When applied to our homes, the 80/20 rule suggests that we roughly use 20% of what we own around 80% of the time. The remaining amount serves little purpose, taking up space and mostly just gathering dust. Think about it - how many of the utensils in your kitchen crock do you use daily? Probably very few!
Simply by dealing with an item immediately, whether it is your shoes, incoming mail, or your used coffee mug, less clutter will be created. One touch, one movement, equals less effort overall. This rule can also be applied when you are purging, editing, and organizing.
Quite simply, the six-month rule for decluttering suggests that if you haven't used an item in the past six months, you can let go of it. For some very seasonal items, it might not apply, but it's a useful way to frame decluttering and help you to clear out things you rarely use.
'The best room to start decluttering is where two things converge: the area that is causing you the most stress and the place that you live in the most,' she explains. 'The attic or a tucked away closet might be messy and nagging you but if the kitchen, entryway, or primary bathroom is too - go there first!
Set a timer
A timer is a great tool when you're feeling overwhelmed or unmotivated. Give yourself a short amount of time to declutter – maybe 10 or 15 minutes. Then challenge yourself to do as much decluttering in that time as you can. Not only is the challenge of racing the clock motivating.
The basics of the ritual: each day for nine days in a row; you get rid of (throw away, recycle, or give away) 27 things. The idea is that the things you discard are old, worn, or are remnants of the past that no longer represent you or align with your future goals.
Often, constantly feeling the need to declutter can be linked to feeling stressed or anxious. If you are experiencing lots of stress from something in your life (work, school, family, etc) you can feel urges to clean. These urges stem from not being able to relieve the stress but needing to do something to feel better.
Grab a bin large enough to hold things like magazines and books and then walk around the room putting anything out of place in the bin. Keep an eye out for any items that don't belong in the living room. Next, go through each area returning everything to its proper storage place.
Guilt can play a big role in our resistance to decluttering. “We often feel guilty if we're getting rid of something from someone we love,” says Trager. “It's hard to remind ourselves that a person will still love us, and us them, even if we no longer own this item they gave us.”
Declutter big things first
Think things like furniture, large toys, unused exercise equipment, etc. Removing these big items makes a significant impact on the space quickly. Often making it feel less overwhelming when you see how much progress you can make by only making these few decisions.
When struggling to make decluttering decisions, the 20/20 rule says you should consider letting go of an item if: You can replace it for less than $20. And you can replace it in less than 20 minutes.
Here's the fast and dirty way to do it: the rule of 5! What does that mean? It means you throw away at least five items in every room. So, when you've decided that you want to start de-cluttering, go from room to room and throw away five items per room.
Extreme decluttering is when people get rid of huge amounts of things in the decluttering process. This isn't when people end up with a bag or two of things. When people extreme declutter they are getting rid of a high volume of things. These people went for it and have very dramatic before and afters.
These steps are: clear out, categorize, cut out, and contain. To apply the method you start in one room and stay there until it's completed before moving on to the next room in your house. That's all there is to it.
And while decluttering will not cure your depression, it can give you a mood boost. If you are struggling and it feels impossible to keep your surroundings tidy, here are a few tips on how to clean strategically to optimize your energy and your space.
Rule #1 – Don't have a Maybe Pile
Well – the fact is that decluttering involves decision making. Decisions on every item as to whether you keep it or let it go.
Probably not, but it should! Spring cleaning may get all the hype, but fall and winter are actually the best times of year for decluttering your home and garage.
Put simply, the three-second rule puts a quick time limit on your decision-making when it comes to throwing out an item. If you hesitate for more than three seconds, then this rule gives you permission to keep it. It's a method used by professional organizer Kayleen Kelly who specializes in chronic clutter and ADHD.
The 90/90 rule for minimalism encourages you to keep only items you've used or will use within 90 days. This minimalist rule is all about timing.
The challenge is really simple. Basically, for the next five days, I'm going to write down five things every day that I'm thankful for and declutter 20 things from my home. By the end of the challenge, I'll have gotten rid of 100 things! That's pretty good for just five days, I think!