Simplify to save time, money

When your life gets chaotic, you pay dearly in terms of stress and money. There are hundreds of things you can do to simplify your life and home. Here are four good tips.

1. Carry only the keys you use every day. Clean everything else off your key ring. If you don’t recognize what a key is for, toss it. If you have keys you use occasionally, keep them on separate rings in a safe place. Carry only three keys: house, car and office.

2. Thin your wardrobe. You will eliminate a lot of stress from your life by simply reducing the number of clothes you own. It is a simple step, but one that fills many with dread. Understanding the benefits is what helps keep a pared-down closet: Dressing with less saves money — and time, too.

3. Buy only white linens. Now everything matches, and that saves time and hassle. When everything is white, you don’t worry about fading, about matching up sets or if the linens match the room’s decor. Every top sheet goes with every fitted sheet, so you don’t have laundry-time hassles. Everything launders the same. White linens are classic, and they’re cheaper, too.

4. Handle the mail only once. Don’t carry all the junk mail to the table to only become more household clutter. Keep a tasteful waste can right where you open the mail and dump the junk the moment you identify it as such. Don’t rifle through the latest mail-order catalogs just to see what’s new. If you don’t need something now, you won’t need all the things that catch your eye.

Visit Mary Hunt at EverydayCheapskate.com, where this column is archived complete with links and resources for all recommended products and services. Mary invites questions and comments at https://www.everydaycheapskate.com/contact/, “Ask Mary.”