The Magic of a Disappearing List

I discovered the magic of a disappearing list by accident. Before this magical day, I would make a list of errands, number the stops to indicate the order, and cross them off as they were completed. Sometimes, the length of the list made me feel tired before I even started.

A few years ago, I happened to make my errand list using post-it notes (the tiny 1/2" X 1.5" ones) attached to a 4 X 6 card. I wanted to be able to easily rearrange the order of the stops for the most efficient route and I kept adding stops. I had at least 10 planned stops, that day. After each stop, I removed its post-it note, crumpled it up, and threw it away. So, as each was completed, the list became lighter. And lighter. Until it was all gone.

I noticed that I felt exhilarated by the completion of all those errands rather than exhausted. What a delightful discovery that was.

Now, I nearly always create a Disappearing List when I've errands to run. Why am I sharing my discovery with you? Because the Magic of a Disappearing List is a very good thing to have when you decide to do some clutter clearing.

Each clutter clearing session is ideally only 30 minutes long. So your post-it's will note an area that can be completely cleared out within 30 minutes. I recommend setting a kitchen timer for 20 minutes. Then, when it goes off, you begin restoring order from the necessary mess created when clearing something out.

Your post-it's may say something like:
Mail Shelf - left
Mail Shelf - right
MBath (Master Bath) Drawer 1
MBath Drawer 2
and so on

Place them on a piece of card stock 8.5 X 11. Leave space in the upper right hand corner to put the post it's for the clearing sessions you choose to do first. That way, you're only looking at a portion of the list when you're ready to do some clearing.

If you have lots of clutter, an overwhelming amount, you can limit you Disappearing List to the areas that bug you the most, first. Then, when those are all done and your sheet is completely clear, you can create the next Disappearing List.

I believe that you, like me, will find using Disappearing Lists as energizing as the old cross off list was enervating!

Copyright © 2009 Kathleen Tumpane. All rights reserved.

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Feng Shui Designer, Teacher, and Coach, Kathleen Tumpane ASID, is the author and creator of Elemenza Weekly, her FREE weekly ezine which includes her renowned column ‘Simply Feng Shui’ rich in Feng Shui Design and Lifestyle tips to help you design your home and office rich in elegant and subtle feng shui power that helps you live and work in balance. Visit http://www.elemenza.com to learn more.