The month of May is a time of rebirth, rejuvenation, and… nesting. If January is the time to set goals and September always gives you that back-to-school feeling (even if you’ve been out of school for decades), then May is the time for spring cleaning. If you’re anything like me, there’s a lot to declutter and organize come springtime, both literally and metaphorically. Personally, my favorite way to get into the decluttering mindset is to flip through a few books full of great tips, tricks and philosophies that will help organize, de-stress and optimize our lives! That’s why I’ll be sharing four books that will help you declutter your life.
4 Books to Help You Declutter Your Life
1. The Lazy Genius Way
The Lazy Genius is a different kind of productivity book that will help you declutter your life. It isn’t based on tips and tricks and it doesn’t paint the author as an all-star homemaker whose lead you should follow. The book is based on 13 principles that guide you to look inwards and figure out what’s important to you in life. Once you’ve done that, the book advises you on how to set up systems to prioritize those things. Then, the book gives you the permission to approach everything else with laziness. In case you’ve already read this one and can’t get enough, author Kendra Adachi wrote a new book completely focused on the kitchen, and she releases a weekly podcast (she counts Kristen Bell among her listeners, NBD) too.
2. Own Your Morning
Own Your Morning is inspirational and aspirational – the best combo to help you declutter your life! Obviously, it isn’t realistic for all of us to wake up daily at 5 am, hit the gym, pray, meditate, eat a healthy breakfast… you get the gist. But isn’t it kind of fun to fantasize about being able to do all of that? The author of Own your Morning, Liz Plosser, is the editor-in-chief of Women’s Health Magazine and one of my personal favorite Instagram follows. A mother of three with a badass job and cool hobbies – I’ll take whatever she’s having and read whatever she’s writing! You can hear a little bit more about the book and learn about Liz from this podcast episode outlining why she wakes up every day at 5:17 am. Is it because she’s bananas? Maybe.
3. The Happiness Project
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The Happiness Project is almost 15 years old, a fact I’m really having a hard time wrapping my mind around. I have gone back to this one over and over again, and I’m an occasional listener to the accompanying podcast, Happier. While I find that author Gretchen Rubin is a little bit rigid in her approach to life, the principles in this book really resonate with me. The book follows her journey to find happiness through routine, the formation of new habits and fulfilling promises to herself to prioritize the things that are important to her, all of which will help you declutter your life. While the things that are important to Gretchen are not necessarily important to me, everyone can be inspired by her journey to look inwards and figure out what those little things are that make each of our lives a little happier.
4. Set Boundaries, Find Peace
The term “boundaries” is thrown around a lot, but do most people really know what they are and how to set them? Set Boundaries, Find Peace will help you declutter your life and relationships by helping you define what healthy boundaries are, teach you how to say “no” and feel OK about it, and how to assert yourself and protect your needs without being offensive (or having an anxiety spiral about potentially having offended somebody accidentally. I know, I’ve been there!) Author Nedra Tawwab is a therapist and relationship expert whose sound advice has the potential to be life changing.
Good luck decluttering your life!
Books mentioned in this article:
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