Clutter is probably causing you more stress than you realize right now. When life is stressful and our calendar is jam-packed with activities, we all need a quiet and clean home where we can come back to relax. That should mean a calm, organized space that feels light, spacious, homely, and safe.
But for many of us, our homes are just one more thing that causes stress. And clutter is to blame. Clutter makes a space busy, disorganized, dusty, and hard to clean. Conversely, if your space is emptier, you’ll be able to keep it looking pristine with minimal work.
So, how do you go about reducing that clutter?
Learn to Detach
To declutter, first, detach. How many items do you have that you no longer use but that you can’t get rid of because they were a gift? Or because they have some kind of sentimental value?
Of course, sentimental objects are important and we should all have a few keepsakes. But this can go too far if it means you feel the urge to hold on to every last item that you’ve ever owned!
If you are keeping items in memory of someone, then how about keeping just one gift? And if you’re worried about hurting feelings, you can always lie and say the item broke!
Break Collections
When it comes to hoarding clutter, one of the worst things you can do is to view something as a collection. You probably think of your DVDs as a “collection,” for example, and there’s a good chance you’ll have made sure to include every DVD in a particular category, or that you feel says something about you. Now you can’t throw any away without ruining your massive collection!
This is a big cognitive shift, but once you realize that collections don’t mean anything, decluttering will become much easier!
Take a Pause
When you’re thinking of buying something new, always take a pause. There are many factors that contribute to a purchase and many of these have been strategically designed by marketing and sales teams to prey on our emotions. When we buy based on emotion, we end up making the wrong decision. When we buy because we’ve gone away to think about it and then come back to it, that means that we genuinely need or want the item.
Less Is More: A Lesson in Simplicity
