Ever visited a library? You must have, and if not, you should. So basically, a collection of thousands books, neatly sorted based on their categories, and kept organised in alphabetical order. Every single book is kept in a way that it’s title is clearly visible to the reader. And all you have to do is to go to your favourite section, browse through, and pick up the one you like! It’s as simple.

Now imagine all these books are kept together in the hallway in a huge pile! And you need to select the one you want to read, hidden somewhere under this mammoth pile. What do you think about that? Is it even possible? If you can’t even see them clearly, how exactly are to suppose to find the one to read? And does any of these books serve a purpose? They are simply lying there almost impossible to find.

And what about this gigantic pile of thoughts stacked up in your brain? What purpose is this clouded mind serving to you? How can you read your thoughts when you can’t even see them clearly?

A cluttered mind is nothing but a foggy window, whatever you see through it is blurry. That’s why you can’t make any sense out of it unless you clean the glass to have a clear vision.

Why is it important to declutter your mind

Just like you can’t fit in anything new in an already stuffed place. You would have to create some space. It could be either by getting rid of older things, or at least, organising them neatly so you can make use of some unused area. Same is true for your mind. In order to be creative, or to be able to think outside of box, to find a solution or to make a decision; the first thing that you essentially need to do is – clear your headspace.

Mental clarity helps you to focus, to think with a fresh perspective and in addition it calms your confused thoughts. It might not be the most important but it indeed is the very first step in the journey of self discovery.

Few tips to get started

Befriend with nature

Try to spend some time with nature, far from urban noise. Of course, it’s not feasible to go on a scenic holiday everyday but at least you can try to bring some part of nature in your home. So go ahead and welcome a few plants in your home and spend few morning minutes with them. Nature undoubtedly is very effective in calming mind. It also bring awareness inward and gives you some peaceful time with yourself.

Clear your physical space

Your surrounding clearly reflects your mental state. Whether it’s your work desk, kitchen counter or your mailbox; just keep it clutter free and keep it organised. Let everything be visible and sorted. Just try it once and see the difference yourself. A clean surrounding certainly clears your head and makes you distraction free. In addition, it makes you more focussed at the job in hand and keep your thoughts as sorted as your work desk is.

Write it down

Thoughts tangled inside the brain are too much to handle. And all you can hear is noise but nothing perceptible. That’s why it’s always better to write them down. By doing so, you can see them clearly. This practice indeed is very helpful in classifying your tasks. And who knows! you may also realise that the problem you had been carrying in your mind is not as big as it sounded in your head!

Stop multitasking

Multitasking is a myth! Human brain is incapable of carrying multiple jobs simultaneously. So basically we don’t multitask in actual. In fact all we do is to rapidly shift from one task to another and thus end up finishing none. Multitasking makes your brain think about various problems at once. Which is not a good practice as it clogs your mind after a certain period. So stop multitasking and start prioritising. Take it up one by one. One task, one thought.

Don’t dwell on past or things you can’t control

‘If it is out of your hand, it needs freedom from your mind too. – Ivan Nuru‘. What has happened in past can not be altered. Neither situation or factors that you have no authority or control upon. In his best seller book ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’, Stephen R. Covey’s talks about circle of influence (things that concerns you and are in your control) and circle of concern (things that worries you but you can’t really do anything about). Any thought or worry taken from your circle of concern is simply occupying your mind without yielding anything! It’s simply draining you out for nothing! So let’s just focus on our circle of influence and expand it.

Control information inflow

With our smartphones in hand and 24×7 internet connectivity, it’s extremely easy to get hold of anything and everything happening around. The more information, the more processing, the more distractions. May be you don’t need to know it all, may be you don’t need to think about everything, may be not everything happening around should concern you. Yes it’s good to be apprised of current affairs and be aware of what’s happening in the world around you. But sometimes it’s okay to shut your mind off. Make sure you have designated specific time of your day to check on news instead of checking it randomly throughout your day.

Meditate

Nothing peculiar, nothing distinctively yogic. Just simple mindful breathing, 10 minutes a day. Anytime, anywhere. All you have to do is focus on your inhale and exhale pattern without trying to control it. This practice eliminates distraction, helps you focus on here and now and be more aware of your inner-self.

Confide in a loved one

You can’t always handle it all alone and you don’t even need to. Speak to someone you trust. They might not be able to give you a solution but they can surely help you to see the problem with a new eye. Talking to a loved one relieves the tension and ease out the pain. It helps you see-through and get rid of negativity.

– clouded mind can not think, you need to clear it first –