In our last blog we talked about the ways in which decluttering can benefit your mental health, but where should you start?
Ideally it’s a job that should be done regularly to prevent things from building up, but for most of us it’s a job that happens along with a life event like moving properties or guests coming to stay. Once you’ve taken on the task once, ideally you will have better organisation in your space, and a system to keep it that way. At first, just the idea of it can seem overwhelming, but if you take it on in stages and research storage ideas, everything becomes more manageable. Here are our top tips for decluttering your space.
Find the time
This doesn’t have to mean that you’re wiping out your whole weekend staring at photos from that holiday you went on four years ago – in fact, it’s exactly for this reason that it’s best to take everything on in stages and small bursts. Work out a system that you feel will work best for you. Whether it’s five, 10 or 60 minutes, define what tasks you would like to work on, set a timer and get going. By breaking the job down into short bursts and stages, the job will be more achievable and you’ll no doubt get the buzz of feeling productive for every minute spent.
Define where to start, go next and end
Breaking the work down in terms of tasks as well as time will reduce the sense of overwhelm and make it more achievable. How you do this is up to you. It could be that you would like to start small and build your way up, or take on the area of the biggest priority and work your way down.
What motivates you?
It could be a to-do list or a tick-off chart of chores, or taking before and after photos: recording your progression is a great way to keep up your motivation and stay on track. It’s likely that things are going to look worse before they get better and tracking your progress can help bring focus to the bigger picture.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help
You’re going to be more sentimental about your things than other people, so they may be able to help you refine what’s needed and what needs to go, or ask you the questions to help you realise what’s important to you. Make sure you choose the right people for this – ones that you trust to guide you through. The last thing you want is to blame them one day for *that item* no longer being around. If you would prefer to take on the decluttering yourself, it may be that someone you know has the best storage or organisation idea for your space. You’ll never know until you ask.
Work out where your unwanted things will go
If you’re planning on selling lots of things, this can bring about different problems in terms of where to store those items while you’re waiting for them to find a new home. It may be easier to try to sell as many things as possible at one time, for example by holding a yard sale or taking a space at a boot sale.
Your work space and your living area deserve just as much attention – after all, where do you spend the most time? If you would like a hand kickstarting your declutter, please get in touch – we’d love to help.