Why You Need To Shift Your Thinking

Your Journey from Chaos to Peace requires ⁣⁠clearing out some mental clutter ⁣⁠and to shift your thinking, and yes I have to do that too, every single day. 

Today I want to talk about mental clutter again and why you need to shift your thinking.

This will be short and sweet and actionable and it's also the linch pin to your progress and success.

 
If you're constantly thinking about how hard clearing your clutter is, and how hard or impossible staying organized is... You need to keep reading

Getting to live and work clutter-free starts with decluttering your limiting beliefs and your stinking thinking.

You need to be onto your brain and constantly shifting your thinking. 

Shifting your Thinking from what to what?

Well in short you need to shift your thinking from what you can't do to what you could do 

Our brain is wired to always go to the negative, mine is no different. But it is not useful to spend time thinking about what we can't do. Why?

Have you ever had a situation where you were talking with someone about all the reasons why you can't do something? 

For example: have you ever been sharing with a friend

• why decluttering is soo hard for you?  
• or complaining how time-consuming it is?
• and whining about all the things that are in your way of you being organized? 

And after such a conversation have you been motivated then to do something about it?  

NO! Of course not!

I think it's a safe bet that this didn't motivate you at all. On the contrary, all that "I can't"-thinking just makes you more likely to procrastinate, and stay stuck in the wishing. Wishing life was better, wishing to take action, wishing to declutter, wishing to get organized.  

Negative thinking breeds more negative thinking

Another thing that most likely happens is also that you are beating yourself up for not doing anything while it's you in the first place that doesn't create helpful situations or a supportive mental environment for the action to happen.  

I often hear: I wish I were motivated to declutter, I wish I were motivated to get organized.

Or people ask me: how do I get motivated?

Well one way to get motivated and to stop procrastinating is to create a better mental atmosphere and energy for yourself.

It's not like I have a subscription to limitless motivation and limitless taking action energy that you don't have. What you need to do is stop telling yourself that you can't, instead shift your thinking to something that is supportive. 

This negative thinking is a habit that is reinforced by how our brain works by default, which is the motivational triad. I wrote a blog post about the motivational tried here.

In short, the motivational triad are the three principles our brain lives by:

1) seek pleasure

2) avoid pain, and

3) be efficient.

That's why habits are so hard to break, because it's very efficient for the brain to get us to do what we've always done, it's also safe. Usually and by default our brain is seeking pleasure while avoiding pain.

So instead of allowing your brain to serve you all the reasons and all the "I can't"-thoughts on an endless loop, which are really only excuses dressed up pretty and convincing, so instead of letting your brain do that, when you catch yourself thinking all this, just say to yourself STOP.

If you are alone you can say it out loud, or if you are in public just think STOP.  Then ask yourself, "what could I do?" 

Maybe it's just a few small things or tasks that you could do, or just a few minutes that you could manage to do, but you think isn't good enough. 

THAT is exactly the trap, think STOP, and allow yourself to just do a few small tasks, or a few minutes. Because a few minutes a day keep the chaos away remember, and wouldn't you rather do a few minutes or a few small tasks than Nothing?

All progress starts with a first steps, no matter how small.  So, let's start right away.

What CAN you do today to declutter and get organized?

 
What COULD you do if you were willing to take charge of your brain?

Say STOP when it starts with the excuses and shift your thinking back to "WHAT COULD I DO"  and then go do that.

Rinse and repeat every day, in the beginning you might even have to rinse and repeat by the minute.

Remember, there is no subscription to motivation, you will never be motivated until you take charge of your brain and shift your thinking!

If you are ready to go on a journey from chaos to peace in your home, office, and finances with me as your guide, opportunities to work with me 1-1 are available. 

Schedule a Clutter to Clarity Chat and we'll see if working together is a great fit.