Clearing out clutter—physical, mental, or emotional—can make a huge difference in your creativity.
In this episode of the Life Writers Vlog, I share a conversation I had with my friend Beth, an artist who’s been meaning to build a website but keeps postponing the call to the designer. Instead, she said she’s been clearing out her spaces, which has made her feel more creative and energized.
That got me thinking—when our spaces are cluttered, our minds can be too, making it harder to write.
I’m guilty of piling up books and papers, thinking I’ll deal with those later, but I rarely do. I just add to the top of the pile, burying what might be important even deeper.
But lately, I’ve been making space in my schedule, setting boundaries, and prioritizing my writing. Hopefully, I’ll tackle my pile soon.
One tip about decluttering, though, don’t use it as an excuse to avoid writing altogether! Do a bit of both.
What’s one small step you can take today to create space for your writing? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
But if you’re a clutterer or a clearer, always remember the only way to do this wrong is to not do it at all!
Until next time, happy writing!
My writing buddies and this group help me to schedule time and space commitment for writing. Like Holly said. If I want to write, write! When my piles of paper-notes get out of control, I put them in the Outlook To-do digital list with a Due-date. Rinse and repeat. I must remember – No one will value the to-do’s on my list like I do. Every quarter, I like to print the things I’ve written and put them in my notebook for a sense of accomplishment. Hopefully someone will find those, in the event of my early demise. Faulty as… Read more »
I have to admit this month has been hard on my writing. I was down with an unknown virus which put me out of commission for a while. Then several groups of family had come and gone, now more coming for Easter. My granddaughter who goes to UCF visits every other weekend. I know that’s a lot of excuses, but all were legit. I am finally back at my desk and computer to get some print on paper. I must say I have missed my writing time.
Great VLOG Patricia! Since my grandson was born, I have become a true cluttered procrastinator. I too have piles of things I want to get to at a later date–which never happens. I need to schedule time each day–like my buddies do. Thanks for bringing up this challenging issue. Julie
I’m an INFP, which means I spend a lot of time inside my head and can walk past a teetering pile of clutter 9 times before I see it. However, once I see it, I have to take care of it immediately. Sometimes that just means organizing it into smaller piles without addressing the issue. Paper is my downfall. It seems I’m constantly moving snowdrifts of paper off my desk and dumping it in a box for later. I know I find it harder to write when I’m surrounded by disorder, but I’m also a procrastinator and a perfectionist, so… Read more »
Patricia,
I admire your persistence as evidenced with your 131 episodes of your helpful vlog. I hope you are enjoying the warming trend of the seasons. We, too, are feeling some late spring heat, we experienced our first day in the 60’s this week with a 61 on Tuesday here in central Minnesota. We do miss the beautiful Florida weather. Thanks. Vern
Glad to hear from you again!
I used to be obsessive about cleanliness of my house. I did Spring cleaning every weekend to make it shine and sparkle, but once I started to write, all of my passion for cleanliness disappeared and turned into a passion for writing. I write every day. I wake up in the morning and cannot wait to go into my sanity/ insanity room. The only thing that is on my to do list as of now, is to dedicate one day to organize my files on the computer. This is my procrastination point.
I make to do lists to fight procrastination. And have an organized file system on my hard drive.
Writing that first word is still the hardest thing.
If you want to write, you will make the time; if not, you will find an excuse. This is true for almost everything in my life. I also have stacks and piles of must-dos, but being an all-or-nothing person means look out when I’m in my all.