Believe it or not, there are many spooky parts to the whole idea of interior decorating.

I know that when I was a kid, Halloween was one of the most exciting nights of the year. Trick-or-treating and dressing up in costume with friends and family were all part of what made it so much fun! But as we got older, we found out that there are some very spooky things about this holiday after all.

The costumes, for instance, can be frightening to little kids who don’t understand why they’re wearing them (and how long they’ll have to wear them). I remember one year, when my sister dressed me up as a fat farmer! You would think I could have been an adorable princess, but no! Fat farmer it was. Talk about terrifying! 

Then there’s the candy – at least some adults think it may not be safe. What about the tradition that says if you don’t get too many treats while trick-or-treating your house will be haunted by ghosts. All these things together can become real fears and completely take away the joy of this holiday!

There are many things in life that can be spooky to us – not just Halloween:

1. The unknown
2. Failure
3. Losing someone you love
4. What others think of us
5. Aging without dignity or purpose
6. Not being able to keep up with the world around us

We let the scary parts take over our minds, and can hinder us from enjoying the beauty, excitement and fun found all around us!

Believe it or not, there are many spooky parts to the whole idea of interior decorating:

1. It’s hard to know what will look good together.
2. You have to buy expensive things.
3. You can’t make changes later on.
4. There are so many products out there, it’s overwhelming!
5. The perfect color for your walls might not match the rest of your furniture or accessories. 
6. Your home is a reflection of you, and if you don’t like it, nobody else will either.

Photo credit: LifeHack.org

So how do we get past these fears in our lives that seem to want to take over our minds and silence our lives? There isn’t a perfect formula, nor is this an exhaustive list. However, this is an excellent start to moving beyond fears into an action plan!

Identify what you’re afraid of.

Make a list of your greatest fears and worst case scenarios. Define what is realistic and what is not.

Create an action plan to face your fears.

Once you have made a list of realistic fears, start listing at least one action for each fear. What can you do to face each of your fears, that moves them from stressing your mind to unpacking it and giving it a new address.

Break the fear into manageable steps.

Truly unpacking our fears is sometimes a surprising conclusion for us. We can see where things in our past, or futures, may play into what we think is fear, when in reality, it is merely ghosts that have taken on new forms. Breaking it down helps show us that we know the next steps we need to take.

Do something that makes you feel uncomfortable every day, including trying new things or making phone calls. 

As comfort driven people, doing something “uncomfortable” each day doesn’t sound appealing. But pushing yourself to do things that are uncomfortable to you is a wonderful exercise and discipline to face what is complex and do something about it anyway.

Practice self-compassion and reassure yourself when you’re feeling anxious – don’t let your fears get the best of you!

Remember, the race is run mile by mile. You will win some battles, and you may even lose some, but don’t stop fighting. Give yourself room to retrain yourself on how to identify and face your fears.

Find someone who can help support and encourage you when it gets tough.

We want to be this someone for you to face your decorating fears, but you should also have someone in your life for any other fears you may face. Fear is a peculiar thing. It is huge when it is alone inside of us, but once you share it with something else, it gets smaller and easier to put into perspective.

Fear is like a fog that covers your mind and makes everything look spooky. But, tackling those fears allows the fog to lift, and you may be surprised that what you thought looked terrifying, is actually a beautiful journey and not so spooky at all.

Decorating your home can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be. Once you break down the process into bite size chunks and tackle one fear at a time, things don’t appear so dreadful. From figuring out what style of decor would fit best in your space to picking colors that will work with the items you already own, we can help make this process less daunting. If any of these ideas sound intimidating or overwhelming for you, contact us today! Our team specializes in helping people face their fears by breaking them down into manageable pieces. We’ll do the same for yours! 

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Interiors Revitalized is a full-service home staging, model home merchandising, and interior design firm located in Jacksonville Florida.  In addition to Jacksonville, we serve the  St. Johns, St. Augustine, Orange Park, Fleming Island, and Fernandina Beach areas. Contact us today at 904.625.2214 to discuss your home staging or interior design project.  We’ll make that first offer your best offer!

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