A Simple Guide to Decluttering Your Home

A few months ago I wrote a blog post on the 30 Day Challenge to a Decluttered Home. Go check that post out first and grab your free calendar printable, then come back! This simple guide to decluttering your home goes right along with that post, only I’m going to break it down more so you can truly be successful with this challenge.

First off, mindset is everything!

You need to prepare yourself. Just like anything, to be successful you need to get your mindset in the right space. If you do not have the right mindset, you won’t get anywhere and will probably end up giving up before you even finish. Of course getting in the right mindset is easier said then done so the question is, how do you even get there?

Realize that mess creates stress.

It also adds more work to your daily life. The more mess, the harder things are to find and the more you need to work to do every day tasks. Stop and think about that for a second. Think about how often you spend extra time just looking for things. Now imagine all of the clutter being gone and everything having a specific place. Imagine how easy it would be to grab something or to put it away when needed. Think about all the time you’d be saving knowing where everything is.

I like to use my spice cabinet as an example. It’s a cabinet we use a lot (we like our spices around here). It was always super frustrating to frantically search around for the spices I needed while in the throes of cooking dinner. I recently decluttered and organized that cabinet and it’s been amazing (check out that post HERE). It used to take me ten times longer to find the spices I needed and honestly just left me incredibly annoyed. Now that it’s all organized and every jar has a place, it takes the stress out of making dinner. This is a huge tip I have for staying organized as well. If it doesn’t have a place in your home already you should ask yourself, do you really need it?

Now I know that decluttering and organizing is a lot of work upfront, but try to think about how much time and stress it will save you in the long run. Once you realize that, that’s the moment you know your mindset is in the right place. Now after you have gotten there, I want you to write down why you want to declutter your home. What is your true motivation for doing this? The key here is to write it down, so you can physically look at it any time.

Get your supplies ready.

This will help you stay on task and be more productive. Gather three different bins, boxes, baskets, or designate spaces. Whatever works best for you. You are going to use these for the Keep, Donate, Toss Method. This method is really simple and such a crucial part of this simple guide to decluttering your home.

The Keep, Donate, Toss, Method

When you pick up an item, ask yourself this question. Have I used or enjoyed this item in the last 12 months? If the answer is yes consider keeping it, but before you do ask yourself a second question. What kind of condition is this item in? If it’s in good condition, ask yourself a third question. Am I willing to find this item a specific space within my home? If the answer is yes, you should keep it! At any point if the answer is no, figure out if it’s an item worth keeping or donating. If it’s in good condition, donate it. If it’s broken, toss it. After you’ve figured out if the item should be kept, donated, or tossed make sure you put it in the corresponding spot. This will help you keep track of what you want to keep vs. what you don’t.

If you are not sure if you are willing to part with something, put it to the side and deal with it at the very end. Giving yourself a little break from the item you are questioning can sometimes help you gain some clarity. Once you get to the point of going back to the “maybe” pile, grab an item and ask a couple of questions. Why do I want to hold onto this? Do I really need it? Sometimes these questions can be hard, but you really have to decide if it’s something worth taking up space in your home. When things get tough, remind yourself why you are decluttering in the first place.

With these questions in mind and your designated spots for your Keep, Donate, Toss Method…

You are ready to get started!

Seriously, just start right away. The hardest part of anything is just getting started. Don’t make excuses, just do it! Print off your 30 day decluttering challenge and commit to a certain amount of time each day to work on the one task listed on your calendar. Even if it’s just 30 minutes, work hard in that 30 minutes and get it done! Before you know it, you will be done with the entire calendar and it will feel so good.

The simple act of breaking the decluttering down into small amounts with specific goals will help make this process a lot less overwhelming. Will this take longer? Sure, but just remember the end goal. This is very much like exercising and losing weight. You can’t lose it all in one day. In order to be successful long term, you need to take your time learning how to create better habits. Use this 30 days as a way to create good habits that will last. Otherwise what is the point, right?

Some decluttering tips.

• While you are going through this process, just remember to stay mindful. 30 days is a longer period of time and during those 30 days anything and everything can be brought into your home to throw you off track. Be mindful of what you bring into your home. Always ask yourself, is this item worth finding a specific space for?
• Declutter first and then organize. Use this 30 days to just simply declutter, then you can go back and organize.
• Tell yourself it’s okay to let go of things! Don’t hold onto something just because you might use it one day. If you haven’t used it in a year, chances are you are never going to use it. Don’t hold onto something just because you spent a lot of money on it. If it’s not something you use, it doesn’t matter how much you initially spent. Give yourself permission to let go.
• Donate or throw things out immediately after your done decluttering. If you are doing 30 days and decluttering a little each day, throw things out right away and pick one or two days a week to get rid of your donate pile. The sooner you do these things, the less time you have to second guess yourself.

Hopefully this simple guide to decluttering will help you take control back over your home. You deserve that! Always remember, Less Mess = Less Stress. Take the stress away by committing a small amount of time each day for just 30 days! You got this.