When it comes to clutter, your home is not the only place where you can find it. When you are juggling between life and work, or when you work like a robot at home, you are bound to accumulate mental clutter. Mental clutter refers to all that stuff going on inside your head.
How do you know you have mental clutter? Well, you would be stressed, you would be anxious, you would be exhausted. In short, life would seem unbearable to you. I know the feeling and I’m here to help!
However, quitting your job or running away to the mountains long term might not be the best alternative for everyone. What you can do is start decluttering your mind.
How? Just swear by these 10 routines, and you’d be good to go. But first, let’s go over some common causes of mental clutter.
How To Declutter Your Mind
Causes of Mental Clutter
There are many factors that can come into play when it comes to the build-up of brain clutter. To name just a few, anxiety/depression, physical and mental stress, ADHD, mom life, a new job, a new relationship, a new baby, procrastination, bad habits, and leading a generally unhealthy life can all lead to mental clutter. Especially if you are experiencing more than one of these factors at once. All of this can make our minds feel so crazy, so remember throughout all of this, you’re not alone.
Routines to Clear Your Mental Clutter
Here are 10 routines to clear your mental clutter:
1. Exercise
Starting with the least favorite yet most effective. It has been proven by science that exercising drastically
However, if exercising seems overwhelming to you, you can start with the ones that you enjoy. If you enjoy dancing, ditch the push-ups and indulge in a 20 min Zumba session to wave goodbye to stress and anxiety.
You don’t have to pay for gym memberships; it’s perfectly fine if you do workouts at home. You can find plenty of guidance videos on YouTube for the same.
2. Have a morning routine
If you feel trapped inside the 9 to 5 culture or all-day working-home-maker, your daytime routine would be most stressful. You would not find time to do things that you like, and that would make work much more frustrating than it ought to be.
However, if you consider adhering to a morning routine every day, you can spend some time with yourself, drink coffee in quiet & peace, and do things you enjoy. Things you really enjoy, not scrolling on social media all morning.
Thus, create a morning routine for yourself, and include all those activities that provide you peace. Make sure you follow the routine before you leave for work (Wake up earlier if you have to and try and reduce your social media intake).
3. Use a planner
When you don’t use a planner, things can get overwhelming for you. Your daily tasks might look like a
4. Read a book in peace
Those people who enjoy reading books can easily reduce their stress levels. Reading allows peace and quiet that your work life does not. All the more, reading a book is no less than an escape. It takes you to the work of fiction, and you are no more concerned about chaotic work-life outside.
Even when you are in your office, spend at most 15 minutes reading. However, if you cannot do it there, use your commuting time.
5. Write it down
Feeling you are on the edge because there’s so much in your head? Work stress, home stress, career stress, financial burden, and whatnot.
I know how frustrating it can be. But you are just human to feel overwhelmed, irritated, and exhausted. However, there is still something that you can do about it.
LET IT ALL OUT on a piece of paper. Write down everything you feel. Even the negative thoughts. Organize your thoughts however you want. Be raw, be vulnerable, feel free to clench your teeth, and tear the paper into two. Time spent doing this exercise will never be wasted. For a more tailored way of journaling, try bullet journaling!
6. Set priorities while you work
People say multitasking can be beneficial, but the truth is, it only makes you stress more. And it can actually increase stress throughout the day, on into the night. Thus, when you
Those with earlier deadlines, or those that are most demanding, prioritize them.
7. Clean up your surrounding area
Your mind might not work best if you are surrounded by clutter. So to clear mental clutter, you might as well need to clear the clutter around you. So fold the blankets, tidy up your bed, and desk, and then start with work. An untidy workstation would only add to your stress, deal with it first.
I know personally when my office or kitchen is cluttered or messy, I can’t think. I have to stop what I’m doing and clean up. When I’m done, and only then, can I get back to work or think straight.
8. Set aside time to actively reduce mental clutter.
So, how do you clear your mental clutter? It’s actually quite simple. You just need to create some daily routines and stick to them.
The first thing you need to do is take a brain dump. Write down all of the thoughts and feelings that are cluttering your mind. Get them all out in the open so you can deal with them one at a time. Kind of like a mental to-do list.
Then, start by focusing on the most important tasks. Don’t try to do everything at once. Just stay focused on one single task at a time and pay attention to what you’re doing. This will help clear your mind and make space for new thoughts and ideas.
9. Develop a mental health-focused routine.
You also need to create some regular routines for your mental health. This could include things like yoga, practice meditation, or journaling. These activities will help clear your mind and keep it healthy on a regular basis. This might also include developing a way to set boundaries at work and with family that gives you much-needed time to declutter the mind.
10. Address your physical clutter.
Finally, you need to address your physical clutter as well. But not just your immediate surroundings this time. This can be anything from a cluttered desk to a messy bedroom to a messy car. Start by clearing off one surface at a time and focus on organizing one drawer or shelf each week. It may take some time, but eventually, your physical space will reflect your mental space.
By creating some simple daily routines and sticking to them, you can clear your mental clutter and improve your mental health. So don’t wait any longer, get started today!
When clutter fills your mind, it is a sign that you have to do something about it. You need to de-stress and focus on regaining your mental energy. We sincerely hope that these tips help you do just that. JUST RELAX.
I hope these tips are helpful and bite-sized enough to help you remember that mental clutter is possible to remove and will help you to get things done more efficiently when you take the time to clear them out instead of piling them on!
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