WellBunny
Bounce back from bad habits

How to Declutter

I’ve never been a fantastic housekeeper. It’s not something I enjoy doing, so I tend to put it off.

Problem is, I also hate a cluttered, junked-up room. It makes me feel grouchy and irritable, and overwhelmed by all the stuff lying around.

Take a minute and look at the room where you are. Is it cluttered? Are there clothes, papers, books, etc. lying around that don’t belong there? How about dirty dishes, paper towels, plastic wrappers? What’s hiding under the couch or bed anyway?

I know how overwhelming a junked up room can feel, and how overwhelming it can be to try to clean it up. It is possible to do it, even if you’re like me and hate housework.

1. Limit the time you’re going to spend working on the room. There are a couple of good reasons for this. First, you’re more likely to actually work on the room if you decide beforehand that you don’t have to finish the whole thing at once. Knowing that your time is limited makes the job seem less daunting. Second, instead of focusing on finishing, you can focus on getting as much done in the time you’ve allotted. Rather than letting the job balloon into something that will take all day, focus on working fast and accomplishing as much as possible.
2. Decide on a time and set a timer. Set a timer so you won’t be tempted to stop working and check the time every few minutes. Also, choose a length of time to work that will let you work fast without wearing yourself out. I’d suggest 15-30 minutes. That may not sound like much, but if you’re hurrying, you can get a lot done in that time.
3. Start with one part of the room and work there until it’s completely “picked up” before moving on. If you’re running from place to place in the room, you’ll spend more time walking than cleaning. Also, just as clutter spreads, so does “clean.”
4. Resist the urge to clean. Many people mix up cleaning and decluttering. This time is for decluttering — picking up trash and things that don’t belong where they are. Don’t dust, vacuum, or clean anything!
5. Have a box or basket for stuff that needs to be put away. I usually alternate 15 minutes of picking up, where everything either goes in the trash or in a clothes basked to get put away with 15 minutes of putting away things so the clothes basket is empty and ready for the next round.
6. Focus on the visible first. Go through the room first and take care of anything that can be seen when you walk in. Don’t worry about what’s under the bed, in drawers, in closets, etc. You might want to tackle that too, but first thing should be to work on the clutter that you have to look at every day.
7. Don’t be afraid to throw away. As you’re sorting through your basket and putting things away, ask yourself if you really need to keep everything that’s there. Be brutal. The more you get rid of, the less you’ll have to pick up next time. If you don’t use it or enjoy it, then why do you own it?
8. Reward yourself. Give yourself a treat for working on your decluttering. Over time, you’ll enjoy the feel of a clean house enough that it will be a treat in itself, but if you feel you need an extra motivator, promise yourself something nice to get you going.

Over time, I’ve learned to keep rooms decluttered, for the most part. When they get out of control, I use these techniques to get them livable again. My house is far from perfect, but I can usually have company without being embarrassed!

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Tags: clutter