Newspaper Clipping Overwhelm

Dear Maura,
Please convince me to rid myself of the bags of clipped newspaper articles waiting for me to read in the garage. They are really worthwhile in that they are about people who have contributed much to society, medical news of interest, history, travel. Help!

Answer

A few suggestions:

1) put all the clippings together (you don't have to take them out of the bags, just group the bags together) and estimate how long you think it would take to read everything. Are you willing to spend that much time? If so, schedule time once or twice a week just for reading, and stick to it. If not, go to step two.

2) Will the info still be relevant when you read the articles? This would be especially true of travel articles, as the information will probably be outdated if you do not intend to travel to that spot within the next year.

3) Could the information be easily found with an internet search? If so, perhaps you can give yourself the gift of letting go of the bags in the garage, knowing that you could find the info on the internet if you had a reason to do so.

Obviously the bags are causing you some stress, or you wouldn't be asking for help. We all have "oughtas and shoulds" in our lives, but if the piles are only growing, it is a message that there are other things you prefer to do with your time. By letting go, you give yourself the gift of less stress in your life.

Hope this helps.