"Think in concrete terms so that you can vividly picture what it would be like to live in a clutter-free space." - Marie Kondo
Earlier this week I was chatting with my parents about over-commitment. We have a habit, perhaps even a practice, of making promises because our nature is to see the potential in almost everything and everyone. People love Kweskins because we follow-through, rarely drop the ball, and ensure that we get the job done - with excellence. In fact, I think we thrive on seeing people happy, fulfilled and us getting a pat on the back.However, I would equate this life-long practice with being a giant ball of Velcro that becomes wobbly with all kinds of attachments. Let's call it over-commitment clutter. Some would call it the need to set boundaries or just learn to say, "thank you for asking, but no thank you."
On our family phone call my mom mentioned The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo and how she is expanding the concept beyond stuff and also considering all of her commitments. This book has been sitting on my shelf for almost a year, set aside after I had read the intro, and now I've been inspired to pick it up again.
With this new filter in mind, decluttering my commitments, I read Marie's statement at the top of this post and inserted "life" into "space" and a feeling of clarity began to bubble up in my over-crowded thoughts. "Yes, I can do this!"
How appropriate on Labor Day Weekend to give some details to a vivid picture of what my life can be if it is over-commitment clutter free. Yesterday, I was helping my students identify goal-setting success indicators. How do you know when you have reached a goal? What might you be seeing, hearing, doing, and saying? This further anchors the goal into a positive framing. So, as part of my practice this vivid picture I will include the success indicators.
