6 Simple Steps for Reducing Clutter
by andrew ~ February 17th, 2010This is a guest article by Andrew Salmon.
We’re all consumers. We love every gadget, antique doohickie, fashion, and bauble on the market and, before you know it, we’ve stuffed every nook, cranny, closet and shelf in our homes with stuff. Some of these items make are lives easier, some enrich our journey, and others are just pretty to look at. But there comes a time of critical mass when we simply run out of space for our trinkets. Then what? Well there is a way out from under the mountain of stuff we surround ourselves with. And it’s easier than you think.
1. Haul Your Trash!
This is the fastest way to begin reducing clutter in the home. Take a look around you. Is that an old pile of newspapers in the corner? Overflowing recycling bins in the porch? Full trash cans decorated with the odd crumpled ball that missed when you attempted a Steve Nash 3-pointer? Amateur lab experiments in your fridge? Get rid of this stuff! Curb it! Now you’re on your way!
2. Calling Dr. Jones!
Remember that suit/dress you wore to your best friend’s wedding 8 years ago? Or those LPs you stuck in the back of your closet because you thought they’d be worth something? How about those shoes you couldn’t bear to part with? Or the empty boxes stored flat under the bed? Well, it’s time to don your Indiana Jones fedora and excavate your hidey-holes. You’ll be surprised to find that stuff stored in these lost recesses years ago is no longer relevant to the present-day you. If it’s out of style, it’s out of here! If it doesn’t fit, it’s gone. Boxes to the recycling. LPs to the thrift store – or eBay if you’ve got an entrepreneurial streak. Either way, be ruthless. It’s tucked away, forgotten. You’ve gone x-number of years without it. Time to move it on out the door.
3. Tech = Yecch!
Without a doubt the #1 source of clutter in the 21st century is technology. TVs, CD and DVD players, computers, phones, appliances and toys will have you sleeping on your porch for want of space if you aren’t careful. Here’s what you can do about it. CD music can be stored on your computer, iPod or MP3 Player. Sell the discs for quick cash, or donate them, but get them off the shelf. The same goes for DVD movies. If it’s not your absolutely favourite movie of all time, then show it the door. Got an old TV in the basement. Bye-bye. Ditto that DVD player you’re going to fix all by yourself one day. Got suckered into the latest Veg-O-Matic infomercial? Well, the damage has been done, but you don’t have to look at the thing. Goodbye! The simple rule for technology is: if you’re not using it regularly, you don’t need it. No exceptions.
4. Close Down Your Gap Franchise
Clothes give technology a run for its money when it comes to clutter. Get rid of: what doesn’t fit, what’s out of style, what needs the mending you never seem to get around to doing. If you don’t wear it regularly, you don’t need it. This is essential if you’ve got limited space in which to store spring/summer, fall/winter stuff. The answer is simple: get seasonal. If it’s 30C outside, you don’t need the parka. Flip-flops in January?! As the seasons change so should the look of your closets and drawers. Store the winter clothes in the summer, and vice versa when the artic winds begin to howl. Basements, storage lockers, packed tightly in containers under the bed… this are where seasonal clothes belong until needed.
5. Get Organized!
A place for everything and everything in its place. Shoes go on the shoe rack, not on the floor near the shoe rack. Coats in the closet, not the doorknob or the back of a chair. Dirty laundry in the hamper, clean in the closets and dressers. I think you get the message here. Set aside a place for something and keep it there when not in use. After all, what was the point of creating all that free space if you’re not going to use it efficiently?
6. Ask Why Before You Buy
Now that you’ve organized the stuff in your home it’s time to take preventative measures. That is unless you’re looking forward to having to go through these steps again in a few years. If not, then simply ask yourself why you’re buying the next shiny object that crosses your line of sight. Impulse buys = Clutter. Einstein may not have proved this equation but it’s true. Before you bring something new into your home, decide if it’s something you need, or something you merely want? If it’s the latter, then put it back. Go home and enjoy the clean, neat living space you worked so hard to create.
Andrew Salmon is an author and freelance writer. He writes about various healthy living and finance topics including life insurance in Canada.








