I can guarantee that as you are reading this, you are thinking about all the other things you need to finish before the day ends.
That email was supposed to go out a half hour ago, this assignment is due at midnight, and I think I was supposed to go to that meeting at 2 today.
I know I know, you’re SO busy… but who isn’t? In the era where everything needs to be finished yesterday, it can be hard to find the simple things in life and keep the To-Do list under control. The idea behind the simplification movement is not about giving up everything you own or clearing your daily schedule; rather, it challenges you to take a good look at your life and sort through all of the distracting, unnecessary things that are preventing you from being the happiest, most productive individual you can be.
So let’s start cleaning up, shall we?
Tidy-up Technology.
It should go without saying that everyone and their mother is in a committed relationship with their phone and computer. Your phone may feel like a necessary evil, and your computer is a treasure trove of all things Internet, old photos and random downloads. But do you really need the constant updates about who just followed your Pinterest board or who liked your tweet from last week? (The answer you’re looking for is “no”.) Time to get scrubbing, people.
✔Nix the Notifications
Turn off all the notifications you don’t want/need. Doing this will help you use your apps in a more focused, intentional way rather than refreshing feeds every 5 minutes just to see what’s new. Let’s be honest, it’s only been 5 minutes. You won’t have missed much. Cleaning up the notification center will improve your ability to focus on the task at hand, and aid in overall productivity during the day.
✔Fix the Inbox
After going through my inbox, I discovered that I was a little bit of an email hoarder. I had messages from over a year ago that were of no value or importance to my life anymore, and a few email subscription lists I can’t remember why I joined. Unroll.me is a website that will sort out all of your email subscriptions absolutely free, and give you the option of unsubscribing from the ones you no longer want to be part of.
✔Cleanse the Computer
For those of you who have an overwhelming amount of files saved to your desktop, I recommend organizing them into categorized files you would actually use so you can actually see your screensaver. Try a columnar approach, create a couple large files into which you can place all files of relative importance, or just delete the ones you don’t use (if you can). For the papers and photos that you want to keep but don’t want to occupy space, use cloud storage or an external hard drive. Your computer will thank you later.
✔Sort Social Media
Take time to go through each of your social media accounts to see what, if anything, is giving you more stress or anxiety than enjoyment. Social media is intended to be a fun outlet through which you and friends can keep up with each other and share memorable life experiences, not another place where you become annoyed or socially depressed, if you will. This doesn’t mean that you need to unfollow all your friends or anything, just find the right balance of feed content that you actually want.
Dust off the Day-to-Day.
There is so much that goes into every day, it can get a tad bit overwhelming if something is weighing you down or making it more difficult to be productive.
✔Clean the Closet
Go through your closet and decide what articles of clothing you do and do not wear regularly. No, you will most likely not wear that sweater any time soon if it’s been a year and still has the price tag on it. Donate the clothes you don’t need to a thrift store, to charity, or even give some to a friend (if they want it). Freeing up some space in your closet will allow you to see what you actually have and make it 10x easier to get an outfit ready in the mornings.
✔Purge the Papers
If you have stacks of paper lying around from last semester or random pieces from who knows when, then it’s time to grab those blue bins no one uses and recycle it! Digitize anything you can, and file fold everything else. But make sure than any personal information is off of the papers first before throwing them away! People will go through the trash, and will steal any information they can.
✔Have some Habits
Develop a routine for the little things in life: where you put your keys, what time you leave the house, where you do your homework, etc. Settling into miniature habits everyday will clarify your life and make productivity a breeze!
After all is said and done, do what “cleaning method” is best for your specific lifestyle. It is ultimately your well-being that you are improving little by little. Sure, a little dirt never hurt; but a little clean makes life a dream.