The Joy of Paring Down

“Why is it that some of us have sizable, even impressive vocabularies but don’t know how to say no? We bite off more than we can possibly chew, then end up with a schedule that’s exhausting, bewildering, and unmanageable.

Take a lesson from people who know the art of an uncluttered closet. They’ll tell you that a cardinal rule to tidy closet-keeping is ‘When something comes in, something else goes out.’ For example, you’re not allowed to hang those great clearance jeans in the closet unless you first toss a different item into the Goodwill pile. Also important is the periodic purge, when everything you haven’ ‘made friends with’ is eliminated. Finally, if it’s mot clothing-related, it doesn’t go in the closet—ever. Clothes closet are fit shirts and shoes, not Christmas decorations and broken toys.

To maintain joy and throw off stress, treat life like a closet: if you take on a new responsibility, drop an old one. Periodically eliminate anything that’s not a good fit, and don’t fill your life with activities that fon’t Belong there…” (Joyful)