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Dreaming Big While Living Small

Dreaming Big While Living Small

How to Use Your Apartment as a Tool for Future Success

Your apartment is your home, your sanctuary. And for those currently living in small apartments but hosting big goals and ambitions, your apartment should also be a space to help you achieve them. At the very least, look at your small apartment not as a pit stop, but as an station that will help you get to your future terminus. Here are some ways you can use your small apartment as an important tool for your future success:

De-Clutter

This is the most important step in creating an effective and inspiring apartment, and it should really be the first one you take. Go through your stuff (seriously, go through everything) and get rid of anything you haven’t used in a year. Even though there may be a lot of “But what if…” thinking going on in your head, the truth is that if you haven’t used it in the past 12 months, you’re not very likely to use it in the next 12. De-cluttering your apartment will feel extremely refreshing once you’re done. Besides, if you’re sales-minded you may even be able to sell some stuff online and make some extra cash (just give yourself a short deadline to do so. If you can’t sell it in a short period of time, throw it out or take it to Goodwill).

Get a Desk

Desks don’t have to be big. In fact, “shop desks” and other types of compact desks are becoming more popular. You can also just use a simple, skinny table. The importance of having a desk though is having a designated workspace where you can actively engage your mind. This is where you should be using your computer, creating things, making notes, or (if you’re a student) studying. All too often people end up using their bed for these activities, but this has long been shown to be highly ineffective.

Put Up Some Shelves

Adding shelves to your walls will both help you save space (no need to bring in a full bookcase or extra tables) and will create a more “productive” atmosphere. Put books and other items that inspire you out on a shelf in a visible space. Near your desk is a great choice, for example.

Get a Plant (or Two)

Being in nature has been shown to be very beneficial to humans both physically and mentally. But since most of us can’t escape to nature all the time, having touches of it in your home is the next best thing. Besides, taking time to water plants can be very relaxing and even somewhat spiritual. So, get a plant that doesn’t take up a lot of space and put it on your windowsill or other area where it will get a decent amount of sunlight.

Use Bright Colors

Unless you happen to be highly motivated by blacks and slightly darker blacks (thanks, Archer), there’s no reason your apartment should be as dark as a dungeon. Use light, thin curtains to allow as much natural light to come in through your windows as possible, and furnish your apartment with bright, happy and/or serene colors. This will help to subconsciously keep your mood elevated and therefore make you a more productive person.

Keep it Clean

Many of us are natural slobs— especially at home— but that doesn’t mean we’re incapable of being neat and organized. Your apartment doesn’t have to be sparkling, but consider the fact that keeping your home on the neat side will help it feel bigger and more productive. At the very least, never let things get beyond your personal comfort level of neat vs. messy. If you ever find yourself getting stressed out by all the clothes on the floor and the plates piled up in the sink, it’s definitely time to clean ASAP.

Simple and Successful

Keep in mind that simplicity is often one of the most crucial keys to success (hence why de-cluttering your apartment is such an important first step). Small apartments can therefore be even more effective in helping you achieve your goals than a larger, more complex living space can. In fact, many of the most successful people in history had to get their start with relatively small and meager origins. So, view this time in your life as an important opportunity for you to simplify your life and focus on what really matters and what you want the most. You can do it!