? Like when you, somewhat frantically, reorganize your utensil drawer in the kitchen and then consolidate the paperwork on your desk. Or maybe you categorize your t-shirts by color and size and then start scrubbing the scuzz off the washer and dryer that accumulated out of thin air. What’s going on that compels you to dive into organizing or cleaning when you, most certainly, have far better priorities to attend to?

Maybe…just maybe…it has something to do with what you’re thinking. Something’s on your mind and it doesn’t have anything to do with organizing. Or does it? Maybe it’s your thoughts that need organizing and not your utensil drawer. Perhaps you have a difficult conversation coming up and you don’t know how to handle it. Or, you’re unclear which career path to follow or how best to move forward after a layoff. Our thoughts percolate in our minds without us realizing how they’re affecting our day to day lives. They influence our feelings and actions and by organizing our sock drawer, we think we’ve found some relief from the stress and anxiety.

But the relief doesn’t last.

We can organize and tidy our homes from top to bottom and inside out, but without addressing the real cause of our problem, our stressful feelings won’t go away. It’s merely a temporary fix for a larger, often more complicated, issue and it’s ultimately ineffective because what you’re treating is the symptom and not the root cause of your feelings.

For instance, you may be worried about a complicated decision you need to make next week. To ease your mind, without realizing it, your sudden burst of cleaning energy is actually your attempt at asserting control over some part of your life. Trying to bring order to your environment. And, of course, that’s not all bad. Having a spotless laundry room is great, but cleaning up your thoughts is even better – because that’s where you’ll find true reprieve from the stress and anxiety you’re feeling.

Self-Awareness

Being aware that we are struggling with something on an emotional level is key. Cleaning and organizing are obviously not harmful, but they will only provide you with short-term relief. It’s important to understand that your thoughts create your feelings which result in your actions. If you feel stressed and anxious and that results in you furiously cleaning your home, it’s time to explore your thoughts. There’s likely a bigger issue you may be neglecting that requires your attention.

Studying your thoughts might seem foreign to you, but I promise, once you start focusing on them, it’ll change your life for the better. And you’re absolutely worth it.

With Grace,

Leah

P.S. And if this resonated with you in any way, please share it with others. The more compassion and understanding that’s out there in the world, the better.