How to Start Decluttering When Overwhelmed by All of Your Stuff
It’s a challenge knowing how to start decluttering when overwhelmed. You may feel you have too much stuff in your home to go through.
Your room may be so much of a mess, you might wonder if you’re a hoarder. I understand the feeling well with my own room not being the most clutter free.
Fortunately, there are ways you can make the feeling of being overwhelmed a little bit easier through a few simple tips.
How to start decluttering when overwhelmed
1. Take a breath
Sometimes it can help to just give yourself time to relax first. Maybe you can do some of your favorite self-care activities before you get started.
Look into some relaxation techniques that might calm your nerves about everything. Some examples of techniques you could try could be meditation, yoga, or just reading a good book.
Once you feel like you’er feeling better, you can start thinking about where to start decluttering.
2. Focus on one room only
The more you focus on your whole house, the more you’ll feel overwhelmed. Try to put your focus on only one room in your house.
Maybe you can start with your bedroom first. After you finish your bedroom, then you can move on to another room.
Approaching decluttering in this way will help make it less stressful for you.
3. Start small
Start with one item and go from there. You can take out one item a day or two items a day. However many you feel comfortable with, make that your daily goal.
You may not feel like you’re doing much once you get started, but think about how much you accomplish over time.
If you remove one item a day everyday for a year, you’ll have 365 items removed from your home. Who knows, by halfway through the year, you may feel your space is exactly the way you want it.
4. Take your time
It’s unfortunate that decluttering has turned into a competition sometimes. People think its arace to see who can get the most thrown out of the house in a short time.
The beauty of minimalism is you can do it at your own pace. You don’t have to get it all in one day, one week, or even one year.
Some days you may not feel like decluttering and that’s okay.
Go at your own pace and be happy with your own progress.
5. Have help
There’s no need to feel like you have to do it all alone. Ask for help from friends or family. You might be surprised how willing they are to help you out.
You may even get a lot of decluttering done when they come over to help. Family and friends can make things more fun and less stressful for you.
As a result, you may feel more motivated and energized to get a whole lot done.
6. Keep a positive attitude
Try to keep a positive attitude as you go through the process of decluttering. Practice positive self-talk and tell yourself you’re doing a good job.
If you get too down on yourself and focus too much on everything you have left to declutter, you’ll feel less motivated.
Family and friends can help keep you encouraged, but it’s important for you to be able to do it for yourself too.
7. Focus on the end result
Close your eyes and picture your place when you’re done decluttering. Think about how nice and clear your space is. Think of the feeling you’ll have get as you walk around in a clear space.
The overwhelming feeling often comes from focusing too much on the beginning of the process. Instead of focusing so much on the beginning, try to focus on the end result.
It can help elevate your mood and increase your desire to really get some work done on your space.
8. Give yourself a reward
Having something to look forward to in the immediate future might help you feel less overwhelmed. Think of a reward you can give yourself after you accomplish a decluttering task.
It can be something as simple as a bowl of ice cream or going out to somewhere you like.
Rewarding yourself for your consistency can help form a habit of decluttering daily.
9. Do it
Ultimately, the only way you’re going to get started is to actually start. Taking that first step can make each that comes afterwards easier.
Think of something really small that you can remove from your house now. Make that your first step and then you can feel good about yourself for actually getting started.
10. Have a plan
Having a plan written down can make you feel more calm about what direction to go. Set up a schedule of what you’re going to do and when you’re going to do it.
Writing out the plan helps to take all of the thought of what to do out of your head. With less stressful thoughts weighing you down, you’ll be more able to get started.
11. Get energized
Building up your energy can help turn around those negative emotions you might be feeling. Make yourself feel really good by eating your favorite meal before you start.
Put on one of your favorite songs that always gets you pumped up and ready to tackle your day.
As silly as this might sound, try jumping around and building up your enthusiasm. Creating all of that positive energy can be a good way to get yourself to really tackle the work you need to do.
Getting started on decluttering when you’re feeling overwhelmed can be tough. You might be thinking it’s impossible to declutter your home, but it’s not.
All it takes is time and effort. Putting in a little bit of work every day and feeling good about yourself for the work you do.
You have what it takes to get your space looking exactly the way you want it to look. Make a plan, build up your energy, and get started.
Focus on the end result as much as possible, and before you know it, you’ll have your home clutter free.