Stuck At Home? It’s Time To Declutter!

Stuck at home? Why not declutter

With the Coronavirus in our midst, most of us have found ourselves with a little (a lot) more free time. That means it’s time to declutter. I know. Not the most exciting chore. But necessary to avoid progressing to hoarding.

That pile of opened mail on the table needs to be sorted. The laundry has to be moved from “the chair” in your bedroom. And for goodness sake-those old clothes you don’t wear anymore? Goodbye! That time you’re not wasting while commuting to work, going out to restaurants or cafes, or wandering around the grocery store? That can be put to much better use than sitting around the TV, listening to endless “news” about COVID-19.

But where do you start? How do you even muster the motivation to dive into those boxes of trinkets you haven’t even looked at in seven years? Grab a box of garbage bags and get that favorite playlist up on your phone. Here are three ways to get you ready for a good ol’ declutter day.

Survey the situation and start small

Depending how long it’s been since your last round of decluttering, this may take a few minutes. Survey the clutter around your house and start small. The more you get done, the easier it’ll be to tackle the bigger projects later. Like that shoe mountain larger than Mount Rushmore. Maybe start with the pile of *mail and catalogues on the counter or table. Sift through them and figure out what you want to keep.

*This can also include decluttering your email! It’s such a relief to see that number of “unread” messages disappear.

Don’t think – just declutter

Once you’ve established where you’ll being, just do it. Don’t think about how much time it could take. Don’t think about how out of hand it may have gotten. It will all be fine and once you get started, you’ll be excited to finish. Just think: maybe isolation won’t be so bad once you have this task off your shoulders. Thinking about the chores can only lead to procrastination. Procrastination and clutter can lead to anxiety and depression. Just do it!

Call someone

This can either mean jumping on the phone for a lengthy call with a sober sister or relative, or inviting someone over (if you are able to). Not only will you feel less lonely, but the time will fly. Just don’t get distracted while talking. If you can’t talk about declutter at the same time, put on that show you’ve been binge-watching or your favorite movie. There’s nothing like speaking all of the lines along with those timeless characters.

For more tips of wisdom, check out Lindsey Glass’s new workbook of tips:

Time to declutter with 100 Tips for growing up
100 Tips For Growing Up

Easy to understand and simple to implement