Effective Decluttering: A Beginner’s Guide
Whether you’re moving home, clearing some office space or downsizing, every now and again the time is right to have a good old decluttering session – both at home and at work. And, while it can be hard to find the time to declutter, it’s an investment that will reap rewards and leave you feeling more in control of your space and your belongings.
After all, most of us have more things than previous generations, so it can be easy to feel you are drowning!
Here are some tips to get you started:
– Spend just five minutes decluttering to begin with. Then make another five minutes the next day, and the day after that. Until a whole room is clear of things you don’t want or need. Don’t be unrealistic in aiming to spend hours decluttering in the first instance. However, if you really want to do it that way, schedule a “declutter weekend” in your diary. Stick to it, and get the whole family involved.
– Have one room, table, counter, window sill or other area totally clutter free. Keep it like that, and expand it gradually until your home or office is completely clear.
– Have a spot where all incoming papers live. Have an in-tray or box where everything from receipts to bills to daily post to letters from the children’s school can be kept until they are dealt with.
– Going through stuff and unsure if you may need or want it one day? Create a “maybe” box and put things you’re unsure about in it. Hide it for a few months then go back and see what you feel. More often than not, the contents of your box can be ditched.
– For other things, be brutally methodical with stuff you don’t need, use or love – throw out, donate to a charity shop or recycle.
To stop accumulating clutter in the first place, next time you feel the urge buy something you don’t need, wait a month before deciding. Often, once 30 days have gone, you’ll have lost the urge. And if you still want it after that time, you can go ahead with a clearer conscience.
Of course, decluttering can make you realise you still want to keep things but simply don’t have space for them, in which case a self-storage unit could be your best option………
