Want a Better Life? Take a Moment to “Clean the Glass”

The sliding glass door was filthy. Our apartment’s balcony has a great park view, but Sacramento’s rainy season had given the door a film of splotchy dust. I stared at it for weeks thinking, “I really should clean that.” Every time, I shrugged my mental shoulders and thought, “It’s good enough.”

About a week ago, I had a little time between commitments, and the slider door once again caught my eye. I decided I’d put it off long enough and finally took fifteen minutes to clean the glass. The difference was amazing. The view became so vibrant and clear that I couldn’t stop looking at it. And of course, the thought that went through my head was, “That was so worth it. Why did I put this off for so long?”

How often have I done the same thing with my personal growth? I know there are things that need a little work – physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual windows that have gotten dirty through the rainy seasons of life. Areas that need attention. But when I look at them all, I get overwhelmed. I feel paralyzed, so I put off doing anything. I rationalize and say, “Good enough.” My friendships are “good enough.” My physical health is “good enough.” My level of fear and anxiety is “good enough.” My relationship with God is “good enough.” But a “good enough” perspective won’t get me the life I really want.

I’m not talking about perfectionism or chasing an unrealistic ideal. I’ve fallen into that trap before, and it just leads to feeling like a failure most of the time. And I don’t mean a measurement of personal worth either, as in whether or not I am “good enough.” I believe my worth and personal identity comes from who I am, or more specifically, whose I am – God’s child. Regardless of what you base those things on, that’s a different category than what I’m talking about here.

As I did with cleaning the slider door, I’ve procrastinated taking personal growth steps so many times. Like finding a new place to volunteer helping people who are struggling with homelessness. I had an organization in Phoenix I regularly worked with, but I’ve put off starting up again since I moved to Sacramento. I’d gotten out of the habit. I told myself I was too busy. Too tired. In reality, I was scared to try someplace new. Eventually, I told myself to volunteer just once with a local group I’d read about. I finally did, and I loved it.

I needed to break down my bigger goal of helping to address the homeless crisis in Sacramento into smaller steps and then tell myself I only needed to take the first one. Now the feeling of accomplishment motivates me to keep going. As usual, the hardest part was just getting started. Like when I took in the view through clean glass, I wondered why I had put off volunteering for so long.

So what sliding glass door do you need to clean in your life today? It it a mental, emotional, physical, or spiritual one? What small step can you take in just one area? Maybe it’s going for a walk to kickstart your physical goals. Or meditating for 3 minutes with the Calm phone app to work on your anxiety. It might be checking out the website of that church you’ve been meaning to try. Sending that text to a struggling friend you’ve been thinking about. Tidying up that one room. Start small. Do that one thing, then enjoy the beautiful view through the glass. If you do, you’ll take another important step toward Becoming Yourself.