Are You STUCK?

By Maryanne Pope

Feeling a bit like a crusty old barnacle cemented to a rock?

Fear not! Spring is upon us and what better time for a fresh start…whatever that might mean to you.

I just spent the last two months de-cluttering my home and, sad as it is to admit, I didn’t even recognize some of the items unearthed…and they were in my house! (So if anyone’s missing a large peanut-shaped covered dish with a porcelain squirrel inside, my apologies but it’s gone now.)

I gave over 100 boxes of STUFF to charity and recycled at least 50 boxes of paper and cardboard.

And what else did I find beneath all that clutter, chaos and dust?

A beautiful – and ridiculously large for one person and two dogs – home, complete with gorgeous hardwood floors, funky furniture and stunning artwork. Who knew?

When I first contacted my realtor, Sherry Heinrich, four months ago about my dream of moving closer to the ocean, her first piece of advice was, “De-clutter…as in starting now.”

Her second piece of advice was to consider hiring, when the time came, a professional home stager. The de-cluttering concept I understood in theory (although practicing it was a different story); the staging idea not so much.

Alas, four months later, my home was – literally – hundreds of pounds lighter and my dream of moving to Vancouver Island stronger than ever. Sherry was flabbergasted at my de-cluttering efforts and rewarded me with an introduction to Karyn Elliott of Crazy House – the stager who would ‘dress’ my home for sale.

Karyn whirled through my place, leaving a trail of orange sticky notes tagging items that needed to be removed and suggestions for me to tackle – from painting the pink and blue bedrooms back to white (which took three coats!), moving furniture, taking down all artwork (which she later put back up but in different places), purchasing new bedding, towels, soap dispensers, lighting, etc. The total investment was $2500 and the end effect was…well, see for yourself!

However, true to human nature, I quickly realized that I loved the new look of my old digs…and I got to thinking that I would be a-okay if my home didn’t sell because I was so happy here! I could stay right where I was and enjoy my –

My phone rang.

It was Sherry. An offer had just come in on my house.

Most barnacles don’t jump off their rocks. They either fall off when they die (and even then, sometimes not!) or get pried off by forces bigger than them.

After only 5 days on the market, my home is conditionally sold. I dare say the universe is gently prying me off my safe little rock. As my friend, Brian Willis, likes to say:

Destiny is not a matter of chance; it is a matter of choice…it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.

Okay, okay…I’m moving already!

Four things you can do in the next four days – that just might help get you unstuck and back on track toward living the life you love:

• De-clutter: start to shed those things – furniture, clothes, files, dishes, thoughts, feelings – which are no longer working for you
• Ask yourself: are you excited about the changes you can make – or are you content with the status quo?
• Get a new and different perspective – preferably from an objective source – on an old and familiar-to-you situation
• If you live in or near Calgary, Alberta, consider attending Brian Willis’ half-day seminar, In Pursuit of Personal Excellence, on Saturday March 27^th, 2010…guaranteed to pry you off your rock! All proceeds go to the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund. Please click here to purchase tickets or call (403) 271-5319.
  

“The key is to continue to grow and learn and challenge yourself.” Brian Willis, Winning Mind Training

Maryanne Pope is the founder and CEO of Pink Gazelle Productions Inc. and Chair of the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund.

And no, that is not Maryanne trapped in the box