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“People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing.” —Dale Carnegie
The idea of living a simple life with less stuff sounds attractive to many.
But often, they begin to feel overwhelmed,
Learning how to declutter your home and (and as a result, decluttering your life) doesn’t need to be as painful as some make it out to be. And the benefits are numerous.
The Benefits of Decluttering Your Life
There are many benefits to owning fewer possessions. Even then, it’s tough to move into action. That is… until the many benefits of getting rid of clutter reveal themselves:
Less to clean. Cleaning is already enough of a chore, but having to clean around things you have zero emotional attachment to (or worse, actively dislike) makes cleaning the house much more stressful.
Less to organize. Finding things suddenly become easier. Things don’t just “disappear” anymore. You can actually move around your home and enjoy the space, instead of moving around things that are in the way.
Less stress. Looking around at the clutter is a nausea-inducing sight once your home becomes cluttered enough. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to look around and see a home you love?
Less debt. Spending less time shopping for material possessions and adding to the clutter means your wallet and bank accounts remain fuller, your credit cards’ statements are lower, and your home doesn’t get filled with costly things you don’t need.
More financial freedom. Most American households live paycheck to paycheck (59% according to a recent survey done by Charles Schwab back in May 2019.) Nearly half of those surveyed carry credit card debt. Decluttering, paired with minimalism, will help you build up savings to keep you protected in case of unexpected emergencies.
More energy for your greatest passions. With less debt, more financial freedom, and
Ok, so now you know the benefits of decluttering your life, but you may be getting tripped up by the very next question… where in the world do you begin?
10 Creative Decluttering Tips
If you’re struggling and need guidance on how to declutter, you’ll need to get creative with your plans. Here are several interesting decluttering tips to get you started on decluttering your home:
- Start with 5 minutes at a time. If you’re new to decluttering, you can slowly build momentum with just five minutes a day.
- Give one item away each day. This would remove 365 items every single year from your home. If you increased this to 2 per day, you would have given away 730 items you no longer needed. Increase this number once it gets too easy.
- Fill an entire trash bag. Get a trash bag and fill it as fast as you can with things you can donate at Goodwill.
- Donate clothes you never wear. To identify them, simply hang all your clothes with hangers in the reverse direction. After wearing an item, face the hanger in the correct direction. Discard the clothes you never touched after a few months.
- Create a decluttering checklist. It’s a lot easier to declutter when you have a visual representation of where you need to get started. You can use our decluttering checklist.
- Take the 12-12-12 challenge. Locate 12 items to throw away, 12 to donate, and 12 to be returned to their proper home.
- View your home as a first-time visitor. It’s easy to “forget” what your home looks like to a new visitor. Enter your home as if you’re visiting the home of a friend. Write down your first impression on how clean and organized the home is and make changes.
- Take before and after photos of a small area. Choose one part of your home, like your kitchen counter, and take a photo of a small area. Quickly clean off the items in the photo and take an after photo. Once you see how your home could look, it becomes easier to start decluttering more of your home.
- Get help from a friend. Have a friend or family member go through your home and suggest a handful of big items to throw away or give to someone else. If you defend the item and want to keep it, your friend has to agree with your reason. If they don’t agree, it’s time to get rid of it.
- Use the Four-Box Method. Get four boxes and label them: trash, give away, keep, or re-locate. Enter any room in your home and place each item into one of the following boxes. Don’t skip a single item, no matter how insignificant you may think it is. This may take days, weeks, or months, but it will help you see how many items you really own and you’ll know exactly what to do with each item.
No matter which decluttering tip you choose to get started – whether it be one of these ten or one of countless others – the goal is to take your first step in decluttering your life with excitement behind it.
There is a beautiful world of freedom and fresh breath hiding behind that clutter. Deciding how to declutter your home is up to you.
For more decluttering tips, watch this short video we put together. In it, I provide 10 quick decluttering projects, each completable in just 5 minutes or less:
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General FAQ About Decluttering Your Home:
How do I create a decluttering checklist?
Creating a checklist is one of the easiest ways to keep track of what can and still needs to be reduced from your home. We’ve put together a Declutter Your Home Checklist you can use to instantly make a noticeable difference.
Just pick any 5-10 items from the list to start and you will be amazed with how quickly momentum builds up.
Do I need a professional organizer to help me get rid of clutter?
Absolutely not. Getting rid of the clutter in your home can be done by yourself. It can even be a fun family activity when using the decluttering tips found in this article.
How can I declutter quickly? Can it be done in a day?
Removing clutter from our homes and our lives doesn’t need to be rushed or done in a single day. It’s something that can be done over time and may even need to be done on a semi-regular basis. As long as you start the process today, you’re further along than you were yesterday.
Will owning less make my home look empty or boring?
Simple doesn’t mean sparse or boring. The opposite is true. With fewer mess and distractions, your home can become more peaceful. You can view your home as a space for rest and comfort, instead of a source of stress.
What’s the difference between declutter and unclutter?
They’re both interchangeable, though I prefer using “declutter.” The “de-” hints at being complete and permanent. I like to think of decluttering as something that solves the problem forever.
When should I declutter?
This is a personal question. When you find yourself overwhelmed by your possessions and tied down, it usually means you’re ready to start making a change. Note that this feeling is just a broad litmus test. The feeling of overwhelm can be different for everyone.
Harry says
Great simple tips! Starting the day with just a few things makes such a big difference! Thanks for the inspiration!
clifton salles says
Really pleased to be able to share with you, this really thoughtful information, on obtaining superior value out of your next travel experience.
Dawn McDaniel-Smith says
Since my sister and sold our condo and my mother moved in with us into a beautiful ranch home my desire has been to declutter. At first the garage was filled to the ceiling and we also had a storage unit. I. Threw away over 40 bags of trash before we even moved. My mom did the same thing, but still we were drowning in stuff. So, I made a pledge that I would get rid of at least 40 bags or boxes a year. Doing that wouldn’t overwhelm me. Well over the last eight years I’ve met my goal and some years exceeded it. Where am I? Still working at my goal and there is still more to go, but my hope is that by the time I’m old and can’t do it anymore we will have given most of our stuff away. Dawn McDaniel-Smith
jak says
I totally agree with your commitment to minimize. Only thing overlooked: QUIT ACQUIRING. STOP BUYING for the instant thrill and buy NEEDED only items. If it does not have a purpose, no matter how cheap or on sale it is, it probably is the wrong reason to buy it.. Amazing what this does to your budget.
Barbara Hert says
I love reading all of these, they help with extra encouragement and to help me to see how far I’ve came in the process of becoming a rational minimalist!!!!
One area I need HELP!! I am an artist/designer I have paints, tools, material, wood , jewelry etc how do I declutter this? It’s my business & I want to dump it all but ….
Thank you for your ministry!!
ralf says
If you want to buy something, make space. Remove (sell, donate, throw away) double the volume of what you want to buy.
Put your clutter on display. If you hide it you’ll just forget about it.
I have a clutter basket in the bedroom. When it’s full, I get the bus and bring those clothes do a charity.
That frees up space in the living room for more box files. Still have two boxfiles in the office waiting to be scanned and pdfed.
Michael Szymczak says
Very useful information.
joseph says
De cluttering will probably be a process that will take the rest of my life.
We have already had two garage sales, sold lots on flea bay and Gumtree and my personal favorite… filling up garbage bags to take to the op shop.
I’m only 26, how did this happen.
I want to empty the kitchen so bad but my wife won’t let me lol.
Getting There says
Don’t get discouraged! I’m 24 and have been working at becoming minimalist for 3 years. In three years we have moved 3 times (my husband and I plus a roomate) and each time premove I think I’m a minimalist. Then I find myself thinking. Where did all this stuff come from? It takes time! You will get rid of stuff 3 months from now that you decided to keep today. Its a lifestyle choice not a one and done senario. Im getting close and dream of living in 200 sq ft. (We are at 800 sq ft now and it seems huge.)
Pam says
Kids are in college and we have downsized 50%. I have boxes of framed photos that were on shelves all over our previous home. I’m wrestling with how to get rid of them!
Kay says
Scan the photos, and get a digital photo frame. You can still display all of those precious pictures and memories, but in one frame!
Jane says
When you scan photos, do you put them on a disk? I’m not familiar with digital frames. Does the finished disk sit in the frame?
lydia ackerman says
One sad but true fact a great way to declutter is to find out you have bed bugs (ICIKE) then you can really go through your closet and have to decide if you are ever going to wear this outfit and is it really worth $$ to have all the the junk clean and do you still need the towels and sheets you have since you were a bride over 20 years ago get rid of them and use the ones you bought occastion you also can free up that closest space they have been taking up. You have to be careful where you send this stuff, but lots of time the people who take care of the bed bugs know how to get rid of the junk you don”t want to give them to anyone else Lydia
Misch says
That certainly is true — I have a good friend who just “decluttered” her house due to bedbugs. I hope I don’t have to use that technique!