A Practical Guide To Decluttering And Owning Less

decluttering and living with less is a concept many people can comprehend but the act of actually doing it is often overthought and overcomplicated between numerous rules and games one can play in order to simplify their life i can understand why someone would struggle with knowing exactly where to start so today i'd like to offer you some practical decluttering advice that's straightforward easy to implement and works regardless of how experienced you are with decluttering and owning less number one the three question filter the most common responses people give when asked why are you interested in simplifying your life are peace space and freedom i know when i first started my decluttering journey i was seeking peace and freedom for sure peace because at that time in my life i felt very cluttered and chaotic much of what i did bought and consumed was done so an effort to impress my peers to keep up with the joneses my attention was so fixed on trying to be mr smooth that i started to lose sight of who ron banks was and what he actually cared about i was also seeking freedom because i wanted to reinvent myself i wanted to break free from traditional thinking and the persona that kept me living a very limited life now as i've continued to grow on this journey over the years i've also explored multiple decluttering techniques and this three question filter i'd like to share with you is something that has helped me break the change that tied me to old habits and thinking the three questions are this do i truly need it do i truly adore it and would i trade my inner peace for it just let that sink in for a second like who knew three simple questions like this can make someone reconsider their entire life consumption habits and thinking crazy right but extremely practical and easy to implement and really these questions can be applied to anything you're struggling to let go of and overcome physical clutter is just one example i chose to use for the sake of this conversation but depending on your situation think about mental and emotional clutter people and relationships in your life the digital and social media world if it's making you feel cluttered and chaotic then take a step back and ask yourself do i truly need it do i truly adore it and would i trade my inner peace for it number two the trash bag tango the trash back tango is a fun and easy to remember name for a very simple and practical decluttering exercise the 10 minute declutter exercise if you're feeling overwhelmed and you have no idea where to start then this technique would definitely help you begin to eat away at your clutter the way it works is you grab a trash bag you set a timer for 10 minutes and you pick one room in your house to focus on and for 10 minutes the objective is to walk around that room with one goal in mind for example that goal could be to only grab items that are broken or trash and that's it or maybe the goal is to only grab items that you want to donate now if you do this simple 10 minute routine every day for a week then you'll start to notice a difference if you do it every day for two weeks you will really notice a difference and if you do it every day for a month then you'll be well on your way towards living a clutter-free life number three the fast method in addition to the 10-minute declutter exercise another easy to remember and very practical way to approach decluttering is something called the fast method let's break down what this means fast is an acronym for the following fix a time anything not used in 12 months someone else's stuff and trash now let's look at each of these more in depth fix a time is all about scheduling dedicated time to do a certain task and in this case it's decluttering now this idea is great for both individuals and families because it shuts down the excuse of not having enough time to declutter when it's scheduled the same way we schedule things like meetings at work practice for kids date night with the spouse vacation with the family and so on in a way it becomes mandatory and more likely to happen especially if it's scheduled during a time that suits everyone involved anything not used in 12 months is as straightforward as it gets plus it's a reminder for us to face the truth about our stuff and accept it for what it is see if you haven't used an item in the last year then it's highly unlikely that you will really need it in the coming years or that you'll ever get enough use out of it to justify taking up space in your home remember the objective is to get things out of your home not move it to another room or hide it in a closet so don't spend time inventing reasons to keep things if the amount of space it takes up in your home is not equal to the amount of time you use it then consider letting it go it's as simple as that someone else's stuff is anything that is creating clutter in our home that does not belong to us so if you borrow something from a friend give it back if a relationship you are in has ended now's the time to let your ex's belongings go if your kids are grown and semi moved out text them and tell them to pick up their stuff see it's bad enough when the clutter is our own fault but it's crazy when the clutter belongs to someone else and we're paying the price for it now trash is any and everything that does not serve a purpose in your life and will not add value to someone else's far too often we hold on to things out of guilt and the fear of feeling wasteful but if an item is broken or damaged beyond repair then give yourself permission to let go it doesn't make sense to hold on to something when its life cycle has ended number four commit to a routine routines and habits are both critical components to getting things done effectively and efficiently with strategic routines and proper habits you're more likely to maintain a clutter-free life over the long term some habits you should consider are things like controlling your attention and being assertive about your choices but when it comes to routines especially in the context of decluttering and only less there's one in particular that i stand by personally and find to be extremely practical daily decluttering daily decluttering for me expands beyond that that is physical it's a concept that is applicable to every cluttered area of your life and the routine itself is as simple as this as you live your everyday life and you do things you normally do if you come across something you no longer need use or find value in the goal is to deal with it right then and there for example let's say you're getting dressed for the day and you come across an item that either doesn't fit is worn out and has seen better days or you simply don't like it like you once have instead of hanging it back up or stuffing it into your dresser drawer deal with it right then and there by putting it directly into a donation bag doing this with every item across every area of your life including your thoughts is the best way to maintain a clutter-free life over the long term because dealing with clutter as you go is better than waiting and then facing large amounts of it later number five part with things not memories one of the biggest roadblocks people face when it comes to decluttering is what to do with sentimental items almost everyone on this journey subscribes to the unwritten rule that one is obligated to keep something just because it was a gift or just because it belongs a great aunt so and so or just because it's been passed down for generations now i shared a previous conversation with you not too long ago that really dives deep into 10 ways to declutter sentiments items and i'll leave a link to that down below in case you haven't watched or listened to it but in this conversation today i'd like to give you a pretty straightforward perspective in regards to how to think about this the stuff in our lives sentimental or not all have an expiration date at some point in the future the things we own and use will fade away that's guaranteed there's a phrase my dad loves to say that i feel fits this conversation perfectly it goes things that used to glow don't even glitter anymore meaning all things that were once shiny and new will eventually lose the luster and when they do it's okay to move on and move forward without them because although that item is no longer with us the memories of our time with it will last forever number six manage your paper trail when you think about some of the biggest organizational challenges people face when it comes to clearing unnecessary clutter one popular category that comes to mind for me is paper mail bills catalogs all of it and items like these tend to pile up quickly for most this is why many of us have a filing cabinet or a box that is jammed packed with paper and just the thought of dealing with it seems daunting and off-putting but there are a few simple and practical things that we can do to help minimize and ultimately eliminate our paper clutter here are a couple things to help you get started number one go paperless just about every service many of us subscribe to has a paperless option this is an easy way to cut back on the influx of paper items coming into your home because instead of physical mail come into your door every week you will simply receive an email now this is definitely going to require you to have to step up your inbox management game especially if email isn't your strong suit you definitely don't want to miss important notifications because your inbox is unorganized and overflowing with spam number two set up a sorting system the best way to deal with paper clutter is dealing with it before it piles up so the moment you walk into the house with a handful of mail don't just toss it on the table or in a basket and tell yourself that you will deal with it later 9.9 times out of 10 you won't so it's best to deal with it in that moment take a minute or two and open each item and if it's important and requires action from you set it aside so you can handle it if it's not toss it immediately it's also smart to shred and recycle old paperwork that you've held on to for years but don't actually need number seven know your clutter personality in order to maintain a clutter-free home you have to understand why things pile up in the first place and the best way to do this is through identifying your cluttered personality here are three you can choose from number one the defer or too busy this is someone who tends to buy things they already own because they don't have a system in place to store and find things later and when asked their response is always i'm too busy to deal with it number two the constant worrier aka must save everything this person is concerned that they might need something in the future so they save everything just in case and number three the overwhelmed in life which also means overwhelmed at home this is someone who simply doesn't know where to start so they just live with the chaos and allow things to pile up over time see when you take the time to identify your cluttered personality you can then take the necessary steps you need to to avoid your shortcomings when it comes to keeping clutter out of your life number eight give everything you own a home a really practical way to think about the items in your home and whether or not you need them is to give everything you own at home think about your forks and spoons for example every fork and spoon you own has a home right and if you randomly found a fork stuck between your couch cushions or a spoon hanging out under the bed you'd immediately know that it doesn't belong there and would return it back to its home in this case your kitchen drawer without a second thought right see everything in your life should be this easy to put away if an item doesn't have a home when it's not being used then it becomes clutter so if you ever find yourself stuck trying to figure out where to start start by cleaning up and anything that doesn't have a home is the first to go on the chopping block if you found value in this conversation and if the ideas i shared with you were practical and realistic comment below and let me know i love to continue this conversation with you keep growing keep learning and always stay true to you i'll see you the next one peace

Channel: Ronald L. Banks

Views: 150,481

Keywords: A practical guide to decluttering and owning less, a practical guide to decluttering, a practical guide to owning less, how to declutter, practical decluttering tips, practical decluttering advice, practical ways to declutter, practical ways to own less, how to own less, ways to own less, a guide to minimalism, decluttering, Ronald L Banks declutter advice, Ronald L Banks decluttering, Ronald L Banks owning less

Id: XBOeAlOvioo

Length: 12min 1sec (721 seconds)

Published: Fri Oct 08 2021