Sometimes clients will ask, "Why am I hanging on to all these things?"
I
tell them that it's impossible to know why. Too many factors combine
and contribute to why there's clutter, and that makes it impossible to
know what they all are. Any "whys" my clients might come up with tend to
be stories they tell themselves, fantasies that distract them from
their clutter situation.
The only thing worth knowing
during a clutter bust is that the presence of clutter is hurting your
life. If you had rats in your home, you'd skip the "whys" and call the
exterminator.
Most of the time, skipping the "whys" and getting to the what's in front of you is the only thing that's going to make you feel better because it's the only thing you can do something about.
There
are a few times that I've seen an examination of "whys" make a
difference -- but the answers always come after the clutter bust, not
before.
If you find yourself trapped under the
influence of "whys," stand up, walk over and pick up something. Feel it
in your fingers. Think, "If this was food, would I want to eat it?" See
the job, do the job, and stay out of the misery.
(This post is a repost blast from the past.)