Where can you reduce clutter in your life? That is today’s Bloganuary daily prompt. I find it hard to keep all the stuff organized, but I hold out hope because I believe having good systems in place is the key. The car, garage, porch, kitchen, pantry, laundry room, bedroom, closets, drawers, basement, and barn can all become cluttered if I’m not careful.
The biggest mistake I make is not being honest with myself about what I need. The area where I excel at deceiving myself is with information. This results in my hoarding of magazine articles, newspaper clippings, sales copy, and an obscene number of books! As I sit surrounded by my towering stack of unread books, I can’t help but feel like a dragon hoarding its treasure. My precious to-be-read pile seems to grow taller on my nightstand by the day, despite my valiant efforts to conquer it. Every time I declare a book-buying ban, I find myself seduced by the siren call of the bookstore again.
Admittedly, I do revisit these materials on occasion. But without a proper organization system, it’s all useless, isn’t it? Besides, isn’t everything readily available on the internet anyway? Lately, I have been striving to embrace the idea of not always having the answers. After all, it is impossible to be an expert on every topic. I’m not a walking encyclopedia, I’m just a regular person with a single brain.
Another big problem I have is holding onto things for sentimental reasons. Usually because someone I love or loved gave it to me. I have gotten better at this by helping others clear their clutter. I know a woman who was saving a plastic napkin holder that held like 300 napkins. Her mom had given it to her years before. We finally got to the decision that her mother probably did not give it to her expecting her to keep it forever, and ever, Amen. Really, it was probably like a $5 item. Now I judge a sentimental item more clearly – is it broke? If so, that could be an indicator that its days are over. Is it valuable to other people? Then perhaps it is time to sell it. Am I grateful to have it? If not, then it is safe to release it.
Getting systems in place has taken some time. To the outside world my systems may not be apparent. But they are in place. It may look like clutter when things that are broke get set by the garbage cans, but it is actually part of my system as I am still considering whether I’m going to fix them or dispose of them. Holiday decorations can sometimes grow beyond the bins I have to store them in causing it to look like a mess when I need to pare things down. So even with systems in place I have to be consistent with sticking to the system.
De-cluttering is an ongoing process like doing the dishes and the laundry. If items are flowing in… then items have to be flowing out. It is as simple as that. Sometimes when I am leaving my parents’ house my mom will walk around saying, “Wait, let me see if there is something I can give you.” This strategy helps keep stuff moving out. Other times I will take a bag of donations to charity away and drop it off for her. One mans junk can be another’s treasure – it does not all have to go into a landfill.
So my advice is to myself (and any other dragon reading this) is to have a plan and be consistent with it. Let go of things when you have too much. Ask yourself why it is important to keep something. The why should be able to justify the space it takes up. If you use it all the time or it brings you lots of joy – hey, I’m all for keeping it. As long as you are being honest with yourself about it. Just because you don’t use something all the time does not mean it deserves to be gotten rid of. I don’t use my iron and ironing board all the time, but when I need them I want to have them, by golly. Help others declutter and let them help you. By having different perspectives and needs, we can help each other.
If things start to get a little chaotic, my first step is to embrace the chaos! Like my mama always says, “Sometimes you gotta make a mess to clean up a mess.” That’s when I take everything out, sort through it all, toss, sell, or donate what I can, and then neatly put back what I want to keep. Whether it is under the sink, in the fridge, under the bed, or in the closets – all these places could use a good wipe down, dusting, and vacuum anyway!
It is worth it to take the time to create a tidy and harmonious living space. Figuring out where you can reduce clutter in your life can have a positive impact on your mental and physical health. You will enjoy improved lifestyle and well-being with improved focus because it is easier to tune into the task at hand, you will have feelings of competency and have a space you can be proud of, relationships with friends and family are better in a comfortable space, and it is less stressful as you navigate your environment more easily instead of repeatedly looking for things.
Photo by Alexander Grey on Unsplash
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