A Helpful Start

If my clients don't know where to begin with their decluttering I always ask them the same question:

What would help you most if it was decluttered?

This is what I asked myself and the answer was:

My Desk

As I have been decluttering for a while things are quite streamlined in the paperwork department.  This was the last thing I takled when I first started because it was the most scary.  This applies to most people.

If you are in a real pickle with your paperwork and finances then its a fantastic place to start.  I don't have a massive backlog now.  I do leave things for a couple of weeks and this seems to work well for me.  This is how I keep things under control:

• sort the post the minute I get it and throw anything that I do not want into the recycling immediately
• open everything and deal with anything urgent (as you get more organised urgent things will be minimal)
• put everything that just needs filling into a filling tray.  
• put everything else that needs dealing with into an in-tray. This includes receipts, school letters, flyers.  Anything.
• I personally put all sorts of other things that crop up  in there to be dealt with at some point

I keep adding to my filling tray and my intray for two weeks - sometimes more.  I'm not recommending this (its probably better to deal with it weekly or for some people even daily) but it works for me.

This morning I looked at the pile and thought - its time - any longer and things may get out of hand.  The next part of the process involves going through every item in the pile and dealing with it.  Ask yourself for each item:

What needs to be done with this?   I always have a notepad with me to write down any actions that needs to be taken.

I create three basic piles:

• To do - anything that takes less that three minutes to do then I do it there and then otherwise I plan in when I'm going to action what needs to be done
• Filling - I file every piece straight away once I've gone through everything
• Things that belong elsewhere - I usually have a small pile of things that needs to go somewhere else other than the desk - at the end of the session I take things back to where they belong.

My method does look unsightly however.  Two weeks is a long time to pile stuff up before dealing with it.  This is only a problem if it bothers you or it you need the work space that the pile takes up.

If you have an enormous backlog - put it into a large box and treat it as a 'project.'  You can tackle this a little at a time.  Start your new system today - your backlog project is not part of this.  If you try and do them together then getting clear will be tricky.  You need a clean sweep.  This is very refreshing for a cluttered person.

Psychologically if you 'box' the old stuff you are creating a new space for yourself to move forward.

Technically this is about organisation and not just clutter. Some cluttered people are disorganised and some are not.  Often it goes hand in hand.

So Much for Refocusing

Here I am again after a long break.  Interesting.

What I have discovered since starting this blog is that I have too many things going on that I end up neglecting things that are very valuable to me.  It means that no matter that I have great motivation, I also have great motivation for a dozen other projects.  The result of this is that I spread myself too thinly.

I have decided that for one month I will be focusing only on decluttering.

So, if this applies to you think about doing the same.  If you are committed to decluttering, are you prepared to focus only on that for a whole month?  This does not mean neglecting your family, friends or work commitments.   Its just about using all your spare time to 'get the job done.'

You won't have to give anything up long term and it can be comforting to know that you can go back to everything else that you enjoyed doing after the month is up.