Clutter can take many forms, all of which don’t deserve to dwell in your home or your mind. Follow the steps below to organize and reclaim your space!

1. Focus on one category. Set a timer (two 25-minute chunks or one 30-minute chunk), and purge! 
2. Move through one category (or subcategory) per week. 
3. Remember to schedule a time on your calendar to drop off donation items. If you purge clutter and leave it in garbage bags in your garage, it’s still clutter. 

Physical Clutter

• Clothing & Shoes
• Paint & Tools
• Toys

Mental Clutter

• Half-finished projects or tasks – Break down larger tasks into manageable chunks and start checking things off
• An over stimulating environment – Check your surroundings for visual clutter. Simplify to create a more calming space

Paper Clutter

• Schoolwork – Designate one tote for each child. Check out my Complete Paper System for the complete how-to
• Bills – Automate what you can, and use the Complete Paper System to organize the rest
• Manuals & User Guides – You can find these online, so ditch them

Digital Clutter

• Photos – Organize into albums and delete duplicates

• Emails – Create categories and unsubscribe
• Old accounts or passwords – If you don’t have a password manager, check out 1password

Sentimental Clutter

• Books – Pass along books to friends or family, and donate the rest to a local library
• Photos – Remove duplicates and blurry photos
• Heirlooms – This category is one of the most challenging to declutter. If you don’t feel like you are emotionally prepared to purge this category, it’s perfectly ok to wait a few months, or even years. Revisit this category when you’re ready.