Long ago I learned about how bad people are with endings. It’s a lesson that I forget from time-to-time, and have to remind myself, as my life starts getting cluttered.

Just as your home can be cluttered with so much useless crap, so can your life be cluttered with things you should have ended long ago. An old girlfriend who you didn’t quite drop, even though she’s bad news. A hobby you sort of started but are really only half-assed interested in.

I lose focus if I allow this clutter to clog up my life. I’ve learned to do a few things well, say no to lots of others, and not be afraid to purge stuff from my life. I change, and my interests change. It’s ok to force endings. It’s important and necessary to complete endings. It allows you to move on. It allows you to focus your limited time and attention on the few important things in your life. It’s your life, own it and run it as you see fit. You answer to no one except yourself.

I was challenging myself as I wrote this as to what I should have ended. I quickly realized there were three things I needed to clearly end. These three were starting to intrude on my time and attention after an absence where I was hoping they might have just gone away. Not likely, since they involved other people’s priorities and demands of me, and were not my priorities. I resolved to clearly end them and took action. I do not want the distractions. I do not need the clutter.

What do you need to clean up by ending in your life?