Free yourself of stuff, consider downsizing
Once he retired, Jakob Miller finally had the time and energy to organize his three-bedroom home.
He headed to the basement, where he emptied boxes and bins of old clothes, toys and knick-knacks. But as he looked around the mountain of clutter, he quickly discovered that thinking he could do everything at once was a mistake.
“I was so excited to get started that I didn’t realize how overwhelming the task would be,” recalls Miller, 54, a retired laboratory scientist from Staten Island, New York “I was overwhelmed and exhausted, and I barely made a dent in the clutter.”
Experts make downsizing and decluttering seem simple: Keep, trash or donate. You likely won’t be able to do it in a day. But here are some tips on how to start effective downsizing and decluttering.
Make a schedule and stick to it. “Whether it’s 10 minutes, 30 minutes a day or a full day on the weekend, setting aside dedicated time to declutter will help ensure you progress,” says Aaron Traub, owner of My Professional Organizer in Dallas.
Start with easy wins. Gather all trash, clean the fridge and pantry and then collect and organize receipts and paperwork, which likely have minimal sentimental value.
Next, “look for things that are out of place, like piles of books, clothes, shoes, small appliances,” says Diane Quintana, an organizer with Release Repurpose Reorganize in Atlanta. “Can you put these things away? If you can’t put them away, can you make room for them by decluttering where they would go?”
Then move on to other smaller areas. Consider tackling individual drawers before moving up to something slightly larger, such as a closet or a spare room, says Darcy Speed, who trains other organizers and home stagers online at Ultimate Academy. “There are usually fewer decisions to be made regarding what to keep and what to donate,” she says.
Stop collecting more stuff — even if it means telling friends and family members to skip this year’s birthday present.
Consider getting outside help. Professional
organizers can map out a process and timeline while keeping things moving.
Give yourself grace with a “maybe” box. If you’re on the fence about a particular item, set it aside, says Danie Smallwood, a decluttering coach in Bethesda, Maryland. The hardest decisions will involve holiday ornaments, scrapbooks, pictures and other items that tear at your heart.
Ask yourself the last time you used something. If you haven’t used it in the past year or so and don’t expect you’ll need it soon, it’s probably safe to get rid of it, Traub says.
Reach out to your children. Ask them to go through any of the possessions they left behind.