12 Things to Declutter Now

Did you make any new year’s resolutions?  Are you trying to make improvements and better yourself?  Perhaps you would like to make time to exercise or spend more quality time with your family?

Motivate and Celebrate the Small Wins

Humans are strongly motivated by achievements.  You don’t have to set off running. Try starting small – achieve the small win and gain the momentum.  Set another small step, and use the momentum to get the next small win, and so on and so forth.  It is much easier to achieve a 2-pound vs. a 20-pound weight loss a month.  Once you’ve lost the first 2 pounds, you are more likely to continue to do so.  On the other hand, when you fail at losing 20 pounds, you are most likely to give up.

Decluttering is no different.  Try spending 10-15 minutes each time and go through a drawer. Once achieved, use that momentum and spend another 10-15 minutes on another drawer.  By starting small you are encouraging the progress and positive actions, remember slow and steady wins the game!

12 Things to Declutter Now

Here is a small list of things you can do right now that take little effort but can give you the motivation to do more:

1. Expired and Stale Foods

• Remember to check both the pantry and the freezer.

2. Spices

• Be honest with yourself, how long has it been since you’ve last tried that not-so-new recipe? How long have those spices been sitting in your cupboard?  Toss any spices that have lost their flavour and fragrance.

3. Kitchen Utensils and Other Kitchen Items

• You may be amazed to find how many broken utensils, plastic containers with missing lids, old sponges and rags, cookbooks and cleaning supplies that you have accumulated.

4. Tools and Appliances

• Donate them if they are still in working condition. There is no point in keeping something that you are not going to use. Remember, your shelf is prime real estate in your home, so only store what you are using.

5. Electronics

• This includes old/ripped electrical or charging cords. With every new phone, tablet, laptops, the old ones (and the boxes they come in) are often shoved in the basement or in boxes somewhere.

6. Medicine and Vitamins

• Remember, any expired medicine and vitamins are no longer effective and should be discarded.

7. Clothes and Shoes

• Anything that is ripped or outdated should be removed from your closet and shoe rack. Donate anything that is still in good condition.
• Items that no longer serve its purpose should also be audited. For example, if you are now retired, you will no longer need all your business attires for work.

8. Accessories

• Similar to clothes and shoes, toss anything that is broken and donate anything that is still in good condition that you no longer wear.

9. Toys and Games

• From birthdays, Christmas presents and hand-me-downs, our children tend to have an overabundance of toys. Donate those that your children are no longer playing with, and toss those that are broken.

10. Décor Pieces

• These may be decorative items, inexpensive paintings or décor pieces for the holidays.

11. Books

• Donate or recycle any outdated reference books, old magazines or ripped children’s books.

 12. Paper

• Unless you are a business owner and need to keep old utility bills that are more than a year old, you can shred/recycle them. If you have an online folder for your bills, delete the previous year’s.

Spend Time On What Matters

Instead of buying a new dress for yourself, a new toy for your child, or a new décor piece for your home, spend the money on buying experiences, so you can spend quality time with your family – at an outdoor activity, or bring the family to a local event.

When your children grow up, they will likely remember spending time with you at the park, going skiing, going on vacation, and not the hundreds of toys that you’ve spent money on.

Food For Thought

I will leave you with this quote:

“We were meant to live simply enjoying the experiences of life, the people of life, and the journey of life – not the things of life.”  ~Joshua Becker