Opportunities in Transition: Downsizing

There seems to be a degree of unrest around these parts of late, and of course, it revolves around this fickle weather. From sun to rain to overcast then mist, this Spring has been a bit of a mess; it seems to have everyone around here in a bit of a pickle, in a mood that’s most uncertain. The weather is such an integral part of our psyches, a subtly tactile connection to our personal world and space that it affects what we do, when we do it, and how we go about getting it done. And when the weather is as unpredictable as it’s been of late, you can see it in the lives of those around you. Now I know I often start my blog talking about the weather, but there’s a reason for it – it can be tied into a common subject matter, or an idea or thought about what’s going on. Likewise, this conversation about fickle weather and transitioning patterns is a perfect way to introduce a topic of life transitions and how, when you are faced with certain and utter change, you can make the best of the opportunity instead of letting it get you down or affecting your attitude. So long as you keep your head up, and don’t focus on the rain that turns your path to mush, but focus on the cleansing aspect of it, you shift your thinking from a negative perspective to a positive one, and that makes a world of difference!

With all the various Spring projects we make for ourselves, this is the ideal time to downsize your life – whether you’re moving to a new home, moving back home from school, or just trying to get a grip on all the clutter and detritus that you’ve let surround you over the years. Regardless of the situation, take advantage of the opportunity it gives you and start to let things go:

- Downsize your clothes: we all have things we haven’t worn in a year or so, or things we bought that we just really didn’t get the use out of that we thought we would. Getting rid of things you no longer wear or need is very cathartic, freeing up storage space, and mental space, of unnecessary items. My word of advise here is to be brutal! Don’t be wishy washy with things – it’s just stuff, so instead of wondering if you’ll ever wear it again when you haven’t in a long time, GET RID OF IT.

- Downsize your kitchen: there are so many gadgets and hoo-ha’s and thing-a-ma-bobs and what-not that we have ALL accumulated over the years – things for special occasions, for special recipes, dishware given to us, mugs purchased that aren’t really needed, and so on. Narrow down your kitchen needs to the basics of how you live your life and stick with the simplified routine. If you have a few special odds and ends, it’s fine to hold onto them, but not every single little itty bitty one. Your cupboards and drawers will thank you!

- Downsize your media: by media I mean things like CD’s, DVD’s, books, magazines, and so on. If you have subscriptions to a number of magazines, be sure you’re actually getting your worth from them. If you’re just collecting them and not really reading them, cancel them! I just recently canceled four subscriptions to magazines because I only had them due to renewals. I had actually stopped reading them on a regular basis months ago as I found I no longer had the time! And I discovered it was OK and I didn’t need them. I saved money AND decluttered my living room!

As for CD’s and DVD’s, if you can burn them to a hard drive or a music service (such as iTunes) then do so and get rid of the physical disc all together. No need to keep them around if you have virtual copes of them. Besides, will you really find the time to listen to every single one again? That’s a huge commitment to an already busy lifestyle… I’m going to bet once you go virtual, you’ll never go back. Same for the DVD’s. We recently burned hundreds of our movies onto an external hard drive connected to our home computer. Using Apple TV we can now access all those movies to any TV in the house that has Apple TV. It’s so wonderful to NOT have to have the physical disc lying around or the cases taking up storage space – you can always give them to friends who haven’t seen it yet! Books are another thing we accumulate that take up space and are not fun to move around – heavy little things they are! Books are a very important, tactile part of our lives, so keep what you know you will read or re-read, or use for reference, and donate the others to book fairs or your local library. Paying it forward is a great service to those organizations in need. And I know they appreciate it!

- Downsize your paperwork: yes, the bane of all existence is filing. It’s funny in a virtual world how paperwork will not go away… we’re too ‘old school’ and feel utterly and completely dependent on the need to have these paper files on hand for whatever purpose or reason may come up. Now granted, taxes and other such important documents are exceptions, but if you took the time to go through your files and really scrutinize all the excess bits of paper you’ve gathered over the last year or so, I’m willing to bet that a good third of it is nothing more than recycling, and that you only kept it because at the time you had no idea what to do with it. Make it a regular thing, a couple times a year, to go through your files and deal with those things not dealt with, things kept because you didn’t know what to do at the time. You’ll really be happy to NOT have to handle any more than is necessary or you need to at the end of the year!

So while the weather messes around and decides what path it’s going to take and stick with for a while, take control of the opportunities as they present themselves and start living a more simple, less cluttered life. If you’re moving, plan plenty of time in advance to tackle the downsizing of your current space so that you don’t take with you all the unnecessary items and clutter to the new one. If you’re moving home from school for the Summer, get rid of the stuff you know you’re not going to want when you return. And if you’re just plain bored and looking for something to occupy your time, ransack your drawers, cupboard, closets and shelves – room by room – and transition OUT all that you don’t need. Downsizing is a great way to free up your home, your space, your mind and your life. What could be more sunnier?