Here’s to letting go of the old to make room for the new. What if going into this New Year wasn’t full of clutter, and baggage in your mind from all the things you did last year? Or toys on toys upon more toys from yet another Christmas full of gifts? What if it wasn’t full of desks with files that have been stuffed to the max with papers and mail that you never even read? You are about to go into a whole new year that everyone says is supposed to be full of goals. Big, lofty goals! Intentions that knock your socks off, projects, and income increases. More activities, better grades for your kids, fewer late drop-offs. Basically, more of everything. So, let’s declutter your home to make room for the New Year.
Listen Below For The Entire Episode On The Systemize Your Life Podcast
Let Go Of The Old, And Welcome In The New: How To Declutter Your Home For The New Year
This year’s supposed to be full, really full, and bigger and better. All your dreams are supposed to be coming true. Your health is supposed to be better. You’re supposed to be skinny. Then there’s your house, which is supposed to be clean all the time. Plus, your laundry always done. Your kitchen cupboards are supposed to be organized. But, how in the world are you ever going to fit all of that in? Especially when you can’t even deal with what’s already lying around today?
The reality is it’s impossible to fit more than a gallon of water into a gallon jug. The same goes for this next year of your life. It’s impossible to make room for growth in your life if there isn’t room for it. You’re going to have to open up space in your life for peace, abundance, joy and growth. In this episode I’m going to guide you there. I’m going to guide you through how to declutter your home so you can let go of the mess and stress. Get ready to make space for the blessing the new year has in store for you.
Step One To Declutter Your Home – Identify Areas Of Your Home That Need The Most Attention:
The first step to declutter your home is to decide which areas need your attention first. As much as we want to do everything all at once we can’t.
Ask yourself:
What’s failing you the most?
Is there something that’s not working for you or making your life more complicated?
What are you struggling with daily?
What’s causing you a problem every time you go to do something?
Start there. Stand in front of it and ask yourself “Why is this not working?”. Are there items in there that you don’t use? Immediately get rid of them. What isn’t serving a purpose? Get rid of that. Finally, is there something there you thought you were going to use for a specific purpose but you’re not? That can go.
Make space for the new by decluttering areas in your home
Now, if you want a new wardrobe, you’re going to have to get rid of some of what you have. If you want an office space that’s clean and efficient you’re going to have to get rid of old papers. Perhaps you’re dying to see your kitchen sink empty every single night before bed. Wouldn’t it be amazing if we could just make that happen? What would it be like if there’s never any dishes in the sink in the morning when you woke up? You’re going to have to get rid of all the Tupperware that doesn’t have lids and the 12 straws that don’t have cups. Additionally, you’re also going to need to get rid of all 25 water bottles that you have laying around.
It’s all going to have to go this year. Get rid of all the stuff you’re not using. Anything you haven’t used. Anything you know you’re not going to use without looking through it. Just let it go.
When decluttering your home, focus on what can go
Focus on what you can get rid of. If you truly want to clean out your space, you need to reduce the stuff. Especially the stuff that’s been taking up space waiting. Those things are hindering you more than having to get one later if you do need it in the future.
However, don’t worry about setting it the perfect system now. Right now is the time in your year when things are wrapping up, things are coming to a close. It’s a time to prepare your heart and your mind to let go of things that you don’t need. It’s time to cleanse and declutter your home, to lighten up your space and your thoughts. Your thoughts are so heavily connected to the space that you live in. I promise you that once you start decluttering your home your headspace is going to open up dramatically. This really can be so simple.
Declutter Your Home Step Two – Ask “What Would It Look Like If This Space Was Serving Me?”
Next, when working through decluttering your home, another great question to ask yourself is:
“What would it look like if this space was serving me?” or “What would it look like if it was working for me at max capacity?”
Instead of just sitting and thinking about it, get up and go stand in front of the area you are working on while you consider this. Give everything a specific space or place. Everyone would know what goes where and would be able to easily access those spaces.
Even decluttering small spaces in your home can make a big difference
Here’s a super oversimplified but really good example of this. Behind the couch in my living room, there’s this small nook of space. For the last few years, we have kept a cardboard box that my oldest daughter was obsessed with sitting and painting in. From time to time she gets it out when she wants to paint in it. Recently, I’ve also been keeping some props behind there for photography. The boards that I lay down to take some of the styled images that I put on my Instagram feed.
Whenever I go to take these photos, I have to fight with this box to get out my flat lay boards. It’s not a huge mess, only takes me a couple extra minutes, but when I think about it I’m annoyed. It’s a nuisance. It keeps me from wanting to do those styled shoots that I want to be doing. I know that simply looking at that space and getting rid of this box would free up the space. If I decluttered this space in my home, it would free up space for my creativity.
“If you truly want to clean out your space, you need to reduce the stuff, especially the stuff that’s been taking up space waiting.”
Clean Out Your Fridge To Prepare For The New Year:
If you have a goal surrounding anything to do with food you need to take a look at your fridge. Even if you don’t, address your fridge anyway. This is the one space in your home that holds all your fresh food. We all know how easily they can become overflowing and disorganized. Just as before, the first thing to do when looking at decluttering an area in your home is to go stand in front of it. Go stand in front of your refrigerator, open the doors, and look.
What’s been in there for a long time? How many condiments are overflowing? What’s old? What’s expired? Is there a drawer that won’t open? What’s not working? Is there a space in there that annoys you that you can potentially make work better for you? Now, clear it out. Throw away any expired food. Get rid of anything in there you know no one is going to use.
Declutter your fridge and make it work for you
Now, start making a plan. Decide where all of the produce goes, where the greens go, where the meat goes, where the eggs go. Do you need containers to put things in? Do you need bins to help organize things and make items easier to find and grab? What do you need for this to be serving you better? Do you need space for fresh fruits and veggies for your kids to find and grab easily? Maybe a shelf for prepped meals? Or a spot for lunch boxes? Go down to the dollar store or whatever store you like and get what you need. Look at that space in your refrigerator and think “What do I need for this to be serving me better?” Make a plan for what will make it work better and start implementing it.
Prepare your Desk And/Or Command Center:
A key location to consider when decluttering your home is your desk or command center. Or wherever it is you tackle home management tasks. Things like bills, running your side business, working from home, online courses, kids homework, etc.. These are spaces we struggle with because they so easily become overwhelming and disorganized. We had to consider them when talking about decluttering your home for the New Year. Sit down and start getting rid of things. Don’t think about it, just do it. You won’t regret it.
If there have been sticky notes sitting there for more than a couple of weeks, get rid of them. Compile them and write down the important things if you need to – in one notebook. Go listen to Episode #2 – How To Do A Brain Dump if you need help developing a better system instead of those sticky notes.
Decluttering the command center in your home
Stand or sit in this space and figure out what sections were causing the most chaos. Is your desk so cluttered you don’t have room to work on it? Do you need shelves to store things like stationary or a container to hold all your pens and pencils? What do you need for this to function efficiently and comfortably for you?
Consider all the tasks you usually do when you sit down at your desk. Think about what you need for each of them. Make sure those items are there, but remember the key to this is to get rid of what is in the way and no longer needed first.
What Happens In Two Weeks After You’ve Decluttered Your Home?
Here’s the big question. You spend all this time focused on decluttering your home and then what happens two weeks from now? The excess comes right back, doesn’t it? It just comes right back and you know why? Because of habits, because of decisions, discipline, and what we want to put our minds to. The reason behind what we’re doing is the key here.
Once you get rid of everything that you don’t use it feels so good. It’s refreshing, but it stinks when it all piles back up again. So let’s spend a little bit of time talking about it. I truly believe that the reason behind our behaviors is what the key to success is all about. You can organize. You can buy fancy containers, do all the things, but it’s all going to pile right back up again if you don’t address your behaviors. Or the reasons why you’re making the decisions that you’re making.
To Make Decluttering Your Home Last, Consider The Why Behind The Issue.
The number one way that you can make sure that the spaces in your home that have caused you strife and tend to get cluttered don’t become cluttered over and over and over again is to look at why the build-up is happening.
For some of us, it might be a simple thing. Like there’s something in the way or something isn’t functioning properly like that box in the corner of my living room. Sometimes, the reasons why spaces are cluttered are going to pull on your heartstrings a little bit more than that. Sometimes, it’s not just about physical space, sometimes it’s about something that you’re hiding and avoiding emotionally. Especially for those things that we’re trying to get rid of that are related to pain or shame or blame that’s been put on us. I know that you’re here today for this very reason because you need to hear this. You need to know that amazing things are going to come into your life. All you have to do is make room for them.
You can declutter your home no matter what your goals are
If you have a business you’re trying to grow and your desk space is a cluttered mess you can face that. You can create a space that brings fresh ideas to your mind and encourages you to sit every day. If you’re the mom who’s trying to lose a little bit of weight and get your eating on track you can tackle that. Whatever areas you decide you need to work on when you set out to declutter your house, know that you can make them beautiful, functional spaces that truly work for you and your family.
The key to decluttering your home is letting go
Take whatever it is that you’re just storing, that you’re just keeping there, that is holding you back from what God wants to bring into your life and remove it. Sit down and have a short conversation with yourself. Figure out why these pain points and these problem areas in your home have been holding you back. Figure out why the build-up is happening and address it head-on. Let’s get through this. I want you to be able to get started with this right now!
I know you can make room for amazing things in the year ahead of you. As you declutter your home to prepare for the New Year, I challenge you to let go of a few things. Discover how they make you feel good, makes you feel light and fresh.
Find inspiration to declutter your home to prepare for the New Year
I cannot wait to hear what happens when you guys start doing this. If you’re a Pinterest junkie like me I highly encourage you search for the Marie Kondo or the Konmari method. This is where I get most of my inspiration. Tips for having a capsule wardrobe. Ideas for keeping my house as minimal as possible and transitioning to a very minimal lifestyle.
I hope that you take what you learned here and apply it to whatever you are trying to accomplish for yourself. Come tell me about it. Come over and visit me on Instagram. Take a picture of your space before and after, and tell me about it. Share how letting go of old stuff is making room for new and bigger and better things. Feeling inspired and want even more support from other busy mommas just like you? Come check out my free Facebook group
Frequently Asked Questions
I want to declutter my home but I don't know what to do first?
Start by choosing one area that’s bothering you. One that’s overflowing. Or makes you sigh in frustration whenever you have to go near it. Then, start with anything there that you can get rid of. Start removing anything that no longer belongs or is no longer useful. As you create space, even in small amounts, you will feel inspired and motivated to keep going. Want even more guidance? Jump into Systemize Your Life as a VIP student and start at the ESCAPE method bonus where you learn the most direct path to a clutter-free home and sound mind. Join us in the Systemize Your Life Facebook group for support to help you move towards your decluttering goals! You can do this!
