Feng Shui for Real Life

The goal of Feng Shui adjustments is to bring your interior environment into balance with the natural world around you. The best way to do this is to make it an every day habit to tune in to the changing seasons and make adjustments in your home to reflect what is going on around you at different times of the year.

Even small seasonal Feng Shui adjustments can yield big results.

That means as the cooler weather approaches and you find yourself spending more time indoors, you can begin some of those projects you put off during the warmer months, like clearing all that “stuff” from your attic or basement. Removing what you don’t need from these areas can have a profound affect, because what’s in your attic weighs down on you and what’s in your basement supports you. Clearing clutter from these areas helps you move forward.
Then, as you approach winter and limited daylight, make adjustments that bring more light into your interior environment, including switching to full spectrum light bulbs that simulate natural daylight.

Here are a few more of my favorite Feng Shui tips for fall:

• Pull up dead summer flowers in the garden rather than leaving them all winter because they represent stale chi.

• Display a bowl of fresh red apples in your kitchen to symbolize that your table will never be empty and you can always afford to feed your family.

• Clear the cobwebs from your outdoor furniture before you cover it for the winter because they symbolize being so wrapped up and stuck that you can’t move forward.

• Even if the weather outside is chilly, open your windows occasionally during the fall months to let in some fresh chi.

• Remove dead leaves from your gutters and roof because they represent dead chi accumulating on top of your home.

• Trim back any large limbs that overhang your house because they symbolize extra “weight” on your shoulders.

• Rearrange your furniture to bring new energy into a room, even if you only move the sofa a few inches closer to the window or the lamp to a different side of the table.

• It’s OK to wear a mask for Halloween, but avoid hanging masks on the wall, especially in a bedroom, because they symbolize “hiding” or “covering up” something.

• Start a new fall habit - when you change your clocks back to standard time also toss expired packages and old spices from your pantry.

Feng Shui cures can wear out over time - colors fade, furniture wears out or goes out of style, your preferences in art change - and that’s why I recommend that after you complete a year of Feng Shui changes, you start again and re-new, re-adjust, and re-align your improvements. You can find a Feng Shui tip-a-day calendar in my book, the Feng Shui Quick Guide For Home and Office.