Nudged: Clear Paper Clutter

This Nudge landed under my “sight” nudges (for this round’s theme of delighting all my senses) because whenever I look around my office (and kitchen and dining room table), I am distracted by piles of stuff. It’s stressful!

I’d like my work and personal environments to be clean and calm (though not “minimalist,” which actually stresses me out too). So, this week, I’m going to devote 15 minutes each day to clearing out paper clutter.

What Happened: Instead of watching TV or catching up on the news over breakfast and lunch, I sat myself down at the dining room table with a folder, a small stack of random pages/photos/mementos, or an old journal. At the end of each meal, I recycled some, shredded a lot, and saved almost nothing.

As I glance around at the end of this week, it feels like my progress has been minimal, for I’m still looking at boxes and stacks of stuff to sort through. I had planned to include before + after photos with this post, then decided that was discouraging.

The good news is I found some gems, including some sweet photos of me from childhood. I also discovered a journal from 21 years ago, in which I chronicled the early days of my copywriting career, the amazing people who saw potential in me, who opened doors for me, who started as work colleagues and are now close friends.

This Nudge gave me momentum. I am the only one who can get through this stuff, and I trust I will see and feel a difference soon.

The Ah-Hahs: Like many of my peers, I have seen first-hand the physical and emotional challenges of downsizing as we’ve assisted grandparents and parents in the later years of their lives—or after they’ve passed. I, as you know, don’t have kids who will help me with all of this later in life; it’s up to me to get it done. It’s a sobering prospect.

The upside of this Nudge is all the great memories I got to revisit this week. I followed up with phone calls and emails: “Remember when…?!”

It was also healing to revisit my younger self, the woman who was first beginning to face her dilemmas about “Will I ever…?” become a mom, experience love, find fulfillment in work and life. “You’ll be okay!” I said out loud to her, as I read about her fears and desires, her loneliness and growing isolation, her hopes and dreams. “You’ll be better than okay! I promise!”