There’s nothing quite like starting a new journal. There’s promise in those blank pages. There’s history and adventure yet to be written and experienced. It’s interesting too that in a new journal no previous pages exist. So, there is no past immediately accessible to revisit and reflect on.

The idea of a clean slates and fresh starts are truly apt with beginning a new journal. There is no clutter or distraction. The focus is on the present- the beautiful, treasured here and now.

I’ve been keeping a journal for 45 years. And as you can imagine over the decades, I’ve filled many books. Beginnings and endings are interesting. There’s sometimes a feeling of sadness or loss as I fill the last page of my journal. It’s provided me with comfort, strength and perspective for a long while. Then it’s time to end that chapter, let go, and begin a new one.

Recently, that time arrived. One journal was completed. My new one was ready to receive. As I opened it up to write my first entry, it wasn’t sadness that I felt. Instead, I felt anticipation and hope for the moment I was in and for all the moments yet to be added. For me, blank provided focus, hope, adventure, and understanding.

I was away in St. Louis for an ICD Board meeting. When I left New York, the landscape was bare. When I returned after storm Jonas, there was a fresh layer of beautiful, white snow covering everything. Winter had finally arrived!

There was a connection between these two blank canvases- my new journal and the white landscape. They provided exactly the type of quiet I needed and craved to reflect, reset, and embrace the fresh start that was there for me.

Blank can show up in many ways. What have you noticed? What can blank do for you? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Come join the conversation.

Have you experienced the surge of energy you feel after you’ve cleared? The cleared I’m referring to comes in many forms from spaces to thoughts to time. There’s a feeling of lightness, as if we've dropped pounds. There’s a lightness of spirit with a dab of euphoria. When we’re weighted down by our “stuff,” our thoughts and being becomes sluggish. Clearing, decluttering, reducing, editing, and lightening, often bring about a positive, happy feeling.

What can you do with that lightness? That feeling can be accompanied by clarity of thought, openness for opportunities, ability to stretch towards new goals, and desire to embrace a fresh start.

I have three simple experiences to share that connect with this idea. I’d love to hear about your experiences too.

Year End Clearing

At the end of each calendar year, I go through our financial files and remove the receipts and bank statements from my filing cabinet, organize them into oversized, labeled envelopes, and put them into a labeled storage box. By the end of the year, these receipts and statements take up a lot of real estate in my file drawer. It always feels great to remove them in order to make room for the current year.

This year, after I ousted the files, I took a few minutes to appreciate and acknowledge the cleared space. My file drawer was no longer crammed and I could easily access the remaining files. I felt freer and both physically and mentally ready to handle the current year.

Card Clearing

In that same drawer was a file that held cards and notes I’d received from family and friends. The easy access file is the temporary holding spot until it becomes too full. When it does, I get out the step ladder and transfer the cards into one of three purple “card” boxes stored in a nearby closet. When I pulled out the boxes, I discovered they were full.

Instead of buying more boxes I decided to keep only as many cards as the boxes would hold. It meant I needed to do some editing, which I did. Then I organized the boxes by category – one for my husband’s cards, one for our daughters, and one from everyone else.

My drawer was lighter, my boxes were clearer, and I felt grateful and happy rereading these beautiful messages from my loved ones.

Mind Clearing

Later this week, I’ll be traveling to St. Louis for an ICD Board meeting. One of my favorite parts of traveling is the airplane time. I’ve written about this often and it’s worth mentioning again. My “air” time is for clearing my thoughts. I think, read, and write without any distractions or interruptions. I’m looking forward to the energy boost and clarity that will result. I’ll go forward with a renewed outlook and openness to ideas and possibilities. It works every time.

What have you cleared? What have you noticed as a result? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Come join the conversation.

There’s nothing like embarrassing yourself to crave a do-over or fresh start. It’s often a minor perspective shift that helps us to reflect and begin again. How timely that my year started with such an incident.

I was ready for that first Monday back from the more leisurely holiday schedule. I woke up knowing where I needed to be and when. My morning routine resumed with my wake-up alarm, exercises, shower, dressing, breakfast and deskwork. To gear up for the day and week, I double-checked my schedule and list of to dos. The New Year had arrived and I was looking forward to the first organizing session of the year.

Like I often do, I set a timer as my auditory cue, so that I wouldn't be late to my client's. The timer rang so I got ready and left. The day was going as planned. Even with some traffic, I arrived at my client’s on time…or so I thought.

As it turns out, I got there two hours early. My client wasn't home. After some confusion (it still hadn’t occurred to me that I was early), when I realized my mistake about the start time, I explained and apologized to her gracious husband and said I'd return at the correct time. So much for the organizer being organized, right? This was embarrassing to arrive at the wrong time...the really wrong (as in two hours early wrong) time.

Next steps…laugh at self and find the nearest Starbucks. Having this unexpected block of time, I enjoyed slowly sipping a latte and writing this post. I used to write at Starbucks, but hadn’t done that in a while. This was a welcome change of environment. And somewhere during the latte drinking and writing, I came up with a few reminders that helped me shift my perspective and embrace a fresh start. I hope that the lessons I found would be helpful for you the next time you have an incident.

Linda’s New Year's Lessons:

• Mistakes happen.
• Discover the gift in those mistakes.
• Be flexible.
• Don't assume.
• Improve looking and listening.
• Find the humor.
• You’re human.
• Add this one to my bloopers reel.

Are there any “situations” you’d like to share with us? What were your takeaways? What helped you to move forward after an embarrassing incident? What allowed you to embrace a fresh start? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Come join the conversation.

Our productivity flourishes when we recognize which environments enhance results. We can be intentional, as in creating designed, organized spaces. Or, we can embrace serendipity as in snow days, travel time, or “blob” days.

With chaos and overwhelm being more the norm these days, I’ve been especially aware how my environment influences my ability to not just be productive, but also to feel energized by a fresh start. Last week I wrote about the restart or fresh start button. This week, let’s focus on ways to increase productivity from our surroundings.

Linda’s Environmental Productivity Ah-Has:

Weather - Be it winter snowstorm Juno or rainy day Sundays, there’s nothing quite like a stop-everything-weather day to transform the “were-supposed-to-be” plans into productive days. I was unable to get to my client’s to organize because of the storm. Instead, I’m utilizing the found time to move other projects forward. 

Travel – There’s nothing as wonderful as that quiet, distraction-free time I experience on an airplane. With my busy travel schedule, I’ve been especially enjoying the airplane bubble that allows me focused time to read, plan, think, and rejuvenate. I experienced this firsthand this past weekend with my flights to and from St. Louis for the ICD Board meeting.

Blobbing – In our family, we like to enjoy “blob days” every so often. On blob days we suspend doing anything productive and give into just relaxing . . . guilt-free. We might stay in our pajamas all day, not shower, and hang out without any goals or shoulds. We let the day unfold, agenda-free. There could be movie watching and lots of snacking. Are you wondering how environment can be productive? Sometimes you need to balance suspending the to dos in order to renew your energy and boost your productivity.

What environment best supports your productivity? I’d love to hear from you. Come join our conversation!