Simple and Easy: quick tips to put order in your life

Simple.  [sigh] That word is pure joy to me. Just the sound of it evokes a happy feeling and says that things are clear, to-the-point, easy.

Who doesn’t want things to be easy?

In this day and age I think we make things – everyday decisions and processes – more difficult.  We push simple aside.  We get caught up in what others are doing and put loads of energy to try to keep up.  And we take the complicated way out forgetting the easy one. We don’t stop, don’t reflect, don’t slow down enough for things to just be as simple as they really are.

As an organizer, I see this all the time – the ways things get complicated because of stuff or old ways of thinking.

It’s no coincidence that disorder causes things to be complicated, difficult, confusing.

Simplicity, on the other hand, is akin to order and the effort made to attain either can be life-changing.  When we make a commitment to find order and live more simply we force ourselves to question, uncover and look at what we have and why we have it.  It’s empowering stuff.

It’s not the only way to get simple in your life, but organization is great start. Here are a few quick tips:

1. Keep clutter at bay.

Clutter is visual confusion and it skews your perception of time, your priorities, and how wonderful things really are (and how simple they can be).  It complicates things because it clouds your mind and affects your judgement.  It might not seem like something that would kick simple to the curb, but it is a huge reason why people don’t see things clearly and therefore make decisions more easily.  Question what comes into your space and make sure you like it, you need it, and you’ll use it.

2. Home sweet home!

It doesn’t get much more simple than this: when you use something put it back where it belongs.  Once you’ve determined a home, it becomes easy and simple to keep things tidy and neat.  Make sure everyone in your household knows what goes where.  That way everyone can take part in keeping spaces clear.

3. Be prepared!

Being prepared breeds simplicity.  Plan meals ahead of time, lay out clothes for the next day, write on a list what you don’t want to forget.  Life is fluid and ever-changing; not everything does go as planned.  Being organized, and prepared, doesn’t mean life won’t throw you come curve balls. It means you’ll be more prepared to catch them.

4. Take a step back.

When things feel complicated or confused, take a step back and take a deep breath.  Just like with organizing, you need to start small and break things down to make them easier to deal with.  When I’m overwhelmed, I  think about how I’d eat an elephant –   one bite at a time.  When you look at anything in its entirety, it can seem insurmountable and unappealing — certainly doesn’t seem simple.  One small step at a time makes conquering anything just a little bit easier.

5. Remember to be grateful.

Gratitude is the gift that keeps on giving.  I am positive that the more you reflect on the blessings in your life the more you appreciate what you have (and the less you go looking unnecessarily for more).  Gratitude grounds you and when you are grounded, those things that bothered you, those major hiccups and mishaps in your day, those decisions that were so difficult to come by all seem … insignificant.  Gratitude helps us appreciate the simple things and realize what is really important.

The simple things, the simple ways, are what we all strive for.  It’s not always easy to get there but certainly well worth the effort.

What things do you do to assure something simple finds its way into your everyday?  Tell me about them in the comments!