Five Things I am Doing to Declutter in 2019
I don’t know about y’all, but there is something about the fresh start of a new year that makes me want to #KonMari my life (Have you watched Tidying Up on Netflix yet? Marie Kondo is the cutest!!) and alleviate the anxiety of the holidays and past year by decluttering to start with a fresh slate. Now, I’m not talking about resolutions. I feel like resolutions are designed to make you feel bad about yourself. I’m talking about quick, easy things you can do now in this first week or so to set yourself up for a less cluttered new year and a less cluttered mind.
Unsubscribe from all those emails you don’t even read
Okay, raise your hand if you are a repeat offender of just deleting the junk emails you’ve signed up for when you receive them? We’re all with you. Instead of deleting the emails, I am making a conscious effort to unsubscribe. I waste precious moments deleting emails when I could use that time to focus my attention on my mental health, send a quick thinking of you text to a friend or enjoy my coffee with out distractions just to lose those moments again in a few weeks when I inevitably get an email from the same company.
Tip: If you can’t cut the email clutter due to fear of missing a sale, create a second email specifically for online shopping or email registries. I have two - one for serious emails and my fave stores (hello Nordstrom and Madewell) and one for all other online purchases and registries.
Go paperless
Let’s declutter your snail mail while we’re at it. Every month we get a checking account statement in the mail. Why? I don’t know. We both look at the online statement a couple times a week. Every month I shred it and recycle it. It is so wasteful. Moving forward, I’m going to use the snail mail statement as my reminder to switch to paperless statements If it is something I check regularly, but if not I’ll allocate the statement to the appropriate email address for regular review.
Tip: Look into auto pay for your bills. Some companies will give you a discount for setting up auto pay. And you know I’m not above asking if it means I can add a bit more money toward my financial goals.
Clean out that drawer, that closet, that cabinet, that whatever it is
You know that space in your house (or spaces) that drive your crazy? Just thinking about it now makes your blood boil a bit, right? Well, it’s the beginning of the year, so your calendar isn’t full just yet. Schedule the time and allocate the money to organize and clean it up. For me, it is our downstairs closet. Nothing in it is accessible unless I take everything in out of the closet. So instead of getting frustrated every time I need something I will use putting away our Christmas decor as an opportunity to reorganize.
Tip: Take everything out of that space and separate into four piles: keep, donate, toss and sell. Organize your keep pile so all items are accessible within the space. Also, hit up the dollar store for possible storage units to save some cash.
Setup your 2019 filing system
For those paper items that cannot be stored paperless, prep your 2019 filing system. For me, that is 2019 files for doctor visits, vet visits, taxes, etc. By having these spaces ready before the year really gets going, I already have a place to store the paper items instead of letting them pile up and become a larger project.
Tip: To keep things organized from year to year, I label the hanging folder the year and what can be found within in the hanging folder. Then all files inside the hanging folder get their designated name. Example: The hanging folder would be named 2019 Doctor. Within that would be Dentist, Chiropractor, General Practitioner, Dermatologist, etc.
Get rid of multiples
Alright, so I may have two of the same white shirt from Madewell. They aren’t the exact same, but they might as well be. I find myself always reaching for one of them over the other, so it’s time to let the other one go to a better home where it can be loved. Take stock of the items in your house and if you have multiples of something with the same purpose and always find yourself reaching for the same one over the other then free up space in your closet, life, kitchen, mind, etc. by donating or selling the duplicate. I’m not talking about multiples of your everyday plates, bowls, etc. We have dinnerware for eight and some weeks we dirty all eight dishes and bowls. We need those duplicates.
Tip: Find a way to make a bit of extra cash from your duplicates. When cleaning out my closet for my capsule wardrobe I sold most of my items on Poshmark and have had success in adding items I need to my closet with the profits.
I always find the less cluttered my space is the less cluttered my mind. I hope you find these tips helpful and start your 2019 in a less cluttered world. What steps are you taking to remove the clutter?
xx,
Linds
