as i have mentioned previously, i minimalized my office yesterday. it was a day filled with different emotions. it began with excitement (this is going to be great!). then with the mess of books and papers strewn all over my floor (picture cleaning out an old closet) came feelings of overwhelment (how am i ever going to finish?). following that came a sense of progress as things began to leave my office and go back into drawers. then came fatigue/frustration (i had put most things back and was staring at a stack of stuff that i wasn’t sure where to put). after pushing through that emotion (“the wall” i called it), came the next emotion and my fifth benefit…
a sense of freedom. as i put the last few items in their new found home, i kept commenting out loud, “this feels so good. today has been a great day.” a feeling of freedom was coming over me as i kept looking around at my new office. no longer would my work environment feature three bookcases of books that i “should have read.” no longer will my desktop be cluttered with stacks of paper that “should be filed properly.” no longer am i strangled by clutter as i sit in my office trying to work. heck, i may even be free to get out of the office for a little while.
the freedom of minimalism is good. and it’s more than a feeling/emotion, it’s a reality that can now define my life. because the less stuff you own, the less your stuff owns you! when was the last time you went through your work environment and removed everything that you don’t really need?
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yes when I saw your office yesterday after the big clean-out I was much impressed! you really did a great job! enjoy your newly organized space!
I’ve recently been gutting my room in preparation for a move to Yamagata, Japan. The result has been an office/living space that is making a minimalist out of me and spurring goal-shifts that are down-right scary. I no longer feel the need to have the car, the house, or the Wii. I’m plotting my escape from clutter-society oh so quietly!