Moving Aaah$*)&@#$!

I moved apartments on Monday. Wow. I forgot just how awful it is to move. It had been 3 years since I last moved and I am quite amazed at my brain’s capacity to forget how precisely painful something is. Like childbirth or running marathons. The silver lining is that I got a PixieTip idea out of it because Katie recently moved as well. Moving creates a host of issues, logistical and emotional, and pushes different personality’s hot buttons in different ways. Katie and I have gleaned a few pieces of advice for various types as well as some universal tips to make moving easier.

First up, always expect the unexpected on moving day. For Classics (SJ), Organic Structures (NFJ) and Smart Structures (NTJ) that means planning for battle and anticipating as many things that could go wrong on moving day and planning for the ones you can. This means both mentally preparing for things to go awry — you move on the day of a snowstorm and your moving truck gets stuck on the hill — and sometimes taking action like scheduling a carpenter to help your couch fit in your new home on the day of the move because you’ve eye balled measured entry ways and turns in the new place. Potentially this is only an apartment/urban problem but hopefully you get my drift in terms of preparing for crisis both mentally and physically. 

As for Funs (SP), Organic Freedoms (NFP) and Smart Freedoms (NTP), anticipating things that might never happen isn’t your bag, just know something will go wrong and you’ll come up with a solution. Your brains are wired to be calm in a crisis (or more calm than the rest of us) so know that you can handle things in the moment even if you don’t think you can. You’re all probably the origination of the term “johnny on the spot” — and I mean that in the old meaning of that phrase not the one used for port-a-potties.  

Moving on to a universal tip — moving costs money. This seems obvious but there’s always a little more extra involved in moving if you’re going to do it right. There’s paying for actual movers or boxes and a van and then there’s new hooks or new bath mats or new closet organizers. Also, one of the things we do with clients is look at there existing stuff and know exactly where stuff is going to go in the new place. If there isn’t a home then we know we need to help them add a home or they need to purge stuff before moving. Often this means hiring a handyman to put up shelves or hooks or new closets, etc. There’s always more cost involved than the actual move. Be prepared for this reality. 

Next up is trying to get properly settled or feel settled. It takes a long time to actually BE fully settled. But I mean that initial feeling when a new place starts to feel like home. Katie said that her moment of peace was when she put up a special drawing our mom did of her grandparents. Katie propped it up on top of her china cupboard in her dining room and even though she still had boxes to unpack, she felt physically settled. The trick for Organics (NF) and likely a few Classic Freedoms (SFJ) and Fun Freedoms (SFP) is to find that bit of Zen that equivalent of our mother’s drawing propped up on a wall, which allows you to breath again. Shoulders relaxed. 

Finally, get it done types need to unpack almost every box to feel initially settled, regardless of that zen spot. This means unpack everything and put it away as a Step 1  — a sort of rough draft organization. Then once you’ve unpacked a room move on to Step 2, which is sort of like editing your rough draft or fine tuning your initial organization. I’d advise you to focus on kitchen and bedroom(s) on the first day doing Step 1 and Step 2 if possible. The really smart thing I did was pack a suitcase as if I was going somewhere for a week (and for my kids). This allowed me to take more time and really do Step 2 in my kitchen and bedroom without it impeding my daily responsibilities. The two-step tip would be useful to Classics (SJ), Organic Structures (NFJ) and Smart Structures (NTJ) but the suitcase one is universal. 

Katie’s tip for Funs (SP), Organic Freedoms (NFP) and Smart Freedoms (NTP) is to really get a room right the first time. She thinks doing two steps is a step toward disaster for a P. If you do a rough draft, there’s a chance that rough draft will linger forever because they’re almost good enough. But rough drafts are so called for a reason. They NEED to be fine tuned. A “J” personality type will go back and fine tune almost always. A “P” might get distracted because there’s much to do when you move. So, focus on something achievable on the first day and do them perfectly — A few key cabinets in the kitchen, the bathroom, your dresser drawers etc. — then move on doing your first and final version inch by inch. 

Finally, don’t compare yourself to how long it took other people to settle their homes after a move. You don’t know their personality type or their exact situation. Some moves are easier than others.