Want to know how to start decluttering your home? There are numerous advantages to decluttering your home and I’m sure if you are reading this blog post you are already well aware of the advantages and want to feel them for yourself. Keep on reading to find out how to start decluttering your home.
HOW TO START DECLUTTERING YOUR HOME
Start with what you can see
One of the main reasons for decluttering your home is to help you to feel relaxed when you are in it. Technically you could spend hours decluttering your wardrobe. However, I doubt that would have the same impact of decluttering a messy hallway that you are greeted by every time your return home or decluttering a living room that you want to relax in every evening.
Start decluttering the spaces you use the most often and the things you see. This will enable you to feel the impact of your decluttering quicker and encourage you to keep on going.
Focus your decluttering efforts in areas that bother you most
Is there a part of your house that is cluttered and drives you mad? If so, focus there. The reality is that decluttering isn’t always something that can be done in a day or two. It may take some time and in order to keep you going it is important for you to feel the impact. By focusing on decluttering efforts in areas that both you most you are helping yourself to create a quick win.
Set yourself a timer
If the thought of decluttering your home is overwhelming because it is a massive task, then it is important to start small. One way of starting small is by setting yourself a time limit. You can start with anything as small as 15 minutes. Tell yourself you just have to declutter for 15 minutes and that’s it. Having a set amount of time to declutter should help it become a manageable task (that you then decide to do) rather than an overwhelming task (that you put off!).
Act like Marie Kondo
In her bestselling book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, Marie Kondo suggests that you hold every item in your house and ask yourself the question “Does this spark joy?”. If the answer is no, then you should thank the item for being a part of your life and part ways. Now I think this technique is a bit extreme. Some items in your house might not spark joy, but may be essential. However, for non-essential items, it can be a great way of forcing yourself to be even stricter with your decluttering.
Get help from a professional
If you are struggling to declutter your home by yourself then it may be worth considering working with a professional. Now the likelihood is you won’t be able to get Marie Kondo to help you out but there are lots of other professional organisers who will happily help you declutter and organise your home. Working with a professional isn’t essential, but for numerous reasons, they can be very helpful.
Have a system in place for items you no longer want to keep
Deciding you don’t want something in your house anymore is one thing, but getting it out of the house is another thing. When you decide you let go off something also decide at the moment what the next action is going to be. Some options are:
- Bin
- Give (to charity or someone else)
- Sell
If you decide to bin the unwanted item that is usually fairly easy to action. However, with giving or selling the process can become longer and result in the item staying in your home. Don’t let this happen. Declutter and then go to the charity shop a few days later or list the items you want to sell on the evening after you’ve had a decluttering session.
Give everything a home
Technically this is an organising tip rather than decluttering tip, however, it can help you to identify if something has a place in your home or not. Essentially every object in your home should have its own home – a place where it should live. Now if you pick something up because it is out of place and can’t think of an appropriate home for it then it may very well mean it shouldn’t be in your home at all.
There you have it. You now know how to start decluttering your room.
I really hope you’ve found this blog post useful.
Let me know in the comments what you are going to try as you start to declutter your home.
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