Let It Go - Peter Walsh Page 0,16
lie beyond them—will be a small investment with a powerful payoff when you arrive at your next stop.
In the next section, I’m going to help you dig deeper in another way. When you envision downsizing, what obstacles do you suspect may slow your progress? I’ll discuss the most common complications and help you dig into them to uncover tools that create a speedier, more satisfying process.
LET IT GO EXERCISE 2:
The Objects That Identify Me
When strangers encounter me, I hope they think of me as: (insert adjectives that describe you)
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What top three possessions that I own help me create that impression?
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What possessions that I own would create the opposite impression?
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When loved ones and close friends think of me, I hope they think of me as: (insert adjectives that describe you)
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Which three possessions help me create that impression?
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What possessions that I own would create the opposite impression?
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What are the most important roles in my life that identify who I am? (example: parent, supervisor, choir member, scientist, Scout leader)
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Which three possessions help me create that impression?
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What possessions are linked to roles that aren’t important to me, or that used to support roles that are no longer important?
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After I’m gone, I would want my children or grandchildren to remember me for these characteristics, things I did, or experiences I had:
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Which three possessions will help me leave these memories?
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What possessions that I own would create an impression I wouldn’t want to leave?
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PART TWO
Turn Your Downsizing Stress into Strength
Have you ever realized that downsizing offers a chance to upgrade your outlook and reinforce your relationships? If not, I wouldn’t be surprised. After all, when you’re going through a downsizing-related transition, you’re pretty busy with stuff—and the only end result you’ve probably pictured is getting this stuff safely to its new home.
That’s perfectly understandable. We miss out on all sorts of cool and useful discoveries because we’re looking in the wrong place. Gaze at the FedEx logo closely enough and you’ll see an arrow pointing forward in the space between the E and the x. (That’s kind of cool!) Examine the fuel gauge on your dashboard and you’ll likely see another arrow, this one pointing to the side of the car where your gas tank door is located. (If you regularly pull the wrong side of your car up to the gas pump, that’s a very useful discovery!)
If all you picture when you think about downsizing is distress and hassle, look again. When you find the right perspective, you’ll come to see its hidden benefits.
In this section, let’s check out the four main obstacles that keep people from doing the type of downsizing that provides incredible gifts. I’ll show you how to reframe these four obstacles so you can use them to your advantage. By the end of this section, you’ll be ready to start downsizing your home (or your parents’ home) and begin the next phase of your life!
CHAPTER 3
REFRAME YOUR “I’M LOSING SOMETHING!” OBSTACLE
I’ve been describing downsizing-related events as doorways into new, opportunity-rich stages of your life. But traveling the distance from your current life to this new life can feel upsetting. That’s especially true if your need to downsize a loved one’s home has dropped into your lap unexpectedly.
On a well-known list of stressful life events called the Holmes-Rahe Life Stress Inventory, you’ll find the common downsizing milestones near the top. The 10 most stressful include death of a spouse, divorce or separation, death of a close family member (such as a parent), marriage, and retirement.
I’m anticipating that most of the people reading this book are downsizing for one of these reasons. If not, I’m sure one or more of the other stressful life changes on this list apply to you right now: a big variation in your finances, a new home, a new line of work, more arguments with your spouse, a new mortgage, a work promotion, adult kids moving away, or your spouse’s retirement.
So as you navigate through this transition, your day-to-day stress level will almost certainly be higher. This is the case even when the downsizing event is going