How to Find Your Groove After You Move
It feels so darn good to be HOME. But everything that goes along with moving and settling in? Well, we all know it’s a big ol’ process! There have been a lot of firsts for us since buying our house, which is exciting yet at times overwhelming. You can check out our First Time Home Buying Q+A right over here if you want to see what we’ve learned so far.
Moving is a perfect time to re-evaluate, donate, purge and declutter, but all the upheaval is also disruptive as heck, especially when you work from home. You see, sometimes the drive to simplify is both a blessing and a curse. Disorganization causes me a lot of stress and frustration. So, while we’ve been getting our new house in order, I'm doing my best with the parts of it that I can control, and using it as an opportunity to survey our old habits, build new routines and make better choices going forward.
Here are a few things I’ve discovered since our move that have helped me find my groove in this new space:
1. Find a New Flow.
Getting back into a routine after moving is tough. I’m a big proponent of using morning routines as a way to jumpstart the day and set myself up for a positive, centered, and focused work flow. However, after we moved into our new house, I immediately realized my old morning routine didn’t feel right anymore. I’ll admit it caught me off guard in an already chaotic transition. I so badly wanted to just slip back into my old, comfortable routine. But, I knew it was time to reassess and readjust. I am still adapting and find a new morning flow that feels intuitive in this new setting. It takes time to find that comfort, so no matter how misaligned you might feel, just know it’s not permanent.
2. Prioritize Areas to Tackle First.
It’s a lot of work to physically move, let alone unpack and then furnish a new place… all whilst keepin’ up with work, side hustle, and a social life. You get me. Multi-tasking has been debunked as anything but productive, so prioritize the spaces you want to work on first, and tackle it one by one. Where do you spend most of your time? Andrew and I focused on our kitchen and living room first, since that felt the most organic. Tour our kitchen + living room here.
3. Give Yourself Space.
The month leading up to our move (and the month after), I started flexing my ‘no’ muscle. I said no to social gatherings, non-urgent meetings, unnecessary commitments, and beyond. I turned down lots of work that had a deadline within my moving time frame, and I significantly cut down my workload until I felt settled. I know not everyone is able to do this, but I worked very hard leading up to my move so I could take some sporadic time off. I recommend anyone who is moving to set some boundaries and allow yourself the space to really process and re-align yourself during this transition.
4. Organize + Delegate.
I’m one of those gals who likes to unpack immediately, buy furniture immediately, and get back to the groove as soon as freakin’ possible. I go ALL IN until it’s over. Andrew on the other hand is a more lax, go-with-the -flow kind of guy. We really balance each other out, but sometimes these differences can make me feel like I have to do everything on my own. Couples therapy really helped me realize that I’m not in it alone, we just have different approaches. So, I had to chill my ‘go-go-go’ mentality, and Andrew had to meet me halfway, so it didn’t get dragged out. We ended up having so much fun doing all of this together… from building our own hexagon shelves to making this space truly reflect who we are. So, if you’re moving with a partner or a roomie, sit down together and make a list of what needs to be done in order of priority, and tackle it together.
5. Make Home-Cooked Meals ASAP.
Eating out meal after meal when your kitchen is in total chaos isn’t sustainable for very long. Both your body and your wallet will feel it. This is yet another reason we unpacked the kitchen first. I wanted to get back into the groove of making my morning matcha and cooking our meals at home. Once you get all of your drawers and cabinets organized, make it a priority to get to the grocery store and stock your fridge with your favorite meals and snacks, so it starts feeling like home. [Related: Simple Fridge & Pantry Tips to Reduce Food Waste]
I think what it really comes down to is giving yourself the flexibility, patience and space to settle in and get into your post-move groove. Creating unrealistic expectations or putting too much pressure on yourself is a surefire way to get frustrated and overwhelmed. Instead, stay present, enjoy the process and don’t sweat the small stuff. Slowly but surely things will fall into place.
If you’re looking for more ways to simplify, check out SIMPLIFY & THRIVE to dive deep into holistic decluttering from the mental to physical!
