When people are faced with the prospect of moving-transferring themselves and their belongings to a new residence - most feel over whelmed, sad and scared. What would it take for the person moving to feel in control, grateful, and ready to embrace the new?

Four (4) key strategies can help accomplish this shift:

1. Take charge of your move.

2. Don't wait till you have to move. The whole move is experienced differently when you are proactive about it. Plan your move and move your plan.

3. Create a context. Think of your move as an opportunity to reflect on the past and evaluate the present, and set a course for the future. See it as an inner as well as an outer journey, a transformation as well as a transition.

4. Take small steps. Give yourself plenty of lead-time. Take time out during a routine day to go through just one drawer, or a shelf of a closet. Decide who can use the things you no longer need or want, and arrange for them to get where they're going.
Don't just move - move on.

Barbara Perman, PhD

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