I’m thrilled to announce that The Joy of Less Journal: Clear Your Inner Clutter is being released today—and I’m giving away 3 copies to celebrate!
Decluttering often makes you ask questions that go beyond possessions—you have to confront your past, let go of emotions or expectations, and decide what you want for your future. That’s why it feels so liberating: decluttering frees you of psychological baggage as well as physical baggage.
Sure, clearing out the inner clutter can be a little more challenging: we can’t just put our guilt or anxieties or fears out on the curb. However, we can give these little buggers the same inquisition we did our stuff, and decide once and for all to let them go.
In this journal, I help you do three things: Reduce Stress, Release Worries, and Restore Clarity. As I explain in the Introduction:
Over the course of this journal, we’ll ponder various ways to Reduce Stress. Commitments, expectations, and responsibilities pile up over the months and years, and rarely do we take the time (we don’t have any!) to purge them. The result: lots of less meaningful activities crowd out the more meaningful ones, leaving us weary and unfulfilled. Worse yet, our busyness can take a toll on our mental health, making us feel frustrated, helpless, and overwhelmed by our daily lives. As we write, we’ll strive to identify and eliminate our excess stressors and the pressures that go along with them. In so doing, we’ll regain a sense of empowerment and control over our lives, making for more-rewarding days and more-restful nights.
We’ll also write to Release Worries. (You may be surprised how powerful and life-changing this can be!) When we squirrel away negative feelings the way we do our stuff, they weigh on us and steal our joy. But now their days are numbered: one by one, we’re going to shake them out, see them for what they are, and send them on their way. When we do a clean sweep of our hearts, that old grudge, nagging guilt, or buried anger will no longer have a place to hide. Writing helps us identify our emotions in a detached, objective way—Hello, anxiety. What are you doing here?—and say good-bye to those that aren’t serving us well.
As we clear out the mental clutter, we Restore Clarity. This is the ultimate goal of our minimalist journey: to eliminate the extraneous, so as to focus on what’s truly special to us. We’ll explore various techniques to calm our muddy waters, filter out the detritus, and see what emerges from the clear and sparkling depths. We’ll contemplate what nourishes our souls and gives us a higher sense of purpose—whether it’s pursuing a passion, contributing to our community, or spending more time with our kids—and commit our time, attention, and resources to that end. The point of emptying our cups is that they stand ready to be filled with our hopes, dreams, and joy.
I’ve filled this journal with prompts and inspirational quotes designed to make your inner decluttering as effective and enjoyable as possible:
That quote in the middle (by Nathaniel Hawthorne) is one of my favorites:
She had not known the weight until she felt the freedom!
I invite you to come along this new journey with me—let’s get rid of those hangups that make us feel heavy, and bring a new lightness into our souls.
I’m giving away 3 copies of the journal to get us started. (Even if you’ve never journaled before, I encourage you to try it; I personally was amazed how transformative it can be!)
To enter the giveaway, simply leave a Comment below. If you’d like, let us know what inner clutter you’d like to get rid of.
I’ll keep the giveaway open until the end of Friday, October 28 and use the number generator at Random.org to choose the winners. Please be sure to use a legitimate email address, so that I can contact you to obtain your mailing information.
{The journal is available for purchase through Amazon, Powell’s, Barnes & Noble, Target, Walmart, Book Depository, Amazon UK, Waterstones, Readings, and QBD.}
I find journaling so therapeutic!! It seems to clear the fog and allow the light to shine on my mind! I could use some internal decluttering over some toxic relationships of my past. Thanks for the giveaway!! :)
As I continue to work on my clutter and get to the place of less stuff I need a guide like your book to keep me on track daily.
I love the idea of using journaling as a tool to help cultivate the lightness of a minimalist life! Thanks for the giveaway!
Your books on minimalism resonate deeply with me at this particular time in my life, thank you!
I need the tools to get me going and keep in heading in the right direction of releasing inner and outer objects
I just recently discovered your book and blog. Would love to read the Journal. :)
I would love to be able to say no to experiences that I probably will not enjoy!
There’s nothing quite like anxiety to create mountains of clutter in your head. I think journaling would be a great way for me to start sifting through some of it!
This seems perfect for when I tell my husband I just want to scrape the thoughts out of my brain like frosting out of the mixing bowl. Every last smidge gone!
I think journaling would be beneficial for me — I could definitely use more clarity and fewer worries — but I have not been able to get into it in the past. I’m thinking about buying this even if I don’t win.
I have never had a journal and it is something I would like to try. I want to not only clear out my mental clutter, stress, & worry,but my physical clutter as well. I want to regain my sanity that I seem to have lost along with myself over the many years of working, taking care of a disabled husband and trying to do everything myself. I am finally at retirement age and don’t even know who I am or what I want to do the remaining years of my life — I want to discover Me again! I think having a journal to help me put my thoughts to paper would really help to not only get a grasp on what I want to do, like, and also a game plan to get my home in order — which is another stress point. My home has missed me over the years while I have been working, it needs me too!
I’m making a slow transition from total pack rat towards minimalism. Love to hear other people’s
experiences and thought processes on their journeys. I lean on blogs like this to keep me going in the right direction.
I enjoy journaling. My inner clutter in the area of old hurts, old wounds might be resolved through journaling. This is something I would like to work on.
I really need this to help me with my emotional clutter and residual anger at my spouse. Counseling is helping a bit but, there is only so much they can do.
I loved “The Joy of Less”! Would love to get a copy of the journal as well.
How exciting, journal to clear up inner clutter. I hope I am chosen to receive a copy ;-)))
I would LOVE to have a copy of the journal! I have trouble with paper clutter + too many magazines + too many books.
I loved “The Joy of Less” and feel this journal would be a great help in holding me to task as I get rid of “clutter” in all areas.
I love to journal but have also fallen out of the habit in the midst of an international move and the resultant life changes so this sounds like it would be a great resources to sort through the changes I have been through and well as those I want to make.
I love this idea of minimizing my mental clutter!!
I would love to be entered, thanks!
I would love to do an inner decluttering as it is long overdue. This journal would be a wonderful start. Thank you for the opportunity to win.
Thank you for such a wonderful giveaway. Congratulations!!!!!
Sure could benefit from some mental decluttering…:)
Liane. :)
I’ve been reading books and blogs on decluttering, and also about hoarding but I still cannot let go of my physical clutter and toxic emotional baggage. I want to move on. I’ve tried journaling but never got beyond a few days because I don’t really know how to do it. I hope this journal will keep me motivated to carry on the difficult task of decluttering.
i would like to minimize my clutter in my mind and my home and make my life simpler.
I have so much internal clutter to get rid of! We’ve spent the last year dealing with sick elderly relatives and my mind is completely clogged with information and distractions (so I don’t have to think about what we’ve been dealing with!) I would like to get my inner world back on track again and your journal sounds perfect :)
I think this journal will give me the push to start decluttering again. I tried to do it but I lack the momentum as work and kids’ needs always become more urgent.
I haven’t journalled for years… perhaps its time so I can sort out the personal family stuff, like photos I still have boxed that I find difficult to decide what to do with, even after a couple of decades
This a great idea! I used to journal a lot when I was younger and sometimes when I find that journal it’s just nice to reread my little adventures, obstacles in life and how they were overcome :)
I would love to have a copy. The baggage I wish to declutter is regret.
Regret for not risking a chance, for not getting out when I could, for settling, for listening to my heart alone and not my gut, for breaking a heart I never even knew was mine.
All this must go.
Fantastic idea, just like my favorite Philosopher King Marcus Aurelius I would like to journal my minimal lifestyle with style :)
I would like to get rid of my boring job. While a job doesn’t seem like internal clutter, the thoughts and feelings that I have about the job are internal clutter.
Oooh exciting! Need some direction and this journal looks great for that :) as well as being very pretty…
I LOVE journaling to get rid of clutter. What a wonderful idea to make a companion to your book!
I have personally found the connection between decluttering your physical life leading to decluttering of your inner space. The additional time and energy and money you have can now be used for more life-giving things than accumulating and storing and maintaining and cleaning and organizing and fixing a bunch of stuff that doesn’t add joy to our lives. Looking forward to new insights this journal will provide me.
I loved the Joy of Less and my husband and I are just beginning our journey as empty-nesters. I am looking forward to working on my materialistic clutter as well as my emotional clutter that has piled up over the years.
Beginning the journey of living more with less. Would love to journal about it and get more inspiration!
I would love to stop worrying about what the future holds and start focusing on being present today!
The Joy of Less set me on my minimalist path and changed my life. Can’t wait to start the journal!
I would love a copy of this journal!
This is exactly what I need at this stage in my life. I’ve physically decluttered, now I’m ready to mentally declutter. Thanks for doing a giveaway!
This will be new for me to journal, but hoping it will help get rid my mental clutter of worrying/anxiety.
I would love to try this out! Thanks for a great blog.
Looks like a nice journal :)
I would love to win this journal! I have your original edition of the book and this would be a nice addition. I’d like to get rid of my emotional clutter. My anxiety and depression have been getting the better of me and I think journaling would be therapeutic.
I have never journaled and have always wanted to know how. I have seen the minimalist documentary, read your book, read Joshua Becker’s book and currently doing his course with my husband. I’ve been going through a horrible journey for the last 2 years. We are decluttering our lives and home. I am ready to start working on my inner clutter.
Hi there – thank you for giving three journals away :) I’d like to get rid of the clutter of all the ‘shoulds’… (as well as maybe sort out that linen closet)
Thank you
Writing my journal in the early morning helps me streamline my thoughts for the day. Writing at night results in writing down clutter, whereas my mind declutters itself over night. It’s not like “What have you been doing all day long? What shit happened to you?”, but more like “What are you about to do today?”
Long time journal writer. Would love to try something new.
I’d love to try this,sounds like a great idea.