Are you tired of searching for lost items and tripping over clutter on the floor? Do you feel as though you can never get on top of the household chores? Do you dream of a home that is clean and clutter-free?
A home that is free of excess clutter is much easier to maintain and keep clean. The first step is to remove the excess from your home. Clutter begins to take over our homes when we have too many possessions.
Putting in place cleaning routines and simple habits, will aid in keeping clutter under control. It’s not enough to just move the clutter around, you need to get it out of the house and therefore be mindful of what items you allow into your home.
In order to make a change and move forward its important to understand the why of our clutter filled homes and not just the how. If you don’t dig deep and address the issues that brought you to where you are, it’s highly likely the patterns will simply continue to repeat.
If you’ve had enough of the clutter and you are ready for change, then I hope to inspire you to create a clutter-free home and enjoy simplified living with less.
Here are some interesting facts about us and our obsession with stuff! Shining a light on our clutter madness will hopefully motivate you to make a change, big or small.
Why do we have so much clutter?
Living in a world driven by consumerism and with relentless advertising telling us we need new stuff, it’s no wonder our homes are drowning in a sea of clutter. We are currently consuming more than ever before and every year the average Australian family produces enough rubbish to fill a three-bedroom house, producing about 2.25 kg of waste each per day, as cited by coolaustralia.org.
Storage sheds are a booming industry and we are continuing to build bigger and bigger homes, but we still don’t seem to have enough space. One of the top ‘most wanted’ attributes of home buyers today, is more storage!!
Over the past 60 years Australian homes have more than doubled in size, going from an average of around 100 square meters in 1950 to about 240 square meters today.
This makes our homes the largest in the world today, ahead of Canada and the United States. At the same time, the average number of people living in each household has been declining. This means that the average floor area per person has skyrocketed from 30 square metres to around 87 square metres. Let’s think about that. Are we building bigger homes and taking on larger debt just to house our ever-growing collection of stuff? Is it about time we question our need for more, and become clutter-free?
Stuff, Stuff and More Stuff!!!
As a nation we continue to acquire so much stuff at such a fast rate that we are constantly looking for new storage solution’s to house it all. Do we need to stop and ask ourselves, why? Why do we feel the need to keep acquiring more and more stuff? Why are we never happy with what we have? Are we searching for happiness and the perfect life within our possessions?
No longer do we keep items until they are broken and unusable. Items are now being replaced simply because they are no longer trendy. Is the compelling need to keep up with the Jones’s or in today’s case the Kardashian’s, driving our obsession with stuff? Are we placing too much emphasis on what we have, to define who we are?
How’s your wardrobe looking? Is it bursting at the seems in an attempt to keep up with the latest fashion trends? As stated in a report in January 2017 by the ABC, Australians are the world’s second largest consumers of textiles, buying on average 27 kilograms of new clothing and other textiles each year!
With the introduction of ‘fast fashion’, it’s nearly impossible to keep up with the latest fashion trends. In a bid to entice consumers to spend, the fashion industry now creates weekly fashion cycles. This means your new look could be outdated within the month!
It’s not uncommon to buy new items simply because we’ve forgotten or can’t find what we already have. Buying things we don’t truly need leads to excessive, unnecessary and most often in the end, unsatisfying purchases. Buying something on sale just because it’s 20% off, isn’t really saving you money. Its actually costing you money by making an unnecessary purchase.
Think twice about your next purchase…
If you’re swimming in stuff, it’s quite possible you’re also drowning in debt. Think twice before you make your next purchase. Ask yourself some tough questions and be truthful in your answers. Do you truly need this item or do you want it? Can you go without this item by repairing or continuing to use the one that you already have? Are you making this purchase for the right reasons, not just because it’s too good of a sale price to pass up? Can you pay cash for this purchase, or are you relying on acquiring further debt?
If you think you really do need to make the purchase, try sleeping on it. Give yourself time to really think about what choice to make. Don’t purchase on impulse or because you feel pressured. You might be surprised that after removing yourself from the item in question, you may begin to desire it less or not at all. Shopping can give us a satisfactory ‘high’ that is usually short lived, followed by a let down and regret about our purchase.
What is Minimalism?
There’s a new wave currently sweeping across the world and gaining momentum, in the quest to become clutter-free. If you haven’t heard of it yet, its called Minimalism.
Adopting the practices of Minimalism is more than putting a number on how many things you should or shouldn’t own. Nor is it suggesting your home should look a particular way. It’s more about adopting a new mindset, being conscious of how we consume and being mindful of the way we live and the choices we make.
Learning about Minimalism has truly opened my eyes to compulsory consumerism. This has led me to a new way of thinking and being more conscious about how and where I spend or rather waste my money. Over the years I’ve removed thousands of items from my home in my quest to remove the unnecessary excess. Most of which I can’t even remember what they were, and none that I miss or regret donating or discarding.
Removing this excess has left room for items that I truly value or bring me joy. It has also meant my home is easier to maintain and keep clean. Now everything has a place and everything is in its place and my home runs more efficiently. I still feel there are many more items in my home I could easily do without in my quest to become clutter-free.
If you’re interested to learn more about minimalism, I suggest heading over to The Minimalists.com to read more. Simply click on the link in the text. Joshua and Ryan from The Minimalists will be in Australia, March 2018 for their Less is now tour.
Are you ready to make your home a clutter-free zone?
Do you truly want to create a calm and organised home where it is easier to keep on top of the cleaning and household chores? A home where you can quickly find things and everything has a place.
A home that brings you joy and not overwhelming anxiety? If so then its time to stop bringing meaningless excess stuff into the home. Get serious about removing the clutter that is weighing you down and surround yourself with only the things that truly bring you joy and add value to your life.
A clean and clutter-free home means impending visitors no longer send you into a mad panic throwing things in cupboards and running around shutting doors to messy rooms, whilst praying they don’t want to use the bathroom.
Before I organise or think of styling any room my philosophy is to first declutter and remove the excess from the space. This will give a clearer picture of the purpose of the space and how the space needs to function. Once you have your blank canvas then you can assess your true storage and furniture needs and how you would like the room to look. Simply buying pretty new storage containers wont help you to create a clean, clutter-free and organised home. The piles of clutter and mess are still there, just in new containers.
Where to start…
I suggest starting here, Declutter Session Success: Simple First Steps, click on the link in the text to read more. Create an action plan and gather your supplies, ready to tackle your first declutter session. When you start the process of becoming clutter-free, ask this question of each item. Does this item deserve a place in my home and does it truly bring me joy? If the answer is no, than out it goes!
You can create a clutter-free home that you love to live in!
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