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.
Rick Phelps says
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?
joshua becker says
Thanks for the comment. Indeed, this was an article about items not being used in your home.
Becky P says
So very true! Wise wisdom as usual.
Nan says
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.
Helene Bennie says
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.
Ola says
I love this! Items should serve their purpose.
Evelyn Bailey says
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.
Patti says
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.
Terri K. says
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.
Sherry Hoyt-Cline says
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.
Janice Terry says
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.
Krys A. says
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.
Maria A says
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.
Chris says
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.
Katherine Polhamus says
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.
Deka Tate says
I agree with you, which is refreshing!
Karen Cooke says
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
Colten Wells says
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!
Annie Stone says
“Think of other unused items as “threadmill”” is very helpful I will share this with others. Thanks!