The potential hazards of hoarding have gotten quite a bit of attention lately. Even if you aren’t quite as extreme as some of the hoarders featured on television, you might still have a problem with clutter. De-cluttering a home can be a real challenge, especially if it has accumulated over a long period of time. Here are six tips to help you regain control of your space.
1. Tackle One Room at a Time
If you have several rooms that are badly cluttered, develop a plan where you attack each room in order. This can help prevent you from getting overwhelmed. If you have multiple floors, the simplest approach is to go from top to bottom.
2. Clean out your Closets
Closets are often the places where clutter really piles up and gets out of control. When it comes to clothing, you should get rid of anything you haven’t worn in the last six months. Clothing that’s in decent condition can be donated. The rest should be discarded.
3. Enlist Help
If you are serious about wanting to get rid of clutter, you should ask for help. Another person can often help to motivate you and make sure you don’t attempt to cling to old junk that really needs to be discarded. Just make sure you don’t choose someone else who has lots of clutter or who is a hoarder!
4. Have a Garage or Yard Sale
If you live in a neighborhood where yard sales are popular, this can be a good way to get rid of some clutter and make a few dollars as well. You should have a plan, however, to get rid of anything that doesn’t sell so it doesn’t end up back in the house.
5. Stop New Clutter from Piling up
In the long run, if you want a better organized home you have to stop adding to the clutter that’s already there. This means being disciplined about what you bring into the house. One rule you can follow is to only bring in a new object if you get rid of at least one other thing that’s already there.
6. Get Control of Paper
Paper clutter, whether in the form of junk mail, newspapers, or magazines can be among the messiest kind. If you have a paper shredder, this can be very useful for safely getting rid of any old mail or documents that may contain sensitive or private data on them. For the rest, put it in boxes and recycle it!
It’s hard to live a clutter free life nowadays. You don’t have to be perfect, but it can be very liberating to open up some space in your home and discard stuff that’s just taking up room. Keep these tips in mind and remember that undoing your clutter is a long term project.
