Physical decluttering

So here’s part one of ‘How to declutter your life’.

This week is all about physical decluttering, which means it’s time to get some bin bags ready, put on some good (loud) music and have a good old clear out.

It’s always good to get rid of things you don’t use or need anymore. Creating space in real life is good for creating space in your mind.

If you don’t want to keep something, it’s worth designating the following areas before you begin:

Sell online;
Give to friend/family/neighbour;
Charity shop;
Recycle; and
Take to the dump.

Top tips to consider when you’re decluttering:

Things that you wear - go through your wardrobe and get rid of any clothes that you don’t wear or that don’t fit;
Old paperwork – if you hoard a lot of papers, go through them and only keep what you need. Pay close attention to things like payslips and P60s though as you might need them in future. For anything that contains personal data, make sure you shred and dispose safely;
Furniture/larger items – you might have been meaning to get rid for a while but just haven’t found the time or it’s a huge effort. Try using Facebook Marketplace to sell items locally and quickly. It’s really easy and doesn’t take long to set up an item for sale. Best of all you can get people to collect from your home; and
Sentimental things – do this last as this will take the longest and can be a distraction. Does the item give you joy or make you happy? If so, keep it. If not, get rid.

Good luck and persevere! Next week, we look at digital decluttering.