Take a look around you right now. Take your eyes off your computer screen and scan around you – the surface of your desk or table, now scan further to see the rest of the room. Close your eyes and imagine the rooms that you cannot see from here; particularly the space where you work most frequently on your creative projects. Take a deep breath and enjoy the image. What is the impact?

If you’re like me, a reformed pack rat and a clutter magnet (and I think a lot of creative people are), you might even find it hard to breathe, almost as if batteries, clutter, junk items e unusable were taking up air. Well, they are!

Clutter – essentially anything you don’t need, use, or love – affects your creativity on many levels. In your workspace, it’s complicated and difficult to find and use what you need to get your job done. In your schedule, you create chaos and a sense of lack of time. In your mind, it obstructs the path to your intuition and feeds fear and doubt.

In your heart, block love and peace by holding on to negative emotions from the past. On your body, it weighs you down by making it harder to take care of yourself and listen to the messages your body sends you. In your relationships, it clouds your communication and affects your ability to give and receive.

This article will give you clues on how to spot clutter in your life and tips on how to start cleaning it up.

Do you have a physical disorder?

1. Do you spend a lot of time looking for things when you try to work?

2. Do you feel uninspired or even dejected by what you see around you in your workspace?

3. Does clutter distract you by reminding you of things to do (broken things to fix, half-finished projects, unanswered mail, unpaid bills)?

4. Are there things in your workspace that you haven’t looked at in years?

5. Is there something in your workspace that reminds you of unpleasant experiences?

Creative energy needs space. While some of the artists I spoke to when I wrote my book, “The Creativity Interviews” (http://www.genuinecoaching.com/creativity-interviews.html), thrived on chaos and hustle, most equated the creative flow with a peaceful serenity surrounded by open time and open space.

Aside from the space and freedom from clutter in our “home base” (the workspace where we usually write), sometimes it’s OUTSIDE where we really do our best work. Traveling on trains, sitting in cafes or being surrounded by nature.

Do you have time clutter?

In a random day:

1. Are there many things you did that you did not like to do?

2. Are there many things you did that you didn’t need to do?

3. Are there many things you did that did you no good (maybe even hurt you)?

Clutter in our schedules can lead to chaotic lives while things just seem to “happen” to us.

Do you have a mental disorder?

1. Do you get distracted by thoughts while trying to write?

2. Do you criticize yourself in your own mind?

3. Do you spend time replaying conversations or events?

4. Do you spend time speculating about future events?

Sometimes the chatter in our minds is constant and difficult to decipher. Other times there are the same rude and loud messages over and over again, messages like “You can’t do it!”, Or “You’re no good!” All of them are distracting and make it much more difficult to listen to our muse.

Do you have emotional disorder?

1. Do you worry about arguments long after they have happened?

2. Do you hold a grudge?

3. Do you spend a lot of time focusing on the things in your life that you don’t like?

The emotional disorder stems from the pack rat’s same habit of not wanting to let go. Instead of clinging to an old sweater with a button missing, you cling to an old emotion. Once an emotion ends, it ends, unless we decide to hold onto it. That’s a powerful ability we have: stay enraged, sad, or anxious about something that happened three days ago, or three YEARS ago, or let go and set ourselves free.

Do you have disorder in relationships?

1. Is there someone in your address book that you would like to leave out?

2. Do you find it difficult to concentrate and listen carefully to people?

3. Do you find it difficult to be open to what other people offer you (ie appreciation from your audience or a compliment from a friend)?

4. Is it difficult for you to give freely (that is, to act without concern for your own thoughts)?

5. Do you say “yes” to everything they ask of you?

Sometimes we hold on to broken relationships for the same reasons we hold on to broken things: because we believe they can be fixed (and that we are actually going to take the necessary steps to fix them) and because they are familiar and safe. .

Clutter in the rest of your life blocks your communication; it’s too hard to listen with all your heart when there are layers of clutter on the way. This also affects your inner listening: your ability to tune in to your intuition, your “muse.” Stage fright is a HUGE form of disorder.

Is the disorder affecting your health?

1. Are you “too busy” to exercise?

2. Is fast food easier because you can’t find your kitchen counter?

3. Do you burn out with a busy day and then try to “chill” late into the night?

4. Do you not notice (or pretend not to notice) the symptoms of an illness or injury until they are so severe that you must take drastic action?

5. Do you have a hard time falling asleep because your mind is spinning or your emotions are rising?

If we are surrounded by clutter and chaos, things like eating vegetables or walking around the block just don’t seem feasible or important. And yet, if we don’t take care of our bodies, everything else becomes much, much more difficult and can lead to fatigue, illness, difficulty concentrating, pain, addiction, and weight problems.

Tips for Clearing Clutter

1. If you really want to tackle your physical clutter, I highly recommend the book “Clean Up Your Clutter With Feng Shui” by Karen Kingston. She has wonderful ideas for clearing your clutter and also helps you gain a much deeper awareness of how clutter came into your life in the first place.

2. A simple method of eliminating physical clutter is to create three piles (boxes are helpful), labeled Giveaway, Throw away, and Put away. You can add other categories if you want (ie recycling, repair).

3. To calm your mental clutter, try writing. In the artist’s way, Julia Cameron recommends writing three full pages every morning. Find your own method: write to-do lists, poems, lists of everyone you are angry with, respond to your inner critic, write about whatever is spinning around your ear. You can also write questions for your muse – help with a particular verse or a general inspiration request.

4. To deal with the clutter of your time, just say “NO”. This is a muscle that may need some exercise. Put yourself and your creative activities first; Just because you’re home doesn’t mean you have to be available.

5. If emotional turmoil has your heart tied in knots, practice letting go. Forgiving someone does not mean forgiving what they have done. It means breaking free and being open to positive emotional experiences.

6. To improve your relationship with your audience and combat relationship clutter, think about what you hope to get out of your performance: maybe be transported by music, get inspired, have your feelings expressed in words, calm down. , be “rocked”, energized or cradled. You have enormous power to give them these gifts.

This article was originally published on the Muses Muse Songwriter’s Resource website (September 2004) http://www.musesmuse.com.

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