Messy Is A Mindset with The Duchess of Declutter

“If a system has been created for you and you feel it can work for you, my wish is for people to try to maintain it as best as they can,” shares Brooke Milton, The Duchess of Declutter. Brooke can remember being as young as 3 years old sorting all of her stuffed animals as a coping mechanism that helped her to feel more in control. Having an organized home has always been something that Brooke feels she cannot function effectively without. It was not until she was 39 years old that she finally found out that the reason she was different was because she was wired that way. Instead of letting her OCD diagnosis be a limitation, Brooke leaned in and turned it into her greatest gift and superpower. 

 

Unless you are like Brooke and find home organization fun, it is probably going to be a challenge to change your habits. At the end of the day, it is all about committing to maintaining an organizational system. A professional like Brooke can help you get started, but the system will fall apart unless you choose to maintain it. Some tips for getting started are to decide on a criteria for bringing in new things and getting rid of old ones, to focus on your needs vs wants, and to not feel guilty when considering letting go of something that was given as a gift.

 

Your physical space is a representation of your mindset. Making small changes to your environment can make a big difference to your mindset and your life as a whole. All that stuff in your environment clutters not only your space, but your brain too. So really consider how much stuff you want taking up your brain space. 

 

Quotes

• “The thing that makes me different is my greatest gift.” (5:57-6:00 | Brooke)

• “What I recommend is not looking at the room, or the area, or the project collectively, but having to break it down into very, very small pieces, very digestible pieces. And starting with a very quick win.” (17:10-17:26 | Brooke)

• “You have to be in a good headspace to deal with something that's not fun.” (18:05-18:10 | Brooke)

• “I love getting rid of things, but I'm not about to say that somebody can’t have a statue or a little ornament, because it represents something very significant in their lives.” (26:14-26:28 | Brooke)

• “The systems don't work if the habits don't change. Your systems are only as good as you're willing to keep them, they're not magic.” (29:24-29:31 | Brooke) 

• “You have to have some criteria for filtering things in and out of your house.” (31:24-31:30 | Brooke)

• “People think we need more than we do. We don’t. We need very little.” (32:32-32:37 | Brooke)

• “If a system has been created for you and you feel it can work for you, my wish is for people to try to maintain it as best as they can.” (46:07-46:20 | Brooke)

Links:

Learn more at http://www.theduchessofdeclutter.com 

follow along @TheDuchessofDeclutter on Instagram or find Brooke Milton on Facebook.

Connect With Leslie:

https://www.confidencecoachforgirls.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_coach_chronicles/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CoachChronicles/

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