5 Steps to "DE-JUNK" your HOME!

De-JUNK January is  a guide to   "lightening the load" and "lifting the  mood" in your HOME!  It's about establishing a  FEELING of  contentment and ease on the home front. It's about using YOGA & MINDFULNESS to find peace of mind  at home  even when contending with  family dynamics.

1. CREATE A CALENDAR
Baby steps  equal loads of progress.  I like to use a  whiteboard calendar that I have in my pantry to break down the de-junking process. I put one manageable task on each day. On days that I know I will have  a lot of time , I put a big task. On days that I know I will not have much time, I put a simple task.  The tasks can range anywhere from cleaning out an entire room down to something as simple as clearing out a single drawer.

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2. "ACT AS IF " IT'S MOVING DAY!
In my opinion, moving day is exciting. It's an opportunity to start fresh in a new  location. I also love this concepts of "acting as if..." So, I use them both during the de-junking process and "act as if" I'm moving.  I trick myself into making this sizeable task a little less tough! I know that when I move  I want to make the process a little less tedious by only taking the things that I really need and love. So,   junk gets tossed and necessities   get tidied. ​

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3. ASK YOURSELF  "DOES THIS SPARK JOY?"
Nothing says de-junking more than Marie Kondo's phrase "does this spark joy!" Consider taking out categories of items, such as   all of your books,  placing them in a pile and only putting  the  ones that "spark joy" back on the shelf or coffee table or wherever they belong.  Keep going through categories such as clothes, papers, pictures, knick knacks, etc. until the junk is left out and the  joyful items are put back. Such a mood lifting process!

4. SMUDGE  
Grab a bundle of sage , light it, gently blow out the flame, and let the smoke clear the air in your home.   Just as the items in our home can pull down the energy, there can also be heavy energy in the air. Let's  clear the air , to help lift the overall mood. Start at the front door and move clockwise around the interior perimeter of the  home letting the smoke energetically cleanse the air and invite in positive energy. As the smoke ascends, our wishes and intentions rise up into the Universe.

5. ESTABLISH A SYSTEM
After you have put in all of the work to de-junk your home, don't let it go to waste. Create a system to  keep up with it.  As Gretchen Rubin says, "keeping up is  easier than catching up.  How will you keep up with this lightened load. For starters, tap into the way you FEEL once it is all said and done. That FEELING of contentment  and ease will act as a solid reminder of how  much easier it is to make progress in the game of life when your space is up to par!

How does "De-Junk January" relate to YOGA & MINDFULNESS you may  be wondering? Well , if you take a look at the 8 Limbs of Yoga, you will find the Yamas and Niyamas which offer yogis some guidelines on how to  move through life. Yamas being how to treat others and Niyamas, how to treat the self. Within the Niyamas you will find Saucha which means purity or cleanliness.   Although the practice of yoga may be mainly focused on the mind, body, and spirit,   saucha reminds us that the cleanliness of the space around us is also important to our overall emotional well-being!