HR-100415-Alice-1QUESTION OF THE WEEK: I live in a very small condo and was wondering if you have any storage or organizational tips? I feel so scattered and can’t relax when I get home.

It’s easy to become emotionally unsettled and mentally frustrated when our homes are messy. Putting some thought and effort into the organization of your environment is one key to mental and emotional peace.

You can create smoother energy by looking at storage and organization from a feng shui perspective. Keep these tips in mind:

• Avoid filling your storage space completely. When your shelves or closets are completely full, energetically you leave no space for something new; full shoeboxes block new sources of support and prevent new movement; full kitchen cupboards block new opportunities for wellness; full bookshelves block new sources of wisdom, promoting stagnant thinking; full bedroom closets show that you are not open to new relationships or new ways to relate to those in your life.

• Only store items that have “restful” energy. Follow this tip if you have a bed with storage drawers built in. Items include linens, blankets and towels. Avoid shoes (symbolizing “movement”) and items from the past, such as photos of old relationships that symbolize emotional upset.

• Refrain from unnecessary hooks. Hooks on the back of the bathroom door are fine to hold towels, but refrain from putting hooks on the back of all the doors in your home, especially your main and bedroom doors. Doors are the portals to the energy flow in your home and if they are over-burdened, transitioning your life from one stage to the next may be difficult. Doors should open freely.
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• Avoid visual overwhelm. This happens when you store everything you own that is nice, cute and meaningful on open shelves around your home. From a feng shui perspective, it is better to only have a few treasured items on display. Store the others behind closed shelving and rotate them when you need a change of energy. Themed collections can be grouped together to create a unified energy. For example, if you have many rabbit-themed items, place them in one place for a powerful visual.

• Functionality is important, but so are aesthetics. Store the things you often use in convenient, but out-of-sight places. Open shelving promotes visual clutter. So the more you can hide (in an organized way), the better you will feel.

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Your best bet to create better energy is to discard and donate things you don’t need. You not only will create valuable physical space, but will eliminate a drain on your energy.

Alice Inoue is the founder and Chief Happiness Officer at Happiness U, a friendly educational establishment at Na Lama Kukui (formerly known as Gentry Pacific

Design Center) on Nimitz Highway. At Happiness U you’ll find dozens of inspiring classes all geared toward personal growth, helping you live a more purposeful and ease-filled life. Visit us online at YourHappinessU.com.

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