Clutterbusting

The new year often brings dreams of new achievements. Ridding yourself of clutter, both physically and emotionally creates room for new things – more peace, more space, less frustration. Rather than clutter-busting in one fell swoop, resolve to do a little every day, and avoid the need for major overhauls.

Have a plan

Mental de-cluttering is often achieved with a plan. Write down what you would like to achieve for the day, week and month and tick each item off as you achieve it. A bit of focus is a great thing, and stops the mental clutter of worry. Making a plan also helps with time management – if you look over what you would like to achieve and put some time estimates on each task, it’s easy to see if your plan is realistic or not.

Prioritise

Worry is a waste of time and energy. It disrupts sleep, encourages depression and achieves very little. Discuss any recurring worries with your GP or a trusted friend. If it is not something you can change, then you are probably better off putting it out of your mind. Use your mental time more constructively – learning something, fixing something or doing something which enriches your life.

A place for everything

Avoid sitting things on the coffee table, shelf or the kitchen bench to be put away ‘later.’ If you use scissors, return them to the drawer, put ingredients away as soon as you are finished with them and avoid developing a ‘piling system’ rather than a ‘filing system.’

Have a space for all items in the house. Large items like ironing boards can take up unnecessary amounts of space if they are left up in the corner of the living room. Rather, do your ironing daily or weekly and put it away in a cupboard in between times – this also eliminates another ‘piling spot’ in your home.

Furthermore, never leave a room empty-handed – grab something that isn’t where it belongs and  put it in its place. You’ll be surprised how many things get put away if you follow this simple step.

The golden rule
Follow the ‘one in, one out’ rule. The biggest cause of clutter is bringing new things into your home or life when you simply don’t have time or room. Make a personal rule that if one new thing is brought home, one old thing must go. It teaches the art of prioritising and may save you some money along the way. If the new item is not worth removing an old one for, then you probably didn’t need it in the first place!

Paperwork be gone!
Deal with paperwork as soon as you open it. Sort mail, bills, catalogues, school notes and receipts as soon as they arrive -it’s much easier to deal with in small doses. Keep a simple system of clearly-labelled folders for easy filing. Do the same with your email inbox – a daily cleanout will ensure you never have to deal with that annoying ‘mailbox is full’ message again.

Smart storage
Good shelving and storage solutions are essential, but remember – more storage equals more stuff. It’s easy to keep things tidy when possessions have a place to live, but review long term storage items every now and again – if you haven’t used it for a year, could it better be sold or given away?

Start the day prepared
Clear the kitchen bench and table before you go to bed. You’ll feel much better in the morning if you wake to find a home in ‘ready to go’ condition. Get up a few minutes earlier so that you can leave the house tidy before you go out for the day – it’s frustrating to come home to breakfast dishes in the afternoon and sets you behind for the next phase of your day.

Speed cleaning
On your marks, set a timer for 10 minutes and go – clean or sort as much as you can in one area  in that time without stopping. You will be surprised just how much you can achieve when you put yourself on the clock. This is an excellent strategy when your motivation is lacking.

Many hands make light work
Everyone in a household should be responsible for keeping the home tidy and organised. If everyone is responsible for the outcome, they will be more proactive about taking care of the day to day details.