Moving is an excellent opportunity to declutter your present home. (We hope clutter isn’t the reason you’re moving!) Moving is also an opportunity to create an uncluttered life. Maybe you’re not enough of a hoarder to qualify for a reality TV show, but wouldn’t it be nice to take an anti-clutter attitude with you to your new abode.
Let’s say you’ve paid attention to our blogs on prepping for a move, and you’ve gotten rid of a lot of unnecessary stuff. Smart move. Allow us to offer a few practical tips on how to keep your new place from cluttering up way too fast.
Level those ugly mountains of paperwork
One thing that will continue to pile up after your move is paperwork. With the extra paperwork generated by your move, papers will collect fast and pile deep. Home office desks and kitchen counters are often the biggest victims of paper clutter. What starts out as neat piles quickly turns into a landslide waiting to be triggered by a search for some small receipt that you suddenly need.
Shrink those paper piles like Preparation H. Sign up for paperless billing at every opportunity, and scan and save the digital copies of your existing paperwork. Then, shred away those mountains of paperwork that are impeding your view of real mountains.
Mantra: “Every day in every way, my life is getting less cluttered”
Get in the habit of giving away one item each day. It might feel odd at first but you’ll be joining something of a movement with online support if you need it. At www.365lessthings.com, Colleen Madsen shares her own experiences of reducing her stuff one day at a time. Giving away stuff is a nightmare idea if you’re a clutter-bug. But your liberation is coming if you follow her advice.
If you can get into the daily giveaway habit, this next declutter habit will be easy. Grab a garbage bag and go on the lookout around your new house for 15 minutes day, not only for garbage-worthy stuff but other recyclable stuff. (Your cats will become less skittish as time goes by.) Challenge yourself to make most of those bag-full trips to the nearest recycle or donation bin instead of the dumpster.
Be ruthless
We don’t mean you should be ruthless in all areas of your life. Just in the declutter area. Don’t get attached to lofty ideas about stuff you think might become useful down the road. It’s hard to be ruthless at first. But it will come naturally with practice. Especially when combined with the 365 Less Things Plan and the 15 minute grab-a-garbage-bag plan.
Our previously posted blog Getting Rid of Clutter Before Moving can help ease that pre-move stress. We hope this blog will help you develop an anti-clutter attitude that you can transport with you. Kary Movers can transport everything else. Give us call at 1.877.687.1746 If you prefer, you can email us at info@karymovers.com or connect with us via our online form.