Fear of Regret Can't Be the Stopping Point

Letting go of something may cause a twinge of regret but on the scales of risk and benefit, the benefit ALWAYS WINS.

How many times have I heard dear friends and clients say they are afraid to let go because they are afraid they will regret the loss in one form or another?

#1 regret being… “What if I need it later?”

Kitchen gadgets come to mind. Oh, the weird and wonderful little-used items…. Ice shaver, orange peeler, avocado slicer, ice cream maker, veggie spiralizer, hotdog cooker, and bun toaster, you get the drift… Be honest about your personal use cycle with the product. Once a year, seasonal, daily? Remember a chef uses very little gadgets. A good SHARP knife can do a thousand functions and is easy to wash and store.

Papers are a major offender in this category of fear of regret, what if you need it for______ you fill in the blank. Have you really gone back to review things? Did you just need to write it to help process it? Do you search the answers on google more often?

Clothes - Will you lose weight and get back into it? Is it worth the space and the secret voice of guilt every time you go into your closest? Will you ever really be so behind in laundry that you will need/want to wear that?

Toys - Honestly, no really be honest… will your child miss it? or are you thinking about the $$ you invested in it, sorry it’s long gone and keeping it around does not give it more value. You know clutter hurts you, it is stifling your children too. I had a shocking conversation with a child visiting my son once and he remarked at how he wished his house was like ours, uncluttered.

Space, mental and physical is more priceless than the objects you have filled it with. I can say with complete confidence that the most you will miss something is about 10 minutes in the first year alone and that decreases even more over time if you even think about it again. You have 525,600 minutes in a year! If you are honest in your pursuit of reducing your clutter, this internal argument will get easier to win each time.

If it keeps coming to mind you need to forgive yourself, choose not to live in regret, and keep looking forward!

~Diane