National Clean Up Day

September 17, 2022 is national clean-up day.   From coast to coast people will be cleaning up beaches, trails, parks, mountains and any other public space they see fit.  What do you want to clean up in your personal space?  Clean-up can be anything you want it to be.   Your office, garage or relationships are all great places to start.

Clean Up Your Tax Files

Start your National Clean Up Day in your office.  Your office may have files that are beyond what is legally needed.  According to the IRS you need to “keep files for 3 years from the date you filed your original return or 2 years from the date you paid the tax, whichever is later, if you file a claim for credit or refund after you file your return.  Keep records for 7 years if you file a claim for a loss from worthless securities or bad debt deduction”.   https://irs.gov

Check Out Your Tax Files

Go ahead and check your records.  How long do they go back:  five or ten years or more?   Mine went back to the beginning of my work history.  Yikes! Talk about a need for National Clean-Up Day in my office.    Grab those records out of storage, dust them off and dispose of them properly.  Do you keep your old files in your office, under your bed or in the garage? 

Clean Out Your Garage

If those tax records are in your garage…. BONUS this will help you downsize and start clean up in your garage as well.  What else is stored in your garage?  Along with files that may be hiding out you may have boxes, bikes, bins or skate or snow boards.    The garage is often a dumping ground of everything we don’t know what to do with.   If you take a look in your garage how many boxes are you storing for old computer equipment or tools?  If you move, there are other options and really what are the odds you will find those particular boxes and that you will still have those exact items in five years?

Besides boxes, ask yourself when was the last time you rode the bikes or used the boards?   If they are items that you use and want to keep you need to create a way to store them so they are easily assessible.  Check out wall racks for items that you want to keep or store.   You can find great storage units and wall mounts at your local Ace Hardware stores, big box or even on your local online market place.

Now is the time to really take a hard look at items in your garage.   This truly is the flood gate to a lot of clutter that makes its way into your home on a daily basis.   Stop the clutter from even entering your home.   This alone will save you time and money.   Make a conscience decision to think about everything that you allow into your garage which will eventually make its way into every nook and cranny of your home.  Your garage is just another area of your home to consider on National Clean Up Day.

Strengthen Your Relationships

Now the fun part of National Clean Up Day.   Relationships!   According to Eugenetherapy.com

“They are a cornerstone of happiness and living a full life.  This is because they come with a wide array of rewards.   They provide us with friends and family to share our lives and people who can help us out in tough times”.  

Eugenetherapy.com

 Start by making a list of those people that you not only need to spend time with but those that you love to spend time with; you know those friends that just get you and you laugh so hard that wine comes out your nose.   Now that is a Great Relationship!   Being intentional in these relationships is key.  Dust off and Clean Up the cob webs on those relationships.  Grab your calendar, a phone and a box of notecards.  

Make a call to reconnect and make plans for getting together. Even, if you have to plan for a future date on your calendar . . . .  make plans.   If distance is too great or the timing is not good, take the time to write a hand note to that special person to tell them how much you care about them.   Remember Clean Up Day is for more than just the clutter in your life…..  Clean up the distance in your relationships and let those you care about know just what they mean to you.

I Thessalonians 5:11 “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing”