Three Key Clutter-Clearing Questions
Feng Shui asks that you be surrounded only by things that you use, need, or love.

So as you get organized, start by asking yourself three key questions about every item in your space:

1. Do I love it?
You should love everything in your space, from your bed to your artwork to your potato peeler.  Look around – is there anything that sends negative feelings through you when you see it? 

2. Do I use it?
Other than loving your things, the items that you use ought to be in good working order. Keeping the things that are useful to you and letting go of broken or otherwise unusable items sets you further down the path of excellent Feng Shui.

3. Do I need it?
There are always a few things you neither love nor use, but you need them anyway; tax records are a great example of these.  Keep them in a safe, out of the way place and let them go as soon as you are able.

Answer these questions about every item in your environment, and watch your clutter melt away.

It’s that simple.  Good luck!

Here’s one of my favorite ways to make the most of this once-a-year opportunity: organize your bulletin board using the Bagua Map, to enhance and clarify your intentions for the year.

As you probably know, the Feng Shui Bagua Energy Map includes nine sectors that represent the most important parts of your life.

Setting up every part of your life with the Bagua brings countless benefits and can be done in almost countless ways.

To show you what I mean, here is my bulletin board, which I have just cleared completely and re-set for the year to come.

I used the Bagua to organize it, and you can, too.

Starting in the bottom center, I placed a piece of paper with my Mission Statement for the year in the Life Journey/Career sector.  In the bottom left you can see paperwork having to do with Self-Cultivation, in this case artwork that’s being framed, which reminds me to keep my sense of Knowledge growing and active.

Just above that I’ve placed recent photos of Family and friends — with plans to add many more over the course of the year.  And in the top left Wealth sector I’ve posted a reproduction of a Clout painting by one of my favorite artists, Gerhard Richter, to remind me of how art brings so much abundance into my life.

Top center, of course, what better than my business logo in the Fame & Reputation sector?  Next to and below that in the Relationship and Children/Future sectors I’ve placed my calendar for the year along with a perpetual calendar of the birthdays and anniversaries of my friends and family.

Finally in the lower right you can see an envelope with performance tickets and other Travel info that covers the first six months of 2013. And in the Center sits the ferocious and beautiful Dragon, keeping my Chi energy moving until the arrival of the Snake on February 10, the Chinese New Year.

Simply by glancing at my bulletin board each day, I am constantly reminded of the abundance in my life.  Keeping it up to date is key for activating the various parts of my life in each Bagua sector.

Using Feng Shui to get organized enhances your intentions for the year to come.

Have you been inspired to get organized at the beginning of this year? Let me know in the comments!!

Here’s to a wonderful year!

P.S., The National Association of Professional Organizers dedicates the month of January to helping you get organized with events across the USA. Check out their blog for ways to bring greater order and clarity into your life.

All this can add up to a feeling that negative energy has taken over your life.  If you feel this way, this weekend might be a perfect opportunity to create vitality and fresh positive Chi before your days get busy again.

Here’s a Weekend Decluttering Plan for you to follow that takes you from tonight (Friday) until mid-afternoon on Sunday when you’ll be ready to sit back and enjoy your success.

Best of all you’ll know that you’ve taken a giant step towards creating good Feng Shui in your home, simply by getting the decluttering vibe going.

Let me know what kinds of modifications you make to The Plan once you’re done!

Step #1, Friday night: Set a reasonable goal, deciding on two (and only two!) separate areas with very strict boundaries that you plan to clear out.  A few ideas:

• a drawer whose contents you can no longer identify (see also my article, The Fabulous Drawer); 
• your hallway closet;
• the area under your bed;
• your garden shed;
• the highest shelves in your kitchen, (seldom used);
• your bedroom closet.

Attics & Basements
Two outstanding candidates for decluttering may be your basement or attic.  These spaces are particularly significant in Feng Shui, basements signifying issues that weigh you down, and attics limiting your aspirations.

But without at least a second pair of hands, these areas may be too huge for a weekend project.  If your attic or basement is crying out for help, identify two specific areas within them that you’ll work on this weekend, and return to the rest at another time.

One fabulous idea I heard from a Professional Organizer long ago was to drop a hula-hoop in place, and just clear out that area.  You might consider doing something similar in a seriously cluttered part of your home.

Step #2, Saturday morning: Start the clearout on the smaller of the two areas you chose, pulling every single thing out and evaluating it with Feng Shui’s Three Key Questions:

• Do I love it?
• Do I need it?
• Do I use it?

Step #3, Saturday afternoon: Put the keepers back into their proper home(s).  Take breaks, drink lots of water, listen to music…  have some fun and don’t be afraid to get dirty! This area will be relatively easy, allowing you to get it organized and take a quick look at the second area at the end of the afternoon.

Step #4, Sunday: Now that you’ve got a bit of momentum and the reward of a Saturday job well done, tackle your second area.  By Sunday night you’ll have that wonderful feeling of good Chi flow in two key areas of your home.

Congratulations!  Move on to the Spring with a new sense of clarity and the lightness that only a good decluttering can bring

I realized recently that mine had gotten out of control: filled with emails I didn’t need, unsorted, and dating back years.

It occurred to me that I didn’t even know what I had, a classic example of Feng Shui Clutter Type #3: things that are untidy or disorganized.

My inbox had bad Feng Shui!

As I examined this situation more closely I realized its consequences: overlooked business opportunities, missed deadlines (or very close calls!), and dropped balls of all kinds.

Email is like Water: it never stops flowing. The idea is to let it flow while giving it firm boundaries, not damming it up or allowing it to become stagnant.

I’ve been working on my inbox for a couple of months now and the Chi is flowing again. If yours has gotten out of control, here are a few Feng Shui-based principles that will help you correct its course.

1. Keep Chi energy moving by dealing with every email you receive each day by the end of that day, either by answering it, deleting it, or placing it into a category folder.
2. Create structure by setting up category folders for emails you need to keep: the folders you need will become apparent as you deal with your mail. Mine include things like Client Info, Public Speaking, Receipts & Invoices… you get the idea.
3. Reduce the stagnant energy of your backlog of emails. My inbox had over 2,000 unsorted emails in it before I started; it’s now at 400 and falling, as I continue to delete unnecessary items and sort the rest into categories.

Your email inbox is one of the necessities of modern life, and its condition counts just as much as any part of your environment.

What are your favorite tips for keeping it under control?

(photo courtesy of thedailygreen.com)

Your first step to good Feng Shui: a good, healthy clutter-clearing.

Clutter represents stuck energy. It can keep you tied to the past and prevent new opportunities, experiences and relationships from entering your life.

Clutter also distracts you from the here and now, and can make you feel that life is unnecessarily difficult.

Start by checking your home for these four types of clutter. (Hat-tip to space-clearing expert Karen Kingston.)

Clutter Type #1: Things you don’t love, use or need. 

• Outdated tax returns, gifts you never loved, kitchen utensils you don’t use: what do you have around you that doesn’t support you 100%? 
• Surround yourself with the things you love, use or need, to allow your space to nourish you like never before.

Clutter Type #2: Too many things in too small a space. 

• Take a look at your overcrowded closet.   Do you find yourself wearing 20% of your clothing, 80% of the time? Let go of things that no longer fit, aren’t in good shape, are dated or unflattering…  you know what I mean

Clutter Type #3: Things that are untidy or disorganized. 

• When you don’t know exactly what’s in a pile or a drawer, that’s clutter. This type of clutter is frequently found in “junk drawers,” stacks of papers, boxes of tech equipment and computer cables….

Clutter Type #4: Unfinished projects.

• As long as a project goes unfinished, its energy continues to beg for your attention. Either finish the project right away, give it to someone else to complete, or dispose of it altogether.
• Ridding yourself of the guilt attached to unfinished projects is refreshingly liberating!

Clearing your clutter helps you in countless ways.

For example if you’re looking to attract romance into your life, making room in your closet sends the message that you’re ready for a special new someone to “take up some space” themselves.

Start the clutter-clearing process and let me know what happens. I guarantee that it will make a difference.

(Photo credit: remodelista.com)

If your energy feels stuck, it may help to tackle both your visible and your invisible clutter.

Here are a few essential tools to help yourself get unstuck and take more confident control of your life.

1. Clear Visible Clutter
Clutter accumulates, it’s the way of the world. Mail arrives, kids come home from school, meals get eaten, clothing piles up; on and on it goes. Every event seems to present an opportunity for stuff to accumulate.

So it’s super-important to stay on top of it to help Chi energy move freely, bringing new and better things into your life.

One of my favorite ways to make sure there’s always a clear pathway for Chi is to do a “quick daily sweep” starting with Feng Shui’s three most important areas: the entry, kitchen and bedroom.

Once you feel good about these areas you can move on to other spots. Paying a little bit of attention every day will keep positive Chi circulating moving with minimal effort from you.

2. Clear Your Mind
Many years ago I came across the life-changing book The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron, one of the “bibles” of self-discovery.

In the book Cameron presents several ideas designed to help you get in closer touch with your creative spirit.

The idea that changed my life is “Morning Pages” – three pages written in longhand every morning before the day gets into gear.

Writing Morning Pages helps you to clear the clutter in your mind. Everything that’s most important now makes its way onto the page, bringing your awareness to the things that matter now.

3. Clear Your Thoughts
Taking a walk is the best way to bring your attention to the here and now.

Just a turn around the block will do!

After your walk you’ll feel refreshed, with unexpected, productive new thoughts in your mind, and you’ll feel more energized to tackle whatever is coming your way.

How do you keep your life feeling clear and strong each day?

Having a clutter-free home is the #1 most important thing you can do to start creating good Feng Shui in your home.

Here are some of my all-time favorite tips to get you going and keep you motivated.

Step 1. Choose one of Feng Shui’s three most important areas to start clearing clutter. Think about starting with the bedroom which Feng Shui considers the “first among equals.”

Step 2. Identify the Primary Purpose of the room you are working on, so you can start with a clear goal ahead of you.  As you clear the clutter away and organize what remains, keeping the ultimate purpose of the room in mind will help you know what stays and what goes.

Step 3. Remove everything from the closet, shelves or other area you’re focusing on before you begin to sort.

Step 4. Designate boxes or bags so you can sort productively:
• To keep (and place in its appropriate home).
• To throw away/recycle.
• To give away, sell, or donate.

Step 5. Ask yourself three key questions about every item before moving it to its appropriate spot:
• Do I love it?
• Do I use it?
• Do I need it?
If the answer is no to these questions, it’s time to let it go.

Step 6. Get rid of what you’re letting go of immediately. Throw it out, take it to Goodwill, recycle it — today.

Step 7. Create a home for everything, keeping like with like. Use containers you already own and love to personalize the process and the outcome.

Step 8. Open windows and doors to let air and Chi energy circulate. Chi energy tip: open windows at both the bottom and the top to get air flowing, and use a fan to keep the Chi moving.

Step 9. Employ transcendental Feng Shui tools. One of my favorite ways to get Chi energy moving? Move 27 things.

And finally — laugh! Laugh in a big way at least once a day to release the tension that might be embedded in your clutter.

What are some of your favorite clutter-clearing tips?

(cartoon courtesy of 43things.com)

In fact much of the paper that comes into our lives is absolutely necessary. We are not close to being a paperless society at the moment.

From a Feng Shui perspective it is beneficial to know the best place to keep your bills and other paperwork as you process them.

In terms of Feng Shui the best spot for in-process paperwork is the Children/Future/Productivity area on the right-hand side of your space.

This is the Bagua area that represents your ability to get things done.

It’s associated with the Metal element, symbolizing your focus, rational thought, organizing skill and determination.

Making this area a home for your “work in progress” sets the scene for productivity and success.

Here’s one I just love: a digital hourglass.

Turned one way, the hourglass is an unconventionally-shaped clock, but turned upside down it will count down the seconds for any time you set up to 99 minutes.

It even shows digital “sand” flowing downwards as the seconds tick by. Fun!

How do you set time limits on things? I’d love to know

Paper can seem to materialize overnight, but don’t fear, there are things you can do so it doesn’t take over your life.

In my first post about getting rid of paper clutter, I shared three ways of six ways you can tame the paper monster. Here are the final three.

1. Invest in a Heavy Duty Shredder. Not all shredders are created equal. If you take a look at them, you’ll notice that some say “light,” “medium,” or “heavy” duty.

Shell out a few extra bucks and go for the heavy duty model. It will stand up to the moments when you’re zealous about shredding, and won’t overheat as quickly as the lighter units.

2. Have a Place for All Your Papers. You will get a variety of paper, some of which you must keep and others you want to keep for the future. Figure out your categories and put them in their proper place. Here are a few examples…

a. Coupons. Keep your coupons as close to the store where you’ll be using them as possible.

This means storing them in your car. The coupons will do you no good if they’re at home when you’re at XYZ shop. Use an envelope or coupon organizer to help you keep track of them so they don’t fly about while you’re driving.

b. Bills. Get a Bill Sorter. Place the bills in the appropriate numbered (for days/month) slot and you’ll not only contain them, but you’ll also find them when it’s time to pay up.

If you’re really serious about cutting back on paper, use e-bills instead.

c. Magazines. Use a magazine rack to house all the mags you want to read…and keep them in the places that you tend to read.

So, if you read in the living room and your home office, keep a wall rack or floor model in each place.

3. Digitize Your Paper. You might not be able to go completely paperless, but you can reduce the volume that lives in your home or office by scanning your documents.

Once they’ve been digitized, you can recycle or shred the originals. Be sure to check with your tax advisor before shredding any financial papers.

If you have a large volume of papers, send them to a service like OfficeDrop or Shoeboxed and let them scan them for you. If you choose to do the scanning yourself, the NeatDesk Scanner is a great option.

About Today’s Poster

Deb Lee is an award winning Certified Professional Organizer® and the founder of D. Allison Lee LLC, a company that helps residential and business clients kick clutter to the curb and become more productive. Visit her Organize to Revitalize blog, for more great tips and connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.

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