It doesn’t take much for me to declutter. Practically every 3-day weekend I spend at home, at least one day is spent decluttering. If you just groaned as you read that, I’m guessing you have not experienced the feelings of joy, clarity, and freedom that’s available “on the other side” of a decluttering session.
Here’s a tip for those of you who can’t find the time to declutter:
1. Think about something that disturbs you; you know, something that you’d just love the entire situation to be handled — like world hunger, or something with underprivileged kids. Pick something that, if I could wave a magic wand and say “With one swoop of my wand, I’ve got that situation handled” you’d be totally excited.
2. Find a local group tied to that topic “that can keep you up at night” that takes household donations. If you’re prone to stalling out during the decluttering process, choose a group that has a dated event so you have a deadline for your items to get there. (I usually donate most of my household items to the local Assistance League, and I have chosen Habitat for Humanity as my go-to money donations. There’s a local church that I’m speaking at in January that’s having a yard sale on October 23rd that’s getting my stuff this month, however.)
3. Start decluttering! Now that you’ve got a group in mind that you know is going to benefit from your efforts, you have more motivation to get ‘er done. Each time you find yourself stalling out, take a moment to think of the benefit your work is going to do for your chosen charity!
4. Take a quick moment to jot down the items for tax purposes (yes – a bonus!) Here’s the Salvation Army’s valuation sheet if you need it.
5. Celebrate! Take a moment to acknowledge the new feelings of being helpful to both yourself and the charity of your choice!
See you there!
