Messy House All The Time? Here’s How To Fix It
Have you ever had someone show up at your house unexpected and your home looks like a disaster area and you’re embarrassed beyond belief.
Have you ever woken up in the morning to a kitchen with dirty counters, a sink full of dishes and the table not cleared off?
Have you ever all of a sudden felt a swift pang of anxiety when you look around your house and you notice every pile of papers, every stash of junk and you feel like your busting out of the seems of your house?
Yeah, me too.
I think we’ve all been there.
Why do you think there’s this minimalist movement right now?
Because it feels good.
It feels good to live with less, and get rid of the excess.
Why?
Because it cheaper, it’s less stressful, it takes less time to clean and you have less you need to take care of and you create more TIME … isn’t that what so many of us are after?
Clutter around our houses is not only distracting but has a direct effect on our mood, well being and stress levels. When our homes are cluttered it drags down our energy. Have you ever noticed how you feel right after you clean and shine your kitchen?
You have an extra skip in your step and more peace in your soul.
That’s why it’s SO important to clear the clutter out of our lives. Start with your home and it will just spread from there.
Now is the perfect time of year to be thinking about clearing out clutter, with one year ending and a new beginning think of clearing out your clutter as one drab weighed down life ending and a new lighter more peace filled life beginning. It will work wonders for you and your family.
It also helps you feel better about the home you’re in. Let’s face it not all of us live in our dream house. My husband and I live in my in-law’s apartment with 4 kids and a dog. We hardly have enough space and it’s tight and dark, I don’t love it, but when I take care of my home I am able to be at peace in it and that is what really matters.
When you aren’t constantly shuffling papers, and belongings from place to place you have more time to just be still, play with your family, work on your business, read a good book, and enjoy the things you LOVE in life.
Alright we’ve talked about why we need to get rid of clutter, to feel amazing of course! Now how the heck do we do it? Well, there are a lot of systems, books, blogs and gurus out there talking about how to clear your clutter. Sometimes they break your house down into a million tiny little projects but I think that’s a bit overwhelming. I say keep it simple.
I’d love to offer 7 tips to get you started to a clutter free home and beyond!
1. Pick 1 Room Or Area To Begin: It could be the kitchen, or your work desk or the bathroom, or maybe your bedroom. Wherever you want to begin is fine. Just pick an area to begin working and STAY THERE, don’t get all side-tracked running stray items all over your house.
2. Start With 15 Minutes: Set a timer for 15 minutes and declutter. Work hard getting rid of unwanted and unused items for just that long, then stop. This is about clearing out space to leave room for necessary items. Purge, toss, donate, whatever just get it gone. Don’t get neck deep in a closet for hours because you will be exhausted then never want to clean again, you want to keep the momentum going so just hold your horses and save all that gusto and energy for the next day.
3. Tame The Paper Trail: Mail, bills, important papers, kids school work, agh! It seems to have a mind of it’s own. It finds a nice clear space on your counter and takes it over. Have a place for these papers and use simple folders with labels to divide them up. They don’t need to constantly be visible but they may need to be handy. Keep them close and organized but out of sight.
4. Create Storage Areas: Chances are there is probably unused space lurking in your home. A corner of a closet, under your bed, behind a door, if you get creative you can find a place for everything. Another reason why it’s so important to get rid of things is so you have space for the things that really matter. There are so many great storage organizers out there in every store. Get creative and create a home if an item doesn’t already have one. Then return it to it’s home after you’re done with it.
5. Deal With Mail ASAP: As soon as you get your mail from the mail box sift through it. Immediately get rid of junk mail, tear it up and toss it. Credit card offers- shred, catalogs- toss, magazines- read then donate to your library. If it’s something important put it in that file that is labeled “important” and if it’s a bill…pay it!
6. Keep Your Night Stand Neat: This is 1 area that I think is particularly important. The night stand beside your bed. The area where you sleep is really important to keep clean. You want to feel relaxed in your bed. If your night stand doesn’t have drawers get a cute basket at TJ Maxx or another store like that to keep your extra books and magazines in. Pick a couple books and maybe a journal and pen to keep on your nightstand and just keep it to that. Don’t let the piles stack up to your ceiling.
7. One In One Out Rule: Carefully monitor what comes into your house. If you buy a new pair of shoes is there a pair that are a bit old that you could donate? Do you need that 3rd box of crayons? The 5th spatula? The 10th mixing bowl? That 15th…you get my drift. Make a rule that when something comes in something goes out, or better yet, 2 things go out.
I’d like to leave you with a bit of inspiration. I came across this quote as I was writing this for you and loved it. I think it really embodies the bigger problem in our society of just plain wanting too much. Good luck and here’s to a new year without clutter!
“We don’t need to increase our goods nearly as much as we need to scale down our wants. Not wanting something is as good as possessing it.” – Donald Horban
I’m opening a 30 day Minimalist Motherhood Mentorship Program. If you’ve ever wanted to be guided through your home and get rid of the clutter for good, then email me at hannah (at) hannahhepworth.com to learn more!
xo
Hannah
