Depending on your personal style clutter comes in many forms. I have never been much of a collector and I am ruthless when it comes to paper coming into the house. It has taken me many years to perfect the art of clearing the clutter. Don’t be discouraged keeping the clutter to a minimum takes work but it totally possible. For some, clutter can come in many forms and can (really) take over your space in your home or office. Here are my top 7 tips for getting rid of the clutter.
1. Discard immediately. Don’t let the “rubbish” stay too long. Check your mail, paperwork, or schoolwork right away and discard the rubbish, don’t let it pile up. Discard what you can immediately and make the shredding or recycling process easy with accessible receptacles.
2. It’s OK to let go. Accept that we can’t keep everything, especially those things that we JUST DON’T LIKE. If you get some lotion that doesn’t suit you, it’s okay to let it go. Re-gifting isn’t a bad thing!
3. Break it down. Big tasks can be overwhelming for anyone. Break it down into small more manageable tasks. Before you know the big tasks don’t seem so big anymore.
4. Take five (5). Five minutes can go a long way. Wipe the counter, check your email, sort laundry just give yourself five minutes. If you struggle with staying on track, I encourage egg times to stay on track!
5. Perfection is unattainable. We need to accept that we will never be perfect, and that is okay. Creating the perfect room, the perfect piece of art, the prefect letter will just never be possible. We set ourselves up for failure right off the bat by trying to be perfect and sometimes okay is good enough.
6. Find a worthy donation resource. Often people struggle with the idea of giving their things away. If you find a worthy resource for your donations, it might become easier to part with those unwanted items we keep shuffling around.
7. Examine your routine. Sometimes we can make the biggest change when we look at how we spend our time. Document out your activities to see where there is extra time and make a list of what needs to get done. It becomes easier to see how we spend our time once we know exactly what needs to be done.
To better control the clutter it may only take one change in your day. How you manage your time or the way you process your paper is just a habit changing action. The important thing is to examine what you are doing and be willing to make a change to see that clutter disappear!
