My #1 Tip for Making De-Cluttering Less Painful

I have several closets in my home that need to be de-cluttered and organized. Since we moved into our current home three years ago, I’ve been on a mission to make sure each space is being used in the best way possible.

One of the closets I need to organize is the one found in our guest room. As you probably can imagine, this is one that has become a catch-all space for miscellaneous items I didn’t know where to store.

Here are a couple of pictures of how it looks now:

 

Even though the holidays are coming up, and I have so much to do, I’m making getting this closet organized a priority. One reason I’ve picked this closet is that it should be fairly simple to de-clutter and organize. And, once organized, I should be able to free up space to store other items that may not have a place yet.

Organizing any space can be a challenge. Often we start with the best intentions and can even visualize the outcome. But, once we get started, it is easy to get bogged down. I’m anticipating this even though I think organizing this closet should be easy.

Many times, it’s not the organizing or rearranging of items in a space that’s the problem. It is the purging where I tend to get hung up. You too? Well, let me share my #1 tip for making de-cluttering less painful.

Pretend that you are moving. Ask yourself these questions.

Do I want to spend time and energy packing up and moving this item?

Do I really need this item?

Will there be a place for this item in my new space?

I learned this lesson very painfully when we moved. I should have asked myself these questions. It was very difficult to empty our house and to get everything moved. I ended up with a lot of stuff in my new home that three years later I’m still going through and purging.

Because this lesson is so fresh on my mind, I tend to ask myself these questions when organizing because I never want to be in that place again. Every item in my home should be wanted and/or needed. I don’t ever want to keep a lot of things that take up space and rob me of the peace that comes with an organized home.

I’ll post pics in a few weeks of the closet once I get it organized. I can’t wait to see how it is going to turn out!

Do you have any special tips for de-cluttering?