With longer days and wintery weather comes more time indoors – and more time losing your mind over the clutter taking over your home! As a Life Organization Coach, I know this time of year is perfect for decluttering projects. But we don’t want a one-time tidy that devolves back into chaos in ten seconds flat. When it comes to getting your life together, sustainability is key!
Here are some of my best tips for a decluttering project that lasts:
Tip #1: Allocate your “Prime Real Estate” wisely
There are some things in your space that you naturally reach for more than others. Maybe it’s a favourite sweater, a commonly-used cleaning product, or the air fryer you’ve been obsessed with since 2020.
Give these items the special treatment they deserve by placing them in the most accessible areas of your space: the “Prime Real Estate”. Other items you use less often can be relegated to an area that’s harder to reach – the back of a closet, bottom of a drawer, etc.
This will help minimize headaches when accessing your favourite items and help avoid the temptation to not bother putting them away.
Tip #2: Make it easy to put things away
Every box lid, every closed door, every item stacked on top of something else… it’s another step in the process of tidying your space. And that means you’re less likely to put things away when you’re tired, busy, or distracted. (This is especially true for your Prime Real Estate items from Tip 1.)
Make things easy by removing some of those extra steps as you find new homes for your items. Depending on your space, you might use shelves instead of drawers, hooks instead of hangers, or baskets instead of boxes.
You can also stack your items vertically (next to each other) instead of horizontally (on top of each other), and use simple solutions like an old Amazon box to keep things in place. If labeling your items’ new homes will help you remember to put them away, go for it!
Tip #3: Take the time to do decluttering right
Look, I get it. When the mood strikes, it can be tempting to take advantage of the motivation and throw yourself into a decluttering project.
But if you don’t have enough time set aside to actually finish the project, you’ll end up skipping the most important part: being thoughtful about how you use your space, so your decluttering is sustainable for the long run.
If you’re feeling the urge to take on a big tidying project but don’t actually have the time for it, try this instead:
- Take ten minutes to do a surface-level declutter, taking care of obvious items that need to be put away or discarded.
- Schedule time to take on the project in the next few weeks.
- Make a plan and get inspired for what you’d like to do with the space when the time comes.
Trust me (and my clients) on this: taking the time to do your decluttering right is so, so worth it.
What’s your next decluttering project? Let me know in the comments below!
