Make 2024 the year that you actually declutter and get organised with these simple changes.
Let Go of Perfectionism (and Mari Kondo)
My hero worship of Mari Mondo started in my early 20s. I have read both “The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up” and “Spark Joy” multiple times. The amount of times I have referenced either over the years is possibly in the thousands. And while I stand by my admiration, in 2024 I have officially decided to let go of Mari Kondo. I’m sorry, but KonMari no longer sparks joy for me.
Kondo’s philosophy appealed to my perfectionism and it promised me that if I did everything in an exact and perfect way I would get exact and perfect results. Unfortunately, doing everything in an exact and perfect way came with a good dose of procrastination. I knew eventually I would be able to dedicate a week of my life to KonMari my house but I couldn’t get the time off work. And then I was traveling. Then I was getting married, and then my son was born, and then I was busy with my toddler. All I needed was a week with zero responsibilities to really focus and do it right. In the meantime I was beating myself for doing things the wrong way and something amazing happened: I got results.
Take Messy Action
They say “anything worth doing is worth doing right” and it is killing us. Ten minutes of action is better than nothing. This is true of working out, reading, walking the dog; it’s also true of cleaning, decluttering, and organising.
And nothing I am saying now is a unique and novel idea. Professional organisers have been giving this advice for years because it works. It’s advice that I respectfully declined because I was waiting for the day I could take the more appealing advice.
So what actually works? Starting now.
Start Now
You do not need to go spend hundreds of dollars on fancy containers or pretty labels. You don’t need to take a week off work, hire a babysitter, or wait until the time is right, and you certainly don’t need to scroll Pinterest or watch “The Home Edit” for inspiration or to come up with a plan.
The very first step is DECLUTTERING. You cannot organise your things until you get rid of the excess. The bad news is that you cannot just buy a solution (in the form of acrylic containers).
The good news is that you don’t have to buy a solution!
You do not need to worry about being prepared to declutter. In fact all you need is some garbage bags and some plastic tubs or boxes. Here are 6 things you can declutter in ONE DAY.
Socks and underwear
Throw out mismatched socks (how long are you going to wait for their partners to return to them?). Anything that has stains, holes, or is worn to the point where you have retired them but are inexplicably holding onto them? Say goodbye. It’s possible you have been keeping these items and saying you will use them as cleaning rags and I think that is very noble. I won’t tell you not to do this, but I will tell you that if you really wanted to do this you probably would have already. If the choice is between throwing old underwear in the garbage or keeping them in a drawer to rot for the rest of your life, it is okay to throw them out.
Fridge
You don’t even have to clean your fridge, all you need to do is grab a garbage bag and throw out anything that is a bio hazard. If you open something that is expired and you say “oh I know it’s expired but it still seems fine” I need to ask “Are you actually going to use it?” Or are you going to be a bit too grossed out to actually follow through? If you know deep in your heart that you’re just keeping something to throw it out in a week you might as well just rip that band-aid off now.
Toiletries
Are you hoarding samples for “travel”? I don’t know who needs to hear this but you have too many. If you have a history of actually using your samples to travel you can set aside a reasonable amount of the products you actually use for your next trip. I really think you should only do this if you have actually done it before. Otherwise you can keep them out to use up quickly, gift them, or chuck them. When it comes to the rest of the hoard fridge rules apply- get rid of the biohazards. Get rid of anything you literally have not used in years. Get rid of things that you forgot you even had.
Clothes
This isn’t a huge purge. This is grabbing a bin and filling it quickly with things you will never wear again. Holes and stains are obvious. Anything that survived the last purge because you were going to start wearing it but then never wore? Say goodbye. Are you keeping clothes that no longer fit for the day that they do fit? Can I just ask one question? If those clothes did fit would you even want them? Would you even wear those dated old skinny jeans or are you keeping them around to make you feel bad about yourself? This is a whole different subject but keeping clothes around that are too small is mostly just bad for your mental health.
Kitchen
Broken gadgets that you’ve been holding onto for the day you develop an interest in blender repair. Utensils that you never use but are keeping just incase the ones you do use all break simultaneously. Things that you upgraded but are holding onto “just in case”. Things that you don’t use but keep because you paid good money for them. The money is long gone. You don’t need to be giving these items a home anymore. Back ups that you’ve never needed. I moved a second food processor thousands and thousands of kilometres over the past several years and I used it a total of zero times- don’t be me. Dishes you don’t use because they are chipped or cracked. If you don’t use it now, you might as well continue to not use it by kicking it out.
Junk Room
I would love to spend a whole day going through your junk room with you and cheering you on as you empty it out but today is not the day for it. Today is the day to go in and grab a handful of items to part with. These items look like things you’re keeping out of good intentions (things you are going to sell or fix, but you just haven’t gotten around to yet). These can also be things you’re keeping out of obligation (things that were given to you and you don’t want, need, or use but you have to keep them). The third category is items that served you and you have since forgotten about.
Once again, the money you spent on these things is already gone so don’t fixate on how you never used those watercolours. Declutter any guilt or shame you’re feeling about keeping all this crap. Put that energy into deciding what you want to do with the space instead.
Risk vs Reward
There is a small chance that my food processor will give out and I will be stuck in a position where I do not have a back up. I am willing to take that risk because it means less tabs open in my brain. Living in a home that feels overwhelming is not worth the hypothetical day when you might need something. You have proof of this because two things are true:
- The clutter is making you feel bad.
- You haven’t needed those things yet, therefore, you probably never will.
Are you ready to get organised in 2024?
Let go of dreaming that 2024 is going to be the year that you get perfectly organised. Decide that 2024 is the year you’re just going to start.
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