Anyone trying to maintain a clean and organized home knows that clutter is the number one stumbling block, but surprisingly few people really know how to get clutter free. When the clutter piles up, those more serious cleaning tasks like dusting and vacuuming have to get put on the backburner. Often by the time you’ve gotten around to making a room clutter free, you are too tired (and demoralized) to keep going. You never get around to the real cleaning. Luckily there are steps that can be taken to keep that clutter from taking over to the point of overwhelming you.
The biggest most common clutter culprit is, of course, paper. Paper! That’s mail, magazines, newspapers, work papers and school papers that make their way into your home, keeping you from becoming clutter free. While we can’t completely escape paper, we can get organized to keep the paper from cluttering up the house.
My eyes -- they burn!
One key to getting and staying clutter free is to through the mail right away when you pick it up. It’s best to have a wastebasket close to the front door, and toss the junk mail before you even enter your house. Keep the bills and march them over to your “to do” file immediately. It can be useful to have that file or basket hung on the wall in the place that makes the most sense for you. That might be near your computer desk, in the kitchen, or in the foyer, depending upon how you tend to tackle those tasks. Stamps and address stickers should be located in or near that basket. Other important papers also need to find a home right away – otherwise, that pile of “file later” will remain there forever, and you’ll never be on your way to clutter free. Keep a recycle bin for your newspapers right next to your main garbage can so you can take them out together.
Kid’s papers can get very tricky if you really want to be clutter free. Most parents know that feeling of being torn between wanting to keep everything their kids make and wishing that all that paper would just go way. Have a storage bin and trash can near wherever your child leaves his or her backpack every day. That way, you can put important or memorable projects in the bin and immediately discard daily flyers and graded homework papers that aren’t worth keeping. At the end of every few months, decide what from the projects bin will “make the cut” for inclusion in a larger storage bin that might stay in an attic or under the bed that you and your child can look back on fondly one day.
Here are pointers for getting clutter free from other types of items. Will you use the item again? Be honest! If it’s been over a year since the item has seen the light of day, chances are you will not use it. For things that remain in good working order, consider selling (via ebay, craigslist, or a yard sale) or donating to a local charity. Things that are very worn or no longer working need to be tossed. If you are on the fence about an item, hang on to it for six months and see if you use it in that time period. If you don’t, out it goes — you’re one step closer to clutter free.
Seasonal items can be stored in an attic, basement or another storage space to help you get clutter free so that they do not interfere with your daily living and cleaning routine. I know I often buy out-of-season items because they are on sale – and then struggle to find them when I am ready to use them. Plastic stackable drawers that are clear are terrific for keeping storage items organized and accessible. (Drawers are usually better than boxes, because boxes get stacked one on top of the other making items difficult to reach when you need them.)
Finally, if you really want to be clutter free, if something is broken, damaged or stained, throw it out. This applies to all items, not just seasonal ones. Unless you really are a big project fiend, don’t fool yourself into thinking you will fix a broken item. More than likely you’ll just waste time working around that thing sitting on the table or shelf that should really be in the garbage.
Get clutter free first, and you’ll be amazed at how much easier your cleaning chores become.
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