If you read {this book}, you’ll get about 75% of the way through, and hit the part of the book where Marie Kondo explains in dramatic, colorful sentences and paragraphs, how decluttering your house is magical and life-changing.
As much as I enjoyed this book, I wanted to write my own version of why decluttering changes your life… from a more practical standpoint. She doesn’t give this part of the book much logical thought, but more fluffy sort of unicorns-and-rainbows kind of thoughts…
In my post {here}, I shared with you what I learned from “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up” in a bullet point style, to save you some time and get you started decluttering without cracking the book open.
Now I’m back to share what decluttering has done for me.
I didn’t read “The life-changing magic…” because I expected it to be life-changing. I just wanted a tidy house.
However, since reading and applying the principles laid out, (1. Only keep those things that spark joy. 2. Go through everything in your house by category. 3. Look at everything individually and decide if it sparks joy or not. 4. Organize what you have left.) this is what has happened…
Since I read the book in February I have…
Started a blog.
Joined a workout group.
Go out with friends more often.
Sleep more at night.
Taken on more responsibilities in our family business.
Have a clean & organized house at the end of <almost> every day.
Dug deeper into learning how to make healthier foods for my family.
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Signed up for an art class.
According to Marie Kondo, the “life changing magic” has affected me.
But here’s the reality. When you declutter your house based on what brings you joy, it does several wonderful things to your mindset.
1. Getting rid of unnecessary items makes your house MUCH easier to clean.
This saves time…time you can use for other things you’ve always wanted to do. Like an art class. Less stuff means less to put away when it gets taken out by little hands. (yes, I decluttered the kids’ toys too.)
2. It clears your mind.
Have you ever heard that the “loops” in your mind are the things that add stress to your life? “Loops” are simply things that your mind constantly comes back to. Ex: “I need to remember to take that suit to the dry cleaner.” Then you think 25 other thoughts, and it pops up again, “I’ve got to get that suit to the dry cleaner before 4pm.” and your mind loops back to that thought until the suit is taken to the dry cleaner. Make sense?
Well, at least for me, when there is a stack of papers I need to go through that’s sitting on my table, my mind is consistently looping back to, “I should go through that stack and see what’s in there.” <insert a bunch of other random thoughts> “I bet half of that could be thrown away.” <more random thoughts> “Hopefully there’s nothing in there with a deadline.”
When you eliminate clutter, and place the things you decide to keep in an orderly fashion, your mind becomes more orderly too, because you effectively get rid of mind loops.
3. It has the potential to change your calendar.
As you rid your home of things you don’t need, you might also notice that you start ridding your calendar of things that don’t spark joy for you. Letting go of activities that we might be doing out of obligation or just because we say “yes” too often, can free up lots of time!
For me, letting go of things, freed me to be able to spend more time with my friends over the summer. I had a delightful time taking little excursions to Chicago, sipping coffee at the local Dunkin Donuts, meeting up with friends at the park, and taking family days to visit play centers, or just go grocery shopping and out to eat as one big happy family! With seemingly more on my plate than ever, I have enjoyed many little moments of relaxation. This isn’t magic, it’s just what happens when you clear things out of your life that you don’t need. You find more time.
4. You gain courage.
One thing that I’ve said for a long time is, “I’m not a group workout person. I’ll do my exercises by myself, thank you very much.” From my introverted point of view, exercising with friends was a no-go. Throwing my arms and legs around and getting all sweaty with people SEEING me…no, just no. And now, guess what? I have not only joined a workout group, but I frequently lead our 45 minute workouts!
Where did the courage come from? And how does it relate to decluttering? Well, I think dumping all your clothes on a bed, and getting rid of 50% of your closet, requires some braveness. I think that tossing boxes of things from your kitchen, including your cookbooks, kitchen aid, and wafflemaker, makes you feel a little wild and free. And getting out of your comfort zone, (“I might need this someday! nope. trash.”) makes you test other limits as well, (“I don’t like working out with other people around. nope. gonna try it.”)
[…] the freedom of having less. (If you just recently started reading my blog, you might like to read this post & this other post.) I sometimes wonder if I had started in a large house, with an attic and […]