LESS STUFF, MORE GRATITUDE

As Ayşe sifted through her wardrobe, she kept tossing every outfit onto the bed with a frustrated sigh, even though each one first made her think, “This might work.” They looked nice on the hanger, but none of them felt right on her. Ironically, she had bought them all with such excitement. Now her wardrobe couldn’t even hold them; they were piled on top of each other, waiting to be worn.

“I honestly have nothing proper to wear!” she muttered while searching for something suitable for tomorrow’s job interview. And as if she hadn’t created this mess herself, she called out, irritated:

“Mom! Mooom! Can you come here? I can’t find my ice-blue shirt. And I’m looking for the pencil skirt my aunt bought me—it’s not here either… Ugh, this place is a disaster…”

Her mother, clearly tired of the situation, said:

“Of course you can’t find anything. This room looks like a market stall. And you keep buying more. Your credit cards are full because of it. Ayşe, how will we ever tidy this place?”

Ayşe didn’t show it, but she knew her mother was right. Still, those attractive store displays made it hard for her to resist buying “Just one more thing.” Ready-made outfits were her weakness. The real struggle was keeping that feeling once she brought them home. Before long, her wardrobe felt like a black hole swallowing everything. It had become a cycle. If she wanted to get out of it, she needed to make even a small effort.

But taking that “small” step was harder than imagining it. Her habits, the things she carried from childhood, the comforts she reached for when stressed… Acting outside of all that sounded easy, but doing it felt like trying to move a heavy stone.

Then she remembered something she had read in a blog: “When you begin something, start with the easiest part. Before entering the sea, you first place your feet in the water.” She had thought about that sentence all day and then forgotten it. Now that it came back to her, she took it as a sign and followed it.

She began with the easiest thing to let go of:

A purple velvet dress caught her eye—the one that needed its sleeves adjusted. She put it in a cloth bag to take to the tailor. Then she pulled out everything she had bought online that never truly fit her—things she had kept 'for when I lose weight.' She spread them out: some to sell, some to donate. “A small step right now.” she said, uploading photos of a couple of items.

What she didn’t realize was that this small action had started a full cleaning mission. At last, she saw the results: her room shed its clutter and became neat and calm. She already felt lighter. Looking at her wardrobe, she thought, “Finally, I can actually find something I can use.” Once she felt the comfort of simplicity, the remaining clutter bothered her even more.

A familiar saying came to mind: “Less people, more peace.”

No, she thought.

“It’s really: Less stuff, more peace.”

It felt like not just her room but her mind had been cleared. As she walked to the kitchen to make herself a well-deserved cup of coffee, she turned back and looked at her room—she smiled. Her thoughts and her room were finally in order.

She told her younger brother in the kitchen: “You know, people should get rid of whatever they don’t use.”

“Huh?”

“Because it just weighs you down.”

“Abla, what are you even saying…”

“Here, hold this glass. It feels light at first, then heavy.”

“Oh please, just let me be…”

Ayşe continued smiling, warmed by a quiet sense of relief, as she sipped her coffee.

“People should simplify.” she thought. From head to toe…

She didn’t yet realize she had begun a journey of decluttering—starting with her home and belongings, and eventually reaching the unnecessary thoughts and information weighing down her mind.

 

The Experiential Design Teaching is about helping people discover their true purpose.

It guides them toward clear, conscious awareness so they can make the right choices and decisions. It offers practical strategies for solving real problems.

Programs beginning with “Who’s Who”, followed by “Mastery in Relationships,” “Psychology of Success,” and “Mastery in Avoidance,” help people become happier and more successful than the person they were yesterday.