How do you feel when you hear Christmas carols playing in the stores already? Do you kick up your heals and skip around the store filling your basket with stuff? Or do you stick you head in a hole and try to forget about the stuff that is about to invade in your home?
In a recent survey they found that the average Australian family spent $963 per year on gifts, what is really scary, $620 worth of the gifts was considered “unwanted” other words CLUTTER!
Seriously how much soap on a rope or undies do you really need?
7 Top Tips to Ethically Declutter and get back your Christmas Mojo
Need motivation struggle to get your Christmas mojo? As I write this blog, it is only 8 weeks until that round red suited person slides down the chimney.
What is he or she going to find- a floorobe instead of a wardrobe, clothes strewn on backs of chairs, a sea of toys from the front door to the back door, cupboards groaning under the weight of gadgets you never use?
- Many hands make light work
It is about being realistic with your time and the amount of clutter you have to move. It’s time to bring out Santa’s little helpers such as the kids, and people you share your home with.
Rather than stepping over each other declutter by zones, someone looking after the bathroom, another the living room, delegate flat surfaces to one person, walls to another, another word we use in the Professional Organising industry is “chunk it down”, this may appeal to the more macho in your home. Lastly, when delegating consider your helpers individuals capabilities, avoid delegating a space with lots of stairs to someone that struggles to climb up and down.
- Start and Finish
Starting is always a good thing, remember it is not long before your home will start to groan under the weight of more STUFF. Importantly set a finish date otherwise time gets away from you and you end up doing a mad rush, hiring a skip bin and throwing out your treasures, or the whole process drags out and next thing it is Christmas eve and nothing is sorted.
- Gather your tools
Check your supplies of sturdy garbage bags and storage boxes, also look local for were the clutter will either be donated, recycled or into your general waste bin. Remember to place recyclables loose in the bin, they do not need to go in a plastic bag, in fact the waste management companies prefer them loose.
Stop the PRESS, not everything will be clutter, you may just need to return things to their correct home, hence it is important to check you have adequate storage boxes. Check out how to declutter To keep things on the eco organising path, always check what you have before going and buying more stuff.
- The 5-minute de-clutter dash
Can’t get the kids and housemates motivated and you want to make an instance impact, why not do the 5-minute declutter dash. Set a timer on your mobile phone, oven or watch for 5 minutes. Grab a bag and dash around the room picking up all the rubbish, then pick up all recyclables. Once you have emptied the rubbish and recyclable, dash back inside and pick up all the things that do not below in the that space and return them to their correct home.
- Sort it
Hey presto you have de-cluttered a space, now it is time to sort the remaining items into logical order for this space to function.
- Repeat
Now that you have the hang of it, repeat this in every room in your home
- Reward
It is about this time you are feeling sorted, clear headed and maybe a little exhausted. When you start to declutter it is very important to reward yourself and team along the way, build in breaks for drinks (let’s keep the cocktail cabinet closed at this stage) meal breaks and a mental break from the work. How will you reward yourself?
For some one that has everything order a copy of Ethically Declutter Your Home in 30 Days
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The10R’s© Rethink Responsible Refuse Repurpose Reorganise Repair Reduce Reuse Recycle Reward
