Six Rules for Starting Over/Fresh

Denise Frakes

1 day ago

3 min read

Updated: 8 hours ago

Starting fresh through Japanese concepts

The other night I was looking at an Instagram post by Soulmindhub. It totally made me smile. The secret to starting over isn’t in a big whoop-de-do plan but in using the same principles we use all the time to create space, unclutter, deep clean and create the lives we dream of! Of course we all know this..at least some level but it's good to see it in writing!

Our work in cleaning and removing what doesn’t belong, isn’t a chore, it’s a system. Our normal everyday chores, which are extraordinary in value, help us unstick and nourish our lives. I believe thier value just went up a few notches!

This “work” we do is, as you know, ..it's mental, physical, spiritual and emotional. It wears and restores us. It's hiding here in plain sight! Inconspicuous, not highly regarded, kind of messy and often ignored or dreaded. And yet, it's always here, patiently waiting until we get it. 😊

Ponder these 6 steps and then go clean something small and impactful like your purse or wallet. How do you feel? Cleaning expands us, unsticks us, and creates flow. Plus everytime you open your wallet you will get a little dopamine kiss.

Below I've quoted the original post at put it in italic print. My notes are in purple

Enjoy!

Denise

“In Japan, if you’re starting your whole like over after 30 with no plan, there are 6 simple rules to follow:

(I would like to insert here... we/you all of us, can begin again at any point in our lives. This is the process of creating a flowing life at any age.)

1 Oosouji first always (Deep cleaning)

Before you touch the job, money, or next big move, you clean and organize the space you live in.
It sounds too small to matter, but you cannot rebuild a life calmly while you are sitting in the middle of chaos.
A clear room is the first thing in your new life that you can fully control.

2 Ikigai comes second (Listening to your heart, living with purpose)

Once the space is clear, you look for the place where what you love meets what makes you feel good.
You do not need every answer today, only the link between those two things.
Everything you build after this gets built around that link, so it has to come before the plan, not after it.

3 Put Kaizen into practice (Tiny steps, small pockets, bite by bite)

Forget the five-year plan, because you are starting without one anyway.
Kaizen means getting about 1% better every day, in steps so small they almost feel silly.
Small daily steps are easier to keep up in real life than huge leaps, and kept up for a year, they stop being small.

4 Use Danshari to protect your fresh start (Uncluttering- letting go, simplifying)

Danshari means letting go of whatever overloads you, and that means your mind, not just your closet.
It includes your screen time, because what you scroll through every night shapes how you think.
Follow people who push your growth, and unfollow the ones who only pull you away from it.”

5 Use Moai as your support system (The importance of a circle- kindred spirits)

A moai is a small circle of people who keep showing up for each other.
You do not need a crowd, because two or three people who consistently back you are enough.
They make a hard new beginning easier to walk through, since you are no longer rebuilding alone.

6 Finally embrace Wabi Sabi (Imperfect, unfinished, & incompletely beautiful)

There is no perfect way to start over, and waiting for one is how people stay stuck in the old life.
Wabi-sabi means accepting the imperfect result and finding the beauty in it anyway.
So you take the messy outcome, and you keep moving forward in your own way.