Truths About Decluttering Your Home

By Ashley Paskill on March 31, 2020

As a college student, your space is valuable since it is likely that you do not have a bunch of it. Having a lot of stuff can make your space seem even smaller, but having your stuff all over the place can make matters even worse. While you may know that you need to declutter, it can be tough if you are having a tough time parting with certain items or if you have a shopping habit.

 

If you have not used/worn/etc. the item in six months, get rid of it

A lot of what clutters your space may be things you do not use. While you may have used it regularly at one point, you may not have any use for it anymore. When you are decluttering your space, look at each item, whether it is clothing or something else. If you have not worn it or used it in the past six months, it is likely that you will not use it (unless it is a seasonal item).

Do not buy something unless you have an absolute need for it

Going off the above, it is crucial that you only buy items that you actually plan on using. Make a 30-day list. Whenever you get an urge to buy something (other than groceries), place it on the list and add the date. Anything that you still want or need after 30 days is something you can get. Otherwise, you never truly wanted it. This not only decreases clutter and impulsive shopping, but this will help you save money that you can spend on school and living essentials.

Make lists and stick to them

Make lists of items that you need, want to donate, and want to throw away. As you are looking to see what you have, add items to these lists. Follow the six-month rule above when deciding what to donate or toss. If you put an item on the donate or throw away list, actually follow through. Have a close friend hold you accountable for this if you need to.

This is also true when it comes to shopping. Most people are guilty of going into a store for one or two items and coming out with an entire cart full of things. This kind of impulsive shopping adds to clutter, especially if you do not have space for it. As mentioned above, make a list of items you want and if you still want them after 30 days of them being on the list, get the item.

If you do not like something, do not keep it

While it may be tempting to hold onto something that is in perfectly good shape, even if you do not like it, there are still ways to put it to use if you donate it or sell it. If you donate it, you may be giving it to an organization that can pass it on to someone who truly needs the item. The organization may even have a thrift store that donates money raised to those in need. You can also try to sell the item online. There is likely someone out there who would like the item. If you have no use for it, it is wasteful of your limited space.

Your living space is for living, not storage

If you are keeping things just because you may use them sometime in the future, your living space is acting as a storage unit. Your apartment or home is meant for you to live life in, and the clutter from items you are not using immediately is preventing you from doing so. As mentioned above, unless an item is seasonal, if you have not used it in six months, you should not hold onto it. Holding onto an item that you may use only prevents someone else from using the item.

Tossing out items does not mean tossing out memories

One of the most common reasons for not throwing something out is because there are memories attached to the item. However, getting rid of the item does not get rid of the memory. If it makes you feel better, get a notebook or a journal and write down what the item is and the memory associated with it. That way, you feel better about getting rid of the item since you have the memory written down. If you do this with most of the items you are holding for this reason, it is likely that this will help with a majority of your clutter.

You have the time to declutter

One common lie that people tell themselves to get out of decluttering their space is that they do not have enough time to focus on actually getting it done. As a college student, your time is divided between classes, work, and student organizations. However, you do not need to finish decluttering all in one day. In fact, you may be more productive if you split your time up across various days. If you have time on the weekend or on specific days during the week, dedicate an hour to working on decluttering. You may even want to focus on specific item categories or one room at a time. That way, you feel less overwhelmed by the task and you have the motivation to keep working on the task.

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Clutter will stay away if you work at staying organized

It may be tempting to not deal with your clutter if you feel like the clutter will come back after you get organized. This thinking may be based on your past. If you know from experience that you struggle with staying neat and organized, seek advice from those you trust to see how they handle staying organized. Write in a journal about why you think you struggle with organization. Once you notice your patterns, you will be able to change your thinking and your response to things that come up in your life.

Everything should have a place

While it is easy to just throw things on the counter or on your bedroom floor, this only creates clutter. Knowing that everything has a designated space will help you stay organized. It may take a couple extra steps to put an item back where it belongs, but it is a lot simpler than having to worry about spending time organizing and decluttering again later on. Put things in obvious places, like coats in closets and pens on your desk. Invest in a variety of storage bins and label them based on what is inside of them.

Decluttering is not necessarily about getting rid of things

It may be difficult to work on decluttering because you may feel like it involves getting rid of stuff, even the things you want to hold on to. Even though getting rid of things can be a part of decluttering, this does not have to be the case, depending on how much space you have. While you should get rid of things you do not use or do not want anymore, the items you do want to keep should simply be put in a location where you can access them easily in the future.

Getting rid of an item will not hurt the feelings of the person who gave it to you

When was the last time you asked someone you gave something to about the specific item? Most likely, you have never done this unless you know for sure that the person still uses the item. You may not even remember giving someone specific items. Life happens and moves occur. Nobody can hold onto everything forever. The gift-giver will not mind if you get rid of an item since it is likely they do not remember giving it to you. Also, you do not have to tell them that you are getting rid of it since it really is none of their business. Once the item is yours, you can do what you want with it, including getting rid of it.

The longer you have something, the harder it will be to part with down the line

While you may have a tough time parting with something that you have an attachment to, you will actually continue to get more and more attached as time goes on. Even if you do not have this sort of attachment to an item now, if you do not get rid of clutter, it is likely that the attachment will form sooner or later. To prevent this, declutter now so that you are not finding it even more difficult to get rid of things.

Decluttering and organizing are not synonymous

Decluttering and organizing are often done at the same time, but they are not the same thing. Decluttering is the removal of items from a space, whether it is placing it into a storage container or are getting rid of it. Organizing is arranging things in an orderly manner. These two methods of tidying up are similar, but they have differences. Organizing does not necessarily mean getting rid of things while decluttering can have that aspect.

Decluttering is not a one-and-done thing

This is a difficult thing to take in, but decluttering is not something you can do once and be done with it until you move. Decluttering is tough, but it is something that you should do every few months or so in order to keep your home clean and tidy. Once you declutter your space one time, decluttering in the future will be a lot easier since you will likely have less stuff.

Organizing is easy once you declutter

Once you know what you have and where it is after decluttering, organizing becomes easy. This is especially true if you get rid of things. As mentioned above, decluttering will help you stay organized in the future since you know where everything goes and you will have a solid system in place. Even though you will have to declutter every so often, it becomes easier and it will make organizing a lot simpler as well.

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Have a designated place for cords

In the era of technology that we are living in, it is likely that you have a bunch of cords around your home. If left unchecked, they can be scattered all over the place and you may forget what cords go with what electronic. If you have a bunch of loose cords, buy a box for them. As you declutter, test each cord to see what cord goes with which electronic. If you cannot find the electronic that matches the cord, put the cord in a separate pile. Toss any cords you no longer need to help free up space and to help you keep track of what cord goes where.

Fabrics do not last forever

While you may love a specific shirt, towel, or other cloth objects, these items do not last forever, especially if you use the item every day. When you are going through your stuff, designate a time for clothes and linens. Socks, underwear, and towels tend to get dingy after a while, and it can be hard to notice if you use these items every day. Coming in with fresh eyes will allow you to get rid of things that are wearing out so you can replace them as necessary.

Having a lot of stuff is not a marker of your success or accomplishments

In today’s materialistic society, we tend to think that having a lot of stuff with being successful. There is a certain good feeling we get when we buy something that we have worked hard to afford or a reward we have earned. However, the hard work will show up in other ways as well and our accomplishments do not have to be represented by stuff we accumulate. As mentioned previously, consider buying a journal where you keep track of your accomplishments. This will give you a visual look at your accomplishments without the stuff.

Decluttering can be tough, especially since we tend to take comfort in our belongings. As soon as you are able to accept the truths mentioned above, decluttering will become easier and you can detach emotions from your things.

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