As a writer, I am always looking for two things; a way to improve my writing and a way to produce more blog posts. During my search I’ve learned that many of my writing issues are right in front of me – meaning my work space (my room is dirty as hell!).
It’s a horrible habit to let your room clutter up with various things. My bad habit comes from poor time management, an overwhelmed mind and let’s face it, laziness. None of these are good excuses, but they are legitimate reasons for a messy room.
One day, I had a wonderful writing session; my thoughts were organized, and my creativity easily flowed. What changed? I had just deep cleaned my entire room! Writing became a simple task since my subconscious wasn’t repeatedly saying, ‘Damn, I have to clean my room, so hurry up’. Who knew cleaning my room would make me feel better?
Well, Michael J Formica MS, MA, EdM did and he says,
“The environment with which we surround ourselves is very often a direct expression of where we are emotionally and psycho-spiritually – our global state of mind. If we are distracted, we tend to lose things. If we are disorganized, the piles begin to collect. If we are feeling disconnected, the emails pile up, and the voice mails remain unanswered.”
According to WebMD, “…the sheer stress of a cluttered life means we may miss deadlines, work longer hours, and lose important stuff. Clutter equals stress.”
They are both right and I’m also learning that a clean room is more than just the ability to write freely, keep up on my reading, exercising and taking breaks. All of those things are part of the writing process because they give you the fuel to write while giving my mind and body a rest. It’s like my mom would say, “You can’t cook in a dirty kitchen.” It’s also true for writing in a sloppy and messy place.
I can’t hide the mess in the closet, it only adds more responsibility. A clean working environment means getting rid of all the garbage, vacuuming the floors, dusting and reorganizing clutter. This seemingly daunting task only takes about fifteen minutes. I feel so stress free after cleaning up. I’m unsure why I feel like I never have time to clean. Now that I’ve actually cleaned and timed myself, the length of time is evidence enough to eliminate my excuses and procrastination