Last weekend, one of my absolute favorite things happened: we got to "Spring Forward" and get back that precious extra hour of daylight. Yes, I do live in Los Angeles and some people might say we don't exactly suffer in the winter. (Recently, we had a "severe weather alert" because it was going to RAIN. Even I admit that's a little ridiculous.) But I swear sometimes it feels cold here. Really cold. And like many people, my general mood seems to be strongly connected to the seasons.

 I was reading an interesting article in Psychology Today that talked about how Seasonal Affect Disorder has been proven to be more common in creative types.  It cited an example from The American Journal of Psychiatry which speculates that poet, Emily Dickinson, showed seasonal changes of mood and productivity in her writing. In the summers of 1858 through 1859, Dickinson wrote three times as many poems as she did in either the falls or winters of those particular years. And, in general, her writing in the winter focused on darker topics such as death and loneliness, while her work in the warmer seasons was more optimistic and joyful.

While I'm no Dickinson, I'm looking forward to shedding those winter blahs and being more positive and productive. And I love having that extra daylight to go for a run, walk my pooch, play tennis or just write in a little spot of sunshine. As Spring fast approaches, you too may be feeling a renewed sense of energy and optimism for life. It's a great time to harness that energy to set new goals or recommit to old ones, like those pesky New Year's resolutions. Remember them?

It's also the perfect time to clear the clutter - both mental and physical - in your life with a little Spring Cleaning. Tackling even one messy room or shelf can give you that sense of a fresh start. I personally have a closet that's beginning to look like a massive junk pile of random stuff. Now seems like the perfect time to clear it out and get organized. To give myself a little extra motivation to get on it, I'm planning a Spring Fever party at the end of the month. Cost of admission: a donation for Goodwill. I figure maybe I'll inspire my friends to clear some of their clutter, too, while helping out a worthy cause. And I'll be making my party faves -Love Punch and Jell-O Shots - just to keep it interesting. 

So, how about you? What goals do you want to set for the spring? What clutter would you like to shed to feel lighter in your life? As I always suggest to my clients, get specific about it. Say what you're going to do, by when you're going to do it and tell someone who matters to hold you accountable. Whatever you decide to do with your Spring Fever, take some time to enjoy the sense of renewal around you this season and reflect on how you can create that in your own life as well. 
 
Talk soon! 

Libby