Is the saying “Less is More” really true? As an organizer, I truly believe it because I see people trapped and stressed out by their stuff. It can be expensive and stressful managing an excess of things, keeping up with the latest gadgets, figuring out how to store them, clean them and maintain them. I think by being more thoughtful, we can select the “stuff” that really speaks to us and that we need to have. By doing so, what we end up having are things that represent us and our life, instead of an overabundance of stuff that drains us.

Living life with abundance is a good philosophy to be reminded about to get us out of just living life going through the motions, and instead thinking about how we can live life more fully. This can be interpreted different ways, but usually it means to get out of reactive mode and into taking control of who you are and want to be. Of course we naturally check in with ourselves around our birthdays and at the start of a New Year, but spring also is a time to reflect on how we are living life. 

As an organizer I manage clients’ physical and mental spaces, in some cases, both filled with clutter. I assist them to purge the clutter and create systems and processes to be in control of both their physical and mental spaces. Living life abundantly doesn’t mean living with an abundance of tangible things, because we all know by now that the stuff alone doesn’t make us happy. It is the relationships we form and nourish, both old and new, and the life experiences we share with others that contribute to the feeling of abundance. When we continue to meet people, be neighborly, make new friends and get involved in our community we bring richness to our lives.  

I just got back from the National Association of Professional Organizers’ (NAPO) conference which ran for many days. It was an incredible experience, though I feel a little overwhelmed with an overabundance of materials, business cards, notes from sessions, and stuff from the exhibit hall that I need to sift through. I walked away with an increased knowledge base and many new friendships and am so glad I had this life experience. May your spring be abundant.