DrDeClutterBlog.com

Yes, it’s still January, soooo it’s still the New Year and there’s still time to redecide your New Year’s Resolutions, Goals, changes, etc. But, you’ll have to be “still” in order to do this for yourself!  

I’m going to just jump right into what I want to tell you about to help your jump back into your life . . . as 2012 is here and rolling right on, with or without us!  

What kind of New Year’s Resolutions Setter and Keeper are you?

We tend to fall into one of 5 categories when it comes to New Year’s Resolutions:
   1.  You’ve set your goals and you’re off to a great start doing them. Congratulations!
   2.  You’ve not decided on any yet, but you want to refresh some areas of your life – probably the same areas you’ve been trying to refresh for years.
   3.  You’ve set them, but have already dumped them.
   4. You are limping along sporadically taking action on your NYR’s, but mostly are feeling bad about yourself that you are not keeping your committments to yourself better and “perfectly.”
   5. You don’t care and don’t believe in NYR’s!

Wherever you land in these categories, I’m here to give you permission to stop feeling bad, wrong or guilty! Yea! And to share a secret about NYR’s that will set you free to be, do and have a great start of your New Year.  

The Dirty Little Secret and Truth About January and New Year’s Resolutions
I’ve been spreading “The Truth” about NYR’s in my presentations all month already. This truth is especially important, and true, for women.  

I just finished my 8 weeks telecourse on Holiday Stress Be Gone and the last of 3 live calls was focused on this issue. The feedback has been great as it registers for my participants how they can get and stay focused and step into the New Year with pride and peace in themselves. (By the way, I’ll be setting this program up for self-study soon and you can take it too!)  

So, here it is. The dirty little secret and truth you need to know to relax, breathe and enjoy January for what it is. This is especially important and true for women.  

The truth is . . . when you are in charge of the holidays and all that they can entail, you’re hardly in a place come January 1st to jump into your new year and change gears!  

Some people haven’t even gotten back home by January 1st, and/or their travel bags are still sitting in the dining room packed . . . and starting a new year of clutter and guilt.  

If you’re still putting away holiday decorations, haven’t even touched your returns and thank you cards are still sitting in a pile waiting to be written (and you’ve now missed the postage increase that happens today!), you have no brain-bytes left to focus on NYR’s! Right?!  

So, here are 6 Keys to get back on track by the end of January. 

How to Get Ready to Set and Go on Your NYR’s

1. Put all of your holidays stuff away.

2. Finish returns and thank you’s, etc.

3. Get “into” January completely.

4. This weekend, the last weekend in January, sit down and write out 3-5 things you want to change in your life over the next 11 months. (Not more than 3-5 that you can realistically accomplish or you’ll sabotage yourself.)

5. Don’t even start your NYR’s List yet! Just “prepare” for them by the end of the month; perhaps you need to get supplies, tools, call someone, get your daytimer scheduled ahead, join a class, do some paperwork,  etc. 

6. Then, by February 1st, be ready to start your New Year and Resolutions with calm, peace and focus!

Feel better? I do! And from the feedback I’ve been getting again this year, I know other’s are feeling much better too.  

Blissings upon you and your New Year! Be, do and have the year you really choose, one day at a time. 

“Making resolutions is a cleansing ritual of self assessment
and repentance that demands personal honesty and,
ultimately, reinforces humility.
Breaking them is part of the cycle.”
~ Eric Zorn, Newspaper Editor
 
And… join in the celebration of  The Year of the Dragon!
 

Mental Health care increases 30-35% during January and early February.

Over the past few decades, typically 80% of psychiatric and psychological problems are related to marriage and family, and the rest to professional and job conflicts. Now, we can add major financial debocals and recession and, and, and . . .

Here are some simple TO DO TIPS to manage post-holiday blues. 

. . . eat right.

. . . get plenty of rest.

. . . exercise regularly.

Do set realistic goals:

. . . organize your time.

. . . organize your space, stuff and things.

. . . make lists (use a notebook, not little pieces of paper!)

. . . prioritize.

. . . make a budget and follow it.

. . . set New Years Resolutions and Goals on which you can really follow-through and succeed.

. . . find ways to simplify your life on a daily basis (the “blues” can be directly related to feeling overwhelmed and getting little done on TO DO lists that are unrealistic to begin with.)

Let go of the past, embrace the new present and future.

Allow yourself to feel sad, lonely or melancholy when these feelings arise, these are normal feelings, particularly during and after the holidays – and before Valentine’s Day.

• Do something for someone else.
• Enjoy activities that are free.
• Spend time with family and friends, people who care about you.
• Spend time with new people or a different set of friends or family.
• Contact someone with whom you have lost touch.
• Give yourself a break: plan to prepare (or buy) one special meal, purchase one special gift, and take in one special event.
• Complete small jobs and projects, or let them go.
• Start a Gratitude Journal. Daily write 3-5 things you are grateful for.

Week two into January, and counting!

Are you back to yourself yet? Are you undecorated and into this new year?

Each persons experience during the holidays is relative of course… but many relatives can be exhausting and frustrating to be around for too long!

It usually takes me until the middle of January to defog my head from my encounters-of-the-family-kind and my family-hangover!… I love them dearly, and, whew!

So, one pile at a time . . . and, back to focus, to

• reorganize your home after your joyfilled present wrapping extravaganza,
• get back to eating better and lose those extra pounds (again),
• get thank you’s written and sent,
• photos processed, up or downloaded, attached and sent  and distributed to family and friends,
• photo albums scrapbooked,
• reoganize the decorations and wrapping supplies storage area,
• back to your own routine again. Whew!
• Oh, and start to use up those Gift Cards one by one!! (Thanks Suzi, I used your annual gift to me today –  Panera Bread GCard!)

FOCUS TIP: Don’t take too long to get all these kinds of things done as they will keep you from being focused and back to your necessary life and flow.

1. Check your expectations at the door. Whatever happens after you get “there” or others arrive at your house… is going to happen. Enjoy the people, not the stuff.

2. Let go of past hurts and misunderstandings, and present frustrations. This too shall pass.

3. Reality—it’s not going to be perfect! Have fun anyway!

Bottom-line… ENJOY!

Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays!!

Losses throughout the year of any kind, human, animal, health, wealth or of spirit can take an extra toll during the holiday weeks. Here are a few steps to take care of yourself during this time.

1. Make time to grieve.

Set aside time to really feel your feelings, cry your tears and let it all go where it needs to. Your body needs to mourn your loss or change all the way through.

2. Get support from others.

It’s not always easy to ask for help. Being “strong” isn’t smart. Being “human” is. Whether you talk to family or friends or see a counselor or minister, you will find layers of grief just waiting to spring forth when you talk to someone else and tell your story once more.

3. Develop skills that help you remember you are a worthwhile person.

You can let grief control you and fall into a deep depression or illness, chipping away at your self worth; you can ignore and deny it and stay busy, keeping your “mind off of it”; or, you can gain knowledge of how to embrace your pain and grow positively from it.

4. Create a physical environment that supports rather than stresses you.

During the mourning process stress levels increase. You need to create a space where you feel safe, comfortable, quiet when you need it and nurtured, even if only by yourself.

5. Take care of yourself.

There are physical as well as emotional aspects of grief. Exercise increases your strength and stamina and reduces your stress. Healthy eating gives your body the good nourishment it needs. Find quiet time. Schedule a massage to stay connected with your body.

Bottom line, grief is hard. Make sure to take the time to face it and deal with it, otherwise it will affect you for years to come.

Don’t let your newspapers pile up outside your front door when you’re gone. Make sure to set up a VACATION HOLD asap.

And, save time! Instead of making a phone call, or forgetting to make it and put your newspaper deliver on VACATION HOLD or other request, go online and do it quickly. It also lets you check if you want them when you return, or you can donate them to local schools, etc.  

Our local Longmont Times-Call can be accessed at https://www.timescallcustomercare.com/

Check you paper and see if they offer this quick click system too!

Happy vacation/holidays!

• Is holiday shopping just too much for you?
• Is overconsumption and consumerism just too much?
• Do you feel overwhelmed and wonder how to stop it all?

America is the mecca for “Retail Therapy” and Christmas brings out the big guns!

Listen into my interview on ”It’s the Economy” Talk Show

from Thursday night, December 15th on

KGNU Radio, Boulder, CO.  

Mp3 –  http://www.kgnu.org/economy/12/15/2011

During this time of year that has become all about giving and receiving presents it’s important to stop and realize the real gift of “present” itself.

Your “present”, your “now”  is priceless!

The price tag to unwrap your “present”  (your “here and now”) is to show up – “here and now.”

Showing up is impossible when our minds are cluttered and disorganized with past and future to dos, to gets, shoulds, regrets and so much more that distracts us from our joy of now.

EXERCISE

Right now, take 10 seconds and just breathe – clear your mind of everything and just “be” here now. 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1.

Okay, how’d you do? 10 seconds. That’s it. Just 10 seconds.

Was your mind centered and quiet? Or, in just 10 seconds, did you find your thoughts leaping around like a monkey on steroids grasping everything from yesterdays mistakes, failures and regrets (should haves) from 20 years ago, to how much weight you need to lose, to your child’s school work, to your next vacation, to the coffee maker, to the holiday to do list, to….

Western culture and our mighty egos are obsessed with thinking and doing and knowing and fixing and controlling and activity and, and…. not being still and showing up…. for ourselves.

KEY: “Stop scaring yourself!”

All these rapid, rabid, incessant spinning thoughts tend to be fear-based. They (you) are scaring you.

SHOW UP FOR YOURSELF

Do you want to show up for yourself more often? To really be here for yourself in the moment (not in yesterday or tomorrow) to make life more present and real? 

CHALLENGE:

Today, begin a new healthy and positive habit, pattern and routine where you just “be” for a few minutes at a time. No thoughts. No action. No “doing.” Begin to retrain your brain to stop and be okay with it, calming it and your whole being and body.

“We’re not human doings, we’re human beings!”

The more you practice just being, you will find a new you in there (there, being in your mind) and you’ll find new ways to interact with your world – doing a lot less “reacting” at the world. 

We are so much more than we can ever know, but we have to stop long enough to listen, be still and show up for ourselves to find out. 

“We’re not human beings having a spiritual experience,
we’re spiritual beings having a human experience.”

“And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before!
“Maybe Christmas,” he thought, “doesn’t come from a store.
Maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more!”

- Dr. Suess

Tired of holiday hype?

No matter what event or holiday you are celebrating that includes gift giving, you might just want to sit quietly and pick out something from a shopping trip in the “department stores of your mind!”

Even if it’s a week before Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, a birthday, wedding or anniversary, think about making your gift instead of buying it at a store, keeping it simple and personal.

Consider the following:
- Bake muffins, a pie, a cake or cookies
- Cook a special meal
- Put together a picnic basket and invite others out for a hike in nature
- Create a scrapbook page of photos from something you did with them, or of their childhood or a special event.
- Put together a music CD or digital recording – download or sing songs that you know they like
- Make an ornament significant to them
- Write a song, poem or story for them

There a lots of small and fun ways to give from the heart this year and always.

TIP: Ask the what they really want and like that you could make for them, and do it!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS! Kim

Being organized doesn’t mean you have to be perfect all the time,
but that you can find what you need when you need it!

The kitchen can be especially messy and never feel like it’s decluttered and clean, or for very long, whether you live alone or with others.  

If your sink and counter look like this once in a while, it might be that you’re just busy. Or, that you don’t have time. Or, _____ (fill in the blank!)

Don’t beat yourself up. Take one day a week and really clean it all up and feel “in control” again.

“Do you know what you call those who use towels
and never wash them, eat meals and never do the dishes,
sit in rooms they never clean, and are entertained till they drop?
If you have just answered, “A house guest,” you’re wrong
because I have just described my kids.”
~ Erma Bombeck