A new year brings fresh hope in getting life started off right. What better time to confront the intimidating task of de-cluttering your home?
“De-cluttering will make you feel lighter emotionally, physically and mentally,” says Dustyn Shroff, Vice President of GreatFlorida Insurance, Florida’s largest independent homeowners insurance agency.
Clutter causes stress. An overabundance of stuff can be draining. Less stuff translates into less energy spent organizing and re-organizing and more time spent on the things you enjoy.
De-cluttering your home gives you more control over your life. It allows you to identify what is really important and what you no longer need hanging around.
“Getting started is often the hardest part,” says Buck, of GreatFlorida Insurance, Florida’s top independent homeowners insurance agency.
For their advice on how best to pare down, Elle Décor contacted home experts to see what they had to say. Some of their suggestions include: Don’t keep anything you wouldn’t pay to move. Let go of “only when” clothing. That is clothing that will fit if you just lose five pounds or a shirt that could make a great Halloween costume.
Additionally, do not keep family heirlooms that you feel guilty about giving away. Also, toss furniture and objects that are associated with exes. There is no need to hang on to items that conjure up memories of the past. Get rid of those items and give yourself an opportunity to create new memories.
Organizing consultant and author Marie Kondo, encourages people to surround themselves with items that offer positive significance to their life. She has created an organizing method based on keeping items that “spark joy,” and doing away with things that have no meaning. Consequently, this will give people a greater appreciation for the things they own.
Notably, she explains in her book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, “We should be choosing what we want to keep, not what we want to get rid of.”
Once your perspective on your stuff changes, you can get to work. Certain things might come to mind right away, but if you need a little more guidance, the Today show has provided a list of 100 things to toss, listed room by room.
GreatFlorida Insurance provides homeowners insurance coverage for the things that matter to you and your family. Get a free quote today.
