3 Tips for A Stress-free Move
Imagine standing in front of your house next to a loved one, the movers are loading up the truck, and you're sharing funny memories about your time in your old home, gratitude filling your soul.
This blog is about my top tips to stay sane before, during, and after your move. These are my lessons from moving more than 20 times in my lifetime.
I remember one moving day throwing things in the last boxes left in my bedroom with desperation and anxiety that brought a new conviction:
I want to have a Stress-free Move!
At that time, it looked like movers lifting and wrapping electronics and assembling. I imagined walking out of my house with the most valuable items like my laptop, favorite camera, jewelry, and external drives. I would have a light bag for a 5-day trip and my favorite small plant.
Below are practical tips on how you can stay in the perspective of gratitude for a sane and stress-free move.
Tip # 1 - Write down your ideal move day
That day in my bedroom with desperation and anxiety, I decided to envision my ideal move day. At that time I had spent my 3 months of savings, and I had no plan, no money, and no help. However, I did have an imagination and hope for the future.
Maybe you’re reading this after your move. Good! Do it anyway. A day before the move? Do it anyway! Grab your favorite journal and pen. Be as unreasonable as you can, limitless, and brave.
Journal prompt questions: Where are you? What are you wearing? How do you feel?
Whether you use the word manifest or prayer, set your mindset on the possibilities of your own exceptions of success. Also the process of writing things down help you practice the power of brainstorming, and problem solving with every experience.
Tip # 2 - Prepare for something(s) to go wrong
It’s not “IF,” it’s “WHEN” something goes wrong that we prepare for. And because you’re taking the time to read this blog, you are already being proactive, and it’s important to be realistic. I’ve heard so many people say, “I wanted to do XYZ, BUT this and that happened and therefore, I’m not doing it again and expect to be disappointed.”
Journal prompt: How many times has a project been planned and ONE little thing did not go your way, and you felt like a “failure”? How did it affect the perspective of your experience? Did it overpower the positive?
Mistakes are lessons that can turn into wisdom. Prepare for them to come your way, and put on new lenses of how you see “failure.” Besides, you already brainstormed your ideal move, and I bet they were lessons from the last time you moved.
Tip # 3 - Schedule your Reward
You may be saying, “What! Patty, I’m not a child!” The first time Jimmy and I went for our first doctor’s check-up together, he said, “Ready to go to the diner?” Diner! I said, why? I asked. “My mom used to take me to the diner after every visit,” Jimmy responded. Yes, of course, I laughed at him, and he said…
“What! How else would I have known I was a good boy!”
Let me be the first one to say, Good job, my friend!!! As Americans, we only expect a reward for “BIG” accomplishments, like holidays, graduations, etc. Moving is difficult and challenging, what makes it stress-free is your mindset and perspective.
Journal prompt: What are some small, and inexpensive ways you can reward yourself? Where do you see yourself? What do you smell? How would it feel to say, “it is finished”?
If you’re in a tight schedule, you can also celebrate along the way. Maybe you can pick-up a drink from your favorite cafe? Order your favorite lunch special to the new house? Get creative!
What do plants need to grow? Light, water, and good soil (dirt). Same with us, light can be all the encouragement and good. Water can be nourishment and fulfillment. Dirt can be the challenges and obstacles.
I hope this blog article has planted some seeds of sanity. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result. Let us continue to write down our expectations without limits because you are now daring to expect an ideal move. Then let us prepare for some things to go off plan and learn from them instead of dwelling in the disappointment. And lastly, let us change our perspective by celebrating the wins along the way.
Gratitude is not a character trait, it is a mindset choice.
Hold your loved one’s hand on your next move, share what you wrote, laugh about the mistakes, and go get ice cream, it is finished! As always, please share your thoughts in the comments below and share this blog with a friend.
