Today stressors are all around us – literally. And I’m not talking about your grumpy boss, noisy kids, or demanding senile parents. The main problem hides in the things we don’t recognize as stressors at all, so when we take care of all our feuds, friends, and family, there is still something bugging us but we can’t put a finger on it. Well, to find this ‛hidden’ cause it’s enough just to look around. Now, of all the stuff you see around you, how many things do you actually need or use? Maybe you’re gonna say that you’re gonna use them later, but the fact is that your home at this point looks like a warehouse. Some of them you just paid too much to admit they don’t have a purpose. Some of them were presents on numerous occasions (and, you have to admit, not many people can get you the presents you actually want for your birthday). The rest is just some kind of memorabilia you’ve collected through life without any obvious reason. You are emotionally attached to all these things and thus not able to see them for what they really are – the see of distractions that suffocates your creativity and makes you stressed every day. One solution could be to remove the responsible part of your brain but we’re here to help you find a less extreme solution.
I, Robot
Today, when the rhythm of life has increased so drastically, we’re overwhelmed with so many daily obligations that we can barely keep up. Multitasking persons don’t stand out from the crowd anymore because this skill has become obligatory. It looks like we’re turning to robots, and we would maybe be better off if that was true. For the machines (talking about AR) these repetitive tasks are automated, but a human brain gets split and strained. This is not such a bad thing and it can even increase our performance, as long as the information we’re dealing with is important and leads to a certain goal. But, as we said at the beginning, we’re surrounded by a bunch of stuff that automatically becomes the unimportant information that overloads our senses. Imagine like every tiny trinket in your room or office is competing for your attention and you’ll find the reason why you’re unable to focus on the tasks at hand. The decrease in performance is imminent, and the stress is its faithful companion.
My Precious
As we already said, people tend to develop a strong emotional attachment to their ‛personal clutter‛. Its influence on our brain becomes similar to the influence of the One Ring on Gollum. We need to know that ‛our precious things’ are safe and sound. Maybe we can try to avoid this influence by keeping our hands away – the power of touch has a great psychological influence. We can develop this emotional bond (read- get addicted) with things by simply touching them too often. The physical interaction causes the rise in the value of the object. So, if you don’t need something – don’t pick it up. Sounds pretty simple, but most people end up like Gollum anyway. So the clutter has become too precious and there’s no way you’re gonna throw it out. Basement is not an option, either – there is moist, rats, and cats! Okay, so you need someplace safe and cozy, but you’ll still not sure you’ll be able to lock them up yourself. Luckily, today you can choose from a variety of Super Easy Storage options where highly trained professionals (yes, they’re extra careful) can move all your possessions before you even notice they’re gone. They won’t be gone for good, and you can get them back anytime you wish. But once you realize that the stress is locked away with them and that your concentration is back, you won’t be in a hurry.
The invisible
Let’s get one more thing straight – clutter doesn’t have only a physical manifestation. If we take a look at that notorious One Ring, using it makes you invisible – in other words, it makes you disappear from this world. Sounds familiar? Smartphones, tablets, and computers have a similar effect – when you’re inside the world of social networks it’s like you’re compelled to click, like, and share. And once you snap out from this ‛trance’ you’re back in the real world filled with stress and unfinished obligations. You might say that you’re not hooked on social networks, but you might not even be aware of it. All the mentioned devices ‛whisper’ to us – there are so many various notifications during the day that’s impossible to resist looking. You can turn off the sound, but the vibration is still there. You could turn off the phone, but in these modern times, that would be the same as if you didn’t exist. What you could do is to realize that likes are not that important. It’s hard to make that ‛mental switch’ but you can gather the necessary willpower by setting up constraints – friends and followers limit, to start with.
One clutter to rule them all – the conclusion
We always think that other people are our biggest problems, but, as you can see, that is not entirely true. How many times have you seen a colleague bashing up his computer in a fit of rage? Or someone who hurt his pinky and the next second the whole piece of furniture goes flying out of the window? Don’t let the things in your possession posses you instead.