How Thinking Negatively Helps You Get Positively Organized

How many times have you been told to “look on the bright side” or “think positively” or “stop stealing my fries when I’m not looking” (that last one might just be to me)? The general consensus seems to be that it’s better to focus on all the good things that the future is sure to bring than the bad things that are happening right now. Problem is, if you’re always planning for and looking to the future, you forget that you’re living here, now. 
I always ask my clients what they envision for their lives and spaces. It’s good to have a positive, guiding vision for what you want, but it’s even better to think about how your current actions support or undermine that vision. If you truly want a clean, simplified space, then continuing to hang on to stuff that undermines that ambition is pretty darn pointless. Whenever clients are stuck regarding getting rid of something that they freely admit they don’t particularly love or use, I ask them to go to the darkest possible outcome of letting it go.
What is the absolute worst thing that can happen if I get rid of this?
If the worst realistic consequence you can come up with (“I will completely forget my grandmother” is not a realistic consequence, by the way) is still better than continuing to live in a space that makes you unhappy, let it go.
So Eeyore it up, ladies and gentlemen. The worst case is rarely so, and the benefit of the perspective you gain far outweighs the temporary discomfort of thinking on the dark side.