We instinctively avoid uncomfortable things. It’s perfectly normal. But when we think about it, we realize that almost every single good thing in our life came from discomfort. Want to get a better job? Have to face the possibility of rejection. Want to marry the love of our life? Have to move through the nervousness and commit. Want to get stronger? Have to get sweaty, possibly in front of strangers, with lost breath and a funny look on our face.
What’s more, it is discomfort that pushes us to change. We get to the point where we say, “No more. I cannot stand one more minute of feeling/living like this.” And since we know no one is going to come save us, we have to do something different. Maybe it’s going to therapy, or taking social media apps off our phones, or giving ourselves a strict bedtime. We choose a new, maybe scary, thing to try to make our lives better.
Making a peaceful home out of chaos is no different. We invite a stranger into our hectic, sometimes embarrassing, home to help us with our stuff. We face the guilt, grief, and hard work of going through our things, so that we come out with a home full of things that we love and that serve the life we want to live. We evaluate our habits and own our contributions to the problem. We calmly, patiently, hash out cleaning schedules with our family so that we keep our spaces healthy and pleasant to be in. We release past grudges and resentment to begin anew. We make room for the possibility that everyone in our home can be better partners, including ourselves. A new home, a new life, requires trust and new, uncomfortable behaviors.
To move out of the discomfort we don’t want, we have to embrace a new kind of temporary discomfort to get to the life we want.
When you are ready and able to invest in your future calm, you can hire me or any of the talented pro organizers listed with the National Association of Productivity & Organizing Professionals (NAPO) at https://pro.napo.net/
I'm fully vaccinated and now open for in person organizing sessions, sanity saving cleaning services, as well as packing and unpacking services. Gift certificates available.
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