How to Simplify Your Declutter Routine

Simply put, decluttering is defined as removing mess or clutter from a space. But, depending on the amount of clutter that’s in a space, this task can be either simple or complicated.

For many years, I spent a great deal of time and energy decluttering my house twice each year during my spring and fall deep cleaning. I can’t tell you how much I dreaded this. Room by room, I would pull out stuff from every closet, corner and cabinet, sorting and separating it into piles – MANY piles. I would have piles of things to keep, to donate, to throw away, to rehome, to sale, and, the dreaded, undecided pile.

This wasn’t something I could get done on a Saturday, which meant I had to take a few days off work. I would spend two or three days cleaning and decluttering, and sometimes I still didn’t get everything accomplished that I wanted to. Additionally, it was very physically and mentally exhausting. Although I would feel some sense of accomplishment once I was finished, it was very short-lived. I still had the huge piles of things I sorted out, which I needed to deal with, and since I hadn’t slowed down on bringing new stuff home, my house would end up getting cluttered again only a few months later. I felt anxious, frustrated and overwhelmed. There had to be a better way.

When I learned about minimalism, it was definitely an ah ha moment for me. Why didn’t I realize before that my overabundance of things were causing me so many problems? Why was I continuing to bring things into my home that my family didn’t use or need?

From a very young age, we’re taught by the world that “things” make us happy, and the more things we have, the happier we will be. We’ve all heard these familiar phrases.

• The more, the better!
• The bigger, the better!
• New and improved!

God’s Word tell us that we should be content with having our basic needs met. First Timothy 6:6-8 says, “But Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” – KJV

This is not to say that things are bad, or that God doesn’t want us to have things we enjoy. The problem is when our things begin to take control of our lives, or take away from the time we spend with the people and things that matter most to us. If you spend more than 10-15 minutes on your daily tidy-up routine, or more than a couple of hours a week cleaning, then you probably have too much stuff and not a place for everything. Tidying or cleaning your home should not be a grand undertaking. Even spring cleaning shouldn’t take so much time that you can’t conquer it in a couple of hours a day over a few days, or on a Saturday.

With that said, I also understand that if you have kids, or even a spouse, your home is going to get messy from time to time. I am married with two children and things have a way of getting out of their place a lot. The question is, does it take more than a few minutes to tidy up the mess? And once, it’s tidied up, does your space stiff feel cluttered?

Organized chaos is still chaos.

The bottom line is, I had to learn that decluttering is not something that should be done only once or twice each year, it’s something that needs to be done every single day. We are constantly bringing new things into our home, which means we should constantly be evaluating what needs to be removed from our home. Start by making decluttering a part of your daily routine.

Keep a box or tote handy that you can dedicate to put items in that you want to declutter. Keep the box out of the way, but convenient enough that it’s not a hassle to get to. Maybe that’s in your mud room, laundry room, or garage. When you stumble upon an item you either don’t use or don’t like anymore, immediately put it in the box. Once the box is full, take it to your local Goodwill, Salvation Army, or any other place that takes donations. Do NOT get another box to fill up! The longer you put off removing the clutter, the more the clutter will grow and be harder to transport to a donation center.

Don’t forget to get the whole family involved. Encourage everyone to use the donation box when they decide to part with something. Challenge everyone, including yourself, to add something new to the box each week. Just one item a week will make a big difference over the course of a year.

This is only one of the many great things I have learned, and am still learning, about living more minimal. If you’d like to hear more, stayed tuned for more insight and tips.

In the meantime, tell me about your declutter routine. How often do you declutter your home? Do you dread it? How do you get rid of your clutter?