At some point, you may have taken a look at your stuff and felt overwhelmed. It could be because you were searching through piles of stuff for a missing item, you feel like you’re always cleaning your house, or you don’t feel relaxed in your home. The list goes on and on.
Instead of dealing with the issue, many people find band-aid solutions. They buy expensive organizational systems, rent a storage unit, or just dump boxes of stuff in their garage, attic, or basement. Don’t do this!
It may make you feel a little better at first but if you want to stop having your stuff stress you out for good, you need to remove the things that don’t serve a purpose in your life.
I suggest starting in a small area of your home that has items that don’t hold any sentimental value. The idea is to just get started. Once you start you will gain momentum and each project will get easier and easier.
5 minute Challenge:
Step 1: Pick your junk drawer, a bathroom drawer, your purse, or something of similar size and dump everything out into a pile in a clear space (like on a table or on the floor).
Step 2: Clean the space with a damp cloth or handheld vacuum. Take a second to enjoy the clean empty space!
Step 3: Quickly (don’t overthink it) sort the items in your pile into two groups (keep and remove). While you are doing this be sure to inspect your items for stains or damage. Also, be aware of the amount of something that you have. For example, if you have a box of 500 paper clips and you do all your “paperwork” online, maybe consider just keeping a couple.
Remember- You are not looking for perfection, so don’t stress out about individual items. The goal of this challenge is to practice the basic idea of decluttering and to get started.
Step 4: Return your keep items to their home and trash/recycle/donate the items your chose to remove. If you found items that don’t belong, ask yourself where you would go to locate that item if you needed it and take it there. For example, if you found a tool in your junk drawer, you can relocate it to your toolbox.
Congratulations, you started! If you continue to pick one small space a day for a week you will start to see the benefits!
Great advice, I love number 3 to not overthink, and the advice to just get started. I notice small amounts of decluttering can add up 👌
Getting started and overthinking each item are the biggest two roadblocks but if you just get started, you’re right, each project adds up and it won’t be long before you can see a noticeable difference. Thanks for reading and commenting!
Posts on minimalism and decluttering will forever be my favourite to read! In my opinion, there’s nothing more motivating than hearing about another person’s journey to living a fuller life with less clutter and distraction. It really does become second nature to cull without attachment issues after you’ve experienced the lifestyle for a good while. I purchased a pair of jeans today to replace old ones I’d grown out of- I like to follow the one in, one out rule loosely. Even though I’d already done my swap, I still managed to find an item or two that could also go!
Glad I’ve found a fellow minimalist. I can’t wait to follow along with your journey Suzanne!
I agree!! After I read something about decluttering I’m motivated to let go of something else. It brings me joy! Luckily for me, I have three young kids that quickly outgrow their belongings and I have a system for passing on their outgrown items so it’s a steady flow of happy feelings. 😁
Oh, that must be a relief! Sounds like you have a great system in place. I imagine you’d have friends that you can trade your and the kids items with too. Very handy! 🙂
Great advice!!!
While reading this I was thinking “but I don’t want to!” But I have to agree with you, start somewhere, start small… just start!
Haha! Thanks for reading and leaving a comment. 😁
Your posts are short and useful. The way you describe the issue and try to help your reader is appreciated. Good luck 👍
Thank you for your kind comment! 😁 I try to keep my posts to the point.
How you can do that ?
I have some issues ;
1. My blog niche for now is unclear. I break my limits sometimes but I welcome openness and space. I want to do so much but I have no skill other than writing.
2. I don’t know how to look forward(direction).
3. I want to build up my blog professionally, I need help.
I’m a direct, to-the-point type of person so it is just natural for me to write that way. I wish I had a strategy to give you.
I think it’s fine that you break the limits of your niche.
As far as direction, I keep a list of ideas as they pop in my head. When I sit down to write, I simply choose something relevant at the time.
I don’t have any advice for creating a professional blog, I just blog as a hobby. There are a bunch of great blogs out there offering advice for growing your blog though!
Thank you Suzanne.