Ahh, cleaning the closet. Don't you just love it? But it's not one of those jobs that you can love if you're planning on doing it. I mean, who gets up in the morning and is thrilled about saying, "Today I'm going to clean the closet! Yippee!"? In my experience, it's one of those jobs you can only love when it happens spontaneously. You know, like you went in there just for one thing. Maybe you didn't find it right away, so you started moving things around a bit - where the heck did I put that … [Read more...]

Remember the days when you went home from your job on Friday afternoon and didn't think much about it until Monday morning? Remember when reading novels was a regular part of your life? Remember when the word "unplugged" was part of your vocabulary only when you were moving a lamp to another part of the room? Remember when a proposal or a check would slowly find its way to you through the mail while we patiently waited for its arrival? These days I feel like I'm ripping month pages off my … [Read more...]

Something has to go. I can feel it. It's a familiar feeling actually. It arises whenever it's time for me to go through the house and evaluate what I own. It is usually motivated by an internal restlessness. I take a look at everything and determine if it still serves me. Do I currently use it? Do I love it? Anything that doesn't meet the criteria doesn't make the cut. It's the harsh reality that objects face when they live with a feng shui practitioner. The interesting thing about this … [Read more...]

I have been bald twice in my life. I shaved my head, on two separate occasions, for spiritual trips to India. Shaving my head was optional. Despite the assumption that India is riddled with bald spiritual seekers on a path to enlightenment, I found that the people of India look at you with the same look as the people of Minnesota: What's with the bald woman? There are a number of reasons, depending on the spiritual tradition, for shaving all or part of the head. The reason that appealed to me … [Read more...]

I have this game that I accidentally play sometimes when I am cleaning my house. It goes a little something like this: Take an item out of this room and put it in this room. Take this other item and put it over here. Take these papers and recycle part of them, but then put the rest of them back in this other pile. By the time I am done with this riveting little cleaning game, the house is a little cleaner and I feel accomplished. After all, I have successfully rearranged my stuff from one … [Read more...]

Having a home is like dating. I realized that recently while working with a new client. They have a beautiful high-end condominium that is well furnished and sits nestled on a lake. And yet, they find themselves a little "uninterested" in their home. It doesn't feel quite right. I assessed the usual culprits. We looked at the floor plan, the external and internal elements, and the layout of furniture. We discussed their lives, their goals, their occupations and their previous homes. There … [Read more...]

Raise your hand if you own something that you don't currently use. Think of your closets, drawers, attics and basements. Now that most of us are holding up our hands, let me explain why. I believe there are deep reasons that we hold onto things. And I believe these reasons can teach us about who we are and where we're going. Think about your unused items. Maybe they fall under one category, like clothing that no longer fits or books from a previous hobby. Or perhaps there is a wide range of … [Read more...]

An organized home has unlimited benefits. Clutter-free homes save time as items are quickly accessible without having to search. The emotional advantages are proven too: A tidy home helps clear the mind for mental receptivity and greater inner calm. Putting off clearing the clutter that has accumulated over the past year? Plagued with the tedious task of finding a home for items stacked in the corners? Many books detail these ideas, but they lack motivation and easy ideas to get the job … [Read more...]