It Has To Be Me Episode

DECLUTTER YOUR LIFE WITH MINIMALISM

Shira Gill

Episode #31: December 5th, 2024

THE GOLD FROM THIS EPISODE

“Minimalism is being radically intentional. It’s not just about the things you own, but how you spend your time, energy, and resources. It's about clarifying what's most important so you can clear the distractions that stand in the way.”

Shira Gill

Professional Organizer, Author, and Life Coach

“Having it all is a myth, and attempting to juggle it all at once is a dead-end street. Make peace with your limitations, define success on your own terms, breathe, and remind yourself that less is always available. Identify the things you value most, lean way in, and let the rest go.”

Shira Gill

Professional Organizer, Author, and Life Coach

“To simplify your life, create systems and form habits that support your goals. Think about what is important, bake it in, and make it easy and repeatable.”

Shira Gill

Professional Organizer, Author, and Life Coach

“When you look at any situation, adjust the volume. Do you have too much and need to dial down, edit, and subtract? Or, do you want to build, invest, and add?”

Shira Gill

Professional Organizer, Author, and Life Coach

“A belief is just a thought you've practiced a lot. We can question and shift our beliefs at any time. Your brain is like an overstuffed closet. Look inside, get conscious about your beliefs, and let go of the ones that are not making your life better.”

Shira Gill

Professional Organizer, Author, and Life Coach

“With any sort of behavioral shift, our brains will have temper tantrums. Create habit loops with a cue, a behavior, and a reward. Make the action micro, fun, and bring in other people for support.”

Shira Gill

Professional Organizer, Author, and Life Coach

“Turn envy into inspiration. Envy is the biggest teacher. If you pay attention to who you’re envious of and why, it's a roadmap to your true desires.”

Shira Gill

Professional Organizer, Author, and Life Coach

“The “15-minute win” strategy gets your brain out of overwhelm and into action. Pick a task, set a timer, and see what can get done.”

Shira Gill

Professional Organizer, Author, and Life Coach

“Take the big overwhelming thing and make the action as tiny and achievable as possible. What's screaming out most loudly for your attention?”

Shira Gill

Professional Organizer, Author, and Life Coach

“There is an upside to lowering the bar. Decide what you want to be bad at on purpose. Accept that there are places where you’re not curious to be better, and focus on the things you want to improve.”

Shira Gill

Professional Organizer, Author, and Life Coach

in THIS EPISODE

  • Need to reduce overwhelm? Shira Gill, professional organizer and author of LifeStyled takes us inside her proven toolkit to help you edit and elevate your home, career, relationships, finances, or health.

  • Shira recalls her parents’ combative divorce, and how schlepping her stuff between two homes showed her that more stuff means more anxiety. As an 8-year-old, she taught herself to organize her spaces as a way to have some control of her chaotic world.

  • As an adult, she realized that possessions and clutter are triggers for everybody, and minimalism is the key—to prioritizing what you want, and creating the space to make it happen.

  • Forget the stark white walls and beige furniture. Shira redefines minimalism. It’s being intentional about where we place our time, energy, and resources. Rather than focusing on the lack of something, her approach is about having the right amount without the excess. And, since doing everything is impossible, it’s up to us to decide what matters most at any given time.

  • Shira lays out the core principles of her system. Then, walks us through practical ways we can organize our homes, maximize our time, set boundaries in relationships—and say “no” in order to say “yes” to what we value most.

  • Shira’s less-is-better approach and “15-Minute Wins” will launch you out of overwhelm and into action for your next “It has to be me!”

TESS'S TAKEAWAYS

  • Minimalism can be defined as intentionally doing less to prioritize what’s important.

  • A cluttered mind and home trigger emotional responses and stress.

  • Organizing your home and mind helps you clarify what’s important and make room for it.

  • Empty your brain like an overstuffed closet, and let go of the beliefs that don’t serve you.

  • Creating habit loops with a cue, a routine, and a reward helps to implement behaviour changes.

  • 15-Minute Wins get you out of overwhelm and into action to chip away at your goals.

  • Implementing sustainable systems simplifies your routine and increases productivity.

  • Turn envy into inspiration and use it as a roadmap for what you want to bring into your life. 

ABOUT SHIRA

Based in San Francisco, Shira Gill is a home-organizing expert, speaker, coach, and bestselling author of the books Minimalista, Organized Living, and LifeStyled.

Her minimalist approach is guided by the intimate relationship between people’s homes and their lives, and how they inform and inspire each other. 

Shira has helped thousands reduce physical and mental clutter and prioritize what matters. Her signature 3-step toolkit and organization method are effective tools for anyone to use, regardless of budget, space, or lifestyle.

Shira’s work has been featured in The New York Times, Vogue, Dwell, Architectural Digest, InStyle, Real Simple, Harper’s Bazaar, Goop, and HGTV, and many others. 

A featured expert on Good Morning America and an ambassador for Williams Sonoma, Shira has spoken for audiences at Google, Well+Good, and TedX.