5 Things You Should Declutter

The first of the year is a time when most people think about starting over or New Year resolutions. For me, it’s a time to declutter. Below, I will share 5 ways to declutter that have made my life easier every year, and I hope these steps will do the same for you.

DECLUTTER YOUR CLOSET

• Clean out the clothes and shoes from your closet you have not used in at least a year. This is the most obvious source of decluttering.

I learned that cleaning my closet should be done more often than annually, at least 2 to 3 times a year, preferably as the seasons change. I found, it was not as time consuming as I thought it would be, and it made things easier to manage.

⇒Note ― Simplifying your closet can make life a lot better.

DECLUTTER YOUR FINANCES

Many years ago, my ex-husband and I implemented an annual financial check-up. It was an intentional process that made us STOP and look at all the bills we were paying. This process allowed us to declutter our finances by taking the following steps. Give it a try!

• Review all your bills to ensure no extra charges are being added that you may not realize.
• Examine your finances to determine what accounts are no longer needed, and pay them off.
• Call creditors to either discuss changes or inquire of new promotions that you may be able to receive that could help get lower interest rates. Also, if possible, pay down debt.
• Get your FREE credit reports from annualcreditreport.com. If you have any disputes or discrepancies, contact Equifax, Transunion, and Experian individually to address any errors, as needed, and don’t forget to join Credit Karma to see your credit scores.

⇒ Note ― Cleaning up and decluttering your finances will also require taking a serious look at your spending habits, especially on clothes and shoes.

DECLUTTER YOUR DIET

This one is easy because after the holidays, everyone is ready to change their diets.

• Start small with herbs by throwing out the old ones, and the unused ones. While you are at it, try new herbs and spices along with new recipes.
• Decluttering your diet will include changing your eating habits. As you remove foods that are no longer useful in your diet, start reading food labels to learn new ways to get the proper nutrients.

⇒Note ― Clean your refrigerator and cabinets of old food to make way for healthier foods.

DECLUTTER YOUR TECHNOLOGY

Social media, emails and everything technology has become a huge part of most of our lives. It can consume your time and attention without you even realizing it. Decluttering your technology should be done in small bites.

• As for social media, take a break from it for 7 days. For some of us, it can be hard, but very cleansing. If you are anything like me with tons of emails coming in daily, cleaning your inbox can be a big undertaking that will require patience.
• Eliminate incoming emails that you don’t need, “unsubscribe” to as many as possible.
• Practice going without your cell phone at times, especially at intimate family gatherings, dinner or at meetings. My grandson and I went out for dinner and the cell phones were left at home.

⇒Note ― Leave the phone in another part of the house, especially, when spending your time with family.

DECLUTTTER YOUR TIME

Time is your greatest commodity and it should be used wisely.  I read a book called, “The One Thing.” It stressed the importance of doing one thing at a time. This book changed my life.

• Declutter your time by determining what is needed to complete the goals you set for your life. Then shoot for your goals.
• Evaluate where you are spending your time and declutter those things that are not a part of your purpose, doing so will give you freedom.

⇒Note ― Not decluttering your time is a cost too high to pay. Spend it wisely.

By: Nadine Y. Hailey

 

Have you started decluttering your life?  If not, why? Comment below!

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