Seeking Sustainability

It's been a busy and exciting week, and it's only Wednesday! Over the weekend, I put together some visuals (like the one at left) to post on social media. I also wrote Monday's post about my planned countdown to release. And then, on Monday, I got a surprise.

The Kindle edition of Know Thyself is available!

Now, that's the kind of surprise I like -- especially on the heels of all the preparation I've been doing. In addition to sharing my visuals on social media, I have some real-world events planned, along with a webcast tomorrow. (You can read about all of that here).

As with my blogs, though, I don't want my posts to be merely advertisements, so I've been focusing on two important aspects of organization: why we organize and the idea that it's a process.

Getting organized is about defining the sweet spot between what comes into our homes and what goes out. Some things stay only briefly; others stay for a season or they come to live with us long-term and require homes of their own (storage space) within our homes. Which precise items make the cut is up to us, and we retain the freedom to change our minds day by day and moment by moment. In the end, the things that stay say as much about us as about our systems and our styles.

This is why sustainable organization isn't a one-size-fits all or a one-and-done proposition, and why it can sometimes be so frustrating. Getting organized short-term isn't really all that difficult; the hard part is staying organized -- creating a system that works with us and keeps pace with the people and things that are relevant in our lives as we -- and they -- change and grow.

It's in learning to embrace the process that we come to view organization as not just a weekend chore, but a way of life. The flip side to this coin is that our work is never completely done -- there is always something more to sort, to contain, to find a home for. While that can seem daunting, it can also keep things interesting. Imagine never changing your wardrobe or your decor or if the view outside your window never changed with the seasons. While there can be comfort in sameness, a lack of variety can also be stifling.

So, we accept the process, balancing the new and the old, acquisition and release, perfection and imperfection. And, along the way, we establish some order, some clear space and, if we keep our priorities in order, a little bit of the peace that comes with clear space as well.