JumpStart Animation Day (10/28/24)

QUOTE:  "Sometimes you don't feel the weight of something you've been carrying until you feel the weight of its release." (Joshua Becker)

MESSAGE:  When we think of clutter, we generally think of our living space.  But what about your thinking space?

In my mind, it’s all about balance.  What goes on in your physical space is reflected in your mental space and vice versa. As humans, we love balance.  It’s they symbol of justice, we strive for it in design, and our physical bodies continually seek it in the process of homeostasis.

Consider these facts:

• We keep physical things because of our attachment to them - whether it’s sentimental or otherwise.  Each thing we keep takes up space in our memory and often our to-do list.  I buy a leaf blower, and now it’s in the back of my mind that I have to a) use it, b) remember where it’s kept, and c) maintain it.
• The Zeigarnik Effect postulates that people remember unfinished tasks better than completed ones.  When we rush through life never really finishing things, it takes mental space.
• Worry is brain space taken up by anticipated future problems.  Many of them involve people/things/events over which we have zero control.

As a solution to an overcluttered mind, try these steps:

1. Conduct a brain dump.  Take an uninterrupted time and write down everything that’s on your mind.  Go through and organize, categorize, and edit the list.  Some people say to repeat this for 21 days in a row.
2. Balance noise with silence.  While you may be tempted to turn your car music to screamo after a stressful day, choose to drive home in silence.  
3. Slow down.  The faster we move the more brain space it takes up.  The more our brain is filled with activity and details, the less room there is for peace.  And yes, it’s possible - you just have to make a conscious effort to do it.  Maybe start by saying ‘no’ to some stuff.
4. Tidy your physical space.  Make a huge trip to the Salvation Army and/or make your garbage man (sanitation engineer) work extra hard next week, and see how your mind feels once all that stuff is gone.

​THIS WEEK, TRY THIS:  Tidy your desk at work and clean the interior of your car.  See how you feel afterward.

DAD JOKE:  What happened to the guy who didn't pay his exorcist?  He got repossessed.