Chapter 2 Painless Purging with the 21 Item Toss When you finally decide it's time to organize, the best place to start is by purging. First, let's go back to the two definitions of clutter-- Clutter in the dictionary: (A lot of objects in) a state of being untidy. My definition of clutter: Any item you do not use or love. Clutter is often the overflow of stuff without a home and found out in the open on flat surfaces like counters, tables, dresser tops, or even on the floor. This clutter is the result of life, often because we are too busy or sometimes too lazy to put things away. But then there is also the clutter that is the result of plain having too many things. I've often told the story of my grandmother and her teddy bears. It all began with the simple act of collecting tiny ceramic bears.
Once friends and family got wind, everyone began giving her bear gifts. Every holiday and every birthday. Stuffed bears, bear art--even a bear toilet seat cover! It got so every surface of her home was covered in bears. It wasn't until she had to temporarily move to an assisted living apartment after surgery that she saw the difference between her super-bear-cluttered home and the clutter free apartment she was temporarily living in. This experience opened her eyes. As soon as she returned to her own home, and despite the guilt of getting rid of gifts, she packed up and donated every single bear. She now loves living in her home. While I would love to tell you that it is possible to organize a home without throwing anything out, I'd be lying to you.
Purging is by far the most important and most difficult part of decluttering your home. And when it comes to purging, the best advice I can give is follow your gut. If it feels like you should chuck it, the do. Don't waste time overthinking it. Make your choice and stick to it. Keep it painless by remembering that things are replaceable, but your time and your happiness is not. The more stuff we have, the more it can take from us. It takes time and energy to clean and maintain an overabundance of stuff.
It takes an emotional toll when things begin to pile up and get in the way. How can you feel calm and relaxed when it takes extra time to search for your keys or find a bill you forgot had to be paid? How good does it feel to open your eyes first thing in the morning to messy home? Let's here and now make an agreement to getting rid of clutter and not letting our "stuff" control our lives and steal our time any more. Purging Tips and Tricks There's nothing I love more than filling my garbage bag with unused or useless objects--many of which get donated to charity. But I am aware, as I've experienced with many clients, of how hard this can be the first time around. With this in mind, I've created some quick and dirty techniques that actually make purging easy, and most importantly, fun.