Humans are great at creating a mess.
In fact, we’re wired to be messy because we’re all creators. A mess is simply the result of creation. We create things from energy, which then creates a mess.
From toddlers to adults, we create all kinds of physical messes.
- Children create mess in their rooms from play and discovery.
- Adults create mess in their pursuit of work, hobbies and interests.
- Families create mess in their gathering and means of survival.
Creating messes is inevitable. The point is not to avoid being messy. Our mess is often a beautiful part of being human.
However, there is a cost to NOT cleaning up our mess.
A messy environment requires more energy to be in.
It requires more energy to navigate.
For example:
- A dirty room requires more energy to move and play in.
- A chaotic work environment requires more energy to focus and execute in.
- A messy house requires more energy to enjoy and relax in.
Messy environments keep our nervous system under stress.
They keep us from realizing rest and peace.
The rest and peace comes after we clean up our mess. After we pick up the things that make our environment hard to navigate and be in. After we give our nervous system a break from deploying constant energy.
In addition, our mess isn’t always physical.
We tend to create a lot of emotional and intellectual messes.
- We store feelings about a relationship.
- We hold thoughts on a project or initiative.
- We keep avoiding an important truth, conversation or realization.
These are all forms of mess that require energy to sustain. They keep our nervous system under constant stress, which again, prevents us from realizing rest and peace.
So the better question becomes – what’s the cost of NOT realizing rest or peace?
Lack of clarity.
Humans who never rest will never see or think clearly.
Humans who rarely find peace will rarely feel clarity in their lives.
We’ll continue to operate under stress, in the mess, with no clear direction or vision.
Our clarity comes from cleaning up our mess.
What mess do you need to clean up?
Ali Jafarian
Ali is a family man, conscious leader and serial entrepreneur with a deep drive to create. He writes, designs and builds things to inspire the real human experience.
