source: pinterest: bonitismos

This ONE thing can be game changing. Life changing. It’s the final piece of what’s become my Organize Your Life trifecta.

To recap:

Concept 1:  HOME.  For Everything.  This one covers your surroundings. At home. In your workspace. Even your virtual.

Concept 2:  Do WHAT you need to do, WHEN you need to do it. And this is all about  work. Getting stuff done. Getting the RIGHT stuff done. Getting the RIGHT stuff done in the SMARTEST way.

HOME + WORK … now it’s time for LIFE.

Because your home can be organized, and your work can bring “success” – but if your LIFE is out of order, all the organizing in the world will not solve that inner chaos. It can help, for sure.  But without looking at the whole picture, you’re selling yourself short.

SO, how do you organize a LIFE you love?  This is how I do it:

Concept 3:  Surround Yourself With What You Love

This is my mantra. It has become my filter for everything:

• Home – what I bring into it
• Calendar – what I put on it
• Career – how I work it
• Style – how I bring it
• Relationships – who I share myself with
• Time – how I spend it

BEcome AWARE.  Know what you love.  And what you don’t love.

Then bring it in.

Or take it out.

If you don’t love it…

• don’t buy it,
• don’t keep it,
• change it, or
• accept it (at least for now).

Taking out all of this clutter makes room for the LOVE stuff.

TAKE ACTION NOW!

This is my favorite way to bring in my favorite concept.  It’s easy, yet powerful.

• All you need:  a piece of paper & something to write with.
• Make 2 columns:  Love + Not Love. (I try not to use the word “hate” – even though I do tend to use stronger words – typically when driving. Bad habit I know.)
• Write down what you love on one side, and what drives you crazy on the other.  Do it all at once, or keep an on-going list.
• TAKE ACTION PART 2:  DO something about it.  Add more of what you love to your life. And figure out how to get rid of or diminish what’s not working.

TIPS:

• Date it + Keep it:  Very interesting to see how things have evolved. Or stayed the same. Literally seeing how long you’ve put up with something draining can be the motivation you need to finally make a change.
• Do this exercise next time you’re feeling overwhelmed. (I’ve found it to be quite therapeutic. Just acknowledging the not likes seems to immediately make things a bit better.)
• Have fun with it! When is the last time you’ve thought about what thrills you? Write down those little things. And the big things. Be grateful for what you love. Make wishes for what you’d like.

Surround yourself with what you love starts with knowing what you love. And then organizing – designing! – your life around it.

As I’d mentioned before, these three concepts helped keep me afloat during stormy times, and have helped me thrive during others.

Each can be done a little at a time. And a little at a time done over time can be transformational!

Organizing a life you love doesn’t of course mean you’ll like it all of the time. But it does give hope during hard times, and can provide a cushion to fall on.

And can provide some good stuff to help you get back on your feet.

So you can break through those obstacles in your path. Or create a whole new path leading to a much more fabulous destination!

– DEDICATION –

This post is dedicated to a very dear friend, Barbara, who has helped me navigate my stormy times with her incredible wisdom, humor and love. (And forgiveness!… disregard those Happy Birthday texts / messages today!!! Your birthday was yesterday!! Oops:/ xoxoxo)

With love + gratitude,