Know When It's Time to Pull Back
Are you feeling out of control with online shopping? The pandemic may have exacerbated a tendency to over shop. If it feels bad, if it’s stressing finances, or causing conflict with your partner or if it’s overwhelming your space, it’s time to pull back.
Ask Yourself "Why?"
Before you buy anything new, take your temperature…are you hungry, angry, lonely or tired? Are you sober? And ask yourself…”why am I buying this thing?” Is it for a moment of instant gratification to relieve some other bad feeling? Is it the next “magic button” that will suddenly make us thinner, or prettier or less hairy…or more hairy, or less of a mess of a human and finally worthy of love? (Whoa. That escalated quickly.)
You ARE Worthy
News flash: messy humans are worthy of love. You are worthy of love, especially from yourself, right now, even without $75 dollar mascara.
I know I’m guilty of this. I recently bought a Bella Beat fitness tracker, an Erin Condren planner and a dumb ass Pink Flamingo scarf online at 4 am from some stupid website Facebook suggested when I was doom-scrolling. While I like my fitness tracker, it’s not magically made me drink more water or be more consistent with a yoga practice. My planner rocks, but it’s not magically made me get up and do my morning pages journaling like I hoped, and don’t even ask me about that stupid scarf I spent $24.99 on. It does NOT even remotely look like what I thought I ordered.
Our Things Do Not Define Us, Nor Do They Fix Us
My long rambling point is…we need much less than we think we do. Our things do not define us nor do they fix us. Be mindful about the how, the what and the why when bringing new things into your space. Ask yourself:
- Will this overwhelm my space?
- Where will this new thing live?
- Am I willing to release any of my other things to make room for this new thing?
You Don't Have to Do It Alone
Let me know if you need help untangling from too much or with some mindfulness coaching and accountability. You don’t have do it alone.
Photo credit: Victoria Heath
Subscribe to the Keep Calm and Carrie Ann Blog.
Never miss out on new information to help simplify your space.