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Giving Away to Let Go

Writer's picture: Intern At Mind SplattersIntern At Mind Splatters

-Sheersha Roy

Intern, Mind Splatters, May-July 2024


Living a Minimal Life

Whether on physical terms or mental, we carry a lot of baggage with us that we are not able to do away with. A prolific author, Joshua Millburn addresses this while saying, “To live a happy life, you don’t need to add anything but subtract”. The idea might sound too extravagant but can be effective in remaining grounded. Decluttering refers to cutting down accumulation and can be a very powerful tool in making space and holding space for important tasks, things or conversations to exist. We can find the starting points of this in spirituality, where one is asked to stay away and do away with material attachments. The advent of technology has particularly shifted the mode of cluttering and created a space where it might not be visible to us. To do away with material objects or technology might not be possible in the circumstances we live in, yet the practice of decluttering is a daily phenomenon we can engage in to be okay with minimalism.


Declutter Memories?

Decluttering can be symbolic, in cases where clutter pertains to an overwhelm of feelings, thoughts, memories or relationships that might be toxic. We often hold onto things because of the memories they represent or the guilt of discarding something that was once valuable. While this can lead to a state of constant anxiety and stress, it can also cause one to become complacent towards their own emotions and voice habitually. The OCEAN model of personality introduced back in the 1980s included a factor called “Openness to Experiences”, which specifically hints at this situation. For this to develop, one has to be able to let go of items that might not be resourceful any more to make space for newer things to occur.


KonMari's method of Tidying up

A practice like this can be very daunting and demanding and thus, consider starting small. Try decluttering a single corner of the room or a certain thought pattern you’ve experienced lately. Marie Kondo, a Japanese author and organization consultant, is famous for her method of decluttering which involves keeping only those items that "spark joy”. In this technique, one needs to hold each item in one hand and ask oneself if it brings happiness. If it does, we could keep it and if not, we should be grateful for its service and let go of it. This process can be deeply therapeutic, helping you to reconnect with what truly matters. Although the technique can compel us to emotionally and physically distance ourselves, it can lead to a more meaningful life. 


The digital realm has invisibilized the clutter as aforementioned, and makes it difficult for us to disengage. A step before being mindful of our social media consumption can, therefore, include such decluttering, that is performed daily. Clean out that email box, delete those unused apps, and unfollow the social media accounts that affect you negatively before starting anything new. By regularly decluttering our digital spaces, we pave the way for a more focused, peaceful, and intentional life.

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