What Clutter Does To You

May 9, 2012

Interview with Brooks Palmer, author of the book Clutter Busting: Letting Go of What's Holding You Back

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Mike Carruthers:
When you think of clutter you probably think of piles of paper and junk but clutter is more than that.

Brooks Palmer:
Clutter is anything in your life that is no longer serving you - so it could be clothing, papers, your closet or your storage locker, your garage.
 

Brooks Palmer, author of the book Clutter Busting, says people who rid themselves of clutter universally have a sense of calm and peace of mind.

You know it’s that old thing with the fluorescent light being turned off and all of a sudden it’s just quieter in the room and clutter is very noisy there’s a lot of discord. So when the clutter goes there’s this quietness that’s really quite amazing and noticeable.

Brook says just because your clutter is neat and organized doesn’t mean it’s not clutter.

Clutter can look really nice it can be stacked really beautifully in bookshelves and in files and the thing is they have this kind of stagnant effect. Things that are unused have a kind of a slowing down chaotic murky effect and when those things go they feel better.

So if you’re going through your closet and you see a shirt you haven’t worn in years ask yourself…

“How does it make me feel now?” Beyond the “I used to love wearing this shirt or I spent a thousand dollars on this I can’t throw it out.” But when everytime you look at it you’re just reminded of the money you spent on it and you’re not wearing it. So what I’ve found is this is a much simpler way of living – it’s just easier on us to not have these things around.

To hear the complete unedited interview, click here.