Easy Decluttering Rules to Help You Simplify and Live With Less

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Decluttering can be hard – both physically and emotionally. But it doesn’t always have to be so. If you’re intimidated and overwhelmed at the mere thought of decluttering your home, there are some easy decluttering rules that can help you get rid of your clutter and live with the things you love and enjoy – on your own terms.

These decluttering rules are not hard and fast rules, but they will help you let go of the unloved, unwanted, and unnecessary stuff so you can live with less and make room for what truly matters.

Once you’re done with decluttering, you’ll start enjoying some of the amazing benefits of living with less which will make your life more meaningful and less stressful.

Know your why

You should know why you’re doing something before you do anything, and decluttering is no different. When you know the reason(s) why you want to declutter your home, you’ll feel more inspired, focused, driven, and goal-oriented.

More or less, we all know how to declutter, but knowing why will make it stick. Find out: why do you want to declutter your home? Why do you want to live with less? Why do you need to make space in your home? And why do you want to simplify?

Whenever you feel overwhelmed, frustrated, unmotivated, or simply feel like giving up, remember your why. Remind yourself exactly why decluttering will be worth the efforts.

Your why will also help you answer essential decluttering questions when trying to decide what things to keep and what to let go.

Change your mindset

Every positive change in life comes from a new mindset and perspective. Decluttering is no exception. Sometimes when all of your focus is on what you’re losing or letting go of, decluttering can feel like deprivation instead of freedom.

Shift your mindset and focus on what you’re choosing to keep instead and what you’re gaining by those excess things being removed. Stop thinking about how much money you paid for something or if you have received that item from someone special. By keeping those clutter in your home, you’re not going to be any richer. Rather, start thinking about all of the precious time and energy you have wasted so far by cleaning, organizing, maintaining, and storing something you never use or enjoy.

Related post: 5 Things You Gain When You Live With Less

Do one thing at a time

This is one of the essential decluttering rules. You didn’t clutter up your home overnight and you aren’t going to become clutter-free overnight either. This is a step by step, slow process. Change is hard, and the process is often slow for many of us. It takes time to clear out clutter, especially if you have a big family with children.

Sometimes you start decluttering – all excited and energized. And then, you end up being tired, burnt out, and frustrated trying to do too much in a short time. Don’t overdo. Slow down. Take breaks. Your entire home doesn’t need to be decluttered in one day, one weekend, or even one month. Give yourself some grace, and do one thing at a time with persistence. Your one thing at a time efforts will make a big difference in your decluttering journey.

If you can manage to spare just ten minutes at a time, a couple of times a week, that’s enough to accomplish one big decluttering task. Those 10-minute sessions will soon add up, and you’ll be surprised to see the progress you have made during those 10-minutes session without feeling tired, overwhelmed, or frustrated.

Start with your own stuff

One of the most important decluttering rules for success is to declutter your own stuff first. When you’re decluttering, it can be tempting to get rid of the things that belong to other people in your family if you know they don’t use or need them.

But getting rid of somebody else’s stuff (without their permission) before they’re ready to let it go is not a good idea. Think about how you would react if your spouse or your child started decluttering your stuff without your knowledge or permission!

Instead, focus on decluttering your own stuff first. Lead by example and show your family the benefits of decluttering. You can gently encourage your family to declutter, or even offer to help, but don’t push too hard or just get rid of their stuff. It will create resentment.

Take “before” & “after” pictures

It’s really a good idea to take before and after pictures of any decluttering project so you can see the progress you have made. It can also help you stay motivated.

Taking the before picture is always worth it. Seeing the progress you have made is a powerful thing. There is nothing more rewarding and encouraging than literally seeing your progress.

Compare those before and after pictures once you’re done decluttering one area, and it will tell you an inspiring story! You can easily identify even the smallest differences and improvements your efforts have made, and you’ll feel accomplished.

Don’t organize before decluttering

Decluttering and organizing are not the same things! You can carefully organize your clutter but they are still clutter, and will continue to add more stress to your life.

You can move your stuff around all day long – changing places and put them into cute bins and baskets, but in the end if you have too much stuff, your space will still look cluttered and it won’t stay organized for long.

So, instead of organizing, focus on decluttering first. Then, only after you have thoroughly decluttered, find ways to neatly organize the stuff you’re keeping.

In reality, the only way to effectively organize a space is to get rid of the excess, unnecessary stuff first.

Ditch the duplicates

Duplicates are the enemy of a clutter-free home. Owning duplicate items or multiple items that can serve the same purpose or do the same job is a sure way to add clutter to your home. If you have a few of a particular item, such as clothes, shoes, or kitchen tools, that’s a good thing since you have choices, varieties, back ups, and appropriate things for different occasions.

However, when you start to accumulate too many of a particular item that you really don’t need or never use, it becomes an overwhelming pile of clutter – creating mess and stress.

Anything in your home that you have a large selection of should be questioned and evaluated, because it’s taking up valuable physical space.

Related post: The Real Cost of Clutter in Your Home

Don’t keep anything that you haven’t used in one year

When was the last time you used something? Items not used for a whole year are not likely to be used in the next year either. If it’s something you use only once a year or occasionally, is it something that you could borrow from a friend or rent?

It often happens that we buy and use an item for quite a while, and then our needs change and it is no longer useful to us anymore. That’s when the item begins to collect dust in a corner – gradually becoming clutter. If you aren’t going to use the item anytime soon or have no future plans for it, you probably can live without it.

If you have stuff in your home that are not used anymore, or you no longer need that to serve any purpose, you need to get rid of them. When something is nice to look at but doesn’t get used at all, you should let it go because it’s clutter!

Only keep things you love and value

Believe me, you don’t have to get rid of it all. The whole purpose of decluttering is to surround yourself with the things you need, love, and value. If there are things, particularly decorative items or clothes that you don’t like or enjoy anymore, you should get rid of them and make room for the things you love and appreciate.

It’s easy to keep things in your home that you don’t like just because over the time you get used to them, and don’t even notice them anymore. Take time to look around carefully and see which items don’t make you feel good about them. And then, put those in your decluttering list and get rid of them.

Only keep those things that add value to your life and the stuff you enjoy. When it doesn’t add value anymore, or serve any purpose, or you stop enjoying it, you better let it go.

Every item must have a home

One of the key decluttering rules for a clutter-free home is to give everything you own a place of their own. Whether it’s a nail-cutter, TV remote, school uniform, or physical mail, every single item in your home must have a designated place. Otherwise, they’ll just end up being clutter, and you’ll be moving them around to clean, or won’t be able to find them when you need them. When an item doesn’t have a home, it often sits out cluttering your surfaces and your home.

If an item doesn’t have a home or you can’t make room for it, either do some decluttering so you can find a home for it, or ask yourself if the item is worth keeping in your home. When an item doesn’t have its own place, it often sits out cluttering your surfaces and your home.

Have a donation basket/box ready

Keep a donation box handy to help you with decluttering. During the day, when you come across something you no longer use, need, or love, simply add it to your donation box, or if it’s something that can’t be donated, throw it away right then.

Make sure you are dealing with your clutter and getting it out of your house! When your donation box gets full with unwanted or unloved stuff, drop those items off at your nearby donation center and start the process again. Don’t give yourself a chance to change your mind if you made the decision to get rid of something.

Aim to put something in it every day or every week and deal with the stuff regularly. Strategically place it somewhere prominent (but not too visible) that will remind you every time you walk past it.

Stop accumulating random stuff

Another really important decluttering rule is to stop accumulating random stuff. When you have too much unnecessary stuff, decluttering and organizing your home becomes harder. To keep your home clutter-free, tidy, and functional, never acquire an object you don’t really love or have a specific need for.

Also, make a habit of not buying anything that you can live without. And never buy an item if you don’t have a space to store it. You should not only get rid of the excess that you already own, but also need to be mindful of what finds a way back to your home.

Mindless shopping, online or offline, adds clutter to your home. Shop intentionally, buy only what you need, and accumulate less stuff. Avoid free samples, freebies, and other unwanted or unneeded items that are often forced upon us as consumers. Politely refuse such offers unless it’s something you know you’ll use. Otherwise, it’ll be really difficult for you to maintain a clutter-free home.

One of the best ways to combat clutter is to stop bringing it into your home. Be intentional about your purchases. Otherwise, you’re just accumulating clutter.

Purge on a regular basis

Purging regularly is one of the most essential decluttering rules if you want to maintain a clutter-free home. Decluttering is not a one-time event. Once you have streamlined, your work is not done. In order to be effective, decluttering needs to be an ongoing process.

Establish a regular routine of clearing out the unused, unwanted, and unnecessary stuff that has a habit of accumulating over time. Your home is not a show-room or model home. You and your family live there, use your stuff, make new purchases & bring new stuff home, no longer need or use some stuff, and make messes. So, train yourself to evaluate things as you encounter them. Set aside those items that don’t measure up in a donation box, and take it to a local charity once it’s full.

The less stuff you have in your home, the easier it is for you to keep your home tidy, organized, and clutter-free!

Celebrate your progress

Well, this one might not quite fit in the decluttering rules, but it will help you keep going. Celebrate the baby steps and the small wins instead of waiting until the end. Remember, any progress is better than none, and it’s one step closer to your goal!

You might not be able to clear all of your clutter at once, but just decluttering one small area such as a drawer or a flat surface is still progress because it’s one less area you have to worry about.

Acknowledge and celebrate your success after each session. You made some progress in your journey, and that deserves to be celebrated regardless of how small or insignificant the progress is.

Parting words

I hope these decluttering rules will make your decluttering task easier for you. Do understand that there is no “one size fits all” solution for decluttering. Use the decluttering rules that make sense for your home, your family, and your heart, and ignore the ones that don’t.

Slowly but steadily clear the clutter so you can simplify your life and have more time, space, energy, clarity, and freedom to enjoy the things that matter most to you!