By Mark Shpuntov 

I was always a piles kind of guy. Piles of books, piles of clothes, piles of everything imaginable!

I was adamant about using every space around me as efficiently as possible – by throwing my stuff all over it. This was my way of life for several years, and I was happy-go-lucky with it, until I started becoming aware of how it was affecting my life.

The big change came when I started noticing that I was becoming lethargic, and losing my focus and motivation, whenever I tried to do any work at home. It was nice in a way, because it gave me a reason to escape to my favorite coffee shop, which was definitely a pleasure, not a hassle…

One day, I realized that I needed a proper space in my home to do my work. It seemed like I needed a home base, a bat cave, something cool that would make me feel awesome and inspired whenever I sat down to work. I quickly went out and bought a beautiful large executive-looking desk, and a luxurious leather chair to go with it. I added pictures, candles for meditation, and various peaceful, zen-like items.

It was a miracle! Forget procrastination! Forget not wanting to do any work!

I was UNSTOPPABLE!

I would use every excuse I could to sit in my nice leather chair, sip on my coffee, and look over my power desk. I loved it! Work became so enjoyable that even the nicest coffee shop lost some of its appeal for me. (Not all of it though… )

Think of your work space, whether at home or at the office. Does it make you WANT to be there? Does it INSPIRE you to work?

Clear the clutter in your environment, and the clutter in your head gets removed as well!

Have fun redecorating! 

Life is a tricky thing, it’s short, and yet it takes you most of it to figure out what it’s all about. The best thing I have found, is to constantly be on the lookout for new ideas, theories, and perspectives from other people.

In my quest to become my personal best, I found Hypnosis to be a surprisingly useful tool. I’ve had my doubts at first, but after giving it a try, I found that I could completely shape every aspect of myself and my life in a very easy way. I’m sure you can think of ways you’d like to improve your life too, habits to change, and personality traits to install. Believe me when I say, you have to give Hypnosis a try, it WILL change your life.

By Mary McNeil

Despite the fact that your clutter is obviously around you in the here and now, one of the reasons why having a good declutter session makes you feel great is because most clutter is anchored in the past. So as you exist with all these remnants of your past in your immediate surroundings, you are unconsciously holding yourself in that past. Which means that you’re stopping yourself from moving forward in a lighter persent and towards a freer future.

Most people’s clutter is a mixture of their ancient history, their middle past and their recently lived present. It can be most interesting to take a look at your own clutter and see if there’s a period of your life which you’re holding onto particularly strongly. There may not be – you may find that your clutter is a mishmash of past life stages and more recent procrastinations.

The reason why clutter accumulates in the way that it does is because most of it doesn’t actually start out as clutter at all. Think about your own clutter and you’ll probably realize that most of it started out as something useful, valuable, attractive, creative, supportive, positive…

As time passes, though, what happens is that those valuable and attractive items simply get out of date. Over the months and years they reach a point where they’re no longer useful or valuable to you. But instead of recognizing that fact, you hang onto them out of habit. Or just in case. Or for sentimental reasons.

Sentimentality around clutter most often occurs after the death of someone close. You inherit all sorts of items which, under happier circumstances, you would easily identify as clutter and dispose of. But there’s an emotional attachment to these particular items and to the past memories that they hold.

A coaching client of mine, living in a small house, inherited a large amount of family memorabilia when her father died. She kept it for a while, but didn’t really have either space or use for most it and felt guilty whenever she considered the possibility of not keeping it all. The moment of truth came when she realized that her dad would never have wished for her to be leading a heavy hearted existence full of clutter and obligation to old memories. She chose a couple of items that she wanted to keep, then contacted an auction house about the rest. She knew her dad would be proud that she was being decisive and getting on with her life.

It may be a painful truth, but in these circumstances, you are the one moving forward with your life and you need to choose what will serve you best as you do that. You most certainly do not have to discard all your happy memories in the decluttering process, but do make sure that you ditch the guilt!

Decluttering is never a one-off. However careful you are not to let obvious clutter into your life, there are always going to be some things that evolve into clutter over time. So if you want to be clutter free in the long term and you want to live your life in the here and now instead of letting your clutter drag you back into the past, there’s a really important skill you need to learn…

By developing an awareness that allows you to recognize when something that was once useful and valuable has evolved into clutter, you will be well on the path to clutter free success. The second step involves learning to thank that clutter warmly for its previous usefulness, and then to dispose of it with gratitude in your heart. In this way clutter is not the enemy, holding you back, it is simply a reminder that you are involved in the ongoing process of staying present in the present.

By John Furnem 

Hiking trips are an adventurous way to take a vacation or a little bit of time out to enjoy nature at its finest, up close. By taking a hiking trip you are also able to go to destinations that are remote or hard to get to, making your hiking trip an adventure that won’t easily be forgotten. Research the place that you are planning to visit on your hiking trip. Find out the best time of the year is to visit, as sometimes the weather conditions can be quite extreme at certain times of the year.

Although hiking on your own can seem like an exiting adventure, it is a lot safer to go hiking in a group. The more people who are along for the hike, the more likely it is you will all return home safely. If there is an accident or mishap along the way, there will be more people to assist. Before going on a hike, it is also a good idea to take part in a basic first aid course.

Since you are hiking, it will be necessary to carry everything needed for your adventure on your back. This will mean that the things that you take will be limited. Some of the things that you can’t do without are good quality hiking gear such as boots and waterproof, lightweight clothing to provide warmth and protection from the elements. Rope, tarp and sleeping bags will be necessary especially if you are camping out. These things will provide you with some of the necessities while hiking.

Make sure to bring along a first aid kit complete with sterile bandages, gauze and disinfectant. Other necessities such as water and food for the trip are essential. Matches will be needed to light a fire if you are planning on camping out on your hiking trip or if you get lost. Dehydrated food can be an ideal way to carry a fair amount of food without it taking up a lot of space or being too heavy to carry.

Hiking trips are not only a lot of fun they are also very beneficial to your health. Hiking will not only make you more fit, it will also help reduce stress and allow you plenty of thinking time. The feeling of challenging yourself will also be great for your mental health.

It is important to remember that, when hiking, you should bring all the necessary things needed. Think over what you need very carefully before taking your hiking trip. Notify family, neighbors or people of importance that you are going and when you are expected back from your hiking trip. If you are new to hiking, it may be a good idea to take some hiking safety classes before going out alone.

Don’t forget to take a camera so that, once you return home, you can share your adventures with friends and family. You will also have a long-term memento of how beautiful the countryside was on your hiking trip.