Clearing the (Mental) Clutter
How to experience less noise and more inspiration this season.
A few nights ago, I headed upstairs for the kids’ bedtime routine. If I’m being honest, sometimes it feels like a long to-do list at the most exhausting part of the day. Lately, I’ve done an abbreviated version of bedtime more times than I’d care to admit.
But on this particular night, I didn’t feel like rushing through it. Instead, I crawled into Phoebe’s bed and had “talk time.” She filled me in on the latest about her teachers, who was “dating” who, thoughts on her first finals week, and various other 12-year-old dramas. As she talked, I realized how much I’d been missing these quiet, soul-nourishing moments amid the last month’s frantic pace.
Sometimes, it feels like there’s an inner battle happening between two sides of me. There’s the driven, Type A, entrepreneurial “me” who sets big goals and goes after them. She’s the Enneagram 3, always dreaming up new projects and secretly thriving in the hustle.
And then… there’s the other “me”—the one who wants to experience life slowly and softly. Who tends her vegetable garden, bakes bread, and savors conversations with friends over coffee. She takes time to savor the moments and knows there’s so much more to life than achievement.
I think many of us feel this dichotomy. You might call it our masculine and feminine energies, two forces we tap into depending on what life asks of us. Lately, my own life has required more of the hard-driving side. It’s been a year of massive change in the digital media industry, plus juggling an e-comm startup, launching our magazine, and wanting to show up each day as the mother I want to be—I’ve had to be on my A-game to keep the plates spinning.
And it explains why I’ve been feeling an internal pull towards rest in the weeks ahead. Not as an escape, but as a way to nurture the soil where new ideas and creativity can grow. It’s less about “taking a break” than about creating space for what matters. Sometimes when we do less, we actually achieve more. It’s about tending the earth, planting the seeds, and trusting that something beautiful will grow in the new year.
To help with this shift, I asked our managing editor, Isabelle Eyman, to share her wisdom on clearing mental clutter when life feels like too much. I hope her insights inspire you to cultivate the mental clarity needed to close out the year—and prepare for a new one—with intention.
Before we dive in, a couple things I wanted to share:
🍽️ The most crowd-pleasing dessert on the planet: Our holiday party was a big success (ICYMI the menu was almost completely make-ahead) and I was reminded how perfect these One-Bowl Brownies are for literally every occasion. I made two double batches and served them warm with vanilla bean ice cream. You can even stir some crushed peppermints into the batter to make them really festive this week. No matter how many you make, they’ll all be devoured.
📚What I’m reading over the holidays: Thanks to all your recos after I shared the best books I read this year, I have a great lineup to tackle next. First up: Solito, a memoir of a 9-year-old boy’s migration from El Salvador to the US. I also just ordered The Pathless Path, and it feels like a really great book for the lead-up to the new year.
Meet Isabelle Eyman, the managing editor at CamilleStyles.com and one of my favorite people with whom to discuss books, culture, and the pursuit of a meaningful life. You can also find her over at her own Substack, A Fantasy of Perfect Things.
Clear Your Mind, Transform Your Life
This season, I’m feeling drawn to a minimalist mindset. I’ve been noticing that the moments when I feel overwhelmed and anxious are usually those when I’m filling my life with too much. Too much “stuff,” too many commitments, and simply too much of what I feel I should be doing over what I actually want to be doing. My love-hate relationship with social media certainly exacerbates this feeling, leading me to fall into the relatable trap of believing this purchase will make me happy, or hitting that milestone will make me feel like enough.
I’m sure you can guess the result: a cluttered home and rattled brain that finally reached capacity. I started with what felt most manageable, cleaning out closets, donating old books, and reducing the physical excess around me. And though lightening my load felt great, I realized that what was really holding me back wasn’t just the stuff—it was the mental clutter.
This discovery led me to explore the concept of psychological minimalism: simplifying my thoughts and emotional landscape to make room for clarity and intentionality. I’m not one for hyperbole, but yes—realizing that less really is more did change my life. Here’s how I did it.
1. Write down my worries
For me, psychological minimalism started with recognizing what was weighing me down. I took inventory of the recurring thoughts, worries, and distractions that occupied my mind without adding value. I began writing down everything that bothered me—from seemingly insignificant to those large, existential questions that kept me up at night. Honestly, the juxtaposition was hilarious:
Need to fill up the car tires with air.
Is how I’m living each day adding up to a life I’ll look back on with pride, joy, and zero regrets?
Soon, my legal pad of worries evolved into daily journaling. The practice helped me uncover these mental patterns, and from there, I could begin to release them. (Spoiler: I filled the car tires hours after I wrote down this to-do, and I’m committed to celebrating the value in even the small moments of every day.) By reflecting on what truly mattered, I freed myself from unnecessary emotional baggage.
2. Setting boundaries for my attention
I’m a victim of the constant, never-ending ping of notifications. And as a (years into recovery) people-pleaser, the pressure to respond instantly set my mind on perpetual overdrive. While I started by reducing my screen time and limiting the constant barrage of information, I knew that this area of clutter in my life was more complex.
I had to confront my desire to be always on—to appear not only as a person who has her sh*t together, but who’s always available to help a co-worker, friend, or family member in need. I had to understand and constantly remind myself: I am in control. I get to decide how I use my time, and I choose not to spend it glued to my phone. Now, I take control of when and how I engage with my devices, allowing me to focus on what’s truly important without distractions.
3. Embrace the art of stillness
Another shift I embraced was the practice of stillness. I’d always thought that productivity meant being busy, but I’ve learned that quiet moments are just as essential. Admittedly, I’m not really a meditator—I get too fidgety. But I’ve learned that incorporating intentionality into our days can take on countless forms. Exercise, whether that be yoga, walking, or riding my bike, provides me with moments of mental stillness. Focusing on one thing—pedaling myself forward, taking the next step—helps my mind to reset and center on the present. It’s through these practices that I’ve discovered the true power of psychological minimalism.
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I know I’m not alone in occasionally dipping into these periods of overwhelm. And particularly around the holidays when everything feels like a must-do essential, stepping back and releasing what doesn’t fit into the life you envision for yourself can be the refresh your mind needs. So I encourage you to start with these small steps. Identify the mental clutter that’s holding you back, set boundaries for your attention, and make space for stillness. These simple practices can have a transformative effect on your mind and help you create a life that’s more intentional, focused, and designed around who you really want to be.
Camille! I can’t wait to hear what you think of The Pathless Path.
Meditation is hit or miss for me too, which is why I like journaling. It gives me something to do with my hands and forces me to slow down because I’m physically writing.
One of my favorite journal prompts lately has been “In my control/out of my control.” I draw a big circle on the page and label it “in my control.” I label the outside space “out of my control.” Then I start filling it up with things that are top of mind. It’s been the reframe I’ve needed and something I come back to often. 💗
This really spoke to me. I changed them to reflect my own spiritual journey for the new year:
"It’s less about “taking a break” than about creating space for what matters. When I do less, I achieve more. It’s about tending the earth, planting the seeds, and trusting God that something beautiful will grow in the new year.
I will take inventory of the recurring thoughts, worries, and distractions that occupy my mind. I will write down everything that bothers me—from seemingly insignificant to those large, existential questions that kept me up at night. My legal pad of worries will evolve into daily journaling. A practice to help me uncover that I need to do a better job at capturing my thoughts and trusting in God. Recognizing those that I have control over and release the rest of them to Him, the one who is sovereign and in control of all things. I am in control of how I use the time that God has given me. I will decide how I use my time, and I will choose not to spend it glued to my phone. I take control of when and how I engage with my devices, focusing on what’s truly important without distractions. Focusing on one thing, moving forward, taking the next step, will reset and center me in the present to recognize where God is leading."