Declutter Your World!
Springtime has arrived, at least it seems like it;) Now is a great time to spring clean and declutter your life! Clutter naturally happens in all of our lives, especially when we are busy and on-the-go. One way to make more space in your world for important things is to declutter your world. This means letting go of things that have accumulated in your home, at your desk, in your car, as well as in your head, with your body etc. Getting rid of things that clutter your world can be very cathartic and I highly recommend getting into a habit of decluttering parts of your life on a regular basis.
I am by no means a perfectly clean queen but I am huge fan of having a world that feeds my soul and encourages my creativity as well as my well-being.
Where To Begin
Julie Hage from Filling the Jars: Decluttering and Intentional Living for the Overwhelmed Overthinker created a great post titled “9 Awesome Ways Your Life Will Become Simpler When You Declutter.” She states: “Living with less stuff and decluttering will result in some intense and positive changes that will help you be happier and get more out of life.”
Clutter is a thief. It steals: Time. Space. Joy. Productivity. Family/Friends. Money.
When we stop the theft by removing the clutter, we then have space in our home and our life for all the good and happy things. We all want to be happier, and decluttering is one of the best ways to do that.
Does that mean a person with a cluttered house can never be happy? No, of course not. But your mental state is often connected very strongly with your personal environment. Why not make the effort to give yourself every advantage possible for building your best life and being your happiest self?
That means getting rid of the clutter and learning to live with less stuff.
Am I talking about minimalism? No, not in the strictest sense of keeping your possessions to 100 items or less. But when you talk about decluttering, you have to consider the reasons why people choose minimalism… and some of those benefits are listed here.
Simplifying Your Life — Why Less is More
Some of these benefits are the usual things you would expect. Others, perhaps you haven’t considered or don’t realize how closely connected they are with clutter.
However, these are ALL things I have experienced during my decluttering journey. I know these life improvements would happen for nearly everyone — and especially for overwhelmed overthinkers.
So here we have it… the 9 ways your life will become simpler when you declutter:
1. You will have more time because it’s easier to find things.
Keeping track of your stuff is about 20% organizing and 80% simply having LESS to keep track OF. Who wants to search for useful items that may be buried in one of a dozen piles? But when you really need that one thing, you usually do go searching for it… wasting precious hours of your life in the process.
After you’ve decluttered, that problem goes away. You gain literally hours of time every week.
2. Your home will be easier and faster to clean.
Cleaning around clutter is hard. And the harder it is to do something, the less likely we are to do it as often as it should be done. Plus, when the clutter is gone, the house simply looks cleaner — all the time!
3. You’ll have more money.
Wait… how can getting rid of my stuff mean you’ll have more money? Stuff has value — won’t that disappear once it’s gone? Maybe you’ve tried to sell your stuff and it didn’t work. Now you feel that at least if you have the stuff, you feel like you have money.
But think about it this way: If you have clutter, you’re spending money on it. You’re spending money to buy it in the first place, spending money to store it in containers. Space in your home is expensive. There is a monetary and mental cost to keeping clutter in your home. Maybe you’re even renting space at a storage facility!
When you declutter, you realize you don’t need to shop as much as you used to. Less shopping = saving money! The fact that you’ve gotten rid of things you no longer need doesn’t really matter to your financial bottom line. But not purchasing new things? That does matter!
Many people with clutter issues are also slightly obsessed with organizing. Once the clutter is gone, there is less need for expensive organizing products.
4. You will have a better attitude thanks to more gratitude.
The more you remove, the more content you feel with what you have and the less you desire to buy more.
woman relaxing on white couch in a clutter-free home
5. Your home will look better, which means more peace and less guilt.
One of the wonderful ladies in my private decluttering Facebook group (not currently open) calls the decluttered areas of her home ‘pockets of peace.’ And it’s so true! Every decluttered space is an area where you can breathe, find joy, and let go of guilt. Decluttering your ENTIRE home means you can have those good feelings no matter WHERE you are… and that is simply the best feeling!
6. Your brain will work better.
How often does it happen that you’re in your home, trying to THINK, yet all of the stuff bombarding your field of vision just overwhelms your mind? If you’re an overthinker and have a clutter issue, this probably happens all the time.
Let me tell you, a decluttered, simple house has a HUGE effect on reducing the amount of input your brain must process every day. And that means you can think more clearly and more quickly.
7. You’ll FEEL organized.
As mentioned before, a home with less clutter looks better. And having less stuff to look after helps you to feel like an organized person.
8. You will eat better meals.
Who wants to plan meals when the pantry and cold storage are full of unidentifiable objects? And who can cook decent food in a cluttered kitchen? Very few of us!
But when you’ve cleared the clutter from your fridge, freezer, and cabinets… everything gets so much easier. You can make a solid plan for the food you have, plus you have room to store and prepare fresh, nutritious food.
9. ACTUAL organizing will require less effort, time, and money.
Once your home is decluttered, the process of organizing is so much simpler! You won’t spend all of your time trying to find containers and places for all of your stuff. Instead, you’ll be able to create better systems to solve the root of what really needs to be organized… your life processes, not just your stuff.
How can I live better with less clutter?
Having less clutter is really a lifestyle change catalyst. As crazy as it may sound, decluttering and simplifying your home often becomes the launching point for a more enjoyable life where you make more intentional choices.
You will likely find yourself in a position to do things like work from home (perhaps with the time and mental energy to begin a new career), have guests over on a regular basis, and finish crafts that have been left untouched for years. Once the clutter is gone, you may decide it’s not such an overwhelming project to sell your home and move to a new place with less maintenance that works better for your lifestyle.
In simplest terms, less clutter = more freedom, both physically and mentally. And that is the best benefit of all! Take back the life clutter has stolen from you. Simplify your home and your thoughts.”
As you have probably guessed, people named Julie have great advice and perspectives;) I love talking about decluttering and learning about what methods other people use. Decluttering can be a constant battle but is worth the peace! Bring it up in your next session at Posture Massage and let’s chat about it!
