If your house is cluttered, and you don’t know where to start, this post is for you! 

One of my favorite phrases is “outer order, inner calm.”  When my environment is cluttered, I struggle to focus on projects, and I have an inner jitter that distracts me. 

Not knowing where to start decluttering your home may prevent you from beginning, but these tips will give you the momentum to declutter your entire home. 

My House is So Cluttered! Where Do I Start?

Are you someone who is shouting, “Help! My house is so cluttered, I don’t know where to start”? You are not alone. A Huffington Post survey found that 84% of Americans find that their disorganized home is a major cause of stress.

Keep reading for your step-by-step guide to finding your outer order and inner calm. An organized home brings peace, saving you a lot of time in the long run. 

Find Your Vision

The feeling of overwhelm can be debilitating, so before you lift a finger, I want you to be as clear as possible about your vision for your home. 

How do you want to use the different spaces?  What is functional as-is, and what is a real problem?  

Skipping this part is tempting because it doesn’t feel like progress, but I promise it will guide you to success.

Here’s an example. You used to cook from scratch, so you have a hefty food processor and a large mixer taking up valuable space in your kitchen. 

While that worked for a while, during this season of life, you rely more on items, such as an Instantpot, that allow you to get meals on the table quickly. 

After this reflection, you may decide to part ways with the items you no longer use or move them to the back of a cabinet or even a bedroom closet or storage space.

Think critically about what is important to you right now.  Your home and belongings should support you and your life.  Anything that doesn’t is clutter that can be removed or stored.

Bite-Sized Pieces

Okay, so you thought about your vision for your home and are clear on how you want your home to support your lifestyle.  It’s time to think of your home in bite-sized pieces. 

Whenever I’m overwhelmed by a project, I think of it as a whole rather than its parts. Once I break a large project into smaller pieces, I can manage it without stress.

Grab a piece of paper or use the notes app on your phone to list the smaller projects of decluttering your home.  Grab our free Category Checklist to guide you.

Two Approaches to Decluttering

You can approach the decluttering process in two ways.  There is no wrong way, so do what works for you!

1. By space– You can declutter by space, which means you will declutter a cabinet, drawer, closet, room, etc. at a time.  This is an excellent method for quick satisfaction because when you finish the project for the day, you will have a freshly decluttered space!  This method is less overwhelming because you can easily control the project size.
2. By category– You could also declutter by item category, which means you would declutter all of your paper, books, kitchen items, clothing, etc., no matter where they are in the home.  I prefer this method because you know you are going through things thoroughly.  We tend to have the same type of item scattered throughout the house, so this method requires that you pull them all out, take inventory of what you have as a whole, and decide what to keep.

No matter your chosen method, create a checklist to stay on track and get it done!  The bite-sized tasks will be easy to accomplish and feel so good!

Easy Win With High Impact

Now, it’s time to think about some easy wins. We want you to feel successful as quickly as possible! Think about a space that wouldn’t take too long to sort but would finally feel amazing to have cleaned out.

If you are in the living room, it may be best to tackle baskets or bins that hold electronics that are no longer needed.

If you are in the kitchen, I love to start with drinkware.  Cups and glasses are easy to accumulate, yet we rarely use all of them. 

Maybe you want to start in the utensil drawer (is it time to donate all of those baby spoons?), or maybe tidying up a linen closet or bookshelf would feel amazing. 

You want the first space to be an area you use daily for impact and reasonably small, so it’s relatively easy to complete. Start small and win big! 

Start Decluttering

As you declutter your items, you’ll sort them into piles of keep, donate, and trash/recycle.

Keep

Items you keep are items that get to stay!  Consider where you use the item the most and place it somewhere handy.

Donate

When donating items, take everything to just one or two places.  Unless you have abundant free time, which most of us don’t, driving your donation items to various places doesn’t make sense.  Keep it simple!

Trash/Recycle

The third pile will be trash and recycling.  Again, it would be best if you didn’t overthink this. 

You can generally recycle paper, some plastics, and possibly textiles. Our community has a textile-recycling dropoff through GreenBox. 

Other locations have places to drop off partially used craft supplies.  Do a quick search of your area to see your recycling options.  If you feel guilty about so much going into the landfill, learn from the moment and think a little longer before purchasing things.

Avoid Regifting to Friends/Family

It’s easy to think of friends and family who may want the items you no longer need.  It feels less wasteful when we give our belongings to a specific, but try to avoid this. 

Our friends and family often won’t be honest and say they don’t want the item, so it becomes a burden. 

To Consign or Not to Consign 

It’s also tempting to consign things, hoping to squeeze out a little more value. Some consignment stores are easier to work with than others. If you are consigning items with a simple drop-off store, and they donate unsold items, then go for it. 

You won’t have to touch the items again and may get some cash out of them.  Sounds like a win! 

If you must consign with a store that requires an appointment, takes only seasonal items, and requires you to pick up unsold items, consider donating those items instead.  The money you may make is not worth the hassle.

We want to free you of unwanted items as quickly as possible, so stick to the three categories and get them out of your house as soon as possible.

Feeling Stuck?

If you find yourself lamenting, “Help! My house is so cluttered, I don’t know where to start!” and you still feel stuck, we’re here for you! Contact us so we can discuss and simplify your project!

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