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by Michael AngierWe've lived in the same home for eight-and-a-half years. During that time, we've never had a garage sale. And over Memorial Day weekend, we did just that.
On the plus side, we got rid of a lot of things and even collected a few hundred dollars. We also met some neighbors we hadn't known and saw our unwanted possessions go to people who actually did want them.
From a strictly financial point of view--if you calculated the value of our time--it probably wasn't worth it. We would have been ahead to have simply loaded everything up and sent it to Goodwill.
But our objective was to purge our house of items we no longer want or need, and we accomplished that.
We're highly motivated to simplify our life. This fall, we're planning to move into a 40' by 8.5' motor coach. We expect to be on the road for a couple of years and aren't sure where we plan to live after that. Other than pictures, a few books and special items, we don't plan to put anything else in storage.
So how does this all relate to a better life for you? Stay with me; it does.
Most of us collect way too much stuff. I was AMAZED at how much we'd accumulated over the years. I never thought of myself as a pack rat, but we had hundreds of items to get rid of, and this was only the beginning.
Our epiphany occu rred when we spent the winter in Florida. We went several months with only a few of our personal possessions and didn't miss them once. The house full of "things" we left in Vermont went unused and unwanted. Our question was: if we don't want it or need it, why do we have it?
Last weekend, as we sold and gave away many of our things, there wasn't once we felt the pang of loss. As we watched stuff being carted away, we were relieved--we felt lighter.
You don't have to be moving out of your house to gain the benefit of the big purge. We can all benefit from reducing the clutter and eliminating things we don’t use.
By getting rid of things, you create more space. Your environment and your life will feel less cluttered. When you hang on to things, you stop the flow of abundance in your life.
When you purge, you re-open the flow and allow more of what you REALLY want to come into your life.
Action Point
Take a look around. Open up all your closets. Look through the garage. Open up the attic and/or the storage unit. Inventory your office.
Chances are there are numerous things you haven't used in a year or more. And if you haven't used it in a year, it's HIGHLY unlikely you ever will.
Be ruthless. If you can't bring yourself to part with something now, put it in a box with a date on it. In six months--if you haven't used it--sell or give it away.
I've yet to find anyone who has de-cluttered who regrets doing so.
More Reading:
Visit Michael's website
A fun look at a possible motor coach
Storage Solutions for any Space