Awareness

Living Intentionally with Single-Use Plastics

by

Significant Emotional Events We all have experiences that forever imprint on our minds and cause a shift in how we think about things.  My dad has always called them significant emotional events.  One of my significant emotional events occurred a few years back while whale watching on a 36-foot SuperRib in Southern California. Looking back, I vividly recall the awe as we found our small craft surrounded by a school of hundreds of dolphins.  And, I’ll likely not forget how … Read More

If you appreciated this post, please pass it on...

Three Steps to Pulling the Plug on Pinball Mind

by

When I was in junior high school a friend had an old fashioned pinball machine in her basement. Almost forty years later, I still recall how exciting it was to keep that tiny metal ball in play.  I’d thwack it with the flippers and watch it ricochet off the bumpers and thwack at it again.  All the while, I was rewarded with bells, flashing lights and points!  Keeping that shiny silver sphere in play was so much … Read More

If you appreciated this post, please pass it on...

Ethical Consumption – Questions You Should Be Asking

by

Reading time ~ 5 minutes  Until recently, our minimalism journey has been focused primarily on releasing stuff we no longer need or want. My focus shifted a little last month though after noting how many people commented on a particular topic on a professional organizer’s forum I subscribe to. The topic was Ethical Consumption.  Unfortunately most of my organizing colleague’s comments related to the back end of consumption, which I’ll call ethical disposal.  This encompasses recycling, reusing, … Read More

If you appreciated this post, please pass it on...

Honoring YOUR Values as You Simplify Your Life

by

Reading time ~ 4 minutes Sometimes people in your life have a hard time understanding choices you make. There is a woman I knew, we’ll call her Jill, who was frustrated with a friend of hers, who wasn’t available as often as Jill expected her to be.  The friend was happy to hang out with Jill during the day, but every time Jill invited her to dinner or an evening meeting or event, she was turned down.  … Read More

If you appreciated this post, please pass it on...

Creating a Simplicity Statement

by

Note:  I drafted this piece on creating a simplicity statement back in January 2016 as we were preparing to renovate the smaller home we had recently purchased and expected to move into in April 2016.   Having spent a week in a 1000sq ft condo in Kauai this past week, I was reminded I can live with a lot less than I thought was possible.  Home for less than 24 hours, my initial urge was to begin … Read More

If you appreciated this post, please pass it on...

Talking Back: You Get to Choose How to Respond to Self Talk

by

Self talk.  We all do it, though some of us don’t really like to admit to it. Self talk doesn’t necessarily mean talking out loud to oneself, but it can show up that way.  Instead, by self talk, I’m referring to what we find ourselves saying which results in self-limiting behavior.  Phrases like “I can’t”, or “I don’t” or “I’m not the kind of person who does ___________” don’t exactly do much to encourage forward movement, expand … Read More

If you appreciated this post, please pass it on...

Coaching a Client to Curb Over-shopping & Cluttering

by

In 2009, I reviewed a book called, I Shop Therefore I Am, compiled by April Lane Benson, PhD for the Chronical newsletter published by the National Study Group for Chronic Disorganization.  Because I greatly appreciated that book, I was anxious to read and review Benson’s latest book, To Buy Or Not To Buy, an “interactive guidebook for that transformation” from over-shopper to shopper. Amy I have been working with an over-shopper, “Amy”, since June 2009. Amy is … Read More

If you appreciated this post, please pass it on...