Joy At Work

Back in March, Marie Kondo released her latest book Joy At Work in collaboration with Scott Sonenshein. Our blog What you need to know about Marie Kondo’s new book was one of our most loved blogs of the year, at a time when many of us were scrambling to set up our home offices and make the most of the space we had to stay productive.

Isolation

Then came the lockdowns. I still remember watching the stories coming out of Italy, horrified that people couldn’t leave their towns. Little did I know that fast forward a few months and Melbourne would be undergoing one of the longest lockdowns globally. I tried to help in the best way I knew how, by sharing my love of home. Within the first three hours of it being up, over 500 of you had read our piece 7 Ways You Can Embrace Your Home Sanctuary & Find Peace In Isolation. I still believe that in some small way, connecting through embracing our home sanctuaries helped us feel less isolated.

Decluttering during a pandemic

From March to October, with millions of us in Victoria largely confined to our homes, and thousands of us working, living and learning under one roof, decluttering became a key focus for many. To support you as you strove to make the most of your home during such a challenging time, we published Things to Declutter During a Pandemic and what turned to be our most read blog of 2020, Five Things You Should Declutter From Your Wardrobe.

Mental health and clutter

Understandably in 2020, another key focus was on maintaining good mental health during an extraordinary time. In a quest for answers I researched studies on mental health and clutter, discovering that living in a cluttered environment is not only scientifically proven to induce stress, it also lowers our productivity. The negative side effects of living in a cluttered home were so clear that I shared my findings by speaking at a number of events focused on corporate employee health, as well as tips on how to make positive steps to create mindful, healthy homes.

Sustainability

Towards the end of the year, as the shock of lockdown subsided and we moved towards a ‘new normal’, sustainable living returned to front of mind, and thousands of you read our blog Six ways to make your home more sustainable and How to become a conscious consumer.

2020 was undeniably hard in so many different ways, and we have no idea what 2021 will bring, but through our love of mindful homes, our community has been strengthened, and I’m incredibly grateful for that.

I want to take a moment to say THANK YOU for your support in 2020, the year in which our homes truly became our refuge and our sanctuary.

What do you want to see more of in 2021?

Click the share button below and let us know on your prefered social media channel or via Instagram.

1. Give yourself the gift of time

Don’t get me wrong, I love getting things done and creating self-imposed deadlines to maximise productivity, but there is a time and a place.

– Finishing a book to ensure you can have a good discussion at Book Club? A suitable ‘must get done’ activity.
– Buying your in-laws a gift for their 60th wedding anniversary on the weekend? It’s reasonable to give yourself a deadline.
– Alphabetically organising your children’s books by Friday when there’s no real need? Not such a worthwhile deadline.

After all, it has been a big year, and we’ve all missed out on a lot. Give yourself time and just do what makes you happy. Leave out anything that is not truly urgent this holiday so you can buy back some time in your days. Those non-urgent tasks can wait.

2. Unplug

Make technology work for you, not the other way around. I read this in a minimalist blog once and it has stuck with me ever since. Technology is wonderful, and it has been a saviour this year, but it can also be a burden. Constant pings and vibrations notifying you of this and that likely impacts your ability to switch on your parasympathetic nervous system – rest and digest – i.e. the opposite of the stress response – fight or flight.

If you can take a social media break, delete a few apps, silence notifications or – better still – put the phone in a drawer, do it. Don’t be a slave to your devices this holiday season – make technology work for you.

Observe your surroundings as you move through your holiday activities

3. Be okay with doing nothing

For many of us, doing nothing is a foreign concept, and can even sometimes provoke a feeling of guilt. If you are a serial ‘get things done’ person, or worse, someone who is always telling yourself to do more and still not getting things done, try saying no and giving yourself permission to do nothing. You never know, you might just find doing nothing gives your batteries the reboot they need to hit the ground running in 2021.

4. Be present

Two little words that sound oh so simple – be present. We all know, however, that being present is easier said than done. It takes meditators years to master the mind and silence the thinking brain. Yet you do not need to be a meditation master to reap the rewards of mindfulness these holidays.

Simply remind yourself to engage properly in conversation, actively listen to your family, observe your surroundings and notice the sensations on your skin as you move through your holiday activities.

If mindfulness is something you are trying to cultivate, read our blog 5 Ways You Can Bring Mindfulness Into Your Home.

5. Prioritise rest.

When was the last time you scheduled a nap into your day, that wasn’t for your three year old? Rather than prioritising activities and tasks, can you prioritise rest instead? Schedule a sleep-in, take an afternoon to read or nap in your sleep-sanctuary, maybe even cancel dinner plans to go to bed early. Rest is vital for a healthy body and mind.

So there you have it! Hopefully even just reading this made you feel a little bit more relaxed. Whether you’ve still got a few more work days left in the year, or you’ve already set your Out of Office and are slipping into holiday mode, keep these tips front of mind and do yourself a favour – put that to-do list away in a drawer until you’ve properly re-charged your batteries. 

For more relaxing holiday ideas visit our blog, Three Quick Tips For Stress-Free Holiday Planning with BONUS TRAVEL CHECKLIST.

1. Mess makes you less productive

Our brains like order, and constant visual reminders of disorganisation such as a messy desk or piles of paperwork on the kitchen bench drain our cognitive resources, reducing our ability to focus.

Visual distraction in the form of clutter sends our brain into overdrive and can reduce our ability to process information, but clearing clutter from our homes has proven to increase our ability to focus and be productive.

2. Clutter can affect your mental health

Most of us have a vague understanding that clutter makes us feel stressed, but now we have evidence to prove that it does actually stress us out. Scientists at the University of California have found that being surrounded by too many things increases the body’s level of the stress hormone cortisol, increasing susceptibility to depression, insomnia and anxiety. When reviewing the home environment of mothers, they discovered that cortisol was higher in mothers living in a cluttered environment.

In short, clutter induces a negative mindset, reduces motivation and diminishes happiness.

Clutter is proven to increasing susceptibility to depression, insomnia and anxiety.

3. Constant clutter can affect your physical health

If you’re living in a constantly messy environment you could be facing potential health problems. Living in an environment that is messy and cluttered can lead to your body producing a low-grade fight or flight response which could wreak havoc on your digestive and immune systems.

This is probably a good time to remind you that if you or someone you know is suffering from a hoarding disorder, visit our blog for Decluttering Tips for Hoarders for links and advice.

4. You’re probably wasting time

Time is precious. If there is anything this pandemic has taught us, it’s that we never know what is around the corner so we must use our time well. I think we can all agree that constantly tidying up a messy environment and searching for lost items is not the best use of your time.

On the other hand, living and working in an organised environment, where each item has a home, eliminates the need to search for lost items, and makes cleaning and all round living simpler.

Being organised gives time back to us.

Constantly tidying up and searching for lost items is not the best use of time

5. You’re probably not sleeping well

If you find yourself falling asleep more easily in a minimalist hotel or after a big spring clean, this is no coincidence. People who sleep in cluttered bedrooms are more likely to have sleeping problems, both in terms of falling asleep and waking up during the night. There is a lot to be said for tidying up before you go to bed – a clean floor will not only make the space feel calmer, but will aid in the ease of sleep.

The bonus of tidying up at night is that you will also set yourself up for the day ahead as you wake up to a clean room in the morning. Read Your Sleep Sanctuary Nighttime Rituals for more sleep support.

6. You might be losing opportunities

This might be my favourite reason to get organised. I can attest first hand that getting your life in order brings opportunities. With all the time you get back and reduced stress-levels, you’ll be the best version of yourself, and will be in a much better position to pursue your dreams, start that side hustle, train for that marathon, or even commit to finding your perfect match. Getting organised hunts down those opportunities and brings them to fruition.

If all this doom and gloom has sent you crawling under your desk, don’t worry, I have good news for you. Organisational psychology research shows that being organised triggers positive behaviors! Scientists have proven that living and working in organised environments encourages healthy eating choices and socially responsible habits, such as donating to charities.

In summary, organisation not only reduces stress and makes sleeping easier but also triggers positive, healthy behaviors. If that isn’t motivation enough to get tidy – I don’t know what is!

Need help?

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Sleeping and sleeping only

Bedrooms are for sleeping, unwinding and restoring. To create the most relaxing, sleepy bedroom before tucking yourself into bed, remove all objects from the bedroom that are not conducive to unwinding. Move all work-related items such as computers, pagers, study notes, to-do lists and unread mail out of the room before going to sleep. If that’s not feasable, at least place them out of sight during the twilight hours.

Remove all work related items

Hygge lighting

Just like TV and phone screens keep us awake, so does bright lighting. One or two hours before it’s time to sleep, dim the lights in your home, light a candle and even play some soft music. The Danish method of hygge, (meaning cosy) recommends using lamps instead of ceiling lights, and candles wherever possible. Low lighting helps our melatonin levels to naturally rise, setting us up for a quality, restful sleep.

Snuggle into your sleepwear

Taking off the clothes you have worn for the day and slipping into favourite PJs signifies that it is time to rest. Just like a new shirt gives us confidence for a job interview, sleepwear tells our subconscious that it’s time to calm down. While it might be easier to roll into bed as you are, I recommend trying to dedicate one to two pieces of your wardrobe to sleep in.

Pyjamas signify that it is time to rest

Declutter

Before turning out the light, fold up and put away the items on the floor. A clean floor will not only make the space feel calmer, but will reduce your stress levels, aiding in the ease of sleep. The bonus of tidying up at night is that you will also set yourself up for the day ahead as you wake up to a clean room in the morning.

Make the bed

Finally, take time to make the bed before you start your day. Not only will it instantly declutter your bedroom, but it will mean you’ll be treating future you to that lovely ‘tucked in sheets’ feeling – no more crawling back into a mess of sheets and pillows at the end of a long day.

Now to tackle the rest of the house! For more sanctuary creating tips, check out Three Simple Tips For Making Your House Into A Home. After you’ve had a good night’s sleep, of course.

Keen to learn more ways to make the most of your home? Book in a one-on-one consult with Sally to start making your sanctuary today.

What is mindfulness?

Put simply, mindfulness is to be aware of the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting feelings, thoughts, and sensations. Mindfulness has been described as both a meditation and a way of living. To be mindful is to know where your attention is, to prioritise where it needs to be, and to bring it back when it wanders off track.

Why be mindful?

Have you ever eaten without tasting? Read a page and not absorb anything? Forgotten where you put the keys? Of course, we all lead busy lives, but constantly living this way can cause ongoing frustration, anxiety and even depression. Acting mindfully helps us get more enjoyment out of life, make the best use of our time and reduce stress.

Here are my top five favourite ways to bring mindfulness into the home.

Mindfulness helps us get more enjoyment out of life

1. Appreciate what you own

The KonMari method tells us to keep only what sparks joy, to connect, love and enjoy it. This practice should not end once the tidying is over – appreciating what we own should be done every day, including acknowledging the time, resources and effort taken to bring the item to you.

2. Take a seat and really see your home

It’s safe to say that most of us have spent more time assessing our homes for improvement than we have simply observing. Boost your love for your space by taking the time to sit in your favourite spot – inside or outside – and take a moment to see your home without judgement. Look for the texture, shapes and colours. You may notice the pattern in the flooring or the way the drapes hang over a window. If judgement comes up, try to gently let it go and bring your attention back to what is right in front of you.

Mindful tip: Take a moment to see your home without judgement

3. Notice the change in light

Both changes in season and weather patterns bring with them unique changes in light. Take note of how your home changes through the day. Does the afternoon give certain rooms a warm glow, is there a particular window that lets morning rays stream in? Mindfully heighten your sense of sight and tune into the changes throughout the days, and across the year. This is also a great technique to use for restful holidays.

4. Turn a chore into a mindful practice

Almost anything can be turned into a mindfulness activity, including chores – take washing dishes for example. Tune in and notice the warmth of the water against your skin. Listen to the sound of the plates as they move through the water. Watch the water droplets roll down the china. Just a few minutes of calm, mindful observation can turn a must-do activity into a meditative practice. Rather than seeing chores as a burden, you may begin to see them as opportunities to enjoy the present moment as it is.

5. Drop the multitasking

If you’re the kind of person who is trying to do multiple things at once, stop. Research tells us that multitasking is not as beneficial as first thought. Doing two things at once is just carrying out two tasks half as well. In fact, multitasking reduces our focus, memory, and enjoyment, and can cause stress. Training our brain to engage its attention to the most important task will allow you to not only complete your to-do list quicker, but it will also improve your attention span. If you are looking for ways to simplify read our blog Tips To Decluttering and Simplifying Your Life.

Keen to learn more ways to make the most of your home? Read 7 Way You Can Embrace Your Home Sanctuary.

1. We can leave the car behind

Or in other words, we are within walking distance of everything we love. Melbourne’s famous Gertrude Street is just a two minute walk away, offering all the breakfast hangouts, designer stores, organic food stores and all the wine bars I could ever need.

2. It has an ‘entrance cupboard’

Those of you who live in apartments will understand this one; put simply, entrance hall cupboards are hard to come by. The joy of being able to walk straight in, hang up my coat, slip off my shoes and return them to their rightful home before taking more than a few steps is a luxury. Call me a crazy tidy lady, but I love it!

3. I can do balcony compost

I know! Perhaps not quite what you were imagining as one of the top nine things I might love about my home. Composting, however, is one of the best things you can do for the environment, and when I saw the size of the balcony I jumped for joy and bought a Bokashi compost bin secondhand from Gumtree. I love knowing that even in a small space I can take steps to reduce our waste. It makes me very happy.

Even in a small space I can reduce our waste

4. It’s great for morning meditation

I’m not always a great sleeper. I sometimes wake early, and toss and turn thinking about a million trivial things until my alarm goes off and I roll groggily out of bed. Well actually that was me – until three years ago when I made a pact with myself that if I woke up and couldn’t get back to sleep I would get up and meditate. My home has the perfect morning meditation light – I can slip upstairs, light some incense, snuggle into a cushion, tune in and wake up slowly with the day. Very early morning meditation always feels like a little secret and it is my favourite way to rise.

5. It is Home Sanctuary HQ

We moved in right when the business was taking off and I needed a dedicated ‘head office’. Ideally away from the rest of the home, but not too distant, because you know, I love my home. My desk is set up in a sun-filled corner of the upper level, decorated with only a few motivational books (The Minimalist Home, Spark Joy and Project 333), a simple laptop stand, hand cream and a watercolour I bought in Yosemite – it’s my work anchor, and I love it.

Yosemite watercolour

6. It has a bathtub

There is nothing better than a bubble bath, a glass of wine and a good book to relax and wash off the day. I haven’t lived in a home with a bathtub for ten years, apart from a sharehouse in London and you couldn’t have paid me to bathe in that thing! This bath, on the other hand, while not straight out of Vogue Living, is just what we need. I just light a candle and pop on some music and I am content for hours.

7. It has space for my plants

Give me an extra square metre and I will grow another plant, and with two floors and an open balcony, my plant babies are loving life. Right now, my snow peas are starting to flower and I am so proud of them. Caring for plants helps me ground and connect, and it’s an important part of my morning ritual.

My plant babies are loving life

8. We can hear rain on the roof

Everyone loves the sound of rain on the roof, but for a gal who has lived in small city apartments for years, it’s a true luxury. We even have a skylight upstairs that enhances the sound beautifully.

9. We have friendly neighbours

Now more than ever, neighbours are so important, and we are lucky to live next door to a great couple. We water each other’s plants, and share lovely chats from our respective balconies, including a couple of socially distant balcony drinks last month during lockdown.

So there you have it – those are the things I love best about my home. If you have never written down or even shared out loud why you love your home, I highly recommend doing so. 

And if you’re struggling to put into words what you love about your home, you might benefit from some guidance about how to make the most of your space as part of your very own Konmari consultation. We use a mindful approach to help you connect with yourself and your home environment. Both in-home and virtual consults are available and can be tailored to your unique needs, so please do not hesitate to get in touch with us to book or to ask any questions you have.

Meet Sally or learn how to find peace in isolation, 7 Way You Can Embrace Your Home Sanctuary through lockdown.

After a few hours of sulking, however, I pulled myself together and shifted my focus to what an Easter staycation might look like. Unfortunately, I usually think of a staycation as a holiday in my own city, complete with visits to galleries, outdoor exploring, and long lunches with friends.

Clearly, this staycation was going to look a little different.

To prepare, I wrote down everything that makes the Easter holidays so important to me, and then brainstormed how I could recreate these things, all without stepping outside my front door.  

Here’s what I came up with…

1. Family connection.

I am lucky enough to be close with my family, and love the connection family holidays bring. The break in routine allows us to come together and really see each without a schedule. We always take long hikes in the bush, and Mum and I drink coffee in our pyjamas and chat for hours. Throw in a few celebratory meals with hours spent relaxing around the table, and you’ve got a perfect family Easter.

Staycation solution 

Thankfully we live in 2020, where technology means you don’t actually have to miss seeing your family, even when you’re several hours apart. This year, we all scheduled in time to come together and really ‘see’ each other. Mum even took us for a virtual tour of the garden to see the turning autumn colours. And while virtual connection can never be quite as good as the real thing, setting aside phones, agendas and to-do lists in order to just spend time together no matter the medium, still felt lovely.

2. Closing the books.

I love that feeling you get when you travel away from your everyday life in the city, and work or study just fall further away with each passing kilometre. Not only was this option off the table this Easter, but with my office and my home being one and the same, the temptation to work during supposed relaxation time was high.

Staycation solution

I chose to dedicate at least two days of the break to complete relaxation, meaning no email, work or computer, and made sure I chose two days in a row so I could really switch off. And surprisingly – I did! I slept sounder and longer than usual, and even got that afternoon snoozy feeling I only get when I’m feeling balanced.

3. Breaking routine.

For me, holidays are an opportunity to break away from routine. In normal life, even my weekends have a schedule of errands and duties that have to be completed, so it’s even more important that I feel like I can throw routine out the window and just let time drift by, if only occasionally. 

 Staycation solution

I simply gave myself permission to be on holiday at home, with no plans and no to-do list. If I couldn’t be bothered to stack the dishwasher, I just left it for later. Mundane tasks like ironing that I would usually do over the weekend at home, went out the window too. If I felt like wine at lunchtime, I had it, and I’m not usually a daytime movie person, but on Easter Sunday we actually put on an old movie at 2pm, and I loved it.

These aren’t things I want to do all the time, but a few days of just drifting felt luxurious, regardless of the setting.

4. Making new memories.

When I think of holidays, what comes to mind is new places, new experiences, and making new memories. I feel this especially when I go away with my partner – the change of scenery always rekindles our sense of adventure and allows us to spend time just being and enjoying each other’s company. I feel like I fall more in love with him each time we go away.

Staycation solution

While opportunities for exploration and adventure were limited this Easter, we made the most of what we had. One night we ordered in from a nice restaurant, dressed up, opened some good wine, and lit some candles. Another day we went for a long walk in a neighbouring suburb that neither of us had been to before. While it was only 10 minutes from our apartment, the unexplored streets inspired a sense of adventure in us that meant we were able to make brand new memories close to home.

(Remember the blog, I love living alone, am I ready to give it up and move in with my boyfriend?, turns out I can share a home and make new memories).

So what did I learn from all this?

I learned that a home can shift to be what we need in any given moment. What might usually be a pit stop for some people, a place where they sleep and refuel before launching back out into the world, may now have become a place of solace, and of socialising.

This weekend my home, which is usually a busy and productive home/office combo, became a cosy weekend escape from away from ‘normal’ life. 

I also learned that in a way, it’s all in the mind. The only thing we can control is our own behaviour, and how we respond to a situation. By simply shifting my focus from what I didn’t have to what I did, and thinking carefully about how I wanted to feel, I was able to use my imagination and recreate that relaxing holiday feeling at home.

#StayAtHome

April 2020 brings Marie Kondo’s new book, read our blog, Tidy desk, tidy mind: What you need to know about Marie Kondo’s new book

2. Wake up early

I know it’s dark and the doona is EXTRA toasty at 6am, but I promise that extra hour to set your intentions, take a walk or read a book before the kids get up will be worth it. Using the early morning light will not only set you up for the day ahead, but it will also ensure you are equally as productive now as you are in the summer months (extra important when you are a business owner, primary carer or work for commission).

3. Drink warm water

With hot showers and central heating quickly drying out our skin, hydration is equally as important through the cooler months as it is on the sunkissed beach days. But we are in luck; sipping on warm water is not only a great way to stay hydrated, it’s wonderful for our digestion. As the water moves through our stomach and intestines, digestive organs are better hydrated and easily able to eliminate waste (eww…and WIN!!). Add a slice of lemon if you want to be extra fancy (and extra healthy).

Add a slice of lemon

4. Adjust your exercise routine

It can be hard to maintain a fitness regime when there is next to no daylight hours outside of 9-5, and often when it is light it is raining (typical). However, some body movement is a whole lot better than none. Try switching out your normal program to match the winter climate.

5. Love your home

Your home is your number one place to nurture, support and inspire you this winter.

More…boost your happiness levels over winter and follow Sally’s winter wardrobe Appreciation August.