Why Should you Declutter?
At home I’m not the most naturally tidy and organised person. This is a total contrast to when I was at work when I was super tidy and organised. However, I know it makes me feel so much better when I have a tidy organised house, so I’ve made a real effort to declutter and get organised.
And, now I’m going to tell you how to declutter your home and get organised without becoming overwhelmed.
5 Reasons why it’s good to Declutter your home and get organised
1. Decluttering makes cleaning easier – if you haven’t got piles of stuff everywhere gathering dust it’s much easier to clean.
2. Save time – if you have less stuff and it all has its own place and is put away properly you’ll be able to find things quickly and easily.
3. Less stress – if your home is clean and tidy and you can easily find things you’re much likely to feel calmer and less stressed.
4. More space – it’s amazing how much extra space you’ll have once you’ve moved all the clutter. You’ll have more storage space and you can organise the storage space you have better.
5. Make money – you don’t want to just throw things out and add to the landfill so give things away to charity or sell them and make some money.
How to declutter and get organised
So, now you have the reasons why you should declutter your home and get organised. But how do you start?
Everyone is different, and you can choose the best way to declutter that suits you. However, I’ve found this is a really effective way to approach it.
1. Make a plan – list out each room and what you want to achieve in that room and by when. e.g. Dining room, declutter and organise crockery cupboard. You can download my “Decluttering Checklist and Plan” templates below.
2. Have a sorting strategy – the aim of decluttering is to reduce the amount of stuff you have and organise what’s left. You’ll probably need 3 categories, keep, discard and store. When you’re decluttering a space sort everything into these 3 categories. You can use boxes or bags for each category.
3. Make sure that you actually get rid of the clutter you’ve put in the discard pile. It’s not decluttering if you just move it from one place to another. You can give it away to a charity, recycle it or even better sell it and make some money.
4. Organise what you have in the keep and store category. You should have gained more storage space so that you can put things away that you don’t need to use at the moment. This could be your winter clothes. Make sure when you store things you label them properly, so you can see what they are.
5. Keep up the excellent work – once you’ve finished decluttering you can’t just sit back and relax. To keep your home clutter free and organised you need to make it part of your weekly routine. The best way to do this is to add it into your Weekly Cleaning Schedule.
Finding it hard to let Go?
If you’re finding it hard to decide what to keep, discard or store ask yourself these questions as you work your way through each item.
1. Is it broken? If so, is it worth fixing?
2. Do I have more than one of them? Do I really need 5 hairbrushes or 3 whisks?
3. Has this item been used in the last year? If not, will it be used soon?
4. If I were moving, would I keep it?
5. If I saw it in a shop would I buy it?
6. Am I keeping it because the thought of wasting money stops me from getting rid of it? That’s not a good reason to keep it as you’ve already spent the money. You could try selling it or give it to someone who’d use it.
7. Do I love it? If the answer is yes then keep it but if the answer’s no but you feel guilty about getting rid of it because someone gave it to you, it’s ok to give it away for someone else to enjoy.
8. Am I keeping hold of these things for sentimental reasons? Personally, I’m happy to have a few things tucked away in a box for sentimental reasons but the decision is yours.
9. Does it fit me? How many items of clothing have you got in your wardrobe that you’re keeping just in case you lose a few pounds until you’ll fit back into them!
10. Could someone else use it more than I do?
I hope this has helped you start to declutter your home and get organised. You can download a Declutter Plan Template here to help you start your Plan.
Happy decluttering. Next time we’ll tackle Paper Work.
