Moving

At the beginning of this month, I moved out of my old home and into a new apartment. That is why I didn’t have any new posts. I’d like to offer a few tips to those of you who are going to move or help someone else move, and if you want to do a little clearing up of your life, these could work for you, too.

Start early. This is good advice for any major project you undertake. Whatever you can do ahead of time, do it. This will make the actual move a lot easier on you.

Clean your old place ahead of time. You won’t be able to reach all the nooks and crannies that you’ll need to get to in order to get your security deposit back, but you can clean your tub. You can clean your oven. You can clean your stove top. Just one a day for the week ahead of the move will make it a whole lot easier. When you do things in bits like this, it’s easier to do.

Pack up the things you don’t need as soon as you don’t need them till after you move. While you’re doing this, decide if it is something that you want to move. Is this object something that you are willing to clean off, wrap up, put in a box, seal the box, move, open the box, unwrap, and put away? If you are willing to take each and every step for that object, then move it. If not, then perhaps you should get rid of it. There’s no point in moving something you don’t love or need. The same is true for “keeping”. There’s no pointing keeping something you don’t love or need. Use the “would I move it?” test on your household items when you feel you don’t have enough room in your current place. It could be that you have enough room, just too much stuff.

Arrange for transportation ahead of time. Do not try to rent a van on the day you are moving. Do not count on your unreliable friends or family to provide you with a truck. Make certain that your van/truck/whatever is from a reliable source and will be available on that day. Again, in “real life”, this is a good idea. Do not rely on unreliable people, no matter what they promise. You deserve better.

Take breaks. When moving, when living, at any time. Take breaks when you need them.

Eat something healthy. It’s tempting to go for the quick boost of energy from a candy bar, but you’ll crash. This is good for moving, for living, for being healthy for the rest of your life.

Give yourself enough time. Again, good advice for anything in your life. Don’t try to rush yourself. If you know you can’t do it or can only do it if everything goes perfectly, then get more time. Things do not go perfectly. Ask for more time or do more things ahead of time or ask for more help or a combination of all three.

You deserve to have things go well in any part of your life, whether that is moving, working, relationships, or anything else. Make your present as good as it can be to provide a solid base for a fantastic Future.