by kathilipp | Sep 21, 2018 | Clutter Free |
Want Inner Peace? Get Rid of Clutter One Step At a Time!
Melody stumbled onto the Clutter Free Academy Facebook Group after she sought online groups to support her in dealing with decluttering. In late 2017, she moved her father into assisted living; anything that didn’t fit in his new home just got stacked up in the front room of her house, adjacent to the front door. The clutter caused tension with her husband. She explains, “He kept bugging me about getting it cleaned up because he was tired of having to explain the clutter whenever someone came to our house.”
Melody says, “At the beginning, I felt overwhelmed. I wasn’t sure where to begin. But, I just took one box or section at a time and worked in 45-minute to one-hour intervals, taking a break in-between. I kept telling myself that even baby steps are progress. I also took pictures along the way to remind myself of the progress I was making.”
Melody’s teaching job keeps her busy, so she decided to tackle the clutter come summer. She set aside two days to work on decluttering this area. She used Kathi’s system of 3 bags, with a slight modification. Instead of Put Away, Other Room, and Give Away bags, she had 3 piles: Other Rooms, Give Away, and Sell. Plus the Trash/Recycle pile.
She’s proud to be able to say, “The result of two days of work was that I felt very proud of myself for tackling this room; a load has been lifted from me. I was also very happy to hear my husband tell me what a great job I’d done.”
Working on this room has given her a renewed sense of optimism about what’s possible. “By decluttering this one room, I learned that I can get other areas and rooms of my house decluttered as well. I know it’s a process which will take time. But in the end, I will gain things like inner peace and being able to bless others because I will be living with less clutter.” Melody experienced the peace that comes from living with less, not more stuff!
How can you live with less for the sake of more peace? What are you no longer using that you could share with someone in need?
by kathilipp | Sep 20, 2018 | Clutter Free, Organizing |
When You Don’t Know Where to Start: Handling a Whole House Clutter Makeover Like a Pro
Tackling the whole house at once? Oh that can feel so overwhelming. Whether it’s a move you are excited for or one that is out of necessity, you don’t want to move the clutter with you. Today we talk about how to strategically get rid of what you don’t need to box up and move. If you aren’t moving but you have just had it with the clutter messing up every room? Well this one is for you too.
You don’t have to feel held hostage by your clutter one more day and you definitely don’t have to move it to your new place.
by Cheri Gregory | Sep 17, 2018 | Clutter Free |
I asked for help today.
It was tempting to wait a few more days, to see if I really needed help or if I could manage on my own.
But last night, I asked myself, Why wait?
And the only answer that came to mind was from my People-Pleasing past.
A Woman Who Helps Others
I grew up hearing, “Some things ought not be spoken.”
Although “some things” was an unwritten list, I knew it by heart.
And I knew that “needing help” and “asking for help” were most definitely on The List.
Because, of course, needing help and asking for help might be interpreted to mean that we weren’t perfect.
That we were failures.
So, I kept quiet about my own needs.
I tried hard to be a woman who always helps others but never needs help herself.
What Asking for Help Does NOT Mean
I asked for help today because I refuse to believe the lies of the People-Pleasing bully. All day, I’ll be reminding myself what asking for help does NOT mean:
1) Asking for help does NOT mean that I am a failure.
I may be in the midst of failing. But failing does not make me “a failure.” It just means I’m human.
2) Asking for help does NOT mean that I’m lazy (and should “just try harder”).
I may be trying harder than I’ve ever tried in my life. But I may be doing the wrong thing or doing the right thing the wrong way. Both of which mean that “trying harder” will only make things worse…faster.
3) Asking for help does NOT mean that I’m stupid or incompetent.
No matter how smart or capable I may be in some areas, there’s so much more I don’t know and so many more skills I don’t have. Believing that I should “know it all by now” and be able to “do it all by myself” is pride, pure and simple.
What Asking for Help DOES Mean
I’m also reminding myself, today, what asking for help DOES mean:
1) Asking for help means that I am learning.
Trying and failing means I am learning. On this planet, failure is a key part of the learning process.
2) Asking for help means that I value myself.
Refusing to “just try harder” once I recognize that I’m doing the wrong thing, or the right thing the wrong way, is a sign of self-respect.
3) Asking for help means that I am teachable.
Rejecting the idea that I “should already know ______” or “should just naturally be able to ____” is an act of self-compassion.
4) Asking for help means that I value others’ input.
Welcoming others’ experience-borne expertise demonstrates trust, humility, and receptivity.
5) Asking for help means that I choose not to do life alone.
Recognizing that I need other people reflects acceptance of God’s plan for me to live in community.
A Woman Who Asks for Help
I asked for help today because I’m struggling with a new situation that’s dragging me back toward old destructive habits. But I don’t want to slide back.
So I’m asking for help to make sure I don’t.
In this new situation, I’m not sure how to be my best self. Should I speak up or stay quiet? Should I take action or wait? I want to live as God’s masterpiece even in the midst of difficulty.
So I’m asking for help so I can be 100% me.
The various people involved in this new situation each have their own agendas, and People-Pleasing is trying to convince me to tap-dance to everyone else’s tunes. I desire to live in the center of God’s will.
So I’m asking for help to make sure I do.
If you’re a woman who only offers to help, here’s the truth you most need to know:
You’re created to be a woman who also asks for help.
Today … and every day.
by Lyneta Smith | Sep 13, 2018 | Blog, Clutter Free |
My friend Lyneta Smitth shares how to rediscover your decluttering motivation so you can live a clutter free life.
I flew home from a conference in 2016 with a signed copy of Clutter Free in my hands. By the time I landed in Nashville, I’d finished it and determined that from then on, I would give away or throw away five pieces of clutter per day.
Slowly my house turned from a haphazard dumping ground for all-the-things into an organized, functional home. My daily five, as I started to call the declutter routine, became habit. Eventually, after parting with thousands of items, it became difficult to find five each day.
During those two years, I started buying less and making do with what I had. I put a moratorium on scented candles because we have enough to burn until 2025, and created a strict makeup policy in which I could only buy more if I threw some away.
Needless to say, Kathi’s Clutter Free system has worked great. We were at a happy equilibrium, or so I thought.
Until the other night while I was cooking dinner.
The Hidden Decluttering Project
I had two spice-heavy recipes going at the same time. Each needed six or seven different spices and I was trying to measure them all without burning something.
My biggest problem was finding the spices I needed. I kept them in a storage tote in the pantry, which meant I had to pick each one up to see it. What should have taken five minutes took me fifteen.
I must have sighed a little too loudly or slammed the bin lid on a little too hard, because my husband came downstairs from our office and stood just outside the kitchen with only his head poking through the large arch door. “Is everything okay?”
“Yep. Great.” I might have pushed the pantry door closed with unnecessary force.
At this point, he was probably regretting asking his hranky (hungry and cranky—like hangry only with exhaustion added in) wife any sort of question, let alone implying that she might not be okay. But he bravely forged on like a man whose evening (and more importantly, dinner) was on the line.
“Everything sure smells good.”
I nudged the refrigerator door closed with my foot and carried an armful of salad veggies to the counter. “The spice bin is not working for me. It’s really dysfunctional. I need a real spice rack.”
Still hiding behind the wall to the side of the arch, he said, “Okay, let’s get one. You decide what you want, and I’ll build it for you.”
In case you’re wondering, I do realize I have a nicer husband than I deserve.
He was rewarded for his valiant effort with a little smile. And a big dinner.
The next day, after a good night’s sleep, I researched spice racks and ordered one from Amazon. Then I sorted through my bin to see what I could toss out before the big move. (Goodbye, mostly-full jar of coriander, dated 2012.)
I always joke that Clutter Free is the best marriage book I’ve ever read. But truly, learning to cull unneeded items and keep the ones I don’t need in cute containers has saved a lot of stress and frustration in our household.
Just like marriage, decluttering isn’t one and done. It’s a continual process of growth and tweaking. No matter where you are in your decluttering process, there’s always a next step.
How to Find Your Decluttering Motivation & Your Next Step
If you’re in a lull, or just don’t know how to figure out your next decluttering project, here’s a few questions to guide you.
What’s your biggest pain point?
Sometimes we get so busy, we don’t realize clutter is causing us extra stress. It’s become part of our home, like the furniture. As an empty nester, cooking isn’t as high of a priority for me, so I hadn’t realized how out of hand my spice situation was.
But when an urgent situation hits (like being late because you can’t find your keys or not finding that special, essential fall decoration in the attic) you realize it’s time to do something about a certain area.
Where do you waste the most time?
If it’s trying to find school-appropriate clothes in dressers jam-packed with swimsuits and tank tops, you already know your morning routine has way too much stress. Fifteen minutes a day (or one drawer at a time) can fast track getting your kids ready for school.
Or perhaps you’re like me, and you waste too much time searching for things in the kitchen, and spend too much money buying things you already have, but are hidden in the refrigerator or pantry. Tossing out all the outdated or unusable things (like the soy flour from your gluten-free phase six months ago) will save you time and cash.
Which area do you avoid?
Many of us have sewing rooms or other hobby areas we can’t create in because clutter is taking up too much space. Does your church’s preschool program need that can of buttons or leftover bag of pomp poms? Do you know a sewing 4-H leader who could use yards of practice fabric? It’s a win-win. You get more room to create something special, and bless others with your excess.
Another trouble spot is the garage. I can’t count how many times we’ve gone to buy a new sprinkler at the beginning of summer because we can’t find the one from last year. Same for bike tire pumps, canning jars and garden tools. When you realize you’re avoiding an area because clutter has made it dysfunctional, the decision about where to declutter next is easy.
Now That You’ve Figured Out Your Next Step…
What project are you going to tackle next? Let us know in the comments!
