The 2021 Life Spruce Project. Take care of your environment to improve your wellbeing.

Improve the outside.

I believe the outside tells us a lot about the inside. 

If you sort out the outside, it may inspire the inside to get sorted as well. If you want to live a calm and inspired life, but your place is a mess, it may be an excellent time to take steps towards some small improvements. 

What does your environment say about you? Do you feel it truly reflects who you are or who you want to be? Or is there a yawning gap between the vision and the reality? Check for things that simply don’t work: they’re broken, need to be replaced, have an inferior function, are ugly and/or annoying.

I am not talking about moving from a tiny studio to a mansion. Still, suppose you open your wardrobe and get flooded by a tsunami of clothes, your toilet’s leaking, or you have 10 different knives but can only really cut with one – it’s time for a change.

There’s no need for any drastic measures. As always, I would recommend starting where you are, with what you have. 

• DECLUTTER BEFORE YOU CLEAN. You can’t clean clutter. If you want to get inspired, try the Mari Kondo method. If that feels like too much (because it really can be overwhelming), try smaller categories: skincare, cleaning products, pens, apps, etc. 

SMALL STEP: do it every day for 10-15 minutes. Don’t know where to start? It doesn’t matter – just start SOMEWHERE. Don’t overthink it!

• FIX OR REPLACE what doesn’t work or should work better. Things that don’t work as supposed to just drain our energy. 

SMALL STEP: start by taking notes whenever you spot something to be fixed or when you feel something should function better and improve the quality of your life. Don’t underestimate the power of small changes! 

• SIMPLIFY – see: declutter. But also try to improve your systems. 

Looking for things to simplify? You can streamline your daily routines, what you have for breakfast, or your clothes. 

SMALL STEP: the most challenging part of simplifying is the decision making process. To make that easier, just pick some items you want to keep that seem GOOD ENOUGH and hide the rest. You’ll get the benefits of simplicity, and yes, you are delaying the decision making. Still, sometimes that’s how you can make it easier. Out of sight, out of the heart, as they say! If you don’t find yourself missing any of the tucked-away things in the next month or so, you may simply discard it all. If, however, you find yourself missing something insanely, it’s right there. Replace one item for another. Toss the rest. Done. 

• REMOVE VISUAL CLUTTER

There’s regular clutter, and there’s visual clutter. These two can overlap but don’t have to. 

The problem might be that you simply have too many knick-knacks on your shelves and the fact that you have many mismatched items in different categories. 

One of the fastest and easiest ways to deal with visual clutter is to… hide things. 

Some of the biggest tiny irritants are messy bookshelves, counter space, different cables and cords on display, and papers. 

Of course, it’s not always possible to get rid of these things (plus, I love books), but you can organize them more coherently. 

Look for smart organizers, cable containers/tubes, storage containers. Pair down things when possible, and think of the overall color palette. 

I do not advocate for dull spaces, but maybe next time you shop for towels, you can get a similar color that is also easy to clean? 

Or, instead of having a ton of different cleaning products, you replace their original packaging with more appealing containers?

Display what sparks joy. Hide everything else. 

• OPTIMIZE FOR WELLBEING. Think about how you’d like your place to feel? 

• LIGHTING change your light’s color to help you focus & stimulate while working and relax when it’s time to relax. The absence of light is also essential. We have a lot of exposure to blue light, so maybe you need light blocking blinders to get better sleep?

• SOUNDS: noise-canceling headphones to focus better for work and earplugs to get better sleep. You can also try different background noise and learn to use it as a trigger for your work habits/cleaning habits,/workout habits. Think about creating your routines & Life playlist.

• CONNECT TO NATURE.

Get a plant. Or more plants. Plants are great for improving air quality by purifying the air and keeping the right humidity. Many places today are too dry – work in front of the computer dries your eyes as well. But they also give a focal point for your tired eyes and overstimulated brain.

Can’t get a living plant? All you can see from your windows is a concrete jungle? Well, how about a preserved plant wall art? If they look like the real thing, it’s because they are a real thing, just preserved. No maintenance required, and it can still boost your morale!

• CREATE A RESTORATIVE SPACE – for when you want to relax and recharge. And, let’s be honest, in today’s world, we need that a lot. 

A restorative space’s key ingredients are light, texture, mood, scent, sounds, textures, etc.

The idea is to create a space where you can subtly feed your senses without overstimulating them. So, we’re not talking about creating a media room to relax while binge-watching your fave series. It’s about creating a space to sit in peace and quiet, perfect for meditation, journaling, or just doing nothing else but BE. 

It should be free of any visual clutter and distractions, with soothing lighting and a comfortable place to sit. I like to fill it with plants, play some soothing sounds, and maybe add a discretely scented candle. 

• REMOVE VISUAL CLUTTER

There’s regular clutter, and there’s visual clutter. These two can overlap but don’t have to. 

The problem might be that you simply have too many knick-knacks on your shelves and the fact that you have many mismatched items in different categories. 

One of the fastest and easiest ways to deal with visual clutter is to… hide things. 

Some of the biggest tiny irritants are messy bookshelves, different cables and cords, and papers. 

Of course, it’s not always possible to get rid of these things (plus, I love books), but you can organize them more coherently. 

Look for smart organizers, cable containers/tubes, storage containers. Pair down things when possible, and think of the overall color palette. 

I do not advocate for dull spaces, but maybe next time you shop for towels, you can get a similar color that is also easy to clean? 

Or, instead of having a ton of different cleaning products, you replace their original packaging with more appealing containers?

Display what sparks joy. Hide everything else. 

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