6 Kinds Of Stuff That Keeps You Stuck

When people come to my Sick of Being Stuck (SOBS) class, they are ready to make a big change. They aren’t looking for the “just right” organizing system, or to buy a planner that will magically restore their sanity. (Not that they hate those ideas, they’ve just tried them all before, and those things didn’t solve the problem.) They are stuck, and they are sick of it; and they know it’s going to take action to make right what has gone wrong in their worlds.

I tell them all the time that SOBS is about manipulating ourselves into making decisions and taking action. My job, of course, is to make the decision-making possible and taking action not suck. It’s a supportive, party-like atmosphere complete with fresh, new ways to consider our relationship with stuff.

We look for things that no longer serve us, ways to let go that will make space for what we really want in our lives. In the spirit of what is working brilliantly in the classroom, here are six types of things that you can release right now to shake up your space!

1. Stuff that makes you crazy. Food storage containers, for the love of all things glittery, must be tamed. They’re square and round, deep and shallow, ripple- and flat-bottomed, and possess a nearly complete absence of stack-ability. The madness of trying to manage them far outweighs anything even remotely resembling the convenience that would be using them if only we could actually find their matching lids. All but what is truly manageable must go… in peace, of course.

2. Stuff that’s broken. If you’re not going to fix it, let it go. It’s either worth the time, money, and energy it takes to make it work, or it just isn’t. Free it, and free yourself.

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Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Carla v.

12:25AM PST on Feb 5, 2013

Thanks for the info.

February 5
send a green star

Huber F.

12:22AM PST on Feb 5, 2013

Thx.

Dorothy A.

6:01AM PDT on Jun 17, 2012

It's time to clean out my desk! This article is very helpful. I should read it monthly to remind myself not to stick things in drawers and closets, but to throw, give or recycle them.

June 17
send a green star

Yulan L.

8:36PM PDT on May 25, 2012

Thanks great hints here that I will go through. I have a few things that I can happily let go of.

May 25
send a green star

Alyssa R.

8:33PM PDT on May 25, 2012

I still want all of my things haha, im pretty organized and usually get to things eventually though so I guess its alright

Past Member .

4:32AM PDT on May 25, 2012

Thanks for another good article Christy. For me the categories were not new, but some of the ideas about what fits into them is. Got me thinking just in time too since this will be a long weekend. Wish all of Care2's writers were of your quality and had the practical aspects that your articles usually have.

Julie H.

10:21AM PDT on May 23, 2012

great article