There’s an old joke about treadmills. It goes something like this:
One time I bought a treadmill, now it’s the most expensive clothes hanger in my home.
People laugh—they know it’s true.
The fact is we often buy items with good intentions but never end up using them.
Of course, in the scenario above, if the treadmill was only serving as an extra clothes hanger in the corner of our bedroom, that would be one thing. But the reality is, that unused item is more than a hanger.
It is taking up space—lots of it.
It is taking up valuable physical space in your home.
It’s another physical object, in your home, that you need to dust and clean and vacuum around. It’s just another thing to walk around every day… or pack up when you move.
But more than physical space, it also takes up mental space in your mind.
As Randy Alcorn says, “Every increased possession adds increased anxiety onto our lives.” And that is definitely true.
That unused item (a treadmill or anything) is visual clutter in your home. It calls for your attention every time you walk into the room. It surfaces guilt that you wasted money on it. It causes regret every time you see it. And it serves as a constant reminder that at some point you have to decide what to do with it.
Our unused items are not passive, they are active. They take up space—physical space in our home and mental space in our mind.
Which leads me back to the old adage about treadmills: One time I bought a treadmill, now it’s the most expensive clothes hanger in my home.
There’s a lot of truth in that statement—maybe more than we realize.
If a treadmill is not being used as a treadmill, what is it exactly? If it’s not being used for exercise, is it even a piece of exercise equipment? Maybe it really is just an expensive clothes hanger in the corner of my room.
This question quickly extends far beyond exercise equipment. We could begin to ask the same of other items in our home that are not being used.
For example:
If a shirt in my closet is never being worn, what is it? Is it actually a piece of clothing? Or is it just a piece of fabric hanging in my closet?
If a coffee mug in the back of my cabinet hasn’t been used to serve a drink for as long as I can remember, is it really a coffee mug anymore? Or is it just a piece of ceramic taking up space and gathering dust?
If there are countless tools in my garage that never get used, are they really tools anymore?
If that plastic spatula is never used, what has it become? Just something I need to rearrange every time I open the drawer?
If a book has never been read, is it really a book? I mean, isn’t the purpose of a book to provide education or entertainment? Clearly it isn’t doing that. Is it just a collection of papers, bound together, taking up space on my bookshelf?
If that old desktop computer is never used, what is it? It’s certainly not something I use to solve problems or accomplish tasks. It’s just a big box of electronic components sitting on a desk.
If I never listen to the CDs… if we never use the camping gear… if those old phones are just sitting in a box… if I don’t know what these cords go to… if I never play that piano… if that purse never gets used… if I never wear that pair of shoes…
It seems to me, the items in our home should serve a purpose. They should be used for the reason we purchased them.
If they are not, they are no longer serving their purpose.
They are only taking up space.
Or being used as a really expensive clothes hanger.
About Joshua Becker
Ana, just take baby steps & you will get there.
There are some people still around who love to tinker & fix old cameras. You can probably do a google search & someone might love your old stuff.
OMG Joshua,
I think this is my favorite! You had me laughing about the treadmill because one of my Siblings & her Husband Have a Treadmill. I lived with them for a few years & then prior to an Exercise Program I joined this past January I was living with them & started to use it! I moved out in September & it pretty much sits idle in their back porch. Just today I asked her if they have been using it & she said no. She said that they are going to start but it’s already January 3? (And I was told that this treadmill was not cheap)!
These bullet points are great & yesterday I did go & clean out my closet and clothes drawers a bit. Now I will go through more things & see what I may not be using. As far as the books though they will get read, that I am sure about.
If we can instill some humor into the mix you can turn decluttering into fun. Take your time & go at your own pace.
Does anyone know what to do with old cameras and video cameras?
Sell them to collectors…I did the same…If they are broken, unusable, give them to e-waste.
In Israel, all train stations ( we don’t have a subway) have a book shelf of donated books. They put a book sticker on them. There is a container at all stations where you can drop off the book you borrowed at some othet station or donate books.
In addition, the hospital where I work also has bookcases designated for donation and borrowing, in several locations where people sit and wait.
In our town, there is a national women’s organization that holds various classes and has an open bookshelf that people donate books in good condition. They sell them for $1.50 and the profit goes to a shelterfor batterd women along with profits from selling donated clothes.
Just a reminder that your local public library often accepts donations of books. Mine has a “friends of the library” group that holds sales to help support library programs. Although, sometimes, they’ll spot a book the library wants for its own collection.
Also consider asking what your local used book store does with books it doesn’t want. The one I patronize gives unwanted books to a particular thrift store in town that wants them. So any books I want to donate that I know are too old for the used book store can go straight there instead.
So not only ask if something brings us joy but does it still serve the purpose I intended?
Yes, perfect. Though I don’t think “does it bring joy” is the right question to be asking anyway: “Does It Spark Joy?” Is the Wrong Decluttering Question
Why? If an item bring you Joy why not keep it. We need as much Joy in our lives as possible. Mvh Ellen.
For the reasons I mention in the article that I linked for him to read.
Thought provoking article Joshua. I am interested in where the Randy Alcorn quote came from.
Preach!
Love this timely article…I have been packing for a month, getting ready to move to a new house…well it was built in 1969, but it sure has good bones. It is just what is needed to spend the rest of our days…I’m so excited and ready to let go of anything that I can’t find a home for in the house…..this is going to be such a great opportunity to make sure nothing stays that doesn’t have a purpose.
Love your thinking!
Great article! Never really thought about unused items like that! Thanks so much for the inspiration!
I collect no big baggage items, except for the house itself. I leave what I don’t need in it when I move.
To me, one of the saddest things is seeing books never being enjoyed. They serve no purpose sitting on a shelf collecting dust. They ARE meant to be read, meant to provide entertainment, meant to educate.
Passing the vast majority of mine on to others has given me great joy!
Looking nice place to hangout , I getting people to my house for tea. I found savings in Maroco mint leaves. Healthier carbs than brown sugar. Is detoxifying be part of a minimalist living style?
Use e-books laptop no shelving that the best answer to de – cluttering
I too have lots of books in boxes but my goal is to read them of course i can’t read them at one time but as i read they go into a box and when the box is full i give them to someone else to read and enjoy i got rid of one box this spring and i am working on another one and on and on it goes
I love your commitment like you I want to finish a novel or fiction and volunteer my time to help my bookstore. Then get some new. I love my part-time and people are so helpful there.
Me too! I try to get all my books read, and my mums books read. Just to give them away after. Find it hard to get someone to take them. Put them on line for free, but waited a Long time. Our used books store only take in this years books, so impossible to sell either. I guess No one wants the clutter in their houses. Ellen.
I found a school that takes a lot my my preloved books.
Great article! To begin with, it is about inventorying what you have. Grouping, counting and then discarding or donating to go all along to have a nice and spacious place to live in. Has anyone have a good idea. Thanks for inspiring, Joshua. Love your posts.
You can never have too many tools! Purge the duplicates, trash or repair the broken ones, but never get rid of a tool just because it “isn’t being used”. If you do, sure enough a week/month/year later you or your neighbor or your brother will need it. Catalog, organize, inventory your tools so you know what you have and where they are, but don’t indiscriminately discard them to claim Minimalist bragging rights.
It’s all just stuff but understanding that it is taking up mental energy is the key to lasting change. I’ve got whozits and whatsits a plenty… oh my! I don’t want mooooore ha! Thank you for the reminder.
Truth, simply and clearly stated.
What are everyone’s thoughts on sentimental items? I have a bunch of papers and books from college (30+ years ago!) that are truly just taking up space, but I can’t seem to part with them.
Hi, I had the same troubles with a few items in the past and I realized (with articles I read from here, zen habits and the minimalists) that we own nothing, only our memories and what I advice to you is, meditate about death and in the fact you won’t be here 100 years from now. Feelings, memories and emotions are inside, not outside, not in objects, we only care about people who give them to us.
Greetings
Had the same thing from my dad’s belongs after he passed. After 6 yrs of storing them in boxes decided it was the memories I already had and I would never use the stuff I was storing so was able to get rid of. I also recently decided my kids would not keep my cards from my wedding 28 yrs ago and I did not look at them they were stored. Same with other items. I suggest taking a photo of things if you want a visual memory.
I also Just threw away a box of old love letters/cards from my ex husband. I showed the Kids, and asked if they wanted to keep them-but ofcorse they did not want them. I guess all the stuff we keep for our kids are not for them maybe but for us? Not the cards though. They were sole kept for them. Now they are gone too. The wedding cards I also threw out, but ofcorse wedding movie and pictures stay.
Please get rid of those items. My ex passed away and left a mess for our daughter to deal with. You don’t want to leave your mess for a loved one to have to deal with!!!
Have you ever thought if shredding or burning them … instead of “sentimentally” wanting to keep them … those don’t last long so are all the other papers . eBay isn’t an option
I took a picture of my college things that I wanted to remember and then either threw it away or donated it. =-) Good luck!! It’s hard but if I can do it, so can you!!!! =-)
I am late to this comment, but same here. SO MUCH sentimental stuff I CANNOT seem to part with but I will never unbox it, never use it. Help!
Same thing happened to me. A friend offered to give us a diner table set that was given to her as a gift but she has never unbox it! Then we saw each other and she showed the set. Really, it turned yellowish and couldn’t be cleaned because it stayed in her basement for too long. So she wanted to give it to the charity instead of trashed out and wasted. My five cent thought is that I don’t know if anyone would want to buy or receive it…it was just her fear of letting go
My dear Joshua Becker,
God bless you and your family
Excellent article.
Your teachings are precious. Your teachings have transformed my thinking.
Thank you so much.
I am truly grateful to you.
My love and blessings will be always with you and your family.
With lots of love and blessings,
Yours Sincerely
Dr S K Singh
Student, learner and teacher of Medical Phyiology for last 34 years
This is a good reminder. Lately when I’m purchasing clothes I don’t think about whether I can afford them Financially ( I stay within my budget), I think about whether I can afford to give them the space they will take up and whether the trade off in space is worth it
Since I started to read your news letter which are full of wonderful advice and inspiration I’ve started to de clutter my craft room and I am so overwhelmed by all the things I’ve accumulated that I’m not using… so thank you for your gift of minimalism!!
I just took another carload of stuff to Goodwill. I also have a pile for the recycling place. I keep getting rid of stuff. My daughter moved in with us and can’t part with anything. She is back working two jobs. If I haven’t used something in a year, it goes. I like costume jewelry, but I have been giving some of that away. I was given several sets of china, and keep a few small bowls or a plate from each set. No one wants my mother in law’s wine glasses. I also passed on a bunch of hideous figurines. My daughter grabbed some horrid stuff her friend was throwing out.
I had boxes of stuff in my car trunk, waiting to be delivered to Goodwill. Then the virus hit and Goodwill couldn’t accept goods. I finally unloaded my car, set everything on my driveway with a sign that said FREE STUFF. Within hours it was all gone. The next weekend I put more stuff outside. Gone. This is my fourth weekend unloading stuff and my mind is so much more relaxed. My house is becoming clutter-free and easier to clean. Even my hoarder husband is starting to let go of some of his junk. 😁
I just read your article in the Epoch Times entitled, “How My Life Has Changed After 12 Years of Minimalism”. I certainly enjoyed the article and have read several articles from you in the past, but I take exception to your intro on this article. Certainly you couldn’t have meant that taking one day a year to honor the sacrifice of so many American men and women in service to our country takes a backseat to you and your family becoming a minimalist? Is that really what you want your children to think of Memorial Day. I’m sure you did mean that, but being a little more clear would go a long way.
Thanks for the comment. Was this sentence in the article not clear enough?
“Memorial Day is a holiday in the United States where we pause to remember those who died in active military service. May nothing I write in this article overshadow that fact…”
Thank you again for all you do to help us out! I have gotten lots boxed up during COViD downtime to donate (when they open again). What has helped me most is your statement to deal with quilt of purchasing. So I say to myself, let someone else have this, someone who can’t afford to buy it brand new! I love helping people and this is helping someone have something that maybe they couldn’t get until I donated it! Today I will pick more items to donate! Thanks for your inspiring words!
My husband is in the military and we move often, so I usually pack up early, putting minimum unused items for my children or for later use. I buy clothes one size up because they are young and grow up fast. The way I organize our trip is to have most of things in large plastic box that I can get. Then, once time has come we only have to get the boxes moving. We rarely toss nor do we get new stuffs frequently. My kids also pass on their clothes since they are two years apart.
You use the term never for frequency of use. There is a wide range of frequency terms such as often, daily, sometimes, seldom, once a year, etc. Adding these to the conversation makes it more difficult to describe the item absolutely. So is it now part treadmill, part clothes hanger, or a combination exercise-wardrobe management system?
Thanks for the comment. Indeed, this was an article about items not being used in your home.
So very true! Wise wisdom as usual.
I’m still in the process of releasing emotional attachments with my possessions. I have a hard time letting go of dress up clothes or even that piece of fabric that I wore when I was 10 lbs lighter- and hope to get back there wearing it. Thanks for this perspective. It may help.
I’d like to encourage you. Perhaps if you lighten the load (not specifically clothes if you want to wear them again) you’ll lose that weight. I believe the weight of unnecessary weighs us down and stops us from doing what we need to do because it steals our time and emotional energy. Good luck on your decluttering journey.
Mine is occuring, oh so slowly, but every item which goes out – either tossed or donated – is progress.
I love this! Items should serve their purpose.
Excellent! I’ve been doing “covid”cleaning, taking advantage of uninterrupted time at home, to Go through boxes untouched for 39 years— own children’s special childhood clothes all the way to boxes from my deceased parents’ home. I’ve given and sold everything easy. I need a sister page to this, maybe on Facebook, with suggestions for what to do with specific things like my Dad’s WWI Navy uniforms or a cut glass bead necklace.
SAME here. We have three teenagers, and after saving every piece of ‘decent’ artwork, great homework and progress reports, I have gone through THREE big bins of papers (some still stuck with macaroni or M&Ms) and they’ve each decided to keep about five things from each bin. **rolls eyes**. But I figure that, at least, they got the chance to go down memory lane now that they’re old enough to remember what they’re seeing and relive a few moments of the past.
Maybe create a keepsake shadow box for your Dad’s Naval things. Cut any patches, etc. off his uniform, and arrange them in the shadow box and include any medals, the glass bead necklace, etc., and hang them in a place in your home where you can appreciate them.
I donated my dad’s WWll uniform to our local museum (they were thrilled) and I sent my Air Force (summer white mess dress/formal wear) to the one at Lackland AFB, TX. Check out on google for one near you.
Museums are a great place to donate any war memorabilia. That way a lot of people can view and give respect and also learn from past experiences. You create a positive and useful experience out of something that is hidden away and weighing on your mind.
I have a degree in English Literature and I love books! In spite of this, I keep very few books. If the book is not opened again after I read it, the value is gone. I give them away or donate them unless I intend to read or look at them again, or if they are written by someone I know.
I have problems letting go of books because I can’t find a natural receiver.
Books some friend or relative wants, perfect. Obviously out-of-date non-fiction, I can manage to recycle that. Books the local student literature shop will accept on comission, splendid. (And if they do not sell it they may recycle it, the bond is already broken.) Modern children’s books will be accepted by charity shops. But all the rest? Fiction I have bought, been given, inherited (my mother left a couple of thousands of volumes). I have sold some, but it may take months for the interested buyer to find it, I have to write a description, take photos, go to the post with it, book sites lets the buyer return the purchase if they get second thoughts. The selling selling process adds more stress than it is worth and it is slow. But at least the book gets a new home. Those that are possible to sell, that is, most there is no sens in even trying to sell.
Charity shops in general (here in Sweden at least) are picky with books as they have to be able to stock and sell them, most formerly popular books that are five or ten years will not sell, much less books from the sixties, forties or nineteen twenties. Commercial book stores accept only rarities, for the same reason. I might leave books in the bins of the charity shops, but I know that many will be recycled and that hurts (really). My local freeshop will frequently accept only children’s book for lack of space (they also need to have a fair chance to get rid of them) and anyway most freeshops are closed due to covid-19 though charity shops are not here.
I do want to get rid of books but I really don’t want to throw them away or even recycle them. Grateful for ideas.
Set up free book spots at places like coffee shops, hair dressers, doctor’s offices, and the like where people can take a free book to read at their leisure while waiting. With libraries closed here due to covid, our local rail trail has little post boxes along the paths where people can take or leave a book for others to enjoy. Maybe you can set up something similar.
Owning so many tech devices become more things to manage and maintain. My IPAD stopped working years ago and I intentionally decided not to replace it. All I have is my smart phone and Laptop that I use for work. I could buy more tech devices but why? I don’t need an Alexa or a fit bit or Apple Watch or other gadgets I haven’t heard of. They end up being more things I have to manage. The same with social media. I don’t need twitter and Instagram and whatever else is out there. Facebook is enough to manage and that alone can be a time suck for things I’d rather be doing like tending my garden or simply being alone with my thoughts.
I agree with you, which is refreshing!
I can see myself in all your examples, and I do try to overcome the ‘yes, but maybe one day I will need it’ sometimes with success. The biggest thing that contributes to me holding onto ‘stuff’ is the image of ‘throwing money away’ if I get rid of it
I’ve actually been a minimalist since 2018 and always try to find new things to toss/donate. I’m at the point where I can’t throw anything away…until today. I read this blog and thought of all of my button up shirts. I never wear them and decided to donate them. I only had like 6 I think. With enough time, you can justify to minimize more if you haven’t used it in that period of time. Great blog!
“Think of other unused items as “threadmill”” is very helpful I will share this with others. Thanks!