Have you ever looked at your home and felt stuck? Walls are caving in, every surface and corner filled with papers and objects stacked on top of each other. The desk is so utterly disorganized that a keyboard and mouse are barely peeking through the debris.

When did it all get so messy? 

To be honest, when I see my home in disarray, it fills me with anxiety. I get so anxious that I want to scream, cry, and fall to the ground. 

I think I ended up in the fetal position.

Reacting in that way made me feel like I was losing. Incapable of keeping a clean home or deserving enough to have any order in my life. But I didn’t want to fail. 

I wanted to enjoy my apartment. 

After a long adventure away, I wanted to be excited about coming home again! Who doesn’t want that?

That’s why I wrote about How to Declutter Your Home!! But sometimes we just need tips to start decluttering Right Now! 

So here are some of the best tips to start decluttering today! 

The Tips For Decluttering

1. Get Rid of visible trash or broken items

Grab a garbage bag and turn on the timer for 10 minutes. Once the timer begins, go to every room and get all the items that are trash or broken. 

Adding a time limit to a task motivates me to complete as much as possible. It’s like for those five or 10 minutes I need to be the energizer bunny. I feel so satisfied if I only do this one task today.

Ready. Set. Go!

2. Return things to where they belong.

I use an Ikea Bag, but laundry baskets are most common around the household. 

I put all items that don’t belong in a room into the bag. As I move from room to room, each piece is put back in its place. 

Easy peasy don’t you think? The room order I use is as follows: Living Room, Bathroom, Bedroom, Kitchen, and finally Laundry room/area. 

When things are in order, I feel instant relief, and I hope you do too!

3. Clear surfaces

Most of my clutter lives on my counters, desks, and tables. Sound familiar? 

If so, tackle one surface. Throw away, Recycle, Put away, or Donate. I got rid of everything from my desk, and it made me feel organized!! Finally a place for my thoughts. 

Clear counters, make it easy to spot anything that is out of place. 

4. Go through your closet.

Before I started decluttering, my closet had a million hangers, one big pile of clothes on the floor, and so many non-used shoes. 

The constant need to have a new outfit for every event was insatiable. 

But once I made the commitment to declutter, I was able to see every article of clothing for what it was… either an item I wore just once or an everyday piece. 

FYI, my first attempt at clearing my wardrobe left me with 80% of my clothes. It took me about a year and several decluttering sessions to cull my closet. 

So if this is your first time, take out what feels comfortable for you, pieces with holes, others that don’t fit you, or items that are no longer your style. 

It might not be a lot, but it’s a start! 

B T Dubs, Less choice in your wardrobe reduces stress and thinking. 

5. Join a Challenge!

There are so many great people online who host incredible challenges, and it’s 100% inspirational. 

• 12-12-12 Challenge by becoming minimalist - A simple task of locating 12 items to throw away, 12 items to donate, and 12 items to be returned to their proper home can be an entertaining and exciting way to organize 36 things in your house quickly.

• 365 Challenge - Colleen Madsen, gave herself a mission to get rid of one thing a day for 365 days. Follow along as she provides a mini-mission with every day at 365lessthings.com.

• 30 Day Minimalism Game by the minimalists - On day one, get rid of one thing. Day two, get rid of two things. And by day 30 you get rid of 30items. In total, you will get rid of 465 things! Holy Moly, that’s a lot! Can you imagine having 465 fewer items in your home?

We are social creatures! It’s always better to do things with others. 

6. go through your papers.

Is it just me or do papers pile up like nobody's business?

One day, it’s a small pile, next my desk is covered in stacks of mail, random papers, and receipts. It’s a total bummer.

Until I met my best friend, Mr. Shredder. I keep my papers in one place, and once a week, I go through everything that I can shred (bills, anything with my name and address, and receipts). Whatever I want to keep goes directly in a file. Bye, bye stacks of junk mail!

Paper Free is the way to be!

7. Check the forgotten areas!!

Check under the sinks, under your bed, laundry area, car or your purse! Clear out the trash, any items that you don’t use, old/expired cards. Keep it neat and simple with the basics! 

Areas that are not top of mind still contribute to stress. 

Bonus! My Favorite and Best Decluttering Tip

Take Action Now

Set the timer for ten minutes and get rid of 10 things right now! Sometimes we just need to motivate and get things done. A deadline plus a little motivation is a fantastic way to kickstart decluttering. 

It’s time to Let Go!

Decluttering is different for everyone. What works for me, may not work for you and that is okay! The whole point is to get your home and mind in a place so you can focus on what’s important to YOU. 

Every step you take, no matter the size, is a step on your journey to living with less. And you know what? That’s freaking marvelous!! 

You should be proud of everything you do. If we only celebrate the big wins life becomes an endless journey to finish, but life isn’t about finishing, it’s about enjoying all the moments in between. 

No matter what method you use to clear your clutter, I hope this was able to motivate you to have at least one less thing. Have any tips? Share them below. 

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