Each one item of clutter is not a big deal. It’s all of it together that becomes too much to take!
Each one thing takes up such a small amount of space, but as a whole, it starts to take over the entire house!
I love my little desk! But somehow, along the way, I get all these little things to make it better which clutters it up and makes me take my computer somewhere else to work – but I have a great desk to work at!
So why?
Why do this to myself? I think I like each thing, but again, as a whole, it makes me miserable and makes me not enjoy working at my desk – that I love! It seems that no matter how much stuff I get rid of, I just get more once something is gone. It’s like a clean slate to start accumulating again!
Each one little thing comes into the house slowly – slowly, it builds up. That’s why clutter is so hard to deal with. It’s the collective of stuff that gets in the way! It’s the collective of stuff that’s harder to think about objectively.
It’s also why it’s so hard to see progress as you start decluttering. Sure, you get rid of a few things that are in your way – but you still have a ton more! There’s no way to see a huge impact unless you also get rid of stuff as a collective!
It’s why The Purge was so exciting because we got rid of A LOT of stuff in only one week! It was that huge push of effort that made me really feel like we got rid of stuff and made a difference in the house.
The crazy thing is, I find myself looking around the house again, and I’m realizing that there is so much that we could get rid of all over again, AND it’s only been a few years. When the kids are young, I feel like a huge toy purge could happen annually as they grow and their interests change. Even as adults, interests change.
Getting rid of stuff is never a ‘one and done’ kind of job. It’s just like cleaning the toilet! You gotta do it often otherwise, it looks like a mess! The hard thing, when you don’t really want to get rid of your stuff, is doing it often! It feels good now and then, but on a whole, it might be overwhelming to do it so frequently! It’s so hard to build up the habit of decluttering. It truly isn’t a single task. It actually is just part of the chores. You need to add it to your chore list or to your habit tracker. Even if it’s just 10 things per day!
It’s great to get rid of one mug that you don’t like or use anymore, but if you still have an overloaded cupboard of mugs, it’s still going to feel cluttered and like your time was not well spent decluttering. If you get rid of a bunch of mugs that you really don’t use anymore, then you will feel the difference! The mugs that you decided to keep are tidy and are easily accessible!
So, anytime you are decluttering something, try to look at all of that same type of item to really decide how much of what to keep and where. Rather than pulling out a few mugs, try to pull out all of your mugs. Rather than going through a few magazines, pull out all of your magazines! Rather than sorting through a few items in your closet, sort through it all – or at least all your pants together or sweaters. It will make it easier for you to truly see how many you currently have, which will help determine how many you truly need!
Looking at the stuff as a collective makes it easier for you to see that you may, in fact, have a few too many of that type of item!
Open your eyes and see it all!
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