CLEARING THE CLUTTER
As you know, I’m a big believer in clearing life’s clutter; I talk about it a lot. In fact, you might’ve heard me talking about the ‘f**k it’ bucket (or when I work with children, it became the ‘chuck it’ bucket).
What am I talking about?
Finding ways to leave behind, to let go, release and not carry forward anything from the past that might hold us back from being able to have more, be more, and do more - and ultimately living the life we were meant to lead.
Feeling Blocked and Stuck
Have you ever felt blocked but didn’t know why or described feeling stuck? The truth is, I’ve been feeling all of these things recently, and it’s held me back on a personal and professional level.
Not only has it affected how I have operated, I’ve been feeling blocked on an emotional level; blocked from feeling joy and confidence, from being clear on my purpose, and I guess I’ve been feeling stuck.
With my business, I’ve heard myself asking, “Can I really make this work, is it possible to succeed?” (Thankfully I’ve had a team of supporters in the background saying, “Yes! You can!”. They include Michelle at This is Me Agency, Paul Scurrah at That Branding Company, and Laura Swaddle at Swaddle//Creative, as well as a bunch of other colleagues who encourage me, introducing me to organisations and teams who need my help, and reminding me that the world needs my work. (In fact, this is a chapter of my Adventure Map Mental Fitness course!)
Taking Action and Doing Inner Work
As an action-biased, gung-ho ‘get-shit-done’ girl, it’s in my nature to focus on tasks, actions and results. Recently, however, I’ve been doing the inner work and connecting with the person who creates the results - me! Because when your work focuses on the development of the people around you, you can forget the importance of working out what’s going on within. As I look back on my life, I realise that this has always been my default.
Any time I have had a stormy experience, I get into action mode. It’s one of my strongest coping mechanisms. I solutionise, pivot into positivity and over-function. Some examples: writing the blog from my future self the day that I was attacked abroad, already identifying the ‘teachable’ before I’d even caught my breath and told someone what had happened to me, creating the Mental Fitness Kitbag coaching system, and mapping out my personal journey through a marriage breakup and a change to almost every aspect of my life, turning a cancer journey of a loved one into a health adventure, finding many moments of laughter, and opportunities for family adventures amongst what was a frightening and risky journey (with a happy outcome).
Reflecting and Moving Forward
I realised recently that it was time to ‘pull back to move forward’, connect with me, take a deep dive and clear my personal clutter. Looking in the rearview mirror and putting a pin in the map of my journey (Module 3 of my Adventure Map Mental Fitness course), by acknowledging all the different adversities I have faced; events, people and situations that have impacted me and clearing the unconscious clutter that’s been looming and may also be holding me back.
My Approach
I’m not speaking as a guru or expert in this field. My approach has been to pull back in order to move forward; think about events, and acknowledge them to myself, to sit in the mud for a bit and come back out of it, jump into the benefits of reiki, then to write about my experiences - Look - here I am doing just that!
Right now, I am feeling calm, confident, and in control - I feel joyful, lighter, and ready for a new beginning, taking with me only what I need; optimism, hope and curiosity.
Walking My Own Talk
I heard the saying - Walk your own Talk - many times. I realise I’m taking myself on my own mental fitness adventure navigating the milestones that I created in a course on my Mental Fitness Adventure Map.
Right now, I am living life feeling lighter. I am going ‘NATO’ - not attached to the outcome. I’m on this journey. I can’t wait to see where it will take me next. I am in a chapter called - Letting Life Surprise Me, and I love it.
Clearing Your Clutter
Carrying things around with you that are surplus to your requirements can mean carrying a heavy load (some call it baggage, I call it clutter). Over time, the load gets heavier and if ignored can lead to moral, mental, emotional and physical injury - the body keeps the score. While I can’t advocate my approach to clearing your clutter, my advice is… take time to find your methodology.
Fill up your ‘fuck it’ bucket, talk it out, write down what you want to let go of and have a campfire burning ceremony, try reiki, or somatic dance, try something different, just do something.
Where might the clutter be in your life?
If you’re in need of some support through a similar time or could do with some more mental fitness tools in your kit bag:
Check out the self-guided Adventure Map Mental Fitness Course
Talk to me! Book a 1-2-1 coaching call or get in touch and we can find the best path for you.
