1 00:00:00,360 --> 00:00:06,720 In this video, we'll discover about the clutter effect these days, we've all become more used to living 2 00:00:06,720 --> 00:00:12,210 with a lot of things in our lives, yet those things can get out of control and can lead us to feeling 3 00:00:12,210 --> 00:00:17,470 overwhelmed, becoming less productive, struggling to focus and lacking in motivation. 4 00:00:17,970 --> 00:00:19,950 This is the clutter effect. 5 00:00:20,280 --> 00:00:24,920 Yet many people have no idea just how disorganized their lives have become. 6 00:00:25,260 --> 00:00:30,810 They've become so used to juggling the many elements in it, from relationships and children to careers 7 00:00:30,810 --> 00:00:34,350 and friends that they can't see the woods from the trees. 8 00:00:34,770 --> 00:00:40,620 Eventually, though, the confusion will become so great that they won't be able to function effectively 9 00:00:40,620 --> 00:00:41,180 at all. 10 00:00:41,610 --> 00:00:47,250 Therefore, knowing what clutter actually is, how to identify it and how to eliminate it lies at the 11 00:00:47,250 --> 00:00:50,630 heart of achieving overall happiness and success. 12 00:00:51,180 --> 00:00:52,710 What is clutter? 13 00:00:53,190 --> 00:00:58,320 When you think about clutter, you probably imagine piles of magazines and paperwork strung over your 14 00:00:58,320 --> 00:01:02,370 countertops and mounds of junk on the stairs waiting to be taken up. 15 00:01:02,550 --> 00:01:06,630 It's true that this is clutter, but it's only the physical kind. 16 00:01:06,840 --> 00:01:11,070 Your mind can become cluttered to intrusive thoughts. 17 00:01:11,070 --> 00:01:18,090 An ongoing list of must do's regrets of missed opportunities, unfinished work and worries about things 18 00:01:18,090 --> 00:01:23,600 that might never happen are all examples of mental clutter that make us feel out of control. 19 00:01:24,000 --> 00:01:29,040 The less organized your mind becomes, the less you feel able to deal with the challenges that life 20 00:01:29,040 --> 00:01:29,980 throws your way. 21 00:01:30,360 --> 00:01:34,260 There is an endless cycle formed between physical and mental clutter. 22 00:01:34,650 --> 00:01:40,950 The more disorganized your mind, the more disorganized your home workspace and life in general will 23 00:01:40,950 --> 00:01:41,550 become. 24 00:01:42,030 --> 00:01:47,100 Meanwhile, if you're living and working in a cluttered environment, it's inevitable that your mind 25 00:01:47,100 --> 00:01:53,130 will become cluttered and disorganized to the vicious circle leads to ongoing problems as you lack the 26 00:01:53,130 --> 00:01:57,220 ability to break the chain, get rid of the mess and take your life back. 27 00:01:57,720 --> 00:02:00,660 Which areas of your life does clutter affect? 28 00:02:00,960 --> 00:02:06,270 As we've already pointed out, clutter affects both your environment and your emotional and mental well-being. 29 00:02:06,540 --> 00:02:11,190 Both types of clutter can have a major impact on various areas of your life. 30 00:02:11,490 --> 00:02:15,060 The first obvious area that can feel the impact is your home. 31 00:02:15,510 --> 00:02:18,980 Meskin begin to build up as tasks get left undone. 32 00:02:19,470 --> 00:02:22,620 Soon, a pile of magazines is grown on the coffee table. 33 00:02:22,860 --> 00:02:27,990 A stack of shoes is thrown in the corner and the front porch and clothes are piled up on the bedroom 34 00:02:27,990 --> 00:02:28,620 chairs. 35 00:02:29,010 --> 00:02:34,650 The more messy and more disorganized your home becomes, the harder it is to get motivated to sort it 36 00:02:34,650 --> 00:02:40,400 out, and the more negative the mental and emotional impact becomes of living in such an environment. 37 00:02:40,740 --> 00:02:44,250 The second key area that is badly affected is the workplace. 38 00:02:44,520 --> 00:02:51,240 A lack of organization in the office leads to all kinds of issues low productivity and unprofessional 39 00:02:51,240 --> 00:02:56,400 first impression for visitors or clients and poor morale, or just some of the problems that arise from 40 00:02:56,400 --> 00:02:58,770 a disorganized working environment. 41 00:02:59,230 --> 00:03:04,890 Again, once the office has become cluttered, it becomes more difficult to take action to organize 42 00:03:04,890 --> 00:03:05,070 it. 43 00:03:05,490 --> 00:03:09,600 As the mess mounts up, the worse the associated problems become. 44 00:03:09,900 --> 00:03:14,220 The third area that feels the impact of clutter is your personal relationships. 45 00:03:14,790 --> 00:03:20,160 This is something that can often be overlooked when considering the effect of disorganization on your 46 00:03:20,160 --> 00:03:20,670 life. 47 00:03:21,120 --> 00:03:26,160 A messy home puts a strain on your family life and can lead to serious tensions with your partner, 48 00:03:26,160 --> 00:03:28,050 children or other loved ones. 49 00:03:28,410 --> 00:03:33,870 A disorganized workplace can make working relationships with colleagues, employees or managers more 50 00:03:33,870 --> 00:03:38,820 challenging and can lead to disagreements that cause long term problems in your career. 51 00:03:39,210 --> 00:03:45,150 Not only that, the clutter and friendships can lead to toxicity, further stress and even more obligations 52 00:03:45,150 --> 00:03:48,030 that need to fit into your already overloaded schedule. 53 00:03:48,360 --> 00:03:50,040 What causes clutter? 54 00:03:50,370 --> 00:03:52,140 There are many causes of clutter. 55 00:03:52,590 --> 00:03:55,650 Some are physical and others are emotional or mental. 56 00:03:56,040 --> 00:03:58,950 Some are also a lot more obvious than others. 57 00:03:59,370 --> 00:04:04,620 Perhaps the first and most obvious cause of clutter has to be excess physical possessions. 58 00:04:04,950 --> 00:04:10,380 Most of us are guilty of accumulating items simply because we can't bear to get rid of them, even if 59 00:04:10,380 --> 00:04:12,030 we don't really want or need them. 60 00:04:12,450 --> 00:04:19,050 There are gifts that we receive for birthdays and holidays, souvenirs from vacations gone by odds and 61 00:04:19,050 --> 00:04:24,180 ends of piled up over the years that should really have gone in the trash, but which have inexplicably 62 00:04:24,420 --> 00:04:28,320 been put in a drawer on a shelf for later and allowed to remain there. 63 00:04:28,650 --> 00:04:32,250 The trouble with this type of clutter is that it builds up slowly over time. 64 00:04:32,490 --> 00:04:37,440 So you don't really realize how much it has gotten out of hand until one day you look around and see 65 00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:38,790 the extent of the problem. 66 00:04:39,210 --> 00:04:43,140 The second cause of clutter is having excessive commitments in your schedule. 67 00:04:43,590 --> 00:04:49,380 We've already mentioned how busy modern lives have become, whereas in the past lives were much simpler. 68 00:04:49,470 --> 00:04:54,030 People went to work, came home, spent time with their family or their friends, and then went to bed 69 00:04:54,030 --> 00:04:56,160 ready to do it all again the next day. 70 00:04:56,490 --> 00:04:59,340 These days there is so much more to consider. 71 00:04:59,850 --> 00:05:06,030 Careers have in many cases become considerably more high pressured with the expectations placed on workers 72 00:05:06,030 --> 00:05:12,450 at all levels much higher than ever before, family lives are also more complex than ever before, with 73 00:05:12,450 --> 00:05:18,390 many people having divided or blended families struggling to fit in contact with children, dealing 74 00:05:18,390 --> 00:05:24,120 with stepchildren or having to handle an ex partner along with a current one can all increase the pressures 75 00:05:24,120 --> 00:05:25,410 on everyday living. 76 00:05:25,920 --> 00:05:29,610 Then, of course, there are all the other elements that weigh on our minds. 77 00:05:30,150 --> 00:05:36,900 An endless stream of social media and 24/7 access to news can easily lead to us becoming overwhelmed 78 00:05:36,900 --> 00:05:37,870 with negativity. 79 00:05:38,340 --> 00:05:43,950 Meanwhile, we feel the pressure to make the most of our limited leisure time by caving in to the demands 80 00:05:43,950 --> 00:05:50,070 from friends, colleagues and family members to attend different events and participate in various activities. 81 00:05:50,400 --> 00:05:56,370 Add to this the additional pressure that we pile on ourselves to work out, to improve ourselves and 82 00:05:56,370 --> 00:05:59,370 to be the best that we can be in every respect. 83 00:05:59,670 --> 00:06:06,060 It's no wonder that so many of us struggle to cope as we sink ever deeper under a heap of obligations, 84 00:06:06,210 --> 00:06:07,830 commitments and requirements.