De-clutter
Top tips for de-cluttering
A clear home brings a clear mind. Having a clutter-free home can bring a wonderful sense of calm to your daily life. Here’s how...
Create a clutter-free habit
Aim to put things away immediately after you’ve used them. Then set aside ten minutes at the end of every day to tidy away any remaining clutter. You can apply this principle to your desk at work too. In fact adding an extra ten minutes to make tomorrow’s ‘to do’ list after you’ve cleaned your desk will make you feel even more focused and in control.
Tackle one room at a time
Or even one cupboard at a time. Don’t overload yourself or you’ll just get tired and end up with a room that has everything pulled out of its cupboards and nothing as yet cleared away. If you don’t know where to start, begin at the entrance to the room and work around it clock-wise. Don’t allow yourself to skip a spot.
Get the family involved
Encourage the kids to tidy away their toys at the end of each day. Turn it into a game by seeing how fast they can go and whether they can beat their time of yesterday.
A system for paperwork
Once a year, have a major sort-through of your paperwork. File away important items into dedicated folders. If you don’t have dedicated folders, make them – this will be your system that will make future clear outs much quicker and easier. Discard bills, work stuff and unimportant records that are more than a year old (tax documents should be kept for seven years).
Refresh your wardrobe
Have a wardrobe clear out at the end of summer and again at the end of winter. Throw away anything you haven’t worn that season. Mend or discard any item that’s showing signs of wear and tear. If you know you have a tendency to hoard, invite a friend over to help you remain critical on what stays and what goes.
Celebrate simplicity
Cleared out a drawer? A whole room? Reward yourself with a little treat and bask in the wonderful sense of simplicity you’ve now created.
"Less is more" - do you know who coined that expression? Visit the Quotes on clutter page to find out.
See what a Professional Organiser has to say on the subject.