Still have white-out on your desk?

I don’t know the last time I used this bottle of white-out. I’ve been at my current job nearly seven years and it’s been on my desk this whole time. I’m not sure if I’ve ever used it; maybe once. I prefer the correction tape things anyway, even though sometimes the strip breaks and renders the whole thing useless. By now, this bottle could be dried out; I haven’t even opened it to check. And yet it still sits here.

Do you still have white-out on your desk? If so, do you use it? If no, why is it still on your desk?

My point is: Get rid of what you don’t need!

At best, this bottle of white-out is clutter. You might say, but what harm does it do sitting there? Having clutter in your environment makes your brain filter out the unnecessary when you are trying to find something. Every time I glance in that direction, my eyes take it in and my brain has to categorize it and reject it as unnecessary. This happens all in my subconscious, but it still takes up valuable neuron space. Having empty space on that shelf would give my eyes and brain a subtle rest.

You might also say, I want to keep my bottle of white-out as a reminder of a simpler time gone-by, as a memento. And I would say, that’s your call. If you smile when you see the white-out, if it was given to you by a beloved supplies manager then, by all means, keep it. But if it means nothing to you, or makes you cringe, then please get rid of it or find another use for it; maybe to do manicures.

Get rid of what you don’t need in all aspects of your life – your physical environment, your emotional landscape, your work schedule. Review your life periodically, maybe quarterly, to keep the clutter away. Allow some empty space; you never know what could materialize to fill it!