Nothing is more daunting than staring at a massive pile of stuff—stuff that you don’t even remember owning, let alone allowing to fill up your entire closet. There is that shag rug from your aunt that you tucked away three Christmases ago to avoid ever having to display. And look, over there is a pile of junk mail that you were waiting to recycle… last spring. Do you think you’d miss that box of clothes you haven’t worn in ten years if you gave it away? Probably not.
It is time. Time to set aside a Saturday, snap on some rubber gloves, and de-clutter!
The problem with clutter is that it builds up gradually—you don’t even notice it until it’s a major problem. That is why it is best to tackle it right away! Don’t let it build up and steal an entire weekend from you. Our first tip? Set aside an hour each week to tidy up the house.
How can you tidy up effectively? Pull out three garbage bags for the following: give-away, recycle, and, of course, garbage. In your first sweep of a room, put everything you do not plan on keeping in their respective bags. Afterwards you will have significantly less clutter.
As you tidy up and put things in their proper space, do a second sweep. Be hard on yourself—it is human nature to attach sentimentality to things that really aren’t important. Your aunt will understand if you give away her shag rug. One day, at least.
Let’s be clear: de-cluttering does not mean you have to get rid of all of your worldly possessions. Rather, it is about purging what you don’t need and organizing the rest. That is why it is best to take a trip to IKEA and invest in some serious organizing systems. Rubbermaids, boxes, anything that can stack neatly—invest in it, label things thoroughly, and you will be golden!
Sometimes de-cluttering can be draining—not just physically, but emotionally, too. This is why we want to really stress the first point: don’t leave things to be tidied once a month when it is going to take an entire weekend. If you tidy up a little bit every week, it will be so much more manageable and significantly less work.
Organized people are happier and healthier people! Not only will it feel good to have your home organized again, but it will give you newfound motivation to keep your home organized in the future!
Best of luck!
Posted by Ken Richter on
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