First of all, I would like to give a big shout out to an amazing book I just read that has inspired this post - The Year of Less by Kate Flanders. Her books describes her personal journey as she places upon herself a "shopping ban" for an entire year. This ban keeps her from being able to buy anything she does not truly NEED, and along with the ban, she gets rids of any items she does not use on a daily basis. The positive change this "shopping ban" creates in her life is inspiring - it gave me to push I needed to declutter my whole house!
So what do we have to gain from getting rid of the things we stash in our houses, apartments, etc. but never use?
Space, space, and more space! And along with this space, more clarity of mind. I truly believe that clutter not only clutters our living spaces but our minds as well - even if we do not realize it. We may choose to ignore said piles of clutter, but they are still there. We tell ourselves "I'll clean it tomorrow." That "tomorrow" often never comes, and every time we see that cluttered space, we (almost unconsciously) feel guilty about never getting rid of things we know that deep down we don't need.
Changing one's mindset about personal belongings can be hard in a materialistic world - But I think we have a lot to gain by losing the things we don't need. Which of course there is not anything blatantly wrong about owning items we like. But do we need 5 colors of the same sweatshirt that fits us just right? Probably not. Do we need 50 shirts sitting in our closet when we only wear 10 at the most on a weekly basis if we are really being honest with ourselves?
I would say - NOPE! We don't. We really don't need 10 of everything. And trust me, you will feel so liberated when you can open all of your closets and know exactly what is in there and the use that every item has.
You may be wondering - well what do I do with all of my extra things? They are in good shape, and I don't want to throw them away. Well you don't! Just donate them to your local Goodwill or other donation center. If you aren't using something, something else could be. And they may need it way more than you do.
And if you decide to do as Kate Flanders and I did, you will come across this nagging internal thought - but I have to keep this because I have memories attached to it, and I'll never find another one like it. And I know, there are things that are priceless like that; BUT don't let that be the reason you have to keep every other thing you know you don't need. I think we tend to be a little too sentimental about some things. If something is really that sentimental to you, take a picture of it and frame it! Ha, but really, it is the people in our lives that we value, not the 3 million knickknacks they have graced us with.
So, I challenge you to think hard about what you really need and use in you house each day, each week, each month. And decide what you truly NEED, and then get rid of all the rest!
And in return, you will get a de-cluttered house and mind.
Please feel free to comments and let me know the results if you accept this challenge! Oh and please read Kate Flanders' book! It's amazing, and I owe my clean, de-cluttered house to her!
