I'm a professional declutterer. Here are 5 tips for reducing the amount of stuff you own.
- As a professional declutterer, I help people get rid of things they don't need anymore.
- I suggest to my clients to start small, like one drawer in a specific room.
Tackling household clutter isn't at the top of anyone's "Fun Things I Did This Weekend" list. But it doesn't have to be an onerous chore. These five tips will give you solid strategies to start getting rid of things that aren't adding value to your life.
Start small
Choose a tiny area; the silverware drawer, a single bookshelf, or your bedside table. Something you can start and finish in 20 minutes or less. Take everything out, dust or wipe it down, and then decide what's worth keeping.
The key here is to make quick decisions. If you are confused, ask yourself this: Do I use this? Do I love it? If the answer to both is no, you're better off without it. Keep moving through the house, one small area at a time.
Find the low-hanging fruit
Decluttering is hard. That's because we're emotionally attached to our stuff. So start with things that don't inspire strong feelings. The bathroom is good for this; you can probably ditch outdated first aid supplies without too much hand-wringing.
Other areas might include the linen closet, kitchen utensils, or the kids' outgrown sports equipment. Decluttering, like so many things, takes practice; once you begin to build that muscle, it gets easier. So start with the stuff that doesn't matter much.
This is a process of paring down, not becoming a minimalist. If you own 13 vases and you can easily part with three, you've made progress. So start by getting rid of things you don't like, and go from there.
Choose a number
This is a particularly good strategy for those things that are useful, but seem to multiply when you're not looking. Water bottles and T-shirts are often in this category. Before you even look at them, decide how many you need. Don't be stingy! Be realistic.
Then gather every water bottle or T-shirt you can find and start counting. Keep all your favorites. But when you get to the number you picked, stop. Just toss the rest in the donation bag without thinking about it. Don't agonize, and don't second-guess yourself. You'll be fine.
Set a timer
One of the reasons it's hard to declutter is that it can seem absolutely overwhelming. If you walk into a basement piled high with boxes, old toys, athletic equipment, and the remnants of your mother's dining set, you may be tempted to turn around and walk right back out.
Set a timer for 15 minutes, and just see what you can get done before it rings. If you're on a roll, keep going. But feel free to walk away when the 15 minutes is up. It's amazing what you can accomplish in such a short period of time.
And by letting yourself stop before you become overwhelmed, you're way more likely to come back to it. Do another session tomorrow.
Let yourself off the hook
It's likely you're holding on to a lot of stuff out of a false sense of obligation. The canning equipment you bought before you realized you'd rather just buy your strawberry jam. The sweater you started knitting but have no enthusiasm for anymore. The weights you were definitely going to lift during lockdown that have only gathered dust.
Don't hold on to things you're never going to use because once upon a time you thought you'd use them. Or you think you should want to use them. Ditch the half-finished projects and the aspirational exercise equipment. Your life and your house will be simpler and tidier if you just let go of them.
Clutter is stuff that's not being used or loved. It's sitting in corners making us feel bad. It can be tough to let go of things that were important to you once, or that remind you of people and places you've loved. But holding on to a lot of extra stuff is probably not bringing joy into your life.
Letting go of the extra allows space and time for new opportunities. Imagine how much free time and free brain space you'll have when it's gone! Just start slowly and don't give up.