Project

Gretchen Rubin starts with a confession about her closet in her book The Happiness Project. "I've never been very good at folding, so messy, lopsided towers of shirts and sweaters jammed the shelves," says the author of self-help bestseller. "I had to muscle my way into a mass of wool and cotton to pull anything out."

The Happiness Project, for the not-so-happy readers, is a monthly action plan guide to change the life. And to those who feel happy, this book can remind us we aren't as happy as we should be. That means an extra serving of happiness.

Once I'd finished the chapter on closet clutter, I went straight to my messy desk tonight. Next I told myself to follow Gretchen's tips and set aside one bag for throwaways. As I dived in and started weeding, I made a mental note of Gretchen's classification to size up the clutter: nostalgic clutter (relics I clung to from my old days), conservation clutter (instruction manuals I've kept because they're useful - even though they're useless to me), freebie clutter (gifts and giveaways that I didn't use), aspirational clutter (things that I owned but only aspired to use, such as calligraphy guide).

I don't know how much time I'd spent in clearing out my desk (not my drawers, if I'm to be honest), but you can take my word for it that there aren't many projects as happy as removing an eyesore.

I know, because I try.