Episode 136: Do This to Declutter Your Space

Your clutter affects more than just your physical space - it causes you mental and emotional stress as well. As a professional organizer, I share my tips on helping you declutter whether you’re in the moving process or you just want to live a bit more minimalistic and simplistic.

The stuff that is causing you stress can be used to help others by donating your books to a local library or giving items to a good cause that’s close to your heart. Getting rid of your extra stuff won’t just help clear your room (& your head), but it can be used to help others live better too!

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With gratitude, Stephanie❤️

Transcript

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Moving Season And A Ruthless Plan

SPEAKER_00 0:05

Hey there. I have this question for you. And as you're getting ready to go back to college, maybe you're moving to a new apartment. Maybe you're moving into a house. Maybe you're getting married and you are having to combine your stuff with your spouse is you need to ask these couple of questions when you are moving. And I want you to be ruthless when you are doing this. And the reason why I'm talking about this is I am actually in the process of moving. Um,

The Packing Question That Changes Everything

SPEAKER_00 0:34

and well, you can't see it, but I got a lot of books back there on the floor. And one of the big questions I want you to ask yourself when you're moving, is do I want to take the energy to pack and unpack and find a place for this item? And it's like we have so much stuff these days. And I will say, even going back to the episode when I talked about like budget and buying stuff, is this is where you can really set yourself up to save money and live a minimalist lifestyle and not fill your home or your apartment or your dorm, whatever space you're living in, with stuff. I don't even

Minimalism To Save Money And Space

SPEAKER_00 1:19

know how I have accumulated so much stuff. I'm not really a shopper. I tend to only like shop with what I need, but I just feel like every time I move, I'm like, where did all this stuff come from? Why did I spend money on this? The next time you move is really look at something. Let's just take this mug, for instance. I have a lot of mugs. So, first of all, the next time I need to buy a mug, I don't need to buy a mug. And I'm gonna say, Stephanie, you have plenty of mugs. Why are you buying this mug? Do not buy any more mugs. But even while I'm moving, is now I am not going to take all my mugs with me. And so I would look at this mug and say, Do I want to take the energy to wrap this, to pack it, to unpack it? And is there going to be space in the new place? Maybe the answer is yes. Maybe the answer is no. But I just really, really challenge you of over the next year, of even if you are not moving, of how can you simplify your life? As a former professional organizer for 10 years, I had my own professional organizing business, is our things cause us not only physical clutter, but they cause us mental clutter, mental stress. And it is hard to, I feel like, navigate our home so much when we have things in it. And so I just really challenge you is that's one process you can go through is when you're moving, is just asking yourself that question of, hey, do I want to take

Planning Without Knowing The Next Home

SPEAKER_00 2:47

the energy to pack, unpack? And then the big thing is is where am I gonna put this when uh I move to a new place? That's actually something I my husband and I have sold our house and we don't have a new place. We don't know where we are going. And so I've delayed packing because I'm like, I don't know if I will have space in the new house. Or maybe if I do have space, there's some things that are on the border, especially dishes. I love dishes. And so it's like, if I have space in the new house, maybe I'll pack because I love to entertain and show hospitality. But if I don't, then I'm gonna have to decide what goes and what doesn't go.

Room By Room Organizing Method

SPEAKER_00 3:22

But let's take this a level deeper to if you're like 70, I'm not moving and this isn't relevant to me, is I want you just to think about, you know, over the next six months is take it a room at a time and just say, hey, I'm gonna go into this room. I, whenever I was working with clients, is we would always pick a starting point and we would work around the room. The reason why I love doing that is because you always know where you ended, and it's not like just going in a room and just like picking a bunch of things, and then you run out of time, and then you got to figure out like, okay, where where did I start and stop? So for instance, if we were organizing this room or if we were going through it, is I might start over here at this sign and I'd work my way back to the chair, to the books, bookshelves. Um, there's a table, and then over here, um, and then my desk is actually right here. And so I would work through like my desk and I've got a shelf over there. And my big thing is is you touch everything. No, like picking up stacks and moving it as you touch everything. And since you're in a house and you're not gonna have to worry about packing it, it's just like why am I holding on to this item? Is it bringing me joy? Is it taking up space that I don't I want to clear some space out? Uh, for me, I have a lot of books and I love my books. But as I've been going through them, is some of those books I may have bought in a different season of life and I'm not in that season. Two is

Books, Life Seasons, And Letting Go

SPEAKER_00 4:50

I look at it and like, am I really gonna read this book? Probably not. I can get really excited about certain fiction books, but honestly, being a dyslexic, it takes me very long to read fiction books. And so I listen to them on audio now. So it's like most of the fiction books I have, I'm just going to donate or give away, put in a little free library. And then that's other question to ask yourself is if you're not using it, if you don't love it, is who can use it? A lot of times on my giving journey or some of my gifts that I give every day is taking things that I have and giving them to somebody that I know will enjoy them, can use them. I mean, for books, like I can just take them to the little free libraries, and there's a bunch just in my community. I'm gonna drive around and just drop some off. I also have a friend that has a prison ministry and he's looking to start a library in the prison. And so um, he has some very specific types of books that he wants. And so I've been making a pile for him. All that to say is I want you to think about when you start your next year or your next quarter or however you're

Donate, Gift, And Start Lighter

SPEAKER_00 5:58

blocking your life, is you want to start it a little bit lighter, a little bit less stressed, and a little bit simplified. And then I want you to think about is the next time you go to buy something, ask yourself one, why am I buying this? Do I need this? Do I have a better use for this money? Am I going in debt for this? Really, really get to thinking about why you are making a certain purchase. Um, where's it gonna go in my home? Is there something that I can get rid of if I bring this item into my home? So today is just a quick episode that is just thinking about your physical clutter, which causes mental clutter, helping you maybe pack, move,

Questions To Ask Before Buying

SPEAKER_00 6:41

but also if where you're staying is getting you a little more organized. And I hope this is just another way that you can get to giving your best life. Thank you for listening to the Giving Your Best Life podcast. If this episode encouraged you, would you please share it with a friend or family member? Also, we'd love it if you would rate and review this podcast. Finally,

Quick Wrap Up And How To Support

SPEAKER_00 7:05

if you want to connect with us, subscribe to our YouTube channel or follow us on TikTok and Instagram at GivingYourBest Life. Have a fabulous day.